Azza Karam named as secretary general of Religions for Peace
On August 21, Azza Karam was named as secretary general of Religions for