2018 Annual Report - International Center for Religion ... · problemathand. For example, inour firstproject inthe north of Sudan,we establishedanInter-Religious Council thatprovided

2018 Annual Report

2018 Annual Report

2 The International Center for Religion & Diplomacy

Indeed, since the publication of Religion,the Missing Dimension of Statecraft firstmade the case in 1994, it had taken nofewer than 20 years for the foreignpolicy establishment to recognize andaccommodate the positive role thatreligion can play in international affairs.

No doubt contributing to the abovedelay was the engrained assumption thatif it played any role at all, religion wasalmost always seen as part of theproblem. This longstanding bias wasseriously challenged by the bookmentioned above and its successorvolumes (Faith Based Diplomacy:Trumping Realpolitik and Religion, Terror,and Error: U.S. Foreign Policy and theChallenge of Spiritual Engagement), whichclearly demonstrated that under the rightcircumstances, religious leaders andinstitutions can resolve intractable

differences that would otherwise exceed the reach of traditional diplomacy. ICRD’s 20-year track record of successfully bridging such differences in some of the world’s more difficult neighborhoods also proves the point.

Indeed, capitalizing on the transcendent aspects of religious faith to overcome the secular obstacles to peace has become a Center trademark. And the efficacy of this approach is becoming widely recognized by the foreign policy establishment as it increasingly calls upon ICRD to achieve the impossible in highly-charged environments like Pakistan and Yemen.

Over the 20 years of its existence, ICRD has addressed a total of 14 trouble-spots around the world. In every instance, it has pursued what it

determined to be the most strategic course of action for addressing the problem at hand. For example, in our first project in the north of Sudan, we established an Inter-Religious Council that provided a forum for top-level Muslim and Christian religious leaders to work together in addressing the religious dimensions of their longstanding civil war. In a later, more dramatic undertaking in Afghanistan in 2007, we leaned heavily on Islamic religious scripture in persuading the Taliban to release the 21 Korean missionaries they were holding captive.

Perhaps our most dangerous involve-ment to date took place over an eight-year period (2004–2012) in the more radical areas of Pakistan where we worked with more than 2900 madrasa leaders in reforming the curriculums and pedagogy of their religious schools to promote human rights, religious tolerance, and critical thinking. Education has also proven to be the key ingredient in our most strategic engagement to date in Saudi Arabia, where we have been working with that government to purge from its educa-tional materials the inflammatory content that has inspired the activities of extremist groups like ISIS, Al Shabaab and Al Qaeda.

In short, ICRD has enjoyed a rich and illustrious history of making a difference through its practice of faith-based diplo-macy in highly challenging environ-ments. With the recent diversification of field programs and the passing of the torch to James Patton, we have not only guaranteed the continuation of past success but have set the stage for an even broader impact. James’ academic credentials and practical experience are exceedingly well-suited to the Center’s needs, as is his personal courage and commitment to helping oth-ers. One can only hope that his leader-ship and that of our Board will be blessed as they continue to advance religious reconciliation as a force for good in a troubled world.

Some months ago, I attended a day-long conference at theState Department sponsored by its Office of Religion andGlobal Affairs. As I looked around the packed auditorium,

it occurred to me that ten years earlier it would have been difficultto attract even a handful of people for such a gathering.

By Doug Johnston

Letter from the Founder

Organizational Report 2018 3

Not only had they found commonground in their practical concerns, butthey found one another in worship.This is the potential power of faith inhelping people overcome differences.

It is undeniable that religion has beenused to justify horrible crimes, but theoverwhelming majority of religiouspeople around the world rejectviolence. Reactive fear, festering painand insidious hatred are not the faceor form of the divine; the best of faithcalls us to rise above the mostdestructive of who we are and aspireto build communities where our lovedones can be nurtured.

I first encountered ICRD in 2011, onassignment from USAID’s office ofConflict Management andMitigation. Ihad scheduled a half-hour meetingwith the founder, Dr. Douglas

Johnston, that turned into many hours.That meeting changed the direction ofmy work — I would join ICRD as theExecutive Vice President and, in 2017,have the honor of succeeding Doug asthe President and CEO. Doug’s visionof spiritual reconciliation betweenadversaries is, in my estimation, themost important work to be done in aworld struggling with diffuse hatredsand rising violence, as evidenced in theterror attacks and ethnic and religiousconflicts of recent years.

