In this article we are delighted to share an interview with Lionel Chircop, assistant head at St. Aloysius’ College in Malta, who participated in the «Ignatian Global Citizenship» group course.

This is a facilitator-led global course that offers a synchronous global learning experience for Ignatian educators. A new course modality that gives members of our global community the opportunity to learn together as a global group with educators from other schools and countries around the world.

We would like to thank Lionel for sharing his learning experience with other members of our global community through this interview. Thank you Lionel!

Q1. Which of the topics covered in this course most interested you during this group learning experience? And why.

Since I coordinate the Green Team activities at our Sixth Form, I was very interested in the ‘Caring for our common home’ module. The climate change challenge and sustainable development are topics that need a common effort. Sharing ideas and getting to know what others are already doing on this eco-front was very inspiring and encouraging at the same time. Small steps, when taken together, become big advances for the good of all.

Q2. Did you feel you gained a richer or deeper understanding of this topic by reflecting on and discussing it with a global group? If so, please explain.  

Reflecting in a small group setup always gives you the time to listen attentively to others, share the difficulties one encounters in implementing a Green Policy, and provides a communal setting where new insights are born to be shared by all. The multicultural aspect of these online courses not only widens one’s intellectual and practical horizons but empowers all participants to persevere in their efforts and move forward with hope.

Q3. Was this your first time taking a course related to “Ignatian Global Citizenship” as a global group? Please explain your experience.

I believe that visiting any library is in itself a Global Citizenship experience. Libraries are packed with insights, challenges and creative ideas waiting on shelves to be picked up by someone. Also, following essential daily news with critical eyes and intellectual charity is in itself, to me, a global experience. However, sharing ideas and challenges in such a global group of educators adds a communal ‘Ignatian’ feeling, a shared ethos and vision, that immediately projects the local initiatives into a universal scenario. To be global, each one has to act locally.

Q4. What other takeaways would you like to share with other educators who might be thinking of taking this course?  

Engaging with a global educators’ network on issues of common concern has a multiplier effect on several fronts: psychologically it empowers participants to persevere in their tasks, action wise it transforms the small steps taken by local communities into a global project. Also, classroom connections can be established from such courses by discovering educators interested in common projects or teaching common topics. Through such a universal network, we would be giving heed to Pope Francis’ call for a global compact on education, uniting our efforts in a broad education alliance. I strongly believe that such global encounters create fraternity and new spaces where justice and peace can flourish.

It takes a whole world, not just a village, to educate a child.