Category: In English Page 1 of 4

From Brazil to Switzerland: Redefining My Roots

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On 24/05/2024

In Bridge in it, In English

If I die today, how many people would attend my funeral after a decade of living as an immigrant in Switzerland?

I know it’s a silly question, but it was an intriguing thought I had some months before deciding whether to celebrate my 40th birthday in Switzerland or not. After a decade abroad, my identity has changed in so many ways that I felt somehow “homeless,” struggling to piece together who I am.

I never imagined how therapeutic a birthday party could be in this sense. Thanks to my lovely wife, we managed to gather in the same space all the dimensions of my “new life” that I was hesitant to accept as the pillars of who I am today. I always felt loved by my Swiss family and friends, appreciated by colleagues, but when compared to the intensity of relationships I had in Brazil, it always seemed insufficient.

At 40th birthday celebration, I could see, feel, and hear the fruits of these last ten years of relationships. It changed me forever.

Visualizing all the meaningful relationships and deep connections I have in Switzerland freed me from the inner prisons of my past and brought me to an acceptance of my new self, full of richness, joy, and, most importantly, new roots.

Two weeks later, I went to Brazil with my family. 

Since moving to Switzerland on April 1, 2014, every time I returned to my home country, I tried to renew the connections externally and internally with everything and everyone I left behind. That protected my mental health, gave me the certainty of being rooted, and the serenity of feeling I had everything I needed.

This year, going back to Brazil wasn’t going back home anymore—maybe for the first time. After experiencing that special moment with my Swiss connections, I saw a whole new world I hadn’t seen before. 

Brazil then became a place to build something new with the same people I am delighted to meet. I could now share the best of who I am—a Brazilian Swiss, enriched by my integration efforts, struggles and experiences, and the joy and openness of my Brazilian heritage.

What a joy! What a wonderful and life-changing experience! I look forward to deepening it and learning how to make the best of this journey for myself and others.

eternal love

Eternal love

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On 13/04/2022

In In English

Eternal love

Intimate treasure.

God’s love for us

Impossible to measure.

But our hearts dared

To build this house for him.

And celebrate together

What we already have within.

Love is bigger than buildings.

It’s more powerful than pain.

Love that we build patiently together

Again and again.

Love. Eternal love.

The poem was written for the wedding ceremony of my beloved relatives Gabriel and Corina Ganarin

hybrid events

Reflecting on principles for hybrid events

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On 07/04/2022

In In English

In March 2020, we had to change how we used to work. So, adaptation, strength, and flexibility have been the three keywords of the last two years.

As staff of a global Christian organisation, we discovered that the online environment provides an incredible range of opportunities to reach members of our fellowship. We also learned that not being physically present in conflict situations can make vulnerable communities even more vulnerable. Yet, working physically, online, and now hybrid, we are still a church organisation where accompaniment and closeness are parts of our identity.

Going slowly towards the new “normal”, we can now plan hybrid events where it’s possible to have human encounters again. The main risk is to ignore the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic and forget that we have two layers of participation when deciding to organise a hybrid event.

Before planning a hybrid event, it’s also important to know what hybrid events are not. The biggest misconception of hybrid events is that they are simply events that are streamed live to an online audience. “A true hybrid event utilises technology to bring online audiences into an event experience – so online audiences and live participants experience the same event similarly.”

So, what are the three primary steps to remember:

  1. GIVE PREFERENCE TO THE ONLINE AUDIENCE: Camera position, sound setup, and the overall content should express closeness towards those not physically present. At hybrid events, online viewers participate in the event the same way live attendees do. That means participating in Q&A sessions, interacting with speakers, and engaging with fellow attendees.
  2. UNDERSTAND THE TECHNICAL CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES: Hybrid events bring many more technical challenges than online events. In addition to good cameras, microphones, trained staff and a strong internet connection, organisers must enable a space where online attendees don’t simply become viewers of a physical conference.
  3. HAVE A BRIDGE BUILDER – To shorten the gap between physical and online attendance, it’s also good to have a co-moderator or an assistant who joins the hybrid event online. They will be able to oversee and communicate potential issues from the online environment and motivate online participants to take part in the discussion. 

Hybrid events present a new space to navigate. As we have learnt on moving from physical to only online events, every change needs time, patience, and flexibility. We should also accept that we will make lots of mistakes. But without forgetting the importance of keeping the pastoral approach, where the technical solutions are tools to express accompaniment, closeness, and the inclusiveness of everything we do.

ecumenical journey

An ecumenical journey walked together

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On 26/02/2021

In In English

I have already shared in a previous text that I joined the World Council of Churches’ communications department almost two years ago. It marked the beginning of an incredible journey of reflection on what it means being a Roman Catholic Christian. 

Finding a book about ecumenism from the perspective of the Charisma of Unity was a natural move for me. The Focolare Movement has a substantial influence on how I experience faith and celebrate the diversity of God’s Creation.

The book “My Ecumenical journey” gathers all the crucial elements addressed by Chiara Lubich in her journey towards understanding ecumenism.

Following the path of Chiara, I captured the importance of three pillars:

  • a life inspired by the Gospel;
  • mutual love;
  • Jesus forsaken;

With these three elements, the global Christian community can walk together and make space for God to heal the past wounds and reveal a future towards a reconciled world.

God’s grace of unity within the different Churches is never a simple process. It demands openness and a personal commitment to an ecumenism of life, where we invest energy and time on finding elements that bring us together in the name of Jesus Christ. 

The book “My Ecumenical Journey” allowed me to discover what inspired Chiara to emphasise the path towards Cristian unity as a crucial step, and perhaps a precondition, to a united world.

Accepting the limits and the slow pace of this process can enable us to continue to walk together and strengthen our connection in a world too affected by physical and spiritual walls.

unprecedented time

Innovation in an unprecedented time

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On 13/11/2020

In In English

When we hear “innovation”, it’s uncommon to associate the word with the religious environment. Yet, after the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, every organisation was forced to look at new ways to function. Those who didn’t move fast enough struggle to survive in this unprecedented time.

The challenge of giving visibility to the work of a global organisation that has the mandate to go and physically meet people and communities around the world seemed gigantic for our communication department at the World Council of Churches (WCC).

One question resonated all the time in my heart: How do we continue to offer a platform for encounters in times of pandemic, when we can’t physically meet? 

Since early April, I’ve been dealing with dozens of online events that we started producing to give visibility to the work of WCC. As soon as my colleagues began to voice their needs concerning these online events, I realised that we needed to find technical solutions that would match the requirements. But where to start?

A lot of time spent on research and I started to look at videos of those who are the biggest users of live stream services: gamers.  I’ve watched hundreds of videos to understand which tools they use, how is the setup, the technical needs and step by step I’ve developed a concept that could potentially work for WCC. 

After two months of test sessions and adjustments, I’ve finally managed to create a workflow that allowed our productions team to offer a range of solutions to the broad needs we have. 

What a joy when we provided all the technical support for a webinar with sign language interpretation, focusing on people with disabilities! As I shared with my colleagues, that was “the best example of the type of connection webinars can create”. It became a “space for encounter”.

The challenge we now have is to stay true to our identity, even with the growing demands for online events. However, the journey we went through this year has shown that this unprecedented time is an invitation to innovate, also for faith-based organisations. 

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