The nature of war has changed. Acentury ago, 90% of the casualties ofwar were military personnel, now thesame percentage are civilians. Thedramatic increase in conflict since 2010has forcedmore than 65million peopleto flee their homes. In today’s wars, thecombatant casualties of violence mustbe counted together with the children

who are stunted for lack of basicnutrients, those affected by outbreaks ofillnesses like cholera, the waves ofrefugees and internally displacedpersons, and even the combat-trainedextremists that may return home toform the next generation of terroristleaders and ideologues.

Because of this disproportionate impacton civilians, it is fitting that, in manycases, civil society is taking the lead ingenerating solutions. And among thegreatest sources of resilience in the faceof this kind of conflict are communitiesof faith. By engaging with faith actors,ICRD is creating new opportunities toprevent potential recruits from joiningthe battlefield, to study and addressthe motives behind conflict, and toempower and reconcile those seekingalternatives to cycles of violence.

The need for ICRD’s workhas never been greater. Withthe support of our donors,the guidance of our Board,and the efforts of ourdedicated staff and partners,ICRD will work to endconflicts, arrest the spreadof radicalization and violentextremism, and promotestronger, more inclusive, andmore tolerant societies acrossthe globe. And that beginswith recognizing the sparkof the divine in the midstof chaos — including thatspark in one another — andallowing it to illuminate ourcommon pursuit of peace.

Letter from the President

In 2014, ICRD brought together conservative Muslim and Christian faith leaders fromPakistan and the U.S. to discuss the protection of religious minorities. On the final day, highin the Nepalese Himalayas, these two groups, which many would assume had incompatible

world views, prayed together.By James Patton


Stories from the Field

“We are victims of violence,and that makes it difficult. Butif we religious women cannotfind a way to reconcile with ourenemies to make peace, who willoffer that example? The painwill never cease!”

— Program Participant, Women &Faith Leaders in Reconciliation.

Colombia

“Our meeting with the SaudiMinister of Education providedthe perfect opportunity todiscuss the findings andrecommendations that haveemerged from our five-yearproject to help purgeextremist-leaning content fromtheir textbooks. The progressto date has been highlyencouraging.”

— Douglas Johnston, ICRD Founderand Project Director

Promoting Religious Tolerance inthe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

United States

“This project is enhancingcooperation among uswomen peacemakers, andempowering our youth tocounter violent extremism inour communities.”

— Participant, Pakistani and U.S.Women Civil Society Leadership

against Violent Extremism.Pakistan

“We, as trainers, were afraid of the community’s negative reactionduring the discussion on religious tolerance and freedom, butwe were surprised when members of the community, includingreligious leaders, were very positive. We have learned to trydiscussing topics, even if it is not normally allowed to talkabout them.”

— Program Participant, Enhancing Citizen Participation inConflict Resolution, (with Partners Yemen). Yemen

OUR IDEAS

MissionTo bridge religious considersations with the practice of international politics in

support of peacebuilding.

VisionA world in which spiritual reconciliation

advances peace and coexistencebetween adversaries.

Religious convictions are a priciple source of values for nearly 85% of the global

community. As such, they can be a significant factor in promoting divisiveness and enmity - or in building the trust needed to overcome the conditions driving violent conflict. Because the influence of religious, ethnic, and tribal identities is frequently stronger than that of governments, the challenge of resolving conflict and addressing violent religious extremism often exceeds the reach of traditional diplomatic or military intervention. ICRD addresses this reality by employing a unique range of capabilities that effectively engage the belief systems and core values found at the heart of identity-based conflicts. It also maxi-mizes programmatic impact by integrating its work with other peacebuilding efforts, particularly those of governments.


Assisting Religious and CommunityLeaders in Becoming PositiveAgents of Change

While not a religious organization itself, ICRDis an organization that deals with religion.As such, it engages with religious actors,

institutions, and beliefs in facilitating collaborative problem-solving to address violent conflict. These processes areintegrated with political interests in a manner that seeksto draw upon their shared values.

By building relationships of trust, ICRD steers religiousconvictions away from fomenting conflict and towardstrengthening communities in their ability to resolve currentand future challenges to peace. ICRD capitalizes on thefollowing unique attributes of religious actors and institutions,which allow them to build trust and overcome differences:

• Critical insights into community experiences andperspectives, thereby equipping them to negotiaterelationships between individuals and institutions atall levels.

