Dr. Teresa Loong, Vice-Rector for Student Life at the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) Macao, joined global educators and leaders as a guest speaker in the VI Uniservitate Global Symposium, held at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KU) from 6 – 7 November, 2025.
Under the resonant theme, “Service-Learning in a Fragile World: Universities Nourishing Peace and Hope,” the symposium gathered speakers (both online and onsite) from 27 countries with more than 330 registered participants to advance the core goals of the Uniservitate network: research, networking, and institutionalization. The event served as a powerful forum for intercultural dialogue, championing a vision of education rooted in solidarity.
The gathering commenced with the welcoming from Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gien, President of KU Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, and Prof. Dr. Klaus Stüwe, its Vice President for International Affairs alongside partners from Porticus, key leaders from Global Compact on Education, European Association of Service-Learning in Higher Education, and Uniservitate & CLAYSS, grounding the participants in a shared mission of solidarity, learning, and transformation.
A powerful vision for the university was articulated by leaders including Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, who affirmed that “‘Service-learning fully embodies this vocation to educate for service and through service. Service is not an appendix to the educational process but its living heart.’” Fr. Ezio Bono, member of the Committee for the CGE of the Congregation for Catholic Education further highlighted that educators should lead young people on a journey outward to encounter others and the world, and inward to cultivate their spiritual life and search for meaning. This vision—of the university as a community where knowledge becomes wisdom and theory becomes life—echoed throughout the symposium, drawing inspiration from Pope Leo XIV’s Apostolic Letter, Drawing Maps of Hope.
[From left to right: Dr. Teresa Loong, Vice Rector for Student Life at USJ with Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gien, President of KU Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, and Prof. Dr. Klaus Stüwe, its Vice President for International Affairs during the VI UNIVERSITATE Global Symposium]
The symposium was further enriched by keynote addresses on resilience, peace and hope from leaders in Ukraine and Slovakia, and panels featuring inspiring voices from conflict zones and beyond such as Bethlehem, Brazil, Congo, Ghana, etc. demonstrating how this pedagogy unites across borders and even in wartime and conflicts.
[From left to right: Fr. Ezio Bono, member of the Committee for the CGE of the Congregation for Catholic Education and Dr. Teresa Loong, Vice Rector for Student Life at USJ during the VI UNIVERSITATE Global Symposium]
In this context of profound reflection, Dr. Teresa Loong presented the title on “Institutionalizing Service-Learning at USJ: Motivation and Roadmap” to share the initiative of University of Saint Joseph Macau the process of strategically institutionalizing Service-Learning (SL) to fulfill its mission and ethical calling, inspired by Catholic Social Teaching. This initiative aims to transform classrooms into community-focused hubs, fostering student leadership, global citizenship, and structured, long-term community partnerships. The action plan will be led by a coordinating entity with the includes defining Service Learning in alignment with USJ’s strategic directions, building faculty capacity through training, and actively engaging community partners as co-creators. This effort aims to position USJ as advocator in Service-Learning and community engagement in Macao, with the goal of creating a tangible impact aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The programme, which ran from November 4-8, included visits to local service-learning projects supporting Ukrainian refugees, regional Uniservitate meetings, and a trip to the historic The Fuggerei Social Housing Estate in Augsburg.
[From left to right: Dr. Teresa Loong, Vice-Rector for Student Life at USJ with Ms. Maria Rosa Tapia, Coordinator of the Uniservitate Global Network, CLAYSS and Prof Alina S. Rusu, representative of the General Meeting of the European Association of Service-Learning in Higher Education during the UNISERVITATE regional hubs meeting]
[Afternoon learning session on 5 November 2025 led by the Asia & Oceania and the Central and Eastern Europe & Middle East Regional Hubs, focused on social innovation and SL research sparking rich conversations on ethical leadership and community empowerment]
[Uniservitate Asia & Oceania Regional Hub meeting]
Source: USJ