Berkley Center

Trump-era changes to U.S. outreach in the Middle East, refugee policy, climate change responses, and beyond provide the incoming U.S. presidential administration with a host of challenges in shaping the future of American diplomacy. As the Biden administration charts its foreign policy objectives, issues at the intersection of religion and diplomacy are central. Over the course of the 2020-2021 academic year this project will convene scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to examine how religion matters to foreign policy and provide priority guidance for the new administration. It will address cross-cutting global topics such as reforming U.S. approaches to international religious freedom, rejoining the Paris climate accord, engaging indigenous peoples in U.S. diplomacy, rethinking efforts to counter violent extremism and rising global anti-Semitism, and resetting U.S. peace policy in the Middle East. In connection with the center’s Religion and the Crisis of Displaced Persons project it will consider reforms to U.S. immigration policy and the global refugee system, and it will also suggest ways to rebuild the U.S. State Department’s policy capacity regarding religion and diplomacy. This effort will include a series of events and blogs featuring insight from a diverse range of expert voices.