• A perceived neutrality with respect to political, social,and economic agendas, thus enabling them to serve astrusted mediators.

• The authority to interpret doctrinal values throughwhich believers can be inspired to strengthencommunity by transcending ego, greed, envy, hatredand other motives that feed conflict.

• An ability to strengthen the peacemaking capacity ofpolicy-makers and analysts by demonstrating the valueof applying religious principles to conflict mitigation.

ObjectivesICRD achieves its mission by meeting four core objectives:

• Decreasing religion’s role as a driver of conflict.

• Increasing the capacity and number of religiouspeacebuilders.

• Increasing the role of religious clergy and laityin peacebuilders.

• Increasing policy-makers’ awareness of andreceptivity to the potential contributions ofreligious peacebuilders.

StrategiesIn turn, ICRD applies the following strategies to achievethese objectives:

• Promoting spiritual values that delegitimizeviolence and intolerance.

• Advancing the field of peacebuilding practiceby integrating the contributions of religiousactors.

• Facilitating resilient community networks forpreventing and resolving conflicts.

• Expanding the capacity of civil society tosupport faith-based peacebuilding.

Core CapabilitiesBy combining innovative and traditional approaches,ICRD has developed a set of unique capabilities andmethodologies for conducting faith-based diplomacyto promote reconciliation and resolve differences.Included among these capabilities are:

• Identifying and applying faith doctrines thatinspire empathy and reconciliation.

• Engaging excluded and ideologically dividedcommunities in constructive conversations.

• Facilitating relationships of trust and identifyingnew areas for collaboration.

• Conducting conflict analysis, particularly wherereligious considerations are salient.

• Reinforcing contemporary conflict resolutiontechniques with faith-based practices.

Our Ideas

Our Faith-Based Approach to Conflict Transformation

ICRD holds official consultative status withthe United Nations Economic and Social Council(ECOSOC) and is a registered Private VolunteerOrganization (PVO) with the United States Agencyfor International Development (USAID).

Strategic Plan

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Our Programs

ICRD uses the following criteria to determine where itsinterventions will add the most value:

• U.S. foreign policy has a strategic interest in the areain conflict.

• ICRD can access the trusted relationships needed to addressthe conditions that sustain conflict.

• Religious actors are either contributing to the conflict or areinsufficiently engaged in promoting its peaceful resolution.

• The conflict area is underserved by governments orother NGOs.

ICRD develops the following program methodologies,orchestrates their application in the field, and analyzestheir effectiveness:

Methodologies

• Strengthening the roles of both male and female religiousadherents, across generations and traditions, in conflictresolution and countering violent extremism.

• Enhancing themes of tolerance in religious educationcurriculums and pedagogy.

• Identifying and leveraging shared spiritual values to supportcollaborative problem-solving and faith-based reconciliation.

• Facilitating the cooperative development of counter-narratives to violent extremism.

• Formulating faith-based conflict resolution frameworks inconcert with local partners.

• Training other prospective local trainers in applying faith-based methodologies.

Analysis

• Determining context-specific roles for religious stakeholdersin the resolution of conflict and violent extremism.

• Codifying best-practices for engaging religious stakeholdersin mitigating violent conflict.

• Mapping identity-based conflicts and how they arecontributing to particular cases of instability.

ICRD Programs 2018

Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (P/CVE)

Pakistani Women Countering Extremism

Enhancing Citizen Participation in P/CVE in Yemen

Integrating Conservative Religious Actors in P/CVE

Strengthening Civil Society Capacities in P/CVE in Kenya

Recognizing the crucial role women play in both reducing and fueling violent extremism around the world, ICRD has developed a network of Pakistani women civil society lead-ers and religious educators from girls’ madrasas (religious schools) who are working to counter violent extremism in their communities. This effort has not only empowered women to increase their community roles, but also to foster collaborative relationships between religious and nonreligious leaders.

ICRD is working to build and improve the capacities of local peacebuilding organizations in P/CVE. ICRD’s transferable toolkit and P/CVE manual has been implemented in anumber of conflict spaces. These adaptable mechanisms have been tailored to address Kenya’s most pressingconcerns regarding the spread of violent extremism.

