International Religious Freedom Summit offers program for college students

CNA Staff, Nov 26, 2024 / 05:30 am

The annual International Religious Freedom (IRF) Summit in Washington, D.C., brings together more than 90 religious freedom organizations from more than 30 faith traditions to address challenges to religious freedom worldwide.

The summit also invites another demographic — college students — to register to take part in a university partnership program for graduate and undergraduate students who are passionate about religious freedom.

Organized by the Religious Freedom Institute (RFI), the IRF Summit’s partnership program from Feb. 3–5, 2025, begins with a daylong seminar designed for the students with training sessions, guided simulations, and conversations with leading scholars and government officials. The following two days, students can engage as full participants in the IRF Summit. 

Interested students can register for the University Partnership Program here until Jan. 17, 2025.

Forming young adults to embrace religious freedom is foundational to the future of religious freedom, according to the head of the IRF’s university partnership program. 

“Religious freedom is only safe when it is both protected in law and embraced by society,” said Jim Bennett, who heads the IRF Summit’s university partnership program. Bennett is the director of RFI’s National Center for Religious Freedom Education.

“Today’s youth will create law and public policy tomorrow, and a focused investment now in exploring and understanding the first principles of religious freedom will pay significant dividends in the future,” he continued. 

A growing number of college students are combating anti-religious narratives on campus, according to Bennett, who noted that “some of the greatest contemporary threats to religious freedom are occurring in places where their voices are already influential.” 

“We are seeing a remarkable display of enthusiasm from a growing number of young people who want to counter some of the anti-faith narratives they hear on their campuses while also making positive contributions to the larger society,” Bennett said. “It is exciting to work with students who are this passionate about defending the human dignity of all people.”

The University Partnership Program implements RFI’s “First Principles” curriculum, which “explores the importance of religious freedom to human identity, human rights, and human flourishing,” Bennett noted. The program then implements “guided simulations led by scholars and public officials that explore real-world scenarios in four global locations.”

After spending time in the partnership program on Feb. 3, students attend the IRF Summit on Feb. 4–5 as full participants, “with the opportunity to learn from and network with government officials and civil society leaders from around the world,” Bennett said. 

Speakers include the leadership team at the RFI and IRF Summit as well as scholars and activists in the religious freedom space and public officials in the U.S. and foreign governments, according to Bennett. 

Peter Burns, IRF Summit executive director, explained that the IRF Summit was designed “to help the movement increase its impact in a noisy policy space that doesn’t often give attention to cases of persecution around the world.”

“Over the past three years, our Summit partners have built a diverse coalition that is working to advance freedom of religion, conscience, and belief around the world,” Burns continued. “But even as the movement for international religious freedom grows, we are witnessing increased levels of religious restriction and persecution around the world.” 

“Raising our voices in solidarity with those who suffer due to their beliefs is more important than ever.”

The IRF Summit’s sponsors include the Center for Religious Liberty at The Catholic University of America, Meta, and religious freedom advocacy groups for a variety of religions. 

Burns noted that the summit is unique in that it’s “a partner-led gathering,” meaning that partner organizations “develop the program and provide the content, often as a platform for the projects they are already working on.” 

When asked what he hopes students will take away from the program, Bennett highlighted “foundational” principles of religious freedom. 

“We hope students will thoroughly understand why a robust defense of religious freedom is vital for defending everyone’s human dignity and protecting civil liberties that characterize a free society,” Bennett said. “We then equip them to skillfully apply this knowledge to some of today’s greatest challenges.”