Projects and Activities

In his role as the first occupant of the Mohammed Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace, Professsor Said is often requested to present at conferences and speaking engagements, and he continues to provide consultations around the world. Presentations, speaking engagements and projects under the auspices of the Mohammed Said Farsi (MSF) Chair have included:

2009-2008

November 20, 2008 - November 2009 – In collaboration with the Center for Global Peace, the International Peace and Conflict Division, the Muslim Student Association and the Washington College of Law International Legal Studies program, the MSF Chair co-sponsored American University’s Islamic Speaker Series, Engaged Conversations: Perspectives on Islam and Contemporary Global Issues. Professor Said was an invited speaker for the lecture series’ inaugural panel on "Islam and Peace." Fellow panelists included Professor Mohammed Abu-Nimer and Professor Ayse Kadayifci.

November, 2008 – Author and co-author of numerous books and articles, Professor Said completed and released a book with Nathan C. Funk entitled Islam and Peacemaking in the Middle East, with Lynne Rienner Publishers. Through an analysis of regional trends, it explores various Islamic ideas of peace and their bearing on difficult ethnic, nationalist and civic conflicts, widening the parameters for serious discussion of Islam’s contributions—real and potential—to ongoing negotiations in the Middle East.

September 16, 2008 – Invited as the keynote speaker for the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Iftar celebrating the Holy Month of Ramadan. Professor Said spoke on the topic of "Peace in Islam."

August 15, 2008 - Organized a conference on Universalism and Contemporary Universalists. The conference convened a working group of scholars and practitioners to re-define conceptions of Universalism, focusing primarily on the principles of inclusion. Members of the Universalist Project working group will engage in ongoing conversation regarding the defining theories and applications of a Universalist approach from both a historical and contemporary perspective, drawing lessons for contemporary social problems.

2008 -2007

May 5, 2008 – In collaboration with the Center for Global Peace, Rumi Forum and the Salam Institute, held a conference entitled "Islamic Traditions of Peace and Nonviolence: Responding to contemporary Challenges." Professor Said gave the opening address on the topic of peacemaking in Islam. The purpose of this one-day conference was to gather scholars, practitioners, and religious leaders to share concepts and approaches to conflict resolution, nonviolence and human rights, rooted in the Islamic tradition. It also served as a platform for Muslim practitioners of peacebuilding and nonviolence to share their experiences on the ground with the wider community of Muslim and non-Muslim scholars and practitioners.

October 7, 2007 – Invited speaker for the "Educating for Global Citizenship" conference at Harvard University. Professor Said presented on the topic of "Educating for Global Citizenship: Perspectives from the Abrahamic Traditions. Conference papers were ultimately compiled into a published book entitled: The Meeting of Civilizations: Muslim, Christian and Jewish.

November 29, 2007 - Professor Said was honored with the Fourth Annual Fellowship of Peace Award from the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation.

May 19, 2007 - 280 of Professor Said’s friends, colleagues, and former students attended a celebration of his 50th Anniversary of teaching peace at American University. During the tribute, Dr. Said was awarded the first annual El-Hibri Peace Education Prize, in honor of his commitment to peace education, advancement of human rights, social justice and fifty years of service in the field of peace education.

April 28, 2007 – Invited to offer the keynote address at the University of Denver, Colorado Conflict Resolution Institute Gala on the topic of "Making Peace with Islam."

2006 -1997

April 2006 - Professor Said appeared on University of a District of Columbia Television (UDC-TV) program alongside Search for Common Ground president John Marks to discuss avenues for peace in the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Search for Common Ground documentary "The Shape of the Future" served as a springboard for discussion.

February 5, 2006 – In collaboration with the Salam Institute for Peace and Justice and the Fuller Seminary, the Mohammed Said Farsi Chair worked to foster dialogue between Evangelical Christians and American Muslims and collaboratively hosted an interfaith dialogue.

March 2006 - Professor Said published, with Mohammed Abu-Nimer and Meena Sharify-Funk, an edited volume entitled Contemporary Islam: Dynamic, Not Static (Routledge Publishers). This publication emerged from an international conference organized by the Mohammed Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace and hosted at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt. The volume gathers together a collection of essays by eminent scholars from around the world on topical issues such as intellectual pluralism, gender, human rights, non-violence, religious harmony, and the ethics of political participation. This important contribution to modern Islamic thought articulates a progressive outlook for Islam's role in contemporary politics and society.

