New York, 21–23 September 2026 – For several years, Religions for Peace Europe has been one of the global partners in organizing the SDGs Conference. This year, the organization again participated actively in the events convened by the Journalists and Writers Foundation (JWF) on the margins of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, with contributions from its leadership and youth network.
The programme included an international reception, roundtable discussions on 22 September, and the conference on 23 September. According to the organizers’ summary, the events welcomed 88 international guests from 27 countries, alongside other participants in New York.
On 22 September, the President of Religions for Peace Europe, Prof. Genti Kruja, moderated the roundtable “From Common Ground to the Common Good: Faith Communities Working Together” at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. In his opening remarks, he emphasized that interfaith dialogue gains meaning when it builds relationships of trust and turns shared values into practical cooperation for human dignity, peace, and sustainable development.
The speakers were Dr. Luigi De Salvia, President of Religions for Peace Italy; Rabbi Hilly Haber of Central Synagogue in New York; Deacon Dennis Dorner of the Archdiocese of Atlanta; María Crespo of the United Religions Initiative; and Dr. David K. Trimble of the Religious Freedom Institute. Their discussion connected experiences in empowering marginalized communities, welcoming refugees, training interfaith leaders, strengthening women’s and youth leadership, and protecting freedom of religion or belief. A central question was what practical action faith communities could undertake together for peace over the next year.
At the second roundtable, “Global Youth Voices on AI, Democracy, and Human-Rights Based Digitalization,” Atdhe Mehmeti participated as a member of the European Interfaith Youth Network of Religions for Peace Europe. In his presentation, “AI for Social Good: Faith, Human Dignity and Youth-Led Action,” he argued that the promise of artificial intelligence should be judged by its effects on human dignity, justice, inclusion, and the environment. He called for young people to help design solutions and proposed local “AI for Shared Flourishing Labs,” where communities, universities, and experts could test responses to concrete needs while considering privacy, bias, and environmental impact.
On 23 September, the programme continued with presentations and panels at the SDGs Conference 2026. One theme was the importance of press freedom and independent journalism for positive peace and sustainable development. The discussions addressed disinformation, hate speech, digital attacks, and the need for legal protection and ethical standards to safeguard journalists and public trust.
Religions for Peace Europe’s participation brought interfaith cooperation and young people’s perspectives to the same international platform. It continues the organization’s partnership with JWF in connecting dialogue and shared values with action on social and technological challenges.