Network Digest - August 2011
Please read below for news and information from our network.
To include any items in next month’s digest, please email m.shaw@gold.ac.uk
News/Events
FaithxChange
We are pleased to announce that we are hosting a fifth FaithxChange event on 27th September in London; Event 5: Young People, Faith and the Future. The event will be an opportunity to look back over the network’s activities and the themes that have arisen, as well as to hear some new insights and experiences. In light of the recent riots in the UK, we are also focusing this event on looking forward to explore the future challenges and opportunities for young people and the role faith plays in those. The event will include a network dinner, which will allow for further informal discussion of the future of the network. Places are limited, so please contact m.shaw@gold.ac.uk soon to book.
The fourth FaithxChange event, Faith, Young People and Higher Education took place at Goldsmiths on 20th July. Participants from across the academic and practitioner fields held engaging discussions on the challenges facing universities in understanding and engaging with faith as a crucial element of the student experience. The programme for the day included the following presentations;
- Kristin Aune, University of Derby, Christianity and the University Experience in Contemporary England
- Rebecca Catto & Janet Eccles, University of Lancaster, 'The Young Atheists'
- Anna Strhan, University of Kent, Practising the Space Between: Believing
and Speaking as a Conservative Evangelical Student
- Jacqueline Stevenson, Leeds Metropolitan University - Religion and higher
education: developing a critical understanding of the experiences of
religious students in UK secular universities
- Linda Woodhead, University of Lancaster, Universities: Religious or Secular?
Papers from the day will be available on the website soon www.faithxchange.org.uk.
Religious Literacy Leadership Programme - New Workshops taking place in November.
Following on from the success of the Religious Literacy Leadership Workshops that we ran last year we are pleased to announce that two more will be taking place in November 2011, in London on the 14th and York on the 15th. The sessions are designed to explore the practical challenges and opportunities, supporting senior HE leaders and managers to put in place excellent policies and practices, which enhance their ‘offer’ to students and staff.
These workshops are intended for senior staff in key operational roles including: heads of academic departments; chaplaincies; student services; admissions and registry; exams and timetabling; student counselling; catering, food, bars and accommodation; student financial services; NUS executives.
The programme will be published on the Religious Literacy Leadership Programme website shortly and in the meantime you can register your interest to attend the event by emailing info@religiousliteracyHE.org
Beyond Belief: Religion and Belief in Professional Practice, an international conference, is offered by the University of Bradford with bursaries provided by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 7-8 September 2011 at Norcroft Centre, The University of Bradford.
This conference aims to stimulate discussion amongst practitioners, service providers, carers, users, policy makers, and academics about the impact of religion and belief on professional practice in social work and health and social care. See website for further details; /www.brad.ac.uk/study/cpd/belief/
7th Annual North American Conference on Spirituality and Social Work, Thunder Bay Ontario, Canada, June 22-24, 2012. The theme for the conference is “The Evolution of Spirituality across the Lifespan; Embracing spiritual diversity from Canadian Northern Communities to Global Localities”
The call for papers in now open. Please see below for further details:
http://socialwork.lakeheadu.ca/projects/sswc2012/
International Conference on Multi-Faith Spaces, 21st – 22nd March 2012, University of Manchester,UK.
This conference will bring together key outputs from the three year research project Multi-Faith Spaces: Agents of Religious and Social Change, funded by the AHRC/ESRC under the Religion and Society Programme. The project considers how individuals from different religious and cultural backgrounds might be brought together, concretely, within new types of ‘faith space’ that are often simultaneously religious, spiritual and secular. The conference will coincide with the launch of a touring photographic exhibition. The project welcomes expressions of interest to present at the conference.