To curb the growth of extremist groups, ICRD is leveraging its existing networks in Yemen to strengthen citizen populations against vio-lent extremism. Taking a “whole society” approach, ICRD is working to build the capacity of local religious leaders, educators, and civil society leaders in countering violent extremism – focusing on areas at direct risk of incursion by violent extremist groups. Through a series of trainings and follow-on activities, ICRD and local implementers are equipping citizen leaders with skills in P/CVE, conflict resolution, and the transfer of those skills to other community organizers.

In light of the growing threat of violent religious extremism in the world, ICRD has been exploring innovative strategies to counter the appeal of Jihadi-Salafi groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda. Specifically, ICRD aims to critically research the constructive role that might be played by conservative religious actors - who often possess unique influence with and access to those at-risk of radicalization. ICRD has conducted this study in Yemen, Tunisia, Pakistan, and Morocco, and is currently studying P/CVE efforts and the role of conservative reli-gious actors in Spain, Lebanon, Kenya, and Indonesia.


“You’re truly doing God’s work here. Let me just begin bythanking Doug for the unbelievable work that you and all your colleagues here at ICRD do. So, on behalf of the president and on behalf of the American people, I thank you for that work.”

- Denis McDonough, former White House Chief of Staff2016 ICRD Faith-in-Action Award Dinner

Tolerance in Education

Religious Tolerance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Strengthening Education in Saudi Arabia

Global Impact of Saudi Textbooks

On behalf of the U.S. State Department, ICRD began a program in 2011 to monitor and support the efforts being made by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to remove inflamatory content from their educational curricula. A second, thorough review was completed in 2018, recognized the laudable progress being made toward reform - although much remains to be done to fully complete the task.

In 2012, ICRD conducted an assessment of the extent to which Saudi Arabian textbooks and educational materials have been disseminated to various countries around the world, the findings of which were presented to U.S. and Saudi stakeholders with the hope of informing cooperation on education reform. ICRD is currently conducting an in-depth analysis of Saudi education ma-terials that have been distributed in various regions of the world.

In collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Education, ICRD is building the capacities of K-12 school teachers in critical pedagogy and global citizenship as a tool to combat extremist ideologies. ICRD seeks to enhance religious literacy and inclusivity in education to better prepare an emerging generation of Saudi leaders to operate in a global landscape.


Social Reconciliation

Supporting Religious Freedomand Peace in Asia

ICRD has worked for more than fifteen years across Central and Southeast Asia. ICRD is coordinating an Asia Working Group (AWG) composed of 20 national and regional organizations activitely engaged in FoRB, social cohesion, and peacebuilding across the region. In South and Southeast Asia, ICRD works directly with religious actors to improve capacities in peacebuilding and conflict mitigation and partners alongside government, national human rights comissions (NHRC), and the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat.


“Religion matters in foreign policy for the simple reason that what people believe about God and God’s will is a major influence on how they act towards one another, how they conceive of their responsibilities, and where they draw the line between right and wrong...”

- The Honorable Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State2017 ICRD Faith-in-Action Awardee

Interreligious Conflict Resolution

Local Counter-Narratives to Sectarian Violence in Pakistan

Islamophobia in the United States

Making Faith Part of the Solution

ICRD has supported the work of local religious actors from each of Pakistan’s Islamic sects to develop a new narrative of sectarian reconciliation to help heal the country’s ongoing religious conflict. The new narrative was then promoted by ICRD-trained imams from all five sects of Pakistani Islam in areas that have been hit hardest by sectarian terrorism. The efforts of these dissemination teams were also supported by inter-sectarian groups of respected religious leaders who focused on conducting interventions to prevent violence escalations of communal tension and resolve local religious disputes.

To address a rising trend of religious intolerance in the US, ICRD is building on the work of the Interfaith LeadershipNetwork (ILN). Established by ICRD in 2014, the ILN is a group of religious leaders from the United States and Pakistan who are working to identify and combat drivers of religious prejudice and violence in their respective countries. ICRD is currently working to expand that project to implement local training workshops in local communities throughout the US.

Enhancing the Role of Citizens and ReligiousLeaders in Yemen’s Political Transition

ICRD works to strengthen civil society’s capacity to grapple with local challenges, connecting vulnerable and marginalized populations and local councils across the country. This program bridges longstanding divides between civil society and religious actors working for peace through collaborative workshops and local projects throughout Yemen.


