Jesuit Social Services’ Ecological Justice Strategy 2025-2028
Recognising that environmental challenges pose particular risks to the communities with whom we work, we have been working to bring an ecological perspective to all our operations for over 15 years. The interconnection between environmental and social justice has influenced our practice, policy, and organisational identity. It has shaped our strategy to ensure we are equipped to address justice issues of the future, and to lead peer organisations around issues of ecological justice.
Lessons in Resilience
The Lessons in Resilience project brought together a coalition of organisations across Melbourne’s west – including community services, health providers, local government, research institutions – to foster shared learning and strengthen organisational and community resilience. The project aimed to support resilience, just adaptation and health equity by developing a strong local evidence base for community service and health organisations to draw upon. Through its research and partnerships, the project deepened understanding of local climate and disaster risks, documented existing efforts across the region and produced recommendations that respond to local context and consolidate the practice wisdom and experiences of participating organisations.
Ecological Justice Practices guide
At Jesuit Social Services, we recognise that people and the environment are deeply interconnected. Our Ecological Justice Practices guide highlights the intersection between environmental and social justice in everyday social work practice, and how small, practical steps can create meaningful change for the people we work with.
What We Do
Supporting strong, healthy and equitable communities
Building on more than 25 years of research into locational disadvantage with Dropping off the Edge, we work with communities to know where people are struggling, to understand what is contributing to that struggle and how we can collectively enable communities to flourish.
Our mission
Right now, communities are inviting us to partner and develop new methods to enable change. The systemic challenges embedded in places where many people live can be dismantled even though they are deep and persistent. We move with people and communities to discover new solutions through decades of research and practice wisdom, community strengths and partnerships.
Why it matters
Through our research, advocacy and place-based work, the Centre is uniquely placed to unlock the relationship between social, environmental and economic justice. We do this through three main areas of work: working in place, supporting strong, healthy and equitable communities, and enabling climate justice.
