Resources

EARLY ADOPTERS’ WORKROCK SOUTH SUDAN 7-11 OCTOBER 2019

UNICEF South Sudan was the first of five early adopter countries in Africa (with Malawi, Liberia, Cameroon and Niger) to host this ‘WorkRock’ – a term that shows that this is not ‘business as usual’ but about figuring out a new way of working together, based on strong foundations in evidence. With the help of the South Sudan Council of Churches and Islamic Council, it brought together 65 faith leaders and organisations, government officers and UNICEF staff.

In 2018, the Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations (CTPSR) at Coventry University was contracted by World Vision to conduct three in-depth, qualitative analyses of Celebrating Families, focusing on implementation in Afghanistan, Myanmar and Tanzania. These were commissioned to…

Things have changed dramatically for the world’s women since Christian Aid was founded 75 years ago. On the whole, this change has been for the better, with significant progress on women’s rights and working towards gender parity. We have seen…

Introducing the Network for Dialogue: EMPOWERING INTERRELIGIOUS AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE FOR THE SOCIAL INCLUSION OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES The Network for Dialogue was initiated in 2018 by the International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) in order to bring faith and civil society…

This scoping study explores the programmes and initiatives of local faith actors (which can include formal and informal religious leaders, worship communities, faith networks, and local and national faith-based organisations) in their response to modern slavery and human trafficking in…

This scoping study explores the programmes and initiatives of local faith actors (which can include formal and informal religious leaders, worship communities, faith networks, and local and national faith-based organisations) in their response to modern slavery and human trafficking in…

Lo’u Si’omaga ma le Tusi P a’ia Contextual Bible Studies Tatala le Ta’ui a le Atua1 presents a series of Bible studies rooted in the importance of being relational in the Samoan culture. It embraces the belief that the self…

Violent extremism is a global issue. Whether it has political, ideological, racist or religious roots, the problem of youth radicalisation affects African and European societies in the same way. The common response of using coercive hard power to counter violent…

This guide provides information on how World Vision offices can integrate child marriage prevention and response into programming, including guidance on working with married children. In addition, the guide intends to support the development of country-specific technical approaches and new…

Kenya AIDS Strategic Framework (KASF) 2014/15 – 2018/19 embraces a multi-sectoral approach to HIV programming and emphasizes the importance of participation and accountability in every sector in the HIV response. This calls upon communities to respond to HIV within their…

One of the most powerful influencers of individual behaviours, social norms and collective action at community and societal level is religion.
To maximize opportunities for more positive and impactful influence towards improving child and family wellbeing, UNICEF (Communication for Development Section and Civil Society Partnerships Unit in NYHQ), the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities and Religions for Peace in 2018 embarked on a new global Initiative on Faith and Positive Change for Children.

For over five decades, USAID has partnered and collaborated with civil society actors, of which faith-based, faith-inspired and local community organizations play a vital role towards achieving developmental goals. The United States writ large is an extraordinarily generous country. Faith-based…

G20 Interfaith Forum Japan 2019 7-9 June 2019 Faith actors, reflecting their deep moral convictions, vast global networks, daily lived experience with communities across the world, and their witness for the most vulnerable and those left behind, call the leaders…

This note on the 2019 G20 Interfaith Forum highlights what happened, with some analysis of key points. This ambitious effort aimed to bring together a “network of networks”, linking religious actors working on global issues within the broad framework of…

The Key Roles of Faith Actors in Meeting Needs of Refugees and Forced Migrants Presented by Jean Duff, JLI President

A decade ago, talk about religion in public spaces was largely limited to discussions about either theology, or terrorism - or both. Today, the role of religious organizations - whether churches, mosques, temples, or faith-inspired NGOs delivering critical development and…

Religions for Peace worked with the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities to devise a guide to action for religious leaders and faith communities. This guide includes introductory information on global responses to refugees and migrants, reflections on…

JLI Gender-Based Violence Learning Hub June 13, 2019 Welcome: Dr Elisabet le Roux, Stellenbosch University Speakers 1. Professor David Tombs, Director of the Centre for Theology and Public Issues / Centre for Theology and Public Issues at University of Otago 2.…

Islamic Relief is calling for an end to early and forced marriages by raising awareness of gender justice from an Islamic human rights perspective.

Islamic Relief is working to end the harmful practice of female genital mutilation/cutting by raising awareness of gender justice from an Islamic human rights perspective.

The sexual abuse crisis within the Catholic Church compels a reassessment of topics within both pastoral theology and Christology. The possible connection between the Passion narratives and the reality of sexual abuse is an obvious, but so far neglected, resource…

Since the time of Christ, caring for the sick and the poor has been a core distinctive of authentic Christianity. The response of Christians during many of the great plagues of antiquity played an important role in the spread of…

This report presents findings from the case study submission process - one part of three of the JLI Ending Violence Against Children (EVAC) Hub scoping study. They offer evidence to support the claim that religions offer an important contribution to…

The UN Environment Foresight Briefs are published by UN Environment to, among others, highlight a hotspot of environmental change, feature an emerging science topic, or discuss a contemporary environmental issue. This is an opportunity to find out what is happening…

Everyone has a role to play in the movement to end child marriage. In this brief, we explore the role of religious leaders and highlight key approaches to support civil society organisations who are considering engaging with them in their…

The articles that compose this publication come from presentations at the Women’s Human Rights Advocacy Training for Faith-Based Organizations and articulate both the religious aspect, grounded in theology, and the human rights dimension, with its standards and working methods. The…

