Celebrating the Jubilee Year for Pilgrims of Hope

A message from the Executive Dean of Health Sciences Professor Suzanne Chambers:

His Holiness Pope Francis has declared 2025 as the Jubilee Year for Pilgrims of Hope. His words in the Bull of Indiction are there to inspire us, “Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring.”

In reflecting on these words, so much of the work we do springs to mind. ENVISAGE is one such example. ENVISAGE (Enabling Visions and Growing Expectations) is an evidence-based program designed to empower caregivers to confidently and competently navigate parenting their children with developmental concerns or disability. Since its launch in February 2023, ENVISAGE Families and First Peoples have reached more than 1,200 caregivers and supported more than 1,300 children, enabling families to build meaningful, sustained connections with other caregivers in similar situations. This is powerful work, built out of dedication, a mission-driven focus, and a deeply held hope for a better future for these families.

To this end, I extend a warm invitation to our university colleagues to our first Aquero Lecture of the year. This lecture series honours the Catholic intellectual tradition by inspiring progressive dialogue towards principled leadership in a global health paradigm that is constantly changing. In celebration of the Jubilee of People with Disabilities, Professor Laura Miller and panel members will be showcasing ENVISAGE in our first lecture of the year, to be held on Tuesday 29 April at 7pm EST.

We were also privileged to welcome a newly appointed Adjunct Professor to our shores, Mark Lazenby, a Professor of Nursing and Philosophy and Dean at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Professor Lazenby is a philosopher and palliative care nurse practitioner known for his work on exploring the ethical, social and moral foundations of nursing. In tribute to the 2025 Jubilee Year Pilgrims of Hope, Professor Lazenby delivered seminars to our School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine and the Mater Hospital in Brisbane, as well as webinars for the Plunkett Centre for Ethics, St Vincent’s Health Australia Network and the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia. His topic ‘Fulfilment in Healthcare: A Call to Meaning’ was a reflection on finding fulfilment and moments of awe in our daily interactions with each other and with patients we care for, as a counterpoint to burnout.

The Ordinary Jubilee will conclude with the closing of the Holy Door in the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican on 6 January 2026, so while we mark the year, let’s keep hope close – for all our communities, and for those dear to us.