Pakistani Women Countering ExtremismThis project was designed to break down social and international barriers, and bring together women from within Pakistan and abroad who are committed to the fight against violent extremism, in order to collaborate and learn from one another’s skills, insights, and lived experiences.

This project has enhanced cooperation among female civil society leaders fromPakistan and the United States and empowered leaders of selected girls’ madrasas to counter violent extremism in their communities.

Program activities were coordinated in collaboration with a local partner organization based in Islamabad - with key workshop and training activities being held in four provinces throughout the country.

A series of workshops, community dialogues, P/CVE projects, interfaith gatherings, and other locally relevant pilot projects were held in Quetta, Lahore, Charsada, Karachi, and a number of smaller satellite locations. Over 125 of these activities were conducted, primarily being facilitated by ICRD-trained implementers from the local context.

ICRD trained an initial 24 project implementers who then, with support and guidance from ICRD and local partner organizations, conducted community work-shops and follow-on activities with an estimated 3000 beneficiaries. Program activities have engaged a range of community actors including, but not limited to: religious and civil society leaders, madrasa and non-madrasa school teachers and students, project implementers, and other community stakeholders.


Objectives - Key Indicators - Outcomes:

Empower Pakistani and U.S. religious and lay women to assume leadership roles in their communities.

Increase the capacity of female leaders in Pakistan to counter extremist narratives and promote tolerance and collaboration.

Strengthen relationships between Pakistani and American religious and civil society leaders in developing and implementing P/CVE programs.

81.82% of participants developed:

81.82% of participants believed that:

71.72% of participants saw:

54.55% of participants noticed:

63.64% of participants will:

- a better understanding of the rolewomen can play in countering violentextremism

- Pakistanis and Americans should al-ways collaborate on improving the lives of ordinary people and reducing violent extremism

- an increase in the role that women intheir communities were playing incountering violent extremism

- an increase in public condemnation ofacts of violent extremism

- maintain relationships or partnershipswith American participants

82% of participants formed:

72% of participants formed:

91% of participants formed:- new relationships, collabortions, orpartnerships between madrasas andcivil society organizations, womenleaders of madrasas and women civilsociety leaders- new relationships, collabortions, or

partnerships between people ofdifferent religions or sects

- new relationships or networks that willhelp them counter violent extremism


Strengthening Civil Society Capacitiesin P/CVE in Kenya ICRD has taken its adaptable CVE curriclum and implemented context-specific traing-ing modules and workshops designed to better equip local peacebuilders in Kenya with the best knowledge and tools in preventing and countering violent extremism. This particular program engaged with civil society organizations preparing for localP/CVE interventions throughout Kenya. ICRD utilized several mechanisms in evaluating the impact of the tranining on participant learning, including pre- and post-workshop participant surveys, feedback debriefing sessions, conversations and interviews, and trainier observations.

Program Objective:Increase the skills, knowledge, and resources of civil society organizations that can be used to assess local conditions and needs relevant to preventing and countering violent extremism in the Kenyan context.

Notable Increases in Confidence:Training participants were asked to rate their confidence in a total of 13 different skills in the initial pre-training survey. They were asked to do the same after the training. Notable changes include:

Notable Gains in Knowledge:Training participants were asked to rate their skills in a total of 13 different skills in the post-trainingsurvey alone. Notable changes include:

No Change Increase Large Increase

Context and Stakeholder Analysis

Understanding Principles of P/CVE

Designing Stategies or Programs to Address Violent Extremism

21% 57% 21%

14% 50% 21%

21% 57% 7%

Identifying Drivers of Violent Extremism

Recognizing Early Warning Signs of Radicalization

0% 7% 93%

0% 20% 80%


Religious Tolerance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

In 2011, ICRD began a program on behalf of the US State Department to monitor and sup-port the efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to remove inflammatory content from their educational curricula. After flagging a number of inflamatory passages in the edu-cational curricula, ICRD provided actionable recommendations to the US Government and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A subsequent study was completed in 2018, this time with a narrowed focus on 11th and 12th grade textbooks. In addition, ICRD is examining the use of

Saudi-produced educational materials in schools worldwide.

Program Objective(s):Verify and support the continued removal of discriminatory content from public school textbooks in Saudi Arabia, with an emphasis on grades 11 and 12.

