The official launch of the new European Via Columbani Partnership took place on Saturday 23 November 2024 during the Columbanus Festival in Bangor, Northern Ireland. The Via Columbani Partnership promotes cultural and educational exchanges, musical events and sporting challenges, between nine European countries that Columbanus, a Bangor monk, and his 12 disciples, including Gall, travelled through on a mission to revitalise Christianity in the 6th and 7th centuries. In addition, the Partnership promotes the development of the Columban Way, a European network of a 7,100km pilgrimage trail that is in the process of being mapped out in Ireland, UK, France, Luxemburg, Germany, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Austria and Italy.
The basis of these activities is the European Charter of Partnership, signed in Saint-Gallen, Switzerland, in July 2023, which expresses these shared values, the aim being to “facilitate exchange, collaboration and friendship” across Europe.
The following people were elected to co-ordinate the Via Columbani Partnership:
| President | Deborah Girvan, Friends of Columbanus Bangor, Northern Ireland |
| Vice Presidents | Simon Derache, President of the Fédération of the Via Columbani, France Fr Pat Colgan, Turus Columbanus, Republic of Ireland |
| Treasurer | Wolfgang Sieber, President of the Kolumbansweg, Switzerland |
| Secretary | David Ward Perkins, retired tourism consultant who lives in Nice, France |
Deborah Girvan, President of the Via Columbani Partnership, said, “I was very proud and honoured to be elected as the first President of the new European association. At a time when Europe as a peaceful entity is under threat, beset by violence and war, the figures of Columbanus and Gall are an important reminder of the need to bring together different communities. The new Via Columbani Partnership will enable people, regardless of their age, community or religious background, to come together through shared projects and experiences.”
Following on from the launch, a new logo illustrating Columbanus travelling on a path towards the sun, accompanied by a dove representing peace, was agreed for the Via Columbani Partnership
For further information, please visit https://viacolumbani.com/en