Bogotá (Colombia). On 12 and 13 September 2025, at the Salesian University of Bogota, over 250 – including educators, directors, religious, catechists, and members of the Salesian Family of Colombia – met for the II Educommunication Congress.
The event was promoted by the Provincial Coordinators of Education and Communication of the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (HHSSCC), the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA), and the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB).
With the motto, “Educating for hope, a Salesian challenge today”, the Congress proposed key tools to strengthen the integral education of young people in a constantly evolving educational context. The reflection revolved around how to educate with hope and in the Salesian style, trying to respond with creativity and commitment to contemporary challenges.
During the event, participants heard presentations from two female speakers, both FMAs:
- Sister Sara Cecilia Sierra, Provincial of the Colombian Province Mother Mazzarello (CMM), gave a report on transversal skills as fundamental mediations to form people capable of communicating and transforming reality based on hope. Her talk was structured around three main points: Evoke to understand; Understand to make sense; Give meaning as a life purpose.
Sister Sara stressed that, beyond technical skills, it is crucial how a person manages their emotions, builds relationships, deals with conflicts, and finds meaning in their life. She stressed the importance of creating safe spaces that promote integral development. She also stated that the current Salesian mission is called to educate humanity, strengthen support networks, and project young people towards a future of hope, based on the values of the Gospel and the style of Don Bosco.
- Sister Marcia Kofferman, of Our Lady Aparecida Province (BAP) of Brazil, offered a conference on the theme: “Educommunication: A Critical and Transformative Perspective to Educate to Hope in the Contemporary Era”. She addressed the origins of Educommunication from a Latin American point of view and its link with the Salesian educational proposal.
Sister Marcia affirmed that educating in and through communication is the key to forming Christians and citizens capable of transforming reality in the light of the Gospel. She insisted on the need to overcome educational models based on discard and individualism, proposing a more inclusive, sustainable, and hopeful paradigm. She emphasized that the educommunicative ecosystem transforms relationships and, through them, people and the world.
Thematic tables and reflection
In the various working groups, the areas of intervention of Educommunication were explored in depth:
- Education to Communication: transformative foundations and practices;
- Education in Technological Mediation: critical formation in the digital environment;
- Education through Art: communicative expression and integral formation;
- Communication with the Transcendent: spirituality, hope, and human dignity;
- Communication Management: organization, dialogue, and community;
- Media Production: protagonism, ethics, and hope in the digital culture;
- Integral Ecology Education: a critical and transformative proposal.
Furthermore, significant experiences of some publishing houses and of the ongoing formation plan of Our Lady of the Rosary Province Chiquinquirá were shared (CBC).
In small groups, topics such as: integral ecology, authenticity in educational communication, technological mediation, transcendent communication, and strategic communication management were also addressed. In their presentations, the participating Provinces were outstanding for their creativity and rigorous research.
The II Educommunication Congress ended with the presentation of the Don Bosco Center Artistic Project, “A film concert”, an event that filled the auditorium with color and joy. In conclusion, concrete commitments towards Educommunication as a way to form young people in critical thinking with a Salesian heart were renewed. This meeting reaffirmed the educational mission of the Salesian Family in Colombia: to continue to educate with passion, hope, and with a transformative gaze projected towards the future.
