"Nonviolent Activism in the Islamic World in a Time of Islamophobia" Webinar Registration - We Are All Part of One Another

We are excited to invite you to join us for another installment of Nonviolence International’s Wednesday webinar series We Are All Part of One Another.

On August 12th from 10:30 am - 12:00 pm EDT (1430-1600 GMT) we will hold a discussion on...

 "Nonviolent Activism in the Islamic World in a Time of Islamophobia"

This interactive webinar features presentations by scholars and activists who have dedicated their life's work to promote human rights and justice in various parts of the Islamic world. Speakers are Thai professor and activist Chaiwat Satha-Anand, Sudanese social justice activist, researcher, and feminist Hala Al-Karib, and Kashmiri writer-activist Mushtaq Ul-Haq Ahmad Sikandar, Lebanese-American scholar and former Director of NVI's Islam and Peace program, Karim Crow. Our host will be Nonviolence International board member and American University professor Mohammed Abu-Nimer.

PANELISTS:

Chaiwat Satha-Anand was born in Bangkok, Thailand in 1955. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, is a professor of political science at Thammasat University, Bangkok, and director of the Thai Peace Information Centre, which conducts studies and activism in relation to the Thai military and social issues. He is an expert on nonviolence theory as well as activism, and on Islam. Chaiwat has published numerous articles and book chapters on the military, alternative defense, religion and peace, Islam and nonviolence, and modern political philosophy. For several years he directed the International Peace Research Association’s (IPRA) commission on nonviolence and he serves at the Scientific Committee of the International University for Peoples’ Initiative for Peace, IUPIP, in Rovereto Italy.

Hala Al-Karib is a Sudanese social justice activist, research practitioner, and full-time feminist, who has intensively and comprehensively worked in the Horn of Africa region. Currently, she is the Regional Director of the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network), and the Editorial Head of “Women in Islam” Journal. Hala's experience extends more than 20 years with a major interest in women and girl's rights, displaced, refugee and migrant groups, and minorities. She started her career as a researcher in different institutions in South Sudan and Egypt. She later joined institutions like the World Food Programme, World University Services, Accord International, Goal Ireland, and Concern International. As well as being a former board member of the Open Society Initiative for East Africa (OSIEA) and chairperson of Sudan Democracy First, she is currently a board member of Musawah Global Movement. Hala has also published a number of articles in Al Jazeera and Open Democracy, with extensive engagement training and facilitating different workshops, as well as occupying regional and international panels advocating for equality and social justice issues.

Mushtaq Ul-Haq Ahmad Sikandar is a writer-activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir, and has completed his Masters in Political Science from Kashmir University. His interests span a wide range of issues from writing to activism. His write-ups and book reviews appear regularly in various newspapers, magazines, journals, and websites. Mushtaq is frequently invited to present academic papers on issues related to religion, politics, terrorism, conflict resolution, feminism, and Islamic revivalist movements. He actively participates in inter/intra-faith, ethnic, and regional dialogues. He has also penned down numerous poems and short stories. Mushtaq is also an activist and volunteers with various humanitarian organizations working in the Kashmir Valley as he believes that writing alone doesn’t work unless corroborated by activism.

Karim Crow, a Lebanese-American scholar and former director of the NVI's Islam and Peace Program.  Crow’s research focuses primarily on psycho-spiritual functions of faith, ethical and metaphysical topics, and Islamic Peace studies. When at Nonviolence International he traveled the world organizing conferences on Islamic peace studies. Crow has publications in two edited volumes, as well as thirty-five published articles including, Islam and Reason, Islam-Image and Realities, and Peaceful Striving and Combative Struggle.

HOST:

Mohammed Abu-Nimer is Palestinian-American and was born in Israel. He serves on the Board of Directors for Nonviolence International. He is a professor at American University. He is an expert on conflict resolution, and dialogue for peace. While his research has focused on a wide array of areas in peacebuilding and conflict resolution, his most recent areas of focus have included faith-based peacebuilding, interfaith dialogue in peacebuilding and building social cohesion, and pedagogical considerations on incorporating peace and forgiveness education in the Arab world. He is also the action Senior Advisor to the KAICIID Dialogue Centre, an international organization that specializes in interreligious and intercultural dialogue. Prof. Abu-Nimer has been both author and an editor of more than 13 books on faith-based and interfaith peace-building (e.g. Nonviolence and Peacebuilding in Islamic Context: Bridging Ideals and Reality (2003); Peace-Building By, Between and Beyond Muslims and Evangelical Christians (2009)), as well as interfaith dialogue and its role in peacebuilding and reconciliation (e.g. Unity in Diversity: Interfaith Dialogue in the Middle East (2007); Dialogue Conflict Resolution and Change: Arab-Jewish Encounters in Israel (1999)). Abu-Nimer's newest volume, Faith-Based Peacebuilding: Challenges of Practice, jointly edited with Michele Garred was scheduled for release in 2017.

In a time of substantial Islamaphobia across the world, Nonviolence International will host experts in the field of Islam and nonviolent activism. They will discuss the rich diversity of nonviolent resistance and activism in Thailand, Kashmir, Sudan, Palestine, and other Muslim states and communities. We hope that people will learn about the exciting range of nonviolent activism happening today and explore ways to support and raise up these efforts.

Through these timely webinars, Nonviolence International will educate, inspire, and build a strong community as we work for a better world. We celebrate the visionary work of these passionate leaders and look forward to sharing the inspiration with all of you.

Over the coming months, we will be hosting an impressive range of nonviolent activists, thinkers, and leaders. We hope that you will make our new webinar series a regular part of your schedule. Each episode you will hear a powerful story of how people are using creative nonviolence in these difficult days. 

We look forward to an interactive and inspirational webinar series.