The Problem In today’s world, there are many ethnic, cultural and religious conflicts, some of which have led to violence. Religion is too often used by one group to justify action or policy harmful to another group. In April 2006, the Dalai Lama convened a conference in San Francisco with Muslim and interfaith leaders from around the world to consider the problems of religious extremism and to question the generalizations of the Western press in their portrayal of Islamic militancy. The central issue was why religions leave “the middle path.” “The middle path” can be defined as the central truths of a religion. The Dalai Lama called for increased interfaith dialogue about “universal similarities, differences and the purposes for these differences.” This project addresses these topics.

The Educational Solutions Model for University Dialogue The mission of Educational Solutions (ES), an Oregon nonprofit, is to enrich university education by providing global Internet-based forums for students to learn about and discuss controversial issues that divide communities and nations. ES has successfully developed and tested educational materials that present balanced information and conflict resolution practices to enable students to address divisive issues. Pairs of classes study the same curriculum and engage in informed civil dialogue on the ES Website and through videoconferencing.

Proposed International Interfaith Dialogues ES proposes the development and worldwide use of course inserts for relevant university courses. The curriculum contains parallel material for Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and examples of indigenous religions. Also included is the secular perspective on religion. For basic student understanding, the presentations include each religion’s central principles and history. To stimulate student dialogue and understanding of the possible roles of religion in society, the presentations examine the lives of spiritual heroes, as well as analyses of times religions have left the middle path. Religious groups often leave the middle path because of social and political injustice, marginalization, scarce resources and ethnic/cultural differences. Social and political divisions can be exacerbated by religious divisions and the negative aspects of human nature. However, the central principles of religion seek to mitigate these negative aspects of human nature: fear, ignorance, greed, hatred, selfishness, hardening of the heart against “the other” and “group mind.”

The units are being developed by ES in cooperation with international faith leaders, including several who spoke at the April 2006 conference convened by the Dalai Lama. The ES Interfaith Advisory Board will review the curriculum. PBS quality DVDs will model civil dialogue by faith leaders. These DVDs will be used in the curriculum, as well as be made available for wider community education. Pairs of classes can dialogue about all dominant religious beliefs or choose units on specific religions.

Program Objectives Learning objectives include decreased stereotyping and increased understanding of the fundamentals of the great faiths, the reasons religions leave “the middle path,” and possible solutions for interfaith conflict. Students will learn to evaluate how people’s interpretation of religion can contribute positively or negatively to world society. Educational Solutions’ goal is to involve over 400 universities and 8,000 students in international dialogues on this subject by 2011. ES will be seeking funding for this project in 2008.