Interreligious & Intercultural Outreach in Austria
KAICIID engages with the Austrian public as an integral part of the Centre’s activities – promoting the positive, transformative effects of dialogue in the Centre’s host country, by bridging stakeholders from diverse backgrounds through intercultural and interreligious events. KAICIID regularly opens its doors to the public, hosting art and photography exhibitions, musical performances, expert lectures, interfaith workshops and headquarter tours. These dynamic events provide a space for guests to experience new cultures and perspectives, connecting individuals from Austria and around the world.
Building on the tradition of Vienna as the city of music, and underlining the role of art as interlocutor between cultures and religion, Local Outreach organizes intercultural events and musical performances with the aim of introducing local audiences to a dialogue between different musical traditions from different cultures. From January 2016 to November 2018, KAICIID has hosted 17 intercultural events.
KAICIID is located in Vienna and has the privilege of residing in the “Palais Sturany”, a classical Viennese city palace as its headquarters. KAICIID’s Local Outreach offers visits and guided tours through the headquarters for interested guests to learn more about the Centre’s work. From January 2016 to November 2018, the Centre hosted 26 HQ visits. In September, the Centre welcomed over 250 guests on Austria‘s national “Tag des Denkmals.” Guided tours of the historic palace as well as artwork by Gustav Klimt were hosted by an expert from the Austrian federal monuments authority.
If you are interested in visiting our premises, we offer tours for groups of 15 or more. For more information, please email HQVisits@kaiciid.org.
KAICIID’s Local Outreach has established the “Religionen im Dialog” (Religions in Dialogue) series of open-house expert lectures. The German-language lecture series provides a platfrom for local experts and practitioners of interreligious and intercultural dialogue to present their ideas to the interested Austrian general public. From January 2016 to November 2018, 22 lectures have taken place at KAICIID.
During World Interfaith Harmony Week 2018, KAICIID launched a photo exhibition titled “Interreligious Encounters in India – A model for Europe?”. Community Rabbi Schlomo Hofmeister shared his interreligious encounters in India and drew parallels to interreligious coexistence in Europe before opening the exhibition portraying his journey through India.
Local outreach engages four key stakeholder groups in Austria through the Centre’s programming. These include local religious leaders and religious organizations, civic government, civil society and local media.
The Centre engages these groups through: Increasing interaction with the public at the Centre and ensuring openness, Regularly hosting intercultural and interreligious events which are open to the general public, Collaborating with prominent Austrian interreligious and intercultural stakeholders and Working to establish KAICIID as an active partner in the support of social harmony and pluralism in Austria