 The Interfaith Summer Institute has arisen in the context of an increase in global and local conflicts where religion is a factor both in the promotion of violence and in fostering peace. With social movements now major forces in both war and peacemaking, it is important to explore the ways religion and spirituality can affect contemporary movements for social justice and peace. It is in making this connection between religion and social movements for peace and justice that this program is unique in North America
The objective of the Interfaith Summer Institute is to equip practitioners - such as teachers, community organizers, settlement workers and faith leaders - with the theoretical and practical skills to build interfaith and cross-cultural alliances for justice and peace at the community and social movement level. In bringing together renowned scholars and activists from several different traditions, it nourishes a cross-fertilization process that provides direction in the crucial work of building transnational and interfaith alliances. Concrete examples of these sort of alliances range from the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice in Chicago; Christian-Muslim solidarity during the Christian Peacemaker Teams hostage crisis in Iraq; the Interfaith Sanctuary Movement in Canada; Women in Black, which brings together women of all faiths, in many countries, against occupation and violence; and Peace for Life, a global faith-based movement resisting militarized globalization and creating life-enhancing alternatives.
The content of the summer institute is a response to current social and political crises. It addresses the critical intersections between religion, racism, and racial profiling - be it Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, communalism or the “clash of civilizations” - and how these are played out locally and globally. It increases participants' understanding of the concepts and issues related to religious diversity. Central to the curriculum is the foregrounding of women, youth, and children, and their role in conflict and peacemaking; and Indigenous environmental logic and knowledge of place. The significant focus on Native peoples explores ways of righting the relationship between First Peoples, the land, and the settler history of colonialism in Canada .
The skills component of the summer institute is comprised of a range of practices in peacemaking. Each year specific skills are highlighted from the following areas: cultural production, community organizing, cross-cultural conflict resolution, restorative justice; instructional design for peace-making curriculum; education for environmental justice; active non-violence; popular theatre and the use of art, spirituality, and ritual to heal communities traumatized by violence. The importance of spiritual practice in peace and justice-making is explored through individuals sharing from their different traditions.
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