A new endowed Chair in Islamic Studies and Intercultural Dialogue has been created at the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation (ADI), part of Deakin University in Australia.
The Chair was announced at Deakin University’s annual Iftaar dinner, co-hosted with the Australian Intercultural Society, and will be named in honour of the highly respected Muslim scholar and human rights advocate Fethullah Gülen, founder of the Gülen movement. “This Chair marks a significant initiative that will assist in developing the foundations of true dialogue, where people of different traditions and beliefs get the opportunity to know one another and work together towards the ideal of living in peace together,” said Mr Gülen.
The endowed Chair reflects the growing strategic partnership between Deakin University, the Australian Intercultural Society and the Selimiye Foundation. “The proposed Research Chair in Islamic Studies and Interfaith Dialogue within the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation has a particularly important role to play in contributing to understanding our global world and to affirming the importance of understanding difference in ways that go far beyond tolerance,” said Deakin University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Jane den Hollander.
In 2009 Fethullah Gülen was voted one of the world’s top public intellectuals by “Foreign Policy/Prospect” magazine. In 2013 he was rated one of the world’s most influential 100 people by “TIME” magazine, and in April this year he was awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award, in recognition of his life-long dedication to promoting peace and human rights.
Applications for the position will open soon. For more information please contact: Jo Collins
Center for Intercultural Dialogue 