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Confucian Engaged Projects
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| The United
Religions Initiative (URI) is a growing global
community of individuals, organizations, and associations
working to build cultures of peace and justice
for the benefit of the entire Earth Community.
Care for the Earth is central to URI’s vision
and values, which are clearly expressed in its
Charter, the foundation and guide for all URI activities.
Among other stated commitments to diversity, inclusivity,
and nonviolence are the following: “We unite
to heal and protect the earth” (Preamble); “The
purpose of [URI] is . . . to create cultures of
peace, justice, and healing for the Earth and all
living beings” (Purpose); and “We act
from sound ecological practices to protect and
preserve the Earth for both present and future
generations” (Principles). Members from different
traditions and locations around the world are continuously
creating the URI through their shared vision, partnerships,
and projects. Although its global coordinating
office is located in San Francisco, URI is a decentralized,
non-hierarchical, and inclusive organization with
regional staffing in seven geographic areas (Africa,
Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean,
the Middle East, North America, and the Pacific).
Self-organizing Cooperation Circles, which operate
locally and are connected globally, form the core
of URI. To qualify as a Cooperation Circle, a group
must have at least seven members from at least
three different religious, spiritual, or indigenous
traditions. Through locally initiated actions,
people from diverse religious and spiritual backgrounds
draw upon their resourcefulness, creativity and
religious values to deepen their understanding
of other faiths and contribute to positive change
in their communities. Circles take on cooperative
projects of various kinds, some of which focus
specifically on environmental concerns. In India,
for example, Cooperation Circle initiatives include:
tree planting, water and waste management, environmental
programs for youth, and restoration of cremation
grounds. Circles in the United States, such as
Spiritual Alliance for the Earth (SAFE) in the
San Francisco Bay Area and Faith in Place in Chicago,
also focus on environmental issues. In addition
to the Cooperation Circles, which form the heart
of the Initiative, URI is supported by its Affiliates:
individuals and organizations that share its values
and participate in some of its global projects.
At present, there are more than 200 Cooperation
Circles with more than 15,000 members in fourty-seven
different countries.
Together, they represent more than eighty-eight
religious, spiritual, and indigenous traditions
and consist
of women,
men, elders, youth, and people from different
cultures and nations who share a common vision
and commitment to the URI Charter. |
| Inter-religious:
Confucianism |
| International |
| 1993–Present |
| The origins
of the United Religions Initiative (URI) date back
to an inter-religious service commemorating the
fiftieth anniversary
of the United Nations (UN) in San Francisco held
in 1995. When first asked to host the event in
1993,
Bishop William Swing of the Episcopal Diocese of
California decided to launch a worldwide initiative
to build an enduring global organization dedicated
to creating cultures of peace and justice for the
entire Earth Community. URI held the first of five
Global Summits in 1996, the last of which was the
URI Charter Signing in 2000. In addition to its
global summits, URI has sponsored numerous regional
summits and gatherings around the world. Since
its founding, more than a million people have participated
in URI events. The Initiative has organized inter-religious
projects in more than sixty countries and generated
a global, inter-religious community of Cooperation
Circles
and Affiliates. |
| “The
purpose of the United Religions Initiative is to
promote enduring, daily interfaith cooperation,
to end religiously motivated violence and to create
cultures of peace, justice, and healing for the
Earth and all living beings.” |
The Chaordic
Alliance
Council for the Parliament of the World’s
Religions
Habitat for Humanity, International
Interfaith Organization
Social Innovations in
Global Management
United Nations
World Peace
Prayer Society |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
The
United Religions Initiative
P.O. Box 29242
San Francisco, CA 94129
Ph: 415.561.2300
Fax: 415.561.2313
Email: office@uri.org |
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This site is hosted courtesy of the
Harvard
University Center for the Environment
Copyright © 2004 Forum
on Religion and Ecology.
All rights reserved.
Last Updated:
12/14/05
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