Amman Baccalaureate School

Interfaith Dialogue Conference

 

The Amman Baccalaureate School will host a student-led interfaith dialogue conference under the theme of “The role of religions and faith-based organizations in the realization of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.” 

 The conference will be organized by the Amman Baccalaureate School Students in cooperation with the Royal Institute for Inter-faith Studies (RIIFS) and will also include students from a variety of IB and other schools in Amman.

The major aims of this conference are to:

· shed light on values shared by religions that form the foundation of a cohesive, homogeneous and all-inclusive society

· highlight the role of Religion in achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set in 2015. 

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals address the global challenges the world faces, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. All 17 goals are interrelated and create a foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world.

With 84% of the world’s population estimated to be affiliated to a religion, international and local institutions are increasingly acknowledging the importance of religion in their work.

These institutions have established clear partnership guidelines with faith communities. However, what engaging development and religion means, and how it should be done, remains unclear. This interfaith dialogue conference will enable a genuine exchange of experiences and viewpoints so that unexpected insights and actions can unfold. Students will be able to recognize the crucial role of religious dynamics and faith communities in sustainable development.

Potential questions to be addressed through this dialogue conference could be:

· What should be the role of both faith and humanitarian actors in mitigating challenges?

· Are there any SDGs that pose a challenge for some faith actors and why might that be?

· Were any faith actors involved in setting the SDG goals?

· What role did faith actors play in the development of the SDGs? Were they partners or only religious voices?

 

During the one-day conference, which will be held on Saturday 29 February 2020, students will have the opportunity to listen to keynote speakers and experts from the community. They will be divided into table groups and each group will discuss and debate one of the five SDGs. At the end of the conference, each group will share their findings and recommendations with all participants.

 

United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals SDGs chosen for discussion are:

GOAL 1: No Poverty

GOAL 4: Quality Education

GOAL 5: Gender Equality

GOAL 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

GOAL 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions

 

Programme for the conference:

9:00 -10:00 Opening session/plenary

10:00 – 10:30 Coffee break

10:30 – 12:00 Session 1

12:00 – 1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:30 Session 2

2:30 – 3:00 Coffee break

3:00 – 4:30 Closing ceremony