The Berkley Center at Georgetown University

The Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs was created in the office of Georgetown's President, Dr. John J. DeGioia, in March 2006. The Center is designed to build on Georgetown's strengths: academic excellence; Washington, DC, location; international reach; and a Catholic and Jesuit tradition open to other faiths and the wider secular world. Collaboration among faculty, administrators, and students — and generous support from William R. Berkley, a member of the University Board of Directors — has enabled the Center's rapid growth. Associate Professor Thomas Banchoff (Government and School of Foreign Service) is its founding director.

The force of religion in world affairs demands knowledge, dialogue, and action. Religion's role in national and international politics remains poorly understood. Communication across traditions is difficult. And religious communities have unmet potential in the struggle against violence, injustice, poverty, and disease around the world. Through research, teaching, and outreach activities, the Berkley Center builds knowledge, promotes dialogue, and supports action in the service of peace.   The Berkley Center is at the heart of a university-wide effort to make Georgetown a global leader in the interdisciplinary study of religion and the advancement of interreligious understanding.

IGE and the the Berkley Center hosted three symposia commemorating the tenth anniversary of the International Religious Freedom (IRF) Act in 2008. Panelists addressed American International Religious Freedom policy and democracy promotion, civil society, religion-based terrorism, law (domestic and international) and public diplomacy. The final symposium took place on 10 October 2008, and will lead to a published brief on U.S. IRF policy that will be given to the new president and his administration.