JAKARTA, INDONESIA, March 5 2014. The Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI) has issued a fatwa, or edict, requiring the country’s 200 million Muslims to take an active role in protecting threatened species including tigers, rhinos, elephants and orangutans. The fatwa,…

In India, the issues of energy access and climate change are inextricably linked. If the 200 million people in India without access to electricity receive their energy from clean renewable sources, India will make a vital and positive contribution to…

Effective prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV) require a well-planned and coordinated effort among an array of organizations, disciplines, and sectors. In populations affected by conflict, there are additional and specific threats and risks that require action in order…

Rethinking relationships: from violence to equality in the DRC, evidence brief. Key findings of endline survey undertaken across 15 communities in Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo about faith, gender norms and SGBV in conflict affected communities.' UK government…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1K16DY1wzM Webinar with Dr Elisabet le Roux for JLI GBV Hub Research conducted for the PaRD SDG 3 Gender Equality and Empowerment Workstream   This was also presented at the UN CSW63 Session Unlocking the Power of Faith-based Partnerships- Enabling…

This report results from a year-long study researching and analyzing gender based violence within Muslim Canadian Communities. Specifically, it looks at how the concept of honour and shame can have both negative and positive consequences with regard to either encouraging…

The OSCE, which already engages with religion in a number of contexts, should promote greater ‘religious literacy’ and regard religion as a potential resource for security-building. This means engaging with religion, and with religious leaders, institutions, congregations, and communities, to…

In 2016 the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) funded World Vision to work with communities in DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan for two years to change attitudes, promote community acceptance of survivors and children born of rape, and improve…

Policy brief based on the experiences of young members of the Anglican Student Federation in South Africa. Focuses on what role, if any faith has played in the construction of gender norms. It looks at the importance of context, rural…

Child marriage results from the interplay of a variety of factors and happens across countries, cultures, ethnicities and religions. There is no single religion that is solely associated with child marriage. But as religious leaders often hold considerable power and…

From violence to equality Findings from DRC project on Preventing Violence Against Women and Girls Tearfund and HEAL Africa See here for the webinar recording

Since the dawn of history, faith has provided a foundation from which social norms develop - an estimated 83.6 percent of the world’s population considers itself affiliated with a faith. This underscores the critical role that religious leaders can play…

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a global issue that affects women and girls from different backgrounds, faiths, and races. In recent, years, there has been an increased focus on Muslims and the Muslim faith. Reyhana Patel's research has…

The G20 Interfaith Forum, explores religious dimensions of both key G20 policy concerns and priority agendas of religious communities. Leaders from networks that include religious leaders, religiously affiliated aid organizations, and scholars present proposals to G20 leaders. This document highlights…

In Africa, more than four in every 10 women of reproductive age want to avoid pregnancy. However, 47% of African women who do not want to become pregnant either use no contraceptive method or use traditional methods, which typically have…

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a form of gender injustice which affects millions of girls and women in the world and is deep rooted in social gender norms and practices. GBV is a leading cause of death, illnesses and disabilities of…

This is the third and final part of Footsteps series based on the biblical idea of jubilee. In the Old Testament, the jubilee year was intended for the restoration of the Israelites’ relationships with God, one another and the land.…

Mozambique’s Interfaith Program against Malaria (PIRCOM) developed the volunteer, Christian and Muslim sermon guide. They provide basic facts about malaria prevention and health seeking behavior, providing scriptural texts in support of the actions that a family should be taking. These…

Guião de Promoção e Protecção dos Direitos da Criança para os Líderes Religiosos Para a promoção da Saúde, Educação e Protecção da Criança Guide to religious leaders for the promotion of health, education and child protection in Portuguese The involvement…

Although sexual violence has fallen by half in the last two decades, the wide-ranging nature of the problem remains significant: around every two minutes in any given day, an American endures some sort of sexual assault.1 While the World Health…

2015-2017: A Program Model Case Study Partners: Episcopal Relief & Development and the humanitarian arm of the Episcopal Church of Liberia Two-year evaluation of program in Liberia   Program Website on Episcopal Relief & Development

This is a comprehensive report of the GNRC 5th Forum. It is a summary of all aspects of the Forum, including the speeches, papers presented, contributions and transcripts of messages delivered at the Forum. Includes remarks from distinguished guests during…

The declaration, known as an Affirmation of Welcome, is the first to involve UNHCR and a spectrum of faith-based groups. It sets out principles to guide faith leaders in providing welcoming environments for refugees and displaced people, and those without citizenship, including through promoting community understanding and tolerance, and combatting xenophobia.

The idea for a joint declaration emerged from a meeting hosted by UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres in Geneva in December 2012 with religious leaders and faith-based NGOs.

Taking place between February and April of this year, drafting of the Affirmation involved a coalition of leading faith-based organizations and academic institutions. The text draws upon principles and values of welcome shared by religions including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism.

The Partnership Note sets out broad guidance for UNHCR staff to engage with, reach out to, and partner with faith actors in the context of forced displacement. It describes UNHCR’s understanding of the range of faith actors and the role they play in humanitarian responses. The Note also flags the challenges of partnership and highlights instances where we would not normally engage owing to humanitarian and human rights considerations. More importantly, it contains examples of good practice and lessons learned from existing partnerships in the field and highlights principles that are a point of departure for dialogue and cooperation with faith actors and communities, while setting out actions and activities to put these principles into practice. The Partnership Note may be used as point of departure for conversations on many issues between UNHCR and faith actors. It can also help guide you, as partners, to establish dialogue across faiths and with a range of humanitarian actors.