Convened in conjunction with the SSRC’s work on religion and international affairs and in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund and the Interfaith Center of New York, over thirty guests attended this panel session, including leading scholars and representatives of multiple UN agencies and various faith-based NGOs, including the Interfaith Center of New York, Religions for Peace International, Women in Islam, Inc., and World Vision International. Moderated by Azza Karam, a senior advisor to the United Nations Population Fund, the panel featured discussants Mark Scheuer (Director of the UN Alliance of Civilizations), Jean Duff (Senior Advisor for Strategy and Resources at the Center for Interfaith Action), and Leslie Vinjamuri (Co-Director of the Centre for the International Politics of Conflict, Rights and Justice). The panel took as its point of departure a recent issue of the journal CrossCurrents, which was dedicated to the exploration of how religion intersects with and impacts the activities of the UN.
Participants:
Aseem Andrews, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
R. Scott Appleby, University of Notre Dame
Michael Barnett, George Washington University
Verena Beittinger-Lee, University of Kent
Rev. Chloe Breyer, Interfaith Center of New York
Thu Cao, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Henia Dakkak, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Ihab Al-Daqqaq, Columbia University
Natalia Dinello, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Marc-André Dorel, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)
Jean Duff, Center for Interfaith Action
Bani Dugal, Bahá’í International Community United Nations Office
Stephen Hanmer, United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)
Robert W. Hefner, Boston University
Doug Hostetter, Mennonite United Nations Liaison Office
Jeffrey Israel, University of Chicago
Azza Karam, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
David Little, Harvard Divinity School
Katherine Marshall, Georgetown University
Paul Mikov, World Vision International, New York
Daniel Philpott, University of Notre Dame
Natabara Rollosson, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Sarah Sayeed, Women in Islam, Inc.
Marc Scheuer, United Nations Alliance of Civilizations
Janice Stein, University of Toronto
Alfred C. Stepan, Columbia University
Joop Theunissen, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)
Thomas Uthup, United Nations Alliance of Civilizations
Leslie Vinjamuri, University of London
Matthew Weiner, Interfaith Center of New York