Called to Lead: JUHAN’s Role in Global Humanitarian Action/Student Conferences as a Way to Promote Collective Action

Julie Mughal, Associate Director, Humanitarian Action, Center for Social Impact, Fairfield University
Isabelle Jenkins, Associate Director, Donelan Office of Community-Based Learning Institution, College of the Holy Cross
Mike Allison, Chair of Political Science Institution, The University of Scranton

With over 70 million forcibly displaced persons, global humanitarian needs are among the world’s most pressing challenges. At the heart of our Jesuit, Catholic mission is to accompany students as they develop as people for and with others, who will walk with those in need to help alleviate suffering and promote human dignity. The need for collaborative action is urgent. Launched in 2008 by Fairfield, Georgetown, and Fordham and now with the involvement of Holy Cross, Scranton, Le Moyne, and Saint Joseph’s among others, the Jesuit Universities Humanitarian Action Network (JUHAN) increases the effectiveness of Jesuit universities to respond to humanitarian crises. Its principal focus is undergraduate education that seeks to advance study and professional practice in the field of humanitarian action through academic courses, student leadership workshops, notable plenary speakers, and biennial student leadership national conferences. Over the past decade and with varying degrees of success, JUHAN has brought together faculty, students and staff from across the Jesuit network to respond to humanitarian crises.