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My recent appointment to the UN Secretary General's Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters has given me a unique vehicle to promote peace values amongst ambassadors and academics and to find ways to work together despite our different cultural and religious backgrounds.

Dr Kate Dewes, 2008

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The Dunedin Abrahamic Interfaith Group


Our group was formed here in Dunedin in the aftermath of the events of September 11th 2001 out of spontaneous expressions of solidarity and goodwill between leaders of our three faiths, the police and the Dunedin City Council. We exist to express a common heritage and concern, as people of faith in Dunedin.

Judaism, Christianity and Islam are all Abrahamic faiths. All three can trace their faith back to Abraham. Ordinary people from all three faiths share a deep desire for peace and justice. We seek to encourage and model friendship and respect for each other.

To become a member/supporter of the Dunedin Abrahamic Interfaith please e-mail your name, contact e-mail address, and phone number to our Chairperson, Rev Ken Baker with a copy to our secretary Marie Laufiso

As a supporter you will receive e mail notifications of our activities and events.

We welcome donations which are used to fund guest lecturers, educational programmes and various events throughout the year. Donations can be made on-line (electronically) to our Kiwi Bank account 38-9004-0292136-00 Please include your name in the reference section of the on-line deposit form. When you have made a donation, please e mail our Treasurer Greg Hughson greghughson@hotmail.com with the amount and the date you made the deposit, so that we can acknowledge your donation and thank you for your support. New members are welcome to join. We suggest an annual donation of $20 per member. We meet each third Wednesday of the month from 4-5pm in the Upper Room Chaplaincy Offices in the Union Building, University of Otago, Dunedin.

Please visit and "like" our Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/www.dunedininterfaith.net.nz

Dunedin Interfaith Council

The Dunedin Interfaith Council is a voluntary association of people of many faiths (Buddhist, Hare Krishna, Baha'i, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Brahma Kumari, and others) who collectively represent a wide diversity of religious traditions and faiths.

The Council exists to foster mutual appreciation and good relations, to coordinate activities and to act in an advisory and consultative capacity to the community at large.

The Council comprises persons who both represent the Faith tradition to which they belong and are sympathetic to the traditions of others.

Objectives of the Council :

  1. To enjoy cordial respectful relationships with members of other faiths and religious traditions;
  2. To provide a forum for its members to consult and discuss interfaith matters;
  3. To promote harmony and cooperation among members of the Council and by doing so be an example to those in the wider community;
  4. To promote the universal themes, values, ethics and norms common to all Faiths;
  5. To support each others commitment to expressing our faith in action, in order to enhance the wellbeing of our community and world.

New members are welcome to join.

The Otago Students Interfaith Group (OSIG)

The main objective of this group is to promote the dialogue and the brother/sisterhood between the all Faiths. Through the free exchange of thoughts and values we aim to counter the misunderstandings and misconceptions about our respective faiths. We intend to educate not only each other but society at large. By serving together and embodying interfaith harmony we aim to contribute to and connect with the wider Dunedin community.

We exist :

  • To bring together different religious and non-religious communities.
  • To work against negative and misinformed stereotyping of religions.
  • To create friendships and networks of support within the student community.
  • To encourage Otago University to make decisions which reflect the multi-ethnicities and diverse faiths that exist on campus.
  • To discuss relevant and challenging issues in the modern world.

New members are welcome to join.