Assess the social and religious impact of Saudi Arabian education materials in countries of strategic concern.

38 2011-2018

34.2% change

25

2011 Review:As represented in the above table, ICRD’s 2011 review of high school textbooksidentified a total of 38 themes of intolerance in the high school curriculum.These were divided across textbooks in Religious Studies, Social Sciences, and the Humanities.

2018 Review:In ICRD’s 2018 review, 25 of those same themes were identified as recurring. In the interim period, Saudi Ministry of Education had removed 13 of those themes. While certainly noteworthy, the remaining 25 themes have been flagged for both US Government officials and the Saudi Ministry of Education. *In 2018, subsequent textbook reviews were

completed by the Anti-Defamation League andthe US Commission on International Religious

Freedom (USCIRF)


Local Counter-Narratives to SectarianViolence in PakistanSupport a diverse network of religious and community leaders who are committed to ending sectarian violence in Pakistan. The network designed a counter-narrative aimed at reducing sectarian attitudes and promoting intersect harmony and peaceful coexistence. With ICRD support, the network put on a series of dissemination activities that shared the counter-narrative with local communities throughout Pakistan. These efforts were largely led by regional “response teams” made up of influential religious leaders with strongnetworks and extensive digital media presence and coordinated by local advocates.

Program Objective(s):Facilitate dialogue between key religious and civil society stakeholders from all major sects around issues and narratives that generate sectarian conflict.

Develop and test locally relevant counter-narratives to sectarian divisiveness that emphasize coexistence over intolerance.

Identify effective channels and methods for disseminating the narrative to at-risk communities, building the needed local capacity to work through these channels.

Amplify a narrative of coexistence within and across sectarian divides by publicizing inter-sectarian cooperation.

When Ulama of different sects visited each other’s madrassahs (religious schools) it created a lot of harmony, earlier on no one

wanted to enter each other’s madrassah.”- Participant from Punjab


*In total, the network has conducted183 outreach activites that havedirectly engaged 19,520 people.

Indirect numbers of engagement has the potential to reach millions when taking into account the impact of the counter-narrative through printmedia publications, television, and radio broadcast.

Exchange Visit

News Forum

Meeting

Conference

Lecture

Media

Publication

Article

Television Program

KARACHI

PESHAWAR

Exchange Visit

News Forum

Meeting

Conference

Lecture

Friday Sermon

Publication

Television Program

Other

Advocates:Activities Tracker

x 24x 12

x 7x 6x 1x 3x 4x 1x 2

x 12x 4x 3x 9x 0x 8x 3x 9x 3

KPK

PUNJAB

SINDH

x 18x 22x 10

x 0x 13

x 1x 4x 0x 3

In assessing target locations:50% of local community members are aware of the activites of the network, through the advocate activities.

30% of community members interviewed in all target areas demonstrate decreased support foracts of sectarian violence.


Inside theCenter

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The day-to-day operations of the Center arecarried out by a small but highly talentedand committed staff. With the support of

our Board,our first order of accountability is tothe many local partners at home and abroadwhom we serve — pioneering the developmentand implementation of state-of-the-fieldprograms that support positive transformationwithin their communities. In so doing, westrive to be excellent stewards of every centof support that we receive from governmentand private funders and, especially, ourindividual donors.

We invite you to get to know us — as anorganization, and as the dedicated individualswho comprise our team.

ICRD EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP

James Patton Karen Roberts

Abubaker Y. Ahmed Al-Shingieti

Dr. Douglas Johnston

President & CEO Treasurer & CFO

Vice President forPreventive Engagement

Founder & President Emeritus

James Patton assumed the leadership of ICRD in 2017, upon the retirement of its found-er, Dr. Douglas Johnston. He has conducted international development, conflict trans-formation and social reconciliation for over

Dr. Douglas M. Johnston is President Emeri-tus and founder of the International Center for Religion & Diplomacy. Prior to found-ing ICRD, Dr. Johnston served as Executive Vice President and COO of the Washing-

two decades in more than a dozen countries, building collaborative networks and programs with the entire range of social and political actors in complex conflict environments. Prior to 2011, when he joined ICRD as Executive Vice President, he had worked in the governmental and non-governmental sectors.

