REPORTS AND RESEARCH

Advancing Human Rights for All Worldwide

Advancing Freedom of Conscience Through Research

Hardwired’s programs embed a culture of respect for the rights and freedoms of people of all beliefs in classrooms, communities, and legal systems in diverse social, political, and religious contexts. We collaborate with leaders in government and across all sectors of society – including education, media, justice, and religious leadership – to overcome the systemic challenges to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief in their communities and mitigate recurrent conflict. Our training programs provide sustainable and scalable support for leaders and educators to effectively turn the tide against discrimination and other challenges to freedom of conscience in their communities.

“Hardwired’s approach to resolving or mitigating religion-related conflict is grounded in our work across more than 30 countries around the world. We recognize that understanding the root causes of conflict — the fears, misconceptions and biases held by those involved — is integral to long-term resolution.”

— Lena Abboud, International Program Director

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Promoting Pluralism and Peaceful Coexistence Through A Master Trainer Program

This paper documents the results of Hardwired’s Master Trainer program for teachers in the Middle East. A mixed method research model was used to collect quantitative data on the teachers’ pre-post change in their understanding of freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, and qualitative data on the effect of the training on both the Master Trainers and the teachers they trained.

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Becoming A Human Rights Master Trainer: The Journey

This paper documents the qualitative impact of Hardwired’s Master Trainer program on the Trainers. The paper shows the trainers’ journey as they confront their own misconceptions and fears about those who believe differently than them, and how they developed a greater awareness of the challenges facing the children in their classrooms. Trainers discovered how to help teachers and ultimately their students develop a framework to understand freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief as a fundamental human right and know how to value others regardless of what they believe.

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Hardwired Networks in Northern Nigeria: Navigating root causes of conflict and advocating for equality across religious, sectarian, and ethnic lines

Hardwired released a white paper evaluating the underlying causes of conflict in northern Nigeria and providing tested modeling for leadership development in hostile states. Lena Abboud, Director of International Programs at Hardwired Global and author of this white paper, argues that an assessment of the underlying causes of conflict in northern Nigeria is essential for any successful peacebuilding effort.

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Protecting Children From Violent Extremism

Hardwired conducted a ground-breaking study among children in the Middle East and North Africa that provides the first evidence of the positive impact of rights-based education to help children overcome the trauma of religious extremism and counter the ideas of hate and intolerance that lead to violent extremism. The study, which was made possible with support from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights, and with the cooperation of officials in various Ministries of Education, teachers, and students, offers a powerful example of how to build more peaceful, pluralistic societies that are resilient to extremism. The findings presented in this study highlight the innovative nature of Hardwired’s programs in the Middle East that are helping youth develop new attitudes and behaviors towards people of different religions and beliefs that reflect greater respect for the rights and freedoms of others.

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Changing Attitudes, Changing Behaviors. Conceptual Change as a Model for Teaching Freedom of Religion or Belief

Hardwired staff, Mary Anne Rea-Ramirez and Tina M. Ramirez published an article in the Journal of Social Science Education to demostrate that conceptual change theory and strategies can be applied to areas of the social sciences, such as human rights education on freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief. The findings presented in this study highlight the innovative nature of Hardwired’s programs in the Middle East that are helping youth develop new attitudes and behaviors towards people of different religions and beliefs that reflect greater respect for the rights and freedoms of others.

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A Way Forward: Prioritizing freedom of religion or belief in U.S. policy to end recurrent religion-related conflict in Iraq

Hardwired released a white paper outlining five strategies to secure peace in Iraq following the defeat of ISIS. Hardwired has operated programs in Iraq since 2015, supporting efforts of indigenous leaders in the fields of law, education, government, media, and religious leadership to address legal and social barriers to freedom of religion or belief. Hardwired is calling on decision makers to recognize the root cause of instability in Iraq, and take the necessary steps to deconstruct the intolerant views and practices that perpetuate religion-related and sectarian conflict through policies and programs that promote respect for the fundamental rights and freedoms of people of all faiths.

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Educational Initiatives

In October of 2016, Hardwired Founder and President Tina Ramirez presented a speech to the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office on the role of freedom of religion and belief in preventing violent extremism – and how Hardwired’s educational initiatives are making a difference.

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Petition for Writ of Certiorari

The United States has a long and proud history of sheltering those seeking refuge from oppression in their home countries.

Sadly, in any given year, there are significantly more individuals in the world persecuted on account of “race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion” than can be admitted in the United States. Without denying the plight of any asylum seeker, it is entirely reasonable to conclude that adherents of minority religions face graver dangers than do other refugees.

A decision prohibiting the government from extending particular solitude to the adherents of minority faiths would do more than substitute the Court’s judgement for that of the political branches. It would result in exposing those most vulnerable to persecution to additional and unjustifiable risk of harm.

Evaluation: Teacher Training on Freedom of Religion or Belief

Our programs have been shown to instigate a paradigm shift in the way individuals see one another, leading those we train to a deeper respect for the rights and freedoms of others and willingness to defend others, even those with whom they may disagree.

When trainees experience a change in their perception of others, they are intrinsically motivated to treat others with greater dignity and respect that goes beyond general tolerance. As such, our rights-based training programs have also been successful in mitigating many of the push and pull factors that lead individuals into violent extremism.