Santa María de los Andes promotes Diploma in Ecology

In line with the Message of the XXII General Chapter, which suggests “creating an integral ecological awareness in all our communities and different ministries”, the School of Formation of Marist Educators of Chile (Province of Santa María de los Andes) has initiated on April 19 its Diploma in Integral Ecology, which will conclude on August 22.

33 teachers from Marist schools in the country have enrolled in the completely virtual diploma course, which consists of 3 modules divided into different sessions.

The diploma aims to make educators aware of the current ecological challenge; to learn about new approaches related to the environmental issue, the richness, complexity and conceptualization of the territory. It also presents a series of experiences on nature, indigenous communities, and other socio-environmental alternatives.

The first module of the Diploma is entitled “The socio-environmental as an approach, rediscovering the environment”, and consists of 5 sessions. The first session was led by the Theologian Pedro Pablo Achondo, one of the directors of the Diploma, who gave a general introduction to the contents of the course. The second session dealt with the theme: “The challenge of a time of crisis, the ecological as a problem”. The third session dealt with the theme: “New perspectives and approaches to understanding the environment”. The fourth session, held on May 9, dealt with “The territory: richness, complexity and conceptualization”.

The Province of Santa Maria de los Andes hopes that, upon graduating from the Diploma in Ecology, the educators will achieve a reflective attitude towards current environmental problems, that they will be able to analyze these social realities and commit themselves to school religious education from the paradigm of Integral Ecology.

The XXII General Chapter asks the Marists to “awaken in ourselves and those around us an ecological awareness that engages us in caring for “our common home”.