Service Learning Program 2012
"One Earth Many Religions: Constructing Dialogue and Solidarity towards the
Integrity of Creation"

August 5-25, 2012
Sanata Dharma University Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Service Learning Program (SLP) is one of the many programs of the AJCU-AP which focuses on providing a place for Jesuit university students in their efforts in applying the Ignatian Pedagogy in their everyday life. It is in an approach to teaching in Higher Education that is consistent with the pedagogy of Jesuit education. It attempts to link the academic studies with the practical experience of community service. It is effectively facilitated through relevant partnership between higher educational institutions and various social institutions both in the private and public sectors. In this approach, community experience is purposively integrated in the scholastic formation of the students. It is considered as the center of their learning  and serves as an arena to do a share for development. In the end, it will bring about in the students a development that is geared towards a lifelong commitment to service and leadership.

Sanata Dharma University will be the host of 2012 AJCU-AP SLP. The next SLP theme will be, "One Earth Many Religions: Constructing Dialogue and Solidarity towards the Integrity of Creation." The program will be focused on understanding the socio-ecological issues, based on the experiential learning in various religious communities. Blueprinted from the Ignatian Pedagogy, the general framework of the program follows the Context-Experience-Reflections-Actions-Evaluation cycle. 

In the first phase, the participants will meet Indonesian context, represented by Yogyakarta's surrounding areas, where the people hold the religious values and practice it in their daily life. These communities, who believe in various religions (Islam, Christian, Buddhism, Hindu and indigenous religions), also come from agricultural roots, where nature and ecological concerns become the main factor of their life. All participants will have some activities with various communities to figure out how inter-religious dialogue becomes a powerful means on responding to ecological issues.

In the second phase, participants will live among the community surrounding Mount Merapi's slope area.This religious-plar community has been recovering after the eruption in 2010. All of the participants will have the experience of working with people in replanting Mount Merapi, building public facilities, empowering local economics, and reinforcing the culture of solidarity.

Next, all of those experiences of living and working with the community will be processed in reflection to contemplate the integrity of creation. We hope that all of the processes will lead the participants to have some contextual actions in their respective countries.