Further details can be found at: www.manchester.ac.uk/mfs
News from Global Uncertainties Programme:
Global Uncertainties Strategic Plan: The RCUK Global Uncertainties programme has launched its Strategic Plan 2011-2016. The Plan outlines the main aims and directions for activities across the programme and the six core areas. Read
more<http://www.globaluncertainties.org.uk/globaluncertainties/news/GUStrategicPlan.aspx>
Leadership Fellows Call: The programme is seeking to appoint a cohort of Leadership Fellows to help provide further focus to the programme and to maximise the impact from Research Council investments. The deadline for Expressions of Interests is 28 September. Call details
http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/funding-opportunities/16083/latest-opportunity-17.aspx
RCUK Green Paper for Cybersecurity Research:
The programme launched a green paper on cybersecurity to raise awareness of the issues amongst researchers as well as users of research. The paper sets out the future Global Uncertainties approach to cybersecurity and highlights forthcoming activities. http://www.globaluncertainties.org.uk/Image/Cyber%20green%20paper_tcm11-15897.pdf#false
Global Uncertainties Newsletter: The programme is working towards launching a regular newsletter in
September 2011. We will be seeking inputs from our research community in due course; we would also like to encourage our other partners across
government, industry, public or other sectors to actively share their news of key publications, funding opportunities, events or other developments
via the upcoming newsletter and Global Uncertainties website. For any submissions please contact :
global.uncertainties@esrc.ac.uk<mailto:global.uncertainties@esrc.ac.uk>
Courses
Religious Diversity and Anti-Discrimination Training: Train to become a trainer and become part of a UK and European Network of trainers in Religious Diversity and Anti-discrimination. The training will be delivered at the Multi-Faith Centre at the University of Derby, Kedleston Road, Derby, DE22 1GB.
Dates: Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 October 2011, Sunday 13 November 2011, Sunday 11 December 2011, Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 January 2011
(overnight accommodation can be arranged if required)
Basic cost for the 6 training days including lunch and refreshments, Manual and Certificate: £600.00 (additional costs, accommodation and travel)
For further information contact Eileen Fry, Training Co-ordinator
eileenfry@yahoo.co.uk or e.fry@derby.ac.uk
Publications/Research
Religion and belief in higher education: the experiences of staff and students - The report of research for the Equality Challenge Unit by Paul Weller, Nikki Moore & Tristram Hooley, University of Derby. This study examines the experiences of staff and students with a religion or belief in higher education through four themes: Participation & access, accommodating religious observance, discrimination & harassment and good relations. The report makes recommendations to HEIs to help them to develop strategic plans to address the issues raised in the research. Full report available from the Equality Challenge Unit.
Belief in Dialogue: religion & Belief Relation in Scotland, a good practice guide.
This Good Practice Guide is intended for individuals, faith communities, belief groups, inter-faith groups, local authority equality officers as well as for statutory and voluntary organisations. It recognises the good practice already established in the field of inter-religious dialogue.
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/347464/0115683.pdf
St Ethelburgas’ Tandem Dialogue Interfaith Project. This project is being made available as a training/workshop model for University Chaplains, and students. The project was developed at Leeds University and has been piloted in eight group sessions by St Ethelburgas. Both as in-house and outreach models. With diverse groups including a partnership with the NUS that involved London University students and Chaplains.
For more details please check out: http://stethelburgas.org/multifaith/projects
Religion and Belief Guide. 5 April 2011 marks a milestone in equality law with the introduction of the new public sector equality duty (PSED). The new duty is encompassed in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. The nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010 are age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. This new updated guide gives employers and managers practical help in complying with the Equality Act 2010 and in creating a fair working environment in which no one is put at a disadvantage because of religion or belief.
http://multifaiths.com/pdf/Acas2010religion.pdf
Also available from Multifaiths.com are;
- the 2011 - 2012 Multifaiths eBook. This includes information on festivals and annual events that people celebrate once during the course of a solar or lunar year, information on the primary sacred times for world religions and information on national and international days of significance See the link for demo pages. http://www.multifaiths.com/demo/pageflip.html
- Sample A3 Multi Faiths Monthly Planner for quick reference.
For Membership to the site, e-Book and Monthly Planner, please visit http://multifaiths.com/membership/membership-plan