The Launch of the UNESCO Chair of Interreligious Understanding and Relations is being held at the Opening Ceremony of the National Interfaith Dialogue, on 26 February 2010.

This provides an ideal opportunity to highlight the issues of interreligious dialogue among representatives of all faiths within New Zealand.

It also represents the intersection of academic, civil society and government agencies in the area of interfaith activities and intercultural dialogue.

The position of UNESCO Chair is being held by Professor Paul Morris Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington.

Professor Morris was one of the key architects of the New Zealand Statement of Religious Diversity. He has contributed to the Diversity Action Programme run by the Human Rights Commission for the past five years, and is involved with issues of interreligious diversity in the Pacific region.

2010: International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures