Crosscurrents International Institute

There is great need to strengthen Citizen Diplomacy between USA and many countries. Non-governmental, people-to-people ties are so important in generating good-will, respect, knowledge, and peace. Americans need to cultivate greater awareness and appreciation for the “outside” world while people in other countries need to learn more about USA. Citizen Diplomacy is about education. This fits into the mission of Crosscurrents International Institute.

Crosscurrents is interested in interfaith dialogue and the impact of religion in different cultures and nations. Religion is important in the lives of millions of people in the world and yet, many academics and journalists and government officials give little attention to religion. Religions help shape values and ethics. Religions shape national culture and indirectly shape national politics. Throughout history religions have had both positive and negative impacts on society. Religions have caused wars and shaped peace. Religions have supported violence and non-violence. Religions have supported slavery and freedom of slaves. Religions have supported justice and injustice. We need to learn and listen and become better informed about the role of religion in our contemporary global world. How do we work with religious leaders to address GLOBAL issues such as economic poverty, war, health care, environmental issues and food security in the world?

Crosscurrents is exploring these questions and we are interested to connect with other organizations and individuals who share similar interests.

This interest fits well into Crosscurrents mission. Crosscurrents has sponsored exchanges of musical ensembles between USA and Russia. Music is the universal language—it is a powerful tool for diplomacy between conflicting parties. Crosscurrents is interested to support the exchange of musicians across cultural boundaries.

People need food to survive! Without food security, there will be no peace on this planet. This is a GLOBAL issue. The focus of governments and funding agencies is on increasing crop yields. While important, it takes time and enormous amounts of money for research, development and implementation to increase crop yields.

Crosscurrents has another idea—why not save the food that has already been produced. Estimates of post-harvest food losses range from 20 – 60% of all the food produced each year around the world, depending on the crop and location. These food losses start at the farm and go all the way up the food chain to the dinner table at home. If it were possible to save even a small percentage of these post-harvest food losses, global food security could be enhanced quickly, with limited research and limited funds. The potential payoff is enormous. This is an interest worth attention!