Promoting Peaceful Coexistence and Common Citizenship

[ 107 ] — CLOSING CEREMONY — minences, Excellencies, Distinguished Guests —as the representative of the Catholic Church on the Board of Directors of the International Dialogue Centre, I would like to briefly share my experience of these years of collaboration in promoting dialogue through this intercultural and interreligious exchange that is KAICIID. Let me begin with a warm and sincere thanks to all of you for the work done in these first five years of KAICIID’s his- tory. Thank you for your efforts, energy and determination HE Bishop Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot E convince our brothers and sisters of the actual relevance of it in our everyday lives. Yes, conflicts have reasons. Yes, the impact of violence and conflicts has increased its footprint around the world, but the desire and hunger for peace is also expanding. More and more people want to work together. More and more young people want to work with their lead- ers in shaping the future of their communities. Men and women working together within and beyond faith communities will not only have a solution to the grow- ing problems around them, but will also give rise to an image that the future will hold for itself as being true to the reality that this world must coexist. This solidarity will give to our own communities, as well as to the world at large, an image of collective, shared, peaceful coexistence where peace will be able to build and layer not only the aspiration for progress but for the great grand scheme of inclusive development. I am extremely honoured to be here, together with dis- tinguished leaders from around the world. But I am equally honoured to hear the voices, questions, and experiences from people around the world, and that is what I have been doing for the entire day here. I was just telling my colleague how wonderful it has been to see this balance between voices from the podium and voices of experience from the ground. This is the newmodel of dialogue —dialogue where everybody has a place, where the leaders listen and the com- munities gather to share what their leaders are committed to represent on their behalf. Mahatma Ghandi reminded us that every big step towards change need not be a loud, violent revolution. He said: “In a gentle way, you can shape the world.” Secretary General, I hope that our work together, our deliberations in conference halls and on the ground, will echo that message of Mahatma Ghandi, and that, in a gentle way, we can surely shape the world. Dr. Kezevino Aram Director, Shanti Ashram Dr. Aram has been involved in interfaith dialogue for the past twenty years. She has led critical child development initiatives in rural India and globally. Together with Shanti Ashram’s platform of 215 partners she is deeply committed to integrated human development initiatives. Dr. Aram founded the International Center of Child and Public Health in 2016, through which multiple public health initiatives are being implemented for vulnerable children. Deeply committed to the Gandhian spirit, she has received several awards for her work and authored a variety of publications. Career Summary v Co-moderator and executive committee member, Religions for Peace International v Chairperson, International Ethics Education Council for Children, Arigatou International v Task Force member, End Child Poverty v Governing council member, National Foundation for Communal Harmony, India v Trustee, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation v Distinguished member, board of management of Gandhigram Rural University v Founding member, Namadhu Pangu, a social service outreach of Kumaraguru College of Technology v Alumnus and visiting professor of the Harvard School of Public Health and PSG Institute of Medical Sciences and Research.