In his role as ICRD’s President, James has served as a member of a number of collaborative efforts to advance the field of peacemaking, including: the U.S. Department of State’s Working Group on Religion and Foreign Policy; the Council on Foreign Relations’ Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group, and; the public-private partnership advancing national dialogue on reconciliation in Colombia, Reconcilación Colombia. He is a Senior Visiting Fellow at Brigham Young University’s Wheatley Institution and the co-author, with Rev. David Steele, of the forthcoming (2018) U.S. Institute of Peace publication, Religion and Conflict Guides: Religion and Reconciliation. He is a Lifetime Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

James holds a Master’s of Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University and a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School. He has taught and lectured widely, and is fluent in Spanish.

ton-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, where he also chaired the Preventive Diplomacy Program and the Maritime Studies program.

A distinguished graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Dr. Johnston holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration and Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard University and has served in senior positions in both the public and private sectors. His government assignments include: Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy; Director of Policy Planning and Management in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; and planning officer with the President’s Office of Emergency Preparedness. He was the founding director of Harvard University’s Executive Program in National and International Security. Dr. John-ston is a Captain in the Naval Reserve and, at the age of 27, was the youngest officer in the navy to qualify for command of a nuclear submarine.

Dr. Johnston’s hands-on experience in the political-military arena, coupled with his work in preventive diplomacy, has guided ICRD’s efforts to bridge religion and politics in support of peacemaking in Sudan, Kashmir, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Colombia and Saudi Arabia. He holds an Honor-ary Doctorate in Humane Letters and in 2008 was identified in a leading Christian journal as “The Father of Faith-based Diplomacy”.

Karen B. Roberts has over 40 years of experience in financial account-ing and auditing. Ms. Roberts be-gan her career with Peat Marwick

Dr. Abubaker Al-Shingieti is Vice President for Preven-tive Engagement of the In-ternational Center for Re-

Martine is a mediator and conflict transformation specialist with over 20 years of engaged experience—with communities, governments,

Mitchell & Co. in Dallas, Texas in 1974 where she advanced to senior in the auditing department. She later joined another national public accounting firm where she was an audit manager. In 1985 she start-ed her own accounting firm in Houston, Texas which she sold in 1989.

Ms. Roberts holds a B.S. in Business Administration degree from Southern Methodist University where she graduated with hon-ors. She is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Texas.

ligion and Diplomacy. He brings to the Center unique experience in government affairs and diplomatic relations and a strong commitment to inter-religious reconciliation. Dr. Shingieti earned a BSc. (Honors) in Architecture and a Graduate Diplo-ma in African and Asian Studies from the University of Khartou.

regional bodies (i.e. EU, AU and ASEAN), UN agencies, a range of inter/national non-governmental organizations and academic institutions. Her work has engaged her directly in fluid war to post-war reconstruc-tion and development contexts across 70 countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, West to East Europe and North and South America.

Ms. Miller derives her formal education linking practical mediation and conflict transformation knowledge and skills from a Masters in International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law, a Masters in Politics Post-war Reconstruction and Development, a dual Bachelors in Political Science and International Development, coupled with specialized Certifications in Asian and African Studies, Mediation/ Negotiation in War Contexts, Religion and Mediation, Conflict Transformation, etc., as well as engagement in Harvard University’s Program on Negotiation and the Inter-national Committee for the Red Cross and Red Crescent (ICRC).

She is a guest lecturer at Georgetown, American University and a lecturer and program advisor to the Peace and Conflict Studies Center at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Martine MillerVice President for

Operations


Amira AbouhusseinProgram Officer

Nick AcostaCommunications and Development Officer

Rebecca CataldiSenior Program Officer

Annas ShakerProgram Assistant

Henry “Duke” BurbridgeSenior Research Associate

Matthew CroninProgram Assistant

C. Eduardo VargasSenior Associate

ICRD STAFF


2018 Annual Report

1003 K Street NW Suite 400Washington, DC 20001

(202) 331 - 9404EIN #54-1853311

www.ICRD.org@ICRD_NGO@ICRD1999 @ICRD_NGO

At ICRD, we are priviledged to bear witness to the profoundselflessness and determined spirit of those who, despite

great personal risk, rise above hatred, fear, and bigotry to put their highest faith ideals into action.

Documents

2018 Annual Report - International Center for Religion ... · problemathand. For example, inour firstproject inthe north of Sudan,we establishedanInter-Religious Council thatprovided