Every few years, something quietly remarkable happens across URI's global network: hundreds of Cooperation Circles, the self-organizing local groups that form the backbone of URI, cast their votes to choose who will help guide the network forward through the Trustee Selection Process. This year, that process played out across four regions, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAPac), and it's our pleasure to introduce the twelve regional Trustees the network has chosen, along with eight At-Large Trustees, who together will serve on URI's Global Council.
These aren't distant appointees. They're neighbors, teachers, lawyers, filmmakers, and organizers who have spent years, often decades, doing the unglamorous, patient work of bridge-building in their own communities. Here are their stories.
Europe
In Europe, 78 percent of certified Cooperation Circles cast their votes, electing Ivana Barać, Dimitar Borumov, and Eric Roux.
Ivana Barać has spent nearly a decade leading youth and children's programming at the Sombor Educational Center in Serbia, where she built a Sustainable Development Goals Academy for the next generation and now chairs Serbia's National Association of Youth Workers.
Dimitar Borumov teaches Bulgarian history in the Netherlands and, as a certified URI Youth Facilitator, has helped run URI Europe's youth camps while writing as a columnist for The European Times on interfaith cooperation and environmental justice.
Eric Roux has spent over two decades advocating for religious freedom across Europe, from the OSCE to the EU Parliament to the United Nations, always insisting that the strongest advocacy for faith communities comes from multifaith coalitions, not any one voice alone.
Asia
In Asia, URI's largest region, hundreds of Cooperation Circles cast their votes, electing Dhanapala Karunasena, Dr. M.P. Varsha, and Reni K Jacob.
Dhanapala Karunasena has spent over a decade leading a Cooperation Circle in Badulla, Sri Lanka that was recognized as the best CC in URI's South Asia zone, all while building a 33-year career in banking and financial governance.
Dr. M.P. Varsha has spent three decades in child welfare and rural development in Mysuru, India, and founded CREDIT-I, an NGO advancing environmental protection and empowerment for women and youth across Karnataka.
Reni K Jacob is a lawyer and social worker from Kerala who has spent four decades in advocacy and peacebuilding, including leadership roles at World Vision India and International Justice Mission, and is the author of nine books on human rights.
Africa
In Africa, one of URI's most vibrant and fastest-growing regions, hundreds of Cooperation Circles cast their votes, electing Rev. Dr. James Movel Wuye, Sabina Sekai Taderera, and Abdu Katende.
Rev. Dr. James Movel Wuye co-founded Nigeria's Interfaith Mediation Centre thirty years ago, and has spent three decades working alongside his colleague Imam Dr. Muhammad Ashafa turning religious conflict into lasting collaboration.
Sabina Sekai Taderera, a Zimbabwean-born peacebuilder based in South Africa, founded the Angel's Nest Southern Africa Cooperation Circle in 2016, drawing on her own experience of displacement to advance human rights and peace for refugee and migrant communities.
Abdu Katende recently retired after 35 years teaching Islamic theology and peace studies at Makerere University, and now leads Uganda's Centre for Inter-religious and Inter-cultural Dialogue as its Executive Director.
Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAPac)
In SEAPac, one of URI's most geographically diverse regions, spanning island nations and mainland Southeast Asia alike, hundreds of Cooperation Circles cast their votes, electing Philippa Rowland, Rev. Fr. Stephen Adrian Villaester, and Sithen Sum.
Philippa Rowland has led the Multifaith Association of South Australia since 2017, bringing a career in sustainability policy and community organizing to her work connecting people across faiths in shared care for the Earth.
Rev. Fr. Stephen Adrian Villaester serves as an Interfaith and Peace-building Consultant to the Iligan City Government in the Philippines, guided by nearly a decade of dialogue and reconciliation work across faiths and cultures.
Sithen Sum is a Cambodian filmmaker and Executive Director of the Sunflower Film Organization in Phnom Penh, using storytelling to build grassroots partnerships across cultures and faith traditions.
At-Large Trustees
Joining the regional Trustees are eight At-Large Trustees, who bring additional professional skills, expertise, and different perspectives to the Global Council: Emina Frljak (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Vincent Leong (Malaysia), Ruzbeh Hodiwala (United Kingdom), His Grace Salika Dasa Adhikari (Nigeria), Faisal Ilyas (Pakistan), Julie Delvaux (Belgium), Eilda Zaghmout (Palestine), and Lijo Chacko (UAE).
Emina Frljak is a Program Coordinator at Youth for Peace in Sarajevo and serves on the International Youth Committee of Religions for Peace.
Vincent Leong is a global trainer and entrepreneur who co-founded URI's Global Youth Cooperation Circle, mentoring startups and leading programs that inspire positive change.
Ruzbeh Hodiwala is a researcher in Zoroastrian and Iranian Studies with a PhD from SOAS, University of London. He is a Council member of the International Association for Religious Freedom and a youth representative for the Zoroastrian community in the UK.
His Grace Salika Dasa Adhikari is a comparative religionist, Temple President of ISKCON in Jos, Plateau State, and Vice-Chairman of the National Council of the ISKCON Movement in Nigeria. He has presented at conferences around the world on religion, peace, development, and environmental degradation.
Faisal Ilyas is a community leader and interfaith activist from Pakistan.
Julie Delvaux has led a drug prevention organization in Belgium since 2015 and joined URI in 2018 through the Peacefully Connected Cooperation Circle.
Eilda Zaghmout co-founded Beit Ashams, Palestine's first specialized yoga studio, and leads meditation at TAWAZON.
Lijo Chacko is CEO of Sigachi Middle East and Africa and brings experience bridging business, civil society, and faith networks to help expand URI's reach.
What Comes Next
Alongside these twenty, URI's sitting Trustees from North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Multiregion, and the Middle East and North Africa continue their service, a reminder that URI's Global Council is never a single moment of change but an ongoing, overlapping relay of leadership.
Congratulations to all twenty newly elected Trustees. Their service begins in September, and to every Cooperation Circle that voted, organized a conversation, or simply showed up: thank you. This is what grassroots governance looks like in practice, thousands of local voices, choosing together who carries the work forward.
About the Global Council
URI's Global Council is the network's governing body. Its Trustees are elected by Cooperation Circles in their regions, alongside At-Large Trustees chosen to ensure the Council has the diverse professional skills and expertise it needs. Together, they set the strategic direction for URI, uphold its legal and fiduciary responsibilities, and work in close partnership with the Executive Director and staff to keep the network true to its Charter and its Purpose: 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.
