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(ANS - Rome) - At the beginning of 2026, the Youth Ministry Sector of the Salesian Congregation has launched a new global campaign titled #DBSchoolsGoGreen, aimed at promoting ecological awareness and sustainable practices across Salesian educational institutions worldwide. The initiative was officially announced by Fr Rafael Bejarano, General Councillor for Youth Ministry, through a letter addressed to all Youth Ministry Delegates in the various Provinces of the Congregation.
In his communication, Fr Bejarano recalls the mandate of the 29th General Chapter, which calls on every Province to “promote formation in integral ecology and the ecological education of young people” (GC29:69). He notes that Salesian schools represent an ideal starting point for translating this commitment into concrete action. For this reason, the Youth Ministry Sector is pleased to launch, for the year 2026, the campaign #DBSchoolsGoGreen.
To support schools in this journey towards sustainability, Fr Bejarano has proposed adopting the UNESCO Green School Quality Standard as a reference framework. This internationally recognised and practical instrument provides clear and concrete guidelines to help schools become environmentally sustainable. It is particularly well suited to Salesian schools, as it actively involves not only students and teachers, but the entire educative-pastoral community.
The UNESCO Green School Quality Standard offers a comprehensive set of guidelines and actions for greening schools and other learning environments. It identifies four core areas for implementing sustainability principles and ecological action: school governance, facilities and operations, teaching and learning, and community engagement. For each of these areas, the UNESCO manual proposes specific actions that school communities can undertake, offering an effective and realistic roadmap towards becoming a green school.
Concluding his letter, Fr Bejarano exhorted Youth Ministry Delegates to present the Green School Quality Standard to all the schools in their respective Provinces and to accompany them in adopting the programme. “It would be excellent if all the schools in the Province could launch this programme during the present year 2026. Ensuring that all our schools #DBSchoolsGoGreen through the use of the Green School Quality Standard is one of the priorities I invite you to focus on in the year ahead,” Fr Bejarano wrote.
The #DBSchoolsGoGreen campaign is being coordinated across the Salesian Congregation by the Don Bosco Green Alliance. The initiative has already been received with enthusiasm in several Provinces. “We welcome with joy the #DBSchoolsGoGreen 2026 campaign as a concrete sign of our pastoral commitment to young people and to the care of our Common Home, in full harmony with Don Bosco’s dream and the Church’s call to an integral ecology that educates, sensitises, and transforms,” said Salesian Brother Lucas Mario Mautino, the Youth Ministry Delegate of the Argentina North (ARN) Province.
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