STUDENTS EXPERIENCE SOCIAL & ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THROUGH MINI-IMMERSION EXPERIENCES

For the "Walking with the Excluded: An Urban Plunge" mini-immersion, a group of nine junior and senior students and four faculty leaders spent the day on foot learning about and encountering our neighbors who suffer from homelessness and poverty. They toured the neighborhood with Dry Bones Denver, learning to see our city from the point of view of the unhoused. Later in the day, they heard from members of the Denver Police Department, including mental health experts who accompany officers on calls and work to bring compassion into law enforcement encounters with the unhoused. The group also engaged with Alan, who has been unhoused for more than 10 years, and shared his story in a dialogue facilitated by Robert Sanchez, father of Allie '22 and longtime writer for 5280 magazine. The entire experience offered an eye-opening and life-changing opportunity for the participants, whose preconceived notions were challenged and hearts softened to the cultivation of kinship.

The "Caring for Our Common Home: Environmental Justice" mini-immersion also took place on this day with a separate group of 16 seniors, led by faculty member Christina Ortiz and Syd Timme, taking part. Students participated in a full day of hands-on, nitty-gritty work in which they connected with nature and heard from local organizers on how to cultivate and sustain fertile land, clean air and clean water. Starting the day with Re:Vision Coop, a nonprofit organization in Denver promoting empowerment, inclusivity and perseverance through food security and cultural preservation in a predominantly low-income Latino community, the group also met with The Greenway Foundation for a river cleanup at Sanderson Gulch. To demonstrate their newly-acquired knowledge and environmental-saving skills, the students purchased food for a shared dinner, having been tasked with making the most sustainable yet frugal dinner not requiring a stove or oven. As a fitting end to the day, the group gathered in Cherry Creek State Park to break bread (i.e. pre-made pizza, cheese, crackers, fruit and s'mores) and reflect on all they learned.

Similar to the mini-immersions offered earlier in the semester, students marked these as enlightening experiences that helped to deepen their faith and expand their global perspective, in support of their formation as Men and Women with and for Others. Read more about the other mini-immersions offered by the Ignatian Immersion & Solidarity Office here.