Program on Global Ethics and Social Trust

10/08/2026

As director of the Boston College Clough Center for the Study of Constitutional Democracy, Jonathan Laurence has hosted colloquia at Boston College and co-hosted a conference in Venice on the topic of Democratic Resilience. He also led a fact-finding mission in Colombia, meeting with working group member Francisco de Roux, SJ, to discuss democratic resilience.

Today, October 8, at 4:30pm, Laurence will host the Clough Center’s Fall Colloquium 2026: Democracy at Scale, featuring Archon Fung, Sherrilyn Ifill, Isabelle Schäfer, and Loyle Campbell. Register to attend.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdxd4OH0Xk1vBDBuX0wyIdOYMqav2qXZhGLtRq6KsT-oV9hlA/viewform

10/01/2026

Four members from the Working Group on Climate Change and Migration (Anne McDonald [], Oscar Melo [UC Chile], Hanqin Tian [BC], and Katie Young [BC]) have been conducting a collaborative research project on small island sustainability in the climate crisis era. They have conducted in-depth interviews in several island communities in the Caribbean (San Andres, Providence, and Catalina), the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Vanuatu, collaborating with local governments and community leaders.

In April 2026, Young, McDonald, and their colleagues traveled to Vanuatu to conduct a third set of field interviews for their international, interdisciplinary project on small island sustainability in the climate crisis era.

上智大学 Universidad Católica de Chile

Currently, Anne McDonald and Hanqin Tian along with colleagues at BC and University of Aruba are co-editing a special issue of the journal Geography and Sustainability, entitled “Climate Change and Small Island Sustainability."

09/28/2026

Congratulations to Fr. Elias Omondi Opongo, SJ on his appointment as the new Vice Chancellor of the Catholic University of Eastern Africa!

Stephen Mbobu A new chapter has begun at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) with the assumption of office by Rev. Prof. Elias Omondi Opongo, SJ, as the University’s new Rector and Vice-Chancellor, effective Tuesday, 1st September 2026. His appointment follows the conclusion of the te...

09/23/2026

In early March 2026, faculty and students from the Boston College Clough Center for the Study of Constitutional Democracy traveled to Bogota, Colombia for a weeklong fact-finding mission. During this mission, they met with DGE WG member Francisco de Roux, SJ, who is the president of Colombia’s Commission for the Clarification of Truth, Coexistence, and Non-Repetition.

During his time as a member of the GEST Working Group on Democracy, Governance, and Education, Fr. de Roux promoted a vision of synodality which highlighted the experiences of the most vulnerable. His research on modern forms of enslavement argued that these practices threaten democracy by destroying social trust and denying human rights.

09/16/2026

- Interested in studying abroad in beautiful Southern India?
- Want to learn more about how the repercussions of climate change influence human migration and fulfill an elective credit?
- Looking for something educational and edifying for next summer?

Come visit us at the Study Abroad Fair today (Sept 16) at 6pm at the Margot Connell Recreation Center to learn more about this unique opportunity to study the climate-mobility nexus alongside students from Christ University, Bangalore, during June 5-26, 2027.

09/15/2026

If you're a BC undergrad and interested in learning more about studying abroad in India, come visit us at the Boston College Study Abroad Fair this Wednesday, September 16 at 6pm in the Margot Connell Recreation Center!

This interdisciplinary course explores the nexus between climate change and forced migration as experienced in contemporary southern India. Faculty from four disciplines are collaborating to help students examine the environmental, psychological, legal, and ethical dimensions of climate-related migration.

Our activities will include classroom instruction alongside dedicated students from Christ University in Bengaluru; field visits to communities impacted by climate displacement in Bengaluru and coastal Kerala; participation in a one-day research conference on coastal displacement in southern India; cultural visits to Hindu temples and other historical sites; and relaxation at an ecotourism resort on the beautiful shore of the Arabian sea.

09/14/2026

For three weeks in June 2027, Christ University will host "Climate Change & Forced Migration," a new summer study abroad course organized and taught by Vidya Ann Jacob (Christ University, Bangalore, Law) and BC faculty Andrea Vicini, SJ (Theology), Noah Snyder (Earth & Environmental Sciences), and Maryanne Loughry (International Studies), all members of the GEST Working Group on Climate Change and Migration. In this collaborative, interdisciplinary course, students from BC and Christ University will study together and engage in field visits in Southern India.

09/01/2026

Congratulations, Hanqin Tian, on this recognition of your research on climate change and the global nitrogen cycle. This is a well-deserved honor.

Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Hanqin Tian received a research award from Germany’s Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The Humboldt Research Award is given to internationally accomplished researchers in recognition of their career-long scholarly contributions. Award winners are invited to carry out research projects of their own choice in cooperation with specialist colleagues in Germany.

Tian is an Institute Professor in BC's Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society and director of its Center for Earth System Science and Global Sustainability. He also heads the newly established Boston office of Global Carbon Project, which fosters international collaboration on global carbon and nitrogen cycles, the food–energy–water nexus, and sustainable food systems—providing actionable insights for global sustainability.

🔗 https://on.bc.edu/Tian_Humboldt

08/31/2026

This Fall Semester, Professor Maryanne Loughry (International Studies, Boston College) will be teaching a new course, "Climate Change & Displacement" (INTL 2276), drawing upon her experience in the GEST Working Group on Climate Change and Migration.

Sign up for the course by the add/drop date, September 9!
Boston College

06/02/2026

What is the role of universities in rebuilding public trust during this time of decreasing trust in institutions?

We are proud to see Chris Higgins, member of the GEST Working Group on Democracy, Governance, and Education, and Chair of the Department of Formative Education at Boston College, participate in this timely roundtable hosted by Luiss Guido Carli University and promoted by Reset DOC Dialogues on Civilizations .

According to Higgins, "the task is to revive the public purpose of higher education: creating spaces where people experience and practice that democratic way of life." To do so, universities must "shape character—what one might even call virtue—including respect for others, the ability to confront inherited prejudices, and to understand difference and power."

Over the course of two years, the GEST Working Group on Democracy, Governance, and Education brought together experts in politics, education, history, law, ethics, journalism, and communication to think seriously about the threats we face and the prospects for recovery through education strategies.

The issues discussed in this interview will be taken up in the roundtable “Reclaiming Legitimacy: Universities, Elites, and Democratic Renewal” (May 14, 6–8 PM, Rome), held as part of an international seminar on higher education.   At a moment when universities are increasingly caught between...