25 June 2025
Bilbao Campus
The International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU) will hold its Assembly 2025 at the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, Colombia. This global gathering of presidents, rectors and leaders of Jesuit higher education institutions will be a space for deep reflection, collaboration and strategic vision in the face of some of the most urgent and complex challenges in the world today.
The Assembly will address key global issues such as migration, the crisis of democracy, environmental sustainability, artificial intelligence, mental health and secularisation - issues that not only affect higher education, but profoundly shape the future of our societies. These are issues that call for collective discernment and action inspired by the Jesuit mission of justice, hope and care for humanity and our common home.
In his address to the delegates of the IAJU at Boston College in 2022, Fr Arturo Sosa, S.J., Superior General of the Society of Jesus, offered guiding words that continue to resonate: "“We are here to seek a process of discernment that leads to shared decisions about what defines the universities, institutes, and faculties that are members of this international association. In other words, we seek to answer the question of what is distinctive about our institutions — what that ‘special’ or ‘unique’ quality is that defines how they engage with the present moment in shaping the desired future.
The 2025 Assembly in Bogotá is a response to this call. It invites Jesuit university leaders to continue this discernment and to articulate a shared vision of what Jesuit education is especially called to offer in a world marked by technological transformation, planetary crisis, social fragmentation, and moral uncertainty. These changes have weakened democracies, prompted mass migration and contributed to a widespread sense of hopelessness, especially among the young people our institutions serve.
Located on the historic and vibrant campus of the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana — one of the most renowned Jesuit universities in Latin America, founded in 1623 — the Assembly will bring together not only university leaders, but also experts, academics, and pastoral voices. Through plenary sessions, workshops, and collaborative spaces, participants will explore how Jesuit universities can prepare future leaders with the knowledge, skills, and humanistic values needed to address the most critical global challenges of our time.
As the Superior General emphasised, the future of Jesuit higher education must be shaped by ‘the distinctly Jesuit way of proceeding.’ At the heart of this approach lies a commitment to the unity of knowledge, where every academic discipline contributes to the common good, and where the humanities provide a vital space to nurture hope and meaning in the face of adversity.
The International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU) is the global network of Catholic Jesuit universities and higher education institutes. Founded in 2018 and recognised by Fr Arturo Sosa, S.J., the Superior General, it serves as the international coordinating and advisory body for the Secretariat of Jesuit Higher Education, advising the Society of Jesus on matters related to the intellectual apostolate and the university mission. Further information at www.iaju.org.
