Photo Credit: World Council of Churches
The world is radically different from when the UN was conceived, and different even from the context that shaped the 2030 Agenda. The introduction to Our Common Agenda states, ‘Humanity faces a stark and urgent choice: breakdown or breakthrough.’ In pursuit of a collective breakthrough, there is a crucial need for faith communities to not only work toward achieving existing commitments, but also address a rapidly changing global landscape, including assertions on the rights of future generations.
This excerpt from the concept note of the hybrid tenth Symposium on the Role of Religion and Faith-Based Organizations in International Affairs held on 23 January 2024 gives the intention behind the 2024 discussions.
In line with the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights in December 2023, the half-day symposium’s topic was on “Human Rights and Dignity: Towards a Just, Peaceable and Inclusive Future.” SGI co-sponsored the event with ACT Alliance, The General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church, Islamic Relief, Religions for Peace, Seventh-Day Adventist Church, United Religions Initiative, World Council of Churches, UN Women, UN Population Fund and the UN Office on the Prevention of Genocide. Ivy Koek of SGI served as the Co-chair of the symposium’s planning group. The symposium consisted of an opening and closing with three sessions in between, covering topics such as human dignity, gender equality and a just, peaceable and inclusive future.
Participants of the 10th Annual Symposium on the Role of Religion and FBOs in International Affairs, New York. | Photo Credit: World Council of Churches
Elisa Gazzotti of SGI spoke about human rights education on the panel on “Upholding Human Dignity: Respecting Rights, Flourishing Humanity,” which was moderated by Audrey Kitagawa, President/Founder, International Academy for Multicultural Cooperation. In her presentation, Gazzotti shared the SGI approach to human rights education (HRE), highlighting that “HRE is not only about acquiring specific knowledge or a certain set of skills but in reviving our humanity to be able to understand and embrace those that are different from us.”
HRE is not only about acquiring specific knowledge or a certain set of skills but in reviving our humanity to be able to understand and embrace those that are different from us.
On this panel, Ganoune Diop, Director of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty for the Seventh-day Adventist Church and one of the symposium's founding members, shared that human rights was also the topic of the first symposium. He said that dignity and equality are inseparable and to violate dignity is to diminish humanism, i.e., dehumanization. Diop called for the restoring of human dignity and human rights of persons and called for a joint concrete common plan of action. Michael Weiner, Human Rights Officer for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, concluded his statements by pointing out the importance of the culture of peace and the right to peace.
