Simone Sinn

Religion, humanity and transformation competence

This research project examines the role that religions play in multilateral intergovernmental cooperation, especially in development cooperation, humanitarian aid and human rights work. These policy areas are of great importance in international politics because they crystallize system questions. In the context of geopolitical shifts in a multipolar world, spheres of influence are also defined. The project sees itself as a specific contribution to the importance of religion in these policy areas and thus to the fundamental question of the understanding of humanity. On the one hand, it examines how the discourses on religion and secularity have changed in the political guidelines in international UN organizations over the past 20 years. On the other hand, it analyzes the understanding of tradition and innovation that underlies these guidelines. Religious actors are not only seen as important carriers of values ​​and social capital, they are also attributed transformation competence, which is highly relevant in view of serious ecological crises as well as economic and geopolitical shifts. In this research project with the working title “Religion, Humanity and Transformation Competence”, both the interreligious and an interdisciplinary dimension will play an important role.