The KAICIID Board of Directors met on 1 March 2018 at the headquarters of the International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) in Vienna, Austria for its first regular meeting of the year for briefing and discussion of the Centre’s work programme.
During their 17th regular meeting, the Board of Directors were updated on the strategic framework of the Centre in the short, medium and long term, including the Centre’s cooperation with the United Nations and the European Union.
The launch of the pioneering “Interreligious Platform for Dialogue and Cooperation in the Arab World” during the two-day conference titled “Dialogue for Peace: Promoting Peaceful Coexistence and Common Citizenship” was highlighted as a milestone of the Centre’s work in the Arab Region fostering social cohesion.
The Board of Directors focused also on the Centre’s interreligious dialogue hubs in Nigeria, the Central African Republic, Myanmar and the Arab region, as well as the global practices hubs, including the Programme for the Social Inclusion of People Seeking Refuge, the Fellows and the Scouts Programmes. The development of the Dialogue Knowledge Hub, launched in November 2017 as a user-focused virtual platform that serves those interested in interreligious dialogue was also presented to the Board.
The Board of Directors welcomed two new members of the Board of Directors, Dr. Kezevino Aram and His Virtue Sheikh Ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, who succeed the distinguished Board Members Swami Agnivesh and Dr. Sayyed Ataollah Mohajerani.
Prior to the Board of Directors meeting, the KAICIID Advisory Forum, a consultative body suporting the activities of the Board, met for its third annual meeting. During their meeting, the Advisory Forum was updated on KAICIID’s activities and started their work in the previously established task forces focusing on the Middle East and Africa; Asia and Oceania as well as Europe and the Americas.
About the KAICIID Board of Directors:
The International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) is an intergovernmental organization mandated to promote dialogue among different religious and cultural groups to promote justice, peace and reconciliation and to counteract the abuse of religion to justify violence. The Centre is governed by a multi-religious Board of Directors, consisting of representatives of five religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism.
The Board Members are: Dr. Hamad Al-Majed, Dr. Kezevino Aram, His Excellency Bishop Miguel Ayuso, His Eminence Metropolitan Emmanuel, Reverend Kosho Niwano, His Virtue Sheikh Ul-Islam A. Pashazade, Reverend Mark Poulson, Chief Rabbi David Rosen and Dr. Mohammad Sammak.
About the KAICIID Advisory Forum:
The Advisory Forum is a consultative body comprised of influential leaders from world religions and religious and cultural institutions and communities representing more than 20 countries. The Forum supports the activities of the KAICIID Board of Directors and advises on their programs.
The Advisory Forum consists of leading figures from the religious, non-governmental and intergovernmental fields from over 20 countries. In the initial session of the Forum, Ela Gandhi, founder of the Gandhi Development Trust and granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi (South Africa), and Bhai Sahib Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia were elected as co-chairs of the Advisory Forum. In total the Forum numbers 47 experts in interreligious dialogue and can over time expand to include 100 in total.