First conceived in London in 2011, Faiths In Tune is an interfaith initiative that has become an international movement which has reached more than 70.000 people across Europe since 2012, with festivals, concerts, events, youth exchanges, seminars and other programmes in the UK, Germany, Austria, Italy and beyond. Since 2012, more than 25 different religions and many more denominations have been represented, and over 100 religious communities have participated at our festivals and events around Europe.
Building bridges through music and personal encounters | Faiths In Tune festivals, events, exchange formats, seminars and programmes aim to provide a neutral, inclusive, accessible and safe space in which persons of different faith, cultural and social background can celebrate their religious and cultural diversity, learn about each other’s religious backgrounds and world views without polarisation, and build curiosity and openness, as well as sustainable contacts, friendships and cooperations with members of other communities in their respective cities or countries.
It all started with a student music festival |Founded in 2011 by Anja Fahlenkamp, politics student at the time at SOAS, University of London, our first interfaith music festival took place in London in 2012 was originally intended as a one-off event for the benefit of the local students. Since then, the festival has not only continued to take place annually in London - from 2012 to 2015 at SOAS and since 2016 at the magnificent British Museum - but has moreover grown to become an international initiative and movement with Interfaith Music Festivals in Berlin (since 2016), Birmingham (since 2018), Turin (since 2018), Cologne (since 2019), Dresden (since 2019), with more festival locations forthcoming.
Faiths In Tune's Interfaith Music Festivals combine high-quality, diverse stage programmes with artists from a variety of faith and interfaith backgrounds performing their music and dance on one stage, with community fairs, panel talks, interfaith music workshops, exhibitions and interactive programming for children and youth.
Empowering the youth | Since 2021, Faiths In Tune has been part of the international, EU Commission/Erasmus Plus-funded project „Knüpfwerk“, which has been bringing together youth from Germany, Austria, Italy, Israel and Palestine, including youth with roots in Afghanistan, Armenia, Bangladesh, Congo, Greece, Tunisia, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Kenia, Nigeria, Russia, Syria, Ukraine, Vietnam and beyond for musical interfaith summer camps in Austria (2021), Germany (2022) and Italy (2023).
Faiths In Tune has partnered with the Berlin Forum of Religions to host a multi-religious youth festival in Berlin in 2022. Since 2017, Faiths In Tune is a partner of and has collaborated on several seminars and events with Dialogue Perspectives, a German organisation that mobilises university students of various backgrounds for interfaith academic seminars. Since 2015, Faiths In Tune has cooperated on multiple youth events and workshops with the international interfaith youth network ACWAY (A Common Word Among the Youth).
Bringing music to high-level summits | Faiths In Tune has provided the official interfaith music programme for high-level international summits including the G20 Interfaith Forum in Potsdam in 2017, the Turin International Book Fair in 2018 and the Religions for Peace 10th World Assembly in Lindau, Germany in 2019.
Inspiring minds, connecting the dots | With its unique approach, Faiths In Tune has been inspiring leaders, interfaith activists and youth around the world. Director Anja Fahlenkamp has shared Faiths In Tune’s approach at numerous international conferences and networking events, including the
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President's Interfaith and Communitiy Service Challenge Conferences at the White House, Howard University and Gallaudet University in Washington, DC, USA (2015, 2016)P
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International Higher Education Interfaith Leadership Forum, Washington, DC (2015, 2016)
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ACWAY International Forum at ISESCO in Rabat, Morocco (2015)
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ACWAY International Forum at Griffith University’s Centre for Interfaith & Cultural Dialogue, Brisbane, Australia (2016)
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International Symposium on Cultural Diplomacy, Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Berlin, Germany (2017)
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G20 Interfaith Forum in Potsdam, Germany (2017)
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COEXISTER Europe Summit in Oxford, UK (2017)
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Parliament of the World’s Religions in Toronto, Canada (2018)
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European Policy Dialogue Forum on Migrants and Refugees, Barcelona, Spain (2022)
Faiths In Tune is a member of several European and international networks and coalitions of interfaith organisations and organisations working with refugees and migrants, including the European Institute for Dialogue and the KAICIID Network 4 Dialogue.
Recognition | In 2017, the Faiths In Tune festival received the renowned German award “Ausgezeichneter Ort im Land der Ideen” (“Landmark in the Land of Ideas”). Faiths In Tune’s festivals in London, Berlin and Cologne were featured and recommended by widely-read publications and websites, including TimeOut London, Berlin.de, Berliner Tagesspiegel, Kölner Stadtanzeiger and others.
Context | FAITHS IN TUNE is a social, non-commercial initiative presented by COEXIST Music & Events e.Kfr., a registered social enterprise in Berlin, Germany.
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