Spring 2004 – Participated in the Guest-Lecture Series at the United States Library of Congress (LOC) entitled "Giving Voice to Change: Muslim Women in the Era of Global Communication." This series invited prominent women scholars of Islam (e.g., Leila Ahmed, Fatima Mernissi, and Asma Barlas) to address the complexities and contradictions of Muslim women’s lives and their status in a world influenced by globalization.

October 4-5, 2003 – Involved in organizing the Contemporary Islamic Synthesis conference at the Library of Alexandria in Alexandria, Egypt. This conference was a closed, "round table" symposium of distinguished scholars, activists, and officials from all parts of the Muslim world. It aimed to provide a forum for a genuine dialogue on critical modern-day issues such as social justice, civil society, and the politics of interpretation. Out of this conference emerged the Islamic Peacebuilding Initiative which seeks provide a new focus for the energies of Islamic specialists, drawing upon existing expertise to make valuable contributions to policymaking, scholarship, education, and public outreach.

July 2-3, October 14-15, 2002 - Two US Institute of Peace Abrahamic Trialogue Conferences were co-coordinated with and attended by the MSF Chair of Islamic Peace at USIP headquarters in Washington DC. These two-day conferences brought together Muslim, Jewish, and Christian scholars to explore the obstacles to Abrahamic relationships. Participants began an on-going discussion about inter-religious dialogue and the barriers to communication that have confronted religious peacemakers within Abrahamic traditions.

November 2001-May 2002 - Consultation Meetings with Charlotte Beers, Former Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. MSF Chair of Islamic Peace, Abdul Aziz Said, and his assistants consulted on issues pertaining to the cultural engagement between the US and the Islamic world in order to narrow the communication gap between the US and Muslims.

November 13-14, December 19-20, 2001 - Four American Muslim Roundtable Meetings were coordinated by the MSF Chair of Islamic Peace in conjunction with the International Religious Freedom Office of the US State Department. At these meetings Muslim participants voiced their opinions on the current state of events, advocated and recommended policy initiatives, and emphasized the need for a sustainable dialogue between the State Department and local Muslim scholars and activists.

November 7, 2001 - United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Workshop on "The Role of Faith and Peacemaking: An Islamic Perspective," was coordinated in cooperation with USIP. This panel discussion was composed of Muslim scholars and was designed to offer reflections on the themes of peace, justice, and civil society in Islamic thought and practice, with specific focus on the crisis of religious tolerance in the Muslim world.

November 20-21, 1998 - Cultural Diversity and Islam at the American University. This conference convened twenty international Islamic scholars who presented papers and led discussions on the Islamic conception of cultural diversity, tolerance, and pluralism as well as alternative models for coexistence.

November 6-7, 1998 - Two Sacred Paths: Christianity and Islam, A Call for Understanding at the Washington National Cathedral. The purpose of this conference was to deepen the understanding of Islam, to develop closer relationships between Christian and Muslim communities, and to find ways to facilitate meaningful dialogue.

Summer 1997 - Islamic Peace Resource Directory was created under the MSF Chair of Islamic Peace. The directory is a compilation of scholars, government agencies, non-governmental organizations and institutes, embassies, and media sources all of whose work is relevant to the subject of Islam and Peace. This project was funded by a grant from the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area.

February 6-7, 1998 - Islam and Peace in the 15th/21st Century at American University. This conference enabled twenty-five Muslims from different intellectual trends and ideological commitments to share in their effort of clarifying and comprehending essential issues connected to peaceful change in Islamic societies.

February 14th, 1997 - Nonviolence in Islam at the American University. This one-day symposium brought together regional scholars to explore the Islamic traditions and practices of nonviolence and peace.

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For more information about the
Mohammed Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace, contact

Professor Abdul Aziz Said
American University
School of International Service
4400 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20016-8071
Phone: (202) 885-1632
Fax: (202) 885-6999
E-mail: tawhid@american.edu