In the wake of the events of 11 September 2001, the "clash of civilizations" hypothesis of American political scientist Samuel Huntington has re-emerged with a vengeance. Popular discourse has come to accept a direct linkage between religion, especially Islam, and terrorism. Critics argue that Islam has been unfairly singled out and that attention should also be paid to the Air India bombing, the Oklahoma City bombing, the troubles in Northern Ireland and India, and the many other manifestations of terrorism. Nevertheless, the common view that religion and terrorism are connected is hard to dislocate.

At the same time, scholars are beginning to conduct research related to some of the more positive influences of religion in contemporary societies. These issues link well with the concept of "social capital" most recently popularized by American political scientist, Robert Putnam. His widely accepted thesis suggests high levels of trust, reciprocity and cooperation result in more cohesive and prosperous societies. Research indicates that those who are active in religious communities are more likely to be engaged in charitable giving and voluntarism. If this is the case, then the resulting social capital should contribute to more trust, reciprocity, cooperation and support in a given society. The central question to be asked is whether this trust, reciprocity and cooperation benefit only the individual religious communities (Putnam's "bonding" capital), or also benefit the broader society (Putnam's "bridging" capital).

The importance of religion as a dimension of diversity within a pluralistic population has been increasing without a public dialogue on many of the issues that arise from religious diversity. To contribute to this much needed dialogue, the Metropolis Project, in partnership with the Multiculturalism Program, has organized this panel. The panel will provide policymakers with valuable insights into how religious or faith communities contribute to the overall stock of social capital in pluralistic societies, and will tackle head-on the perceived linkages between religious communities and terrorism.

Panelists will include leading experts on religion from Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom: Paul Bramadat (University of Winnipeg), Cynthia Mahmood (University of Notre Dame), Paul Weller (Derby University).

Space will be limited. Please register by the end of February with Diane Routliffe at diane.routliffe@metropolis.net.