We’re happy to share that the United Religions Initiative (URI) has received a grant from Templeton Religion Trust (TRT) to advance a new learning and leadership initiative called “Leading with Curiosity and Courage: URI’s PPPs in Practice.”
Across much of the world today, differences feel more threatening. Uncertainty, fear, and division are the currency of the day. With this project, we are asking: “What if spiritual and religious communities hold time-tested wisdom for sustaining curiosity and courage? What if that could help us when we face uncertainty, polarisation, and overwhelming differences?”
With Templeton Religion Trust’s support, URI will design, pilot, and assess a new Leadership Course that helps inter-religious and intercultural leaders strengthen the virtues and practices of “courageous curiosity”.
Over the coming year, the project will support:
- A network-wide introductory learning experience on cultivating virtues of curiosity and courage
- Two deeper Learning-in-Action regional pilots (in MENA and North America)
- Facilitator development, practical tools, and stronger impact assessment
- A shared learnings toolkit from the project
- Continued planning for URI’s emerging Collaborative Action Hubs
Together, these efforts aim not only to strengthen interfaith leadership in our communities but also to deepen relationships, expand imagination, and inspire courageous leadership and collective action across differences.
URI was founded collaboratively by grassroots religious and indigenous peoples drawing on the wisdom of their spiritual and indigenous traditions “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.”
Our 2030 Strategic Framework sets out bold goals for growth of collaborations to end local and regional cycles of violence and protect, restore, and heal human and ecological communities. This project is a crucial building block in reaching these goals, by understanding the spiritual and religious roots of courage and curiosity and practicing them together in the face of current world challenges.
URI’s Executive Director, Karen Volker, said:
“At a time when increased levels of fear and division can shape how we see one another, URI's new interfaith leadership training invites us to lead with presence, courage, and a willingness to stay curious in the face of complexity. Across the URI network, leaders are already practicing daily interfaith cooperation, transforming difference into compassion and shared action. This new initiative offers space to deepen our collective understanding of interfaith leadership. It invites us to learn together how to nurture courageous curiosity, remain open, listen deeply, and engage with humility and care. We are grateful for our partnership with the Templeton Religion Trust, which supports the development of interfaith leaders who are helping cultivate cultures of peace, justice, and healing for the Earth and all living beings.”
As this project unfolds, we look forward to sharing learnings, stories, and practices emerging from across the network. Stay connected as this journey begins.
