Who We Are | FRIA

We believe that now more than ever, international affairs professionals must be comfortable with effectively engaging with religion and belief.

FRIA sessions are designed to be a reflective and productive space to discuss the impact of religion and belief on international affairs practice. The sessions are intentionally participant-led, reflecting the most pressing needs of each particular group.

FRIA is an ongoing collaboration between World Faith and Impact ID. Each year, they provide award-winning training and support on religion, faith, and belief to people in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa.

The FRIA Team

The team at FRIA draw on a global network of thought leaders and influencers, intentionally convening encounters for professionals that actively provoke insightful, thoughtful and productive discussions. Key team members include:

Josh Cass

Josh Cass is an experienced interfaith professional who has worked for organisations including: 3FF, Fodip (the Forum for Discussion of Israel and Palestine), the Encompass Trust and St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace. He holds an MA in International Studies and Diplomacy from SOAS, University of London where he wrote his dissertation on embedding religious literacy best practice within Ministries of Foreign Affairs, and is an alum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Fellowship programme.

Frank Fredericks

Frank Fredericks is the founder of World Faith, a global movement of interfaith youth tackling global poverty which has expanded to 9 countries and mobilized 5,000 volunteers in over 300,000 hours of service. Frank has facilitated trainings for the US State Department, staff of the UK Foreign Service, and the United Nations. As an active blogger, Frank has contributed to the Huffington Post, Washington Post, and Sojourners. Frank has been interviewed on Good Morning America, NPR, and New York Magazine. He is a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum, and is an alumnus of the IFYC Fellowship, Soliya Fellowship, AMENDS at Stanford, Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship, and YouthActionNet Fellowship. Frank was awarded one of two Global Shapers Community Scholarships, attending Oxford Said Business School for an MBA focused on Social Entrepreneurship.

Supporters

3FF builds understanding and lasting relationships between people of all faiths and beliefs. We run education, engagement and action programmes that bring diverse communities together. Our main focus is in the UK, but we also work internationally to create new models for intercultural cooperation, particularly in the EU, USA and Middle East. Our work involves teachers, students and young professionals, faith organisations, artists and galleries, political leaders in Parliament and upcoming leaders still at university.

World Faith’s primary goal is to deincentivize religious violence. We do this by mobilizing religiously diverse teams of young people around the world to tackle key development projects, addressing the socioeconomic factors that lower the threshold for violence. From Gambia to Indonesia, World Faith Chapters identify and address the most pressing concerns of their communities, including initiatives on public health, early childhood education, and women’s empowerment.

The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide. We work in more than 100 countries and our 8,000 staff – including 2,000 teachers – work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year by teaching English, sharing the arts and delivering education and society programmes.

Support for FRIA comes through the Bridging Voices project, an initiative funded by the Henry Luce Foundation for policy and academic dialogues on religion and international affairs. For more information, please visit the Bridging Voices website

Impact ID provides impactful research, consultancy and facilitation solutions around issues of identity, diversity, and belonging. We work in education, employment, policy and community settings, with a particular interest in issues of religion and belief, race, gender, sexuality and disability.