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Between 2005 and 2007, Salam Institute gave seven fellowships for research focused on Islamic sources of peace-building and conflict resolution. The recipients of the fellowship included junior researchers and practitioners who utilized the funds to facilitate and promote further discourse and exploration of training manuals for peace and conflict resolution in the Islamic context. Some of the themes included: Sources of peace-building and nonviolence in Islam; Status and challenges facing Muslim communities in the United States. Iran Program-Fostering Relationship through Discussion on Islamic Sources of Peace and NonviolenceFollowing an initial trip to Iran in October of 2007, where scholars from Salam Institute for Peace and Justice and The United States Institute for Peace (USIP) met with Iranian Scholars to discuss peace, conflict resolution, and theoretical and practical approaches to peacemaking, it was decided that the continuation of such dialogue between scholars was needed. Believing that continued scholarly exchange will contribute to research, publication, and significant future exchanges on the important subject of Muslim approaches to peace and non-violence, upon return to the United States the idea of a second exchange, this time of Iranian Scholars to the U.S. , was developed (Phase Two of the program). Junior level scholars were then identified with the assistance of our partner contacts in Iran and a 15-person contingent of Iranians visited the United States in May 2008. Qamar Ul-HudaQamar-ul Huda joined the U.S. Institute of Peace as a senior program officer in the Religion and Peacemaking program, in June 2005. His research focuses on Islamic thought and Islamic philosophy on violence, nonviolence, and conflict resolution. Prior to joining USIP, Huda was a professor of Islamic studies and comparative religion at Boston College 's Theology Department (1997–2005) and a visiting professor of Islamic studies at the College of Holy Cross and Brandeis University . He serves as adviser on interfaith relations to the archdiocese of Boston and has written on the subject of dialogue and interfaith studies as a critical way to foster peace. Previously, Huda focused on political, theological, and social history of Islamic mysticism and treatises dealing with Qur'anic hermeneutics. He holds a B.A. from Colgate University and a Ph.D. in Islamic intellectual history from the University of California at Los Angeles.Past Projects:Conflict Transformation Project, Fuller Theological Seminary Foreign Ministry of the Netherlands As part of its capacity-building initiatives in the Muslim world which explore, develop, and utilize Muslim resources for peace-building and conflict resolution, the Salam Institute partnered with the Conflict Resolution Unit of Clingendael Institute and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct a large-scale and comprehensive analysis of key Islamic actors in Africa and the Balkans. The Salam Institute is currently working on compiling a comprehensive database of
actors and organizations in the United States and around the world who are actively engaged
in Islamic approaches and methods of peacebuilding, development, nonviolence,
peaceful inter-religious and intra-religious coexistence, and conflict resolution and
transformation. This database is intended to become a resource for scholarship and
activists in the field, for networking and support, and for providing and making known
alternative approaches and activities related to the many complex challenges confronting
civil societies and communities around the world today. | ||
| Curriculum for Peace Education in Muslim Educational Institutes We believe that there is a pressing need to develop authentic Islamic peace education materials. In cooperation with United Nation for Peace (UPEACE), Salam Institute has initiated a project to compile and write a basic Peace Education curriculum for Muslim high schools, colleges, and universities. There are currently many peace education manuals and books, but all of them are designed and applied from Western and Christian perspectives. Our proposed curriculum is intended for use in both formal and informal educational settings. We have identified 22 Muslim scholars and educators from South Asia and conducted the first consultation group in Toronto Canada in 2006. Facilitated by Salam Institute and UPEACE leaders, the group generated an outline of issues, methodologies, and cases to include in any future Peace Education curriculum for Muslim participants. Search for Common Ground-Egypt The research was conducted between September 2007 and May 2008 in Cairo, Alexandria and Behera. More than 200 individuals took part in the focus groups and surveys. They represented Egypt's gender, education and rural/urban demographics. During focus groups (four in each region), the research participants watched episodes focusing on various social issues such as religious fanaticism, secret marriage, paternity law suits, election issues and expensive private tutoring. They then engaged in lively discussions of the issues and offered their perspectives both on the themes and the episodic drama itself. At the end of a series of weekly focus groups, the participants completed an anonymous survey that included questions about their perspectives on the episodic drama and its themes. ICRD – Madrasa Reform Project Evaluation
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