PARTICIPANTS

Paul J. Nelson
U. of Pittsburgh

Paul Nelson is Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, where he directs the International Development program.  He teaches and conducts research on NGOs, human rights, development policy, religion, and international organizations.  He worked for 13 years for several US-based development NGOs, primarily as a policy analyst and public advocate.  He is the author, with Ellen Dorsey, of The New Rights Advocacy: Changing Strategies of Human Rights and Development NGOs (Georgetown University Press, 2008).

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Question: What do you think is the most important issue involving religion that confronts international NGOs?

Two issues rise to the forefront, for me, among the many issues related to religion that confront international NGOs.  The first, issues of human rights and freedoms related to religious and political expression, is raised in the statements of Richard Falk and Victoria Riskin, among others. I would add that the increasing interest of many international development NGOs in human rights and "rights-based" approaches to their work opens the possibility that more such NGOs could become directly or indirectly involved in advocacy on behalf of human rights in communities and regions where they work.

A second issue is the matter of the independence and political impact of the voices of those international NGOs, based in the wealthy industrial countries, that are linked institutionally or in principle to major faith traditions.  Whether they are agencies of religious institutions or tied to faith traditions through shared values and identities, such NGOs may have a particular ability to reach, challenge and educate their constituencies in the wealthy countries. In the United States, where religion has proven to be a powerful source of political mobilization in recent decades, some relief and development agencies with strong ties to religious institutions have active policy advocacy agendas.  Some even explicitly take responsibility for aspects of the (global) education and spiritual formation of the faithful. How effectively do they do this kind of education and public advocacy, and with what impacts?  What factors constrain their effectiveness or impact in the wealthy societies, and what are the implications for their participation in global religious bodies?

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