As part of the Global Education Pact promoted by Pope Francis, the educational ministries of the Daughters of Jesus in Brazil are taking a new step in their commitment to an education that integrates integral ecology, inclusion, and social transformation. The Esperançar Project, which originated within the Daughters of Jesus Network, has become the vehicle that translates this pact into concrete actions in the classroom, linking Mother Candida’s charism with the challenges of today’s world.
A project born out of a time of hope
The Esperanzar Project began to take shape in a deeply symbolic context. As stated in the project, “the name arose from Pope Francis’s various calls to have courage and hope,” and its launch coincided with the 2025 Jubilee of Hope, which further inspired its identity. The first version of the project was launched in January 2025, also in alignment with Brazil’s Fraternity Campaign, which that year focused on the environment.
With a strategic vision, the Daughters of Jesus Network officially launched the 2026 version in December 2025 so that schools could plan well in advance and in depth.
An open, flexible, and deeply charismatic design process
The project was initially designed by the provincial coordination team and shared with the schools. The project “is not intended to serve as a ‘blueprint’ that schools must follow, but rather to provide guidance so that, within each context, the seed of hope and the kingdom of justice and peace may be sown.” This methodological approach has allowed each educational community to adapt the project to its own context while maintaining its common essence.
The students have actively participated in the activities organized at each school, exercising creative freedom and taking the lead—one of the pillars of the Global Education Pact.
A trend moving toward more concrete actions
The initial phase of the Esperanzar Project focused on raising awareness, particularly regarding the inclusion of children with special needs and caring for our shared home. In 2025, all schools received an awareness-raising visit from a professional specializing in environmental issues, and subsequently, a socio-environmental assessment was conducted throughout the network.
The 2026 version goes a step further: “We want to move forward and take more concrete actions.” To that end, they have set the following priorities:
- Reduction in water and energy consumption.
- Reduction in paper use.
- Improving waste management.
- Implementation of sustainable practices in everyday school life.
Integral ecology as a cross-curricular theme
The Esperançar Project is structured around a curriculum that seeks to integrate integral ecology into all areas of knowledge. It also emphasizes the importance of “developing a curriculum that not only includes integral ecology as a cross-cutting theme but also integrates it into all disciplines in a systematic and in-depth manner.”
This approach fosters more complex research projects in which students analyze socio-environmental challenges in their local communities and propose innovative solutions. These projects will be presented and discussed with the high school coordinators, thereby strengthening pedagogical continuity.
Teacher Training and Active Learning Methods
The commitment to educational transformation includes a firm commitment to ongoing teacher professional development. Schools are receiving training in methodologies such as Project-Based Learning (PBL), design thinking, and other active strategies that foster creativity, inquiry, and the solving of real-world problems.
A Network That Learns Together
The project also promotes the exchange of best practices among the schools in the Daughters of Jesus Network and with other leading institutions in the areas of inclusion and integral ecology. Esperançar emphasizes the importance of “sharing best practices and learning from each other’s successes and challenges,” thereby strengthening a culture of collaboration that enriches the entire network.
Educating for Hope: A Living Legacy of Saint Candida
The Esperançar Project embodies the educational mission of the Daughters of Jesus: to form individuals who are conscious, committed, and capable of transforming reality. This initiative has established itself as “a model of holistic and transformative education, forming citizens who play a leading role in building a more just, inclusive, and sustainable future.”
In Brazil, hope is taking root in classrooms, on schoolyards, and in the hearts of those who believe that education can change the world.
A Network That Grows in Hope
The Esperançar Project thus joins the stream of experiences that the educational works of the Daughters of Jesus have been weaving around the Global Educational Pact, alongside those already shared by Sacred Heart School-Cebu in the Philippines and the educational works in Colombia. Each local context brings its own unique perspective, but all share the same foundation: educating according to the charism of Saint Candida to sow hope, justice, and care for our common home.
