DEFYING EXTREMISM


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DEFYING EXTREMISM CONFERENCE



Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice








November 19-21, 2014





ABOUT



The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice, at the University of San Diego's Kroc School of Peace Studies, convened a three-day conference to discuss the complex dimensions of what drives hate-based ideologies and how communities can work together to counter the polarizing narratives drawing individuals and communities to violence.


Conference Executive Summary

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Perspectives from a range of religious faiths and affected communities offered analyses of tactics and violence, as well as solutions and strategies for countering violent narratives internationally and domestically in the U.S. The purpose of the inaugural conference was to expand understanding beyond our silos, to find points of intersection, and create collaborative, gendered and

alternative responses.


Agenda

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Those gathered at the conference represented diverse constituencies, such as religious leaders, academics, policymakers, donors, women's rights activists, security personnel.


They came from fields often siloed: counter-terrorism, religious, secular, academic, government, civil society, human rights, peacebuilding, etc.


View Speakers

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  • Read the Conference Agenda below
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Karima Bennoune
conference keynote Speaker



DeFYING EXTREMISM CONFERENCE AGENDA



november 19 - 21, 2014


Speakers

Wednesday, November 19





10 a.m. WELCOME

  • Dee Aker, Director, Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice

  • Jennifer Freeman, Senior Program Officer for Women, Peace and Security, Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice

1030 a.m. TESTIMONIALS

  • Rubina Feroze Bhatti, General Secretary, Taangh Wasaib Organization, Pakistan; 2009 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Loreto Cabaya, Former Mayor of Aleosan, Mindanao, Philippines

  • Vicky Ibrahim, SAVE Network and Women Without Borders, Mother of Andrew Ibrahim, accused of plotting to bomb the Bristol shopping center, U.K.

  • Margaret Arach Orech, Commissioner, Interfaith Action for Peace in Africa, Uganda, 2014 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Shreen Abdul Saroor, Founder, Mannar Women's Development Federation, Sri Lanka, 2004 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

1 p.m. PANEL - ANALYSIS: REALITIES BEHIND THE HEADLINES

  • Yakin Ertürk, Former U.N. Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women

  • Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, Co-Founder, International Civil Society Action Network

  • Mohamed Elsanousi, Director of External Relations, Network of Religious and Traditional Peacemakers

  • Shareen Gokal, Manager, Resisting and Challenging Religious Fundamentalisms, Association for Women's Rights in Development

  • Jacob Zenn, Legal Adviser, International Center for Not-for-Profit Law

3 p.m. WORKING SESSIONS


Comparisons in Violence, Strategies for Hope: Sri Lanka and Burma

  • Facilitators: Zin Mar Aung -- RAINFALL -- Gender Study Group, Burma

  • Shreen Abdul Saroor -- 2004 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker, Sri Lanka

  • Visakha Tillekeratne -- Citizens for a Secure Sri Lanka

Extremism in Mainstream Society: An Open Discussion on Holistic Solutions in the MENA/Asia Region

  • Facilitators: Madeline Koch and Sussan Tahmasebi -- International Civil Society Action Network

Links Between Militarization and Extremism

  • Facilitator: Sameena Nazir -- Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Pakistan

Unpacking the Paths of Young Islamists

  • Facilitator: Avi Spiegel -- University of San Diego

Connecting the Dots: The Global Landscape of Religious Fundamentalisms

  • Facilitator: Shareen Gokal -- Association for Women's Rights in Development

5 p.m. PANEL -- DIALOGUES: TALKING WITH EXTREMISTS

  • Moderator: Dee Aker -- Director, Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice

  • Speakers: Khadijah Hawaja Gambo -- Muslim Women Peace Forum, Plateau State, Nigeria

  • Merlie "Milet" B. Mendoza -- Independent Humanitarian and Development Practitioner, Philippines, 2010 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Mubin Shaikh -- Co-author, Undercover Jihadi

  • Anne Speckhard -- Author, Talking to Terrorists

630 p.m. DINNER







Thursday, November 20






930 a.m. TESTIMONIALS

  • Fawziah Albakr, Professor of Sociology of Education, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia

  • Rehana Hashmi, Co-founder, SIsters Trust Pakistan, 2013 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Ashima Kaul, Founder, Yakjah Reconciliation and Development Network, India (Kashmir), 2014 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

10 a.m. PANEL - GENDER INITIATIVES: DEFENDING RIGHTS, DEFYING EXTREMISM

  • Moderator: Jennifer Freeman, Senior Program Officer for Women, Peace and Security, Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice

  • Speakers: Robi Damelin, Spokesperson, Parents Circle Families Forum, Israel, 2014 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Ulrich Kropiunigg, Director of Research, Women Without Borders, Professor of Medical Psychology, Medical University of Vienna, Austria

  • Susan Tahmasebi, Co-Founder, International Civil Society Action Network

1 p.m. PANEL - BUILDING EFFECTIVE POLICIES: FRAMEWORKS, COLLABORATION AND ACTION

  • Lina Abou-Habib, Executive Director, Collective for Research and Training on Development-Action, Program Advisor, Women's Learning Partnership

  • Alison Davidian, Justice Specialist, UN Women

  • Joyce Dubensky,CEO, Tanenbaum

  • Sabiha Husic, Director, Medica Zenica, 2013 IPJ Woman PeaceMaker

  • Palwasha Kakar, Senior Program Officer, Religion and Peacebuilding, U.S. Institute of Peace

430 p.m. WORKING SESSIONS


Fostering Synergies for Advancing Women's Rights in Post-Conflict Islamic States: Three-Pillars Approach

  • Facilitators: Susan Hayward, Palwasha Kakar, U.S. Institute of Peace

Reducing Opposition to Women's Rights through Legislative Problem-Solving Dialogues

  • Facilitator: Lorna Seitz -- Legis Institute

Unpacking the Truth: Religious Liberty, Women's Rights and Radicalization

  • Facilitator: Christy Vines: Institute for Global Engagement

Gender and CVE: Moving from Policy to Practice

  • Facilitator: Naureen Choudhury Fink -- Global Center on Cooperative Security

Started from My Living Room: Community-based Models for Anti-Radicalization and Reformation

  • Facilitators: Paula Kweskin -- International Human Rights Attorney

  • Raheel Raza -- Council for Muslims Facing Tomorrow

  • Jasvinder Sanghera -- Karma Nirvana

7 p.m. DISTINGUISHED LECTURE SERIES

  • Karima Bennoune -- Professor of Law, University of California at Davis






Friday, November 21





10 a.m. TESTIMONIALS

  • Arno Michaelis, Author -- My Life After Hate

  • Maxensia Nakibuuka, Council of the Laity, Kampala Archdiocese, Uganda

  • Mubin Shaikh, Co-Author, Undercover Jihadi

10:30 a.m. CLOSING KEYNOTE ADDRESS

  • James McElroy, Member, Board of Directors, Southern Poverty Law Center, Civil Rights Attorney

11:30 a.m. QUESTION-AND-ANSWER SESSION


12 p.m. CONFERENCE CLOSING


2 p.m. REGIONAL DIALOGUES

  • Middle East/North Africa

  • South and Southeast Asia

  • Africa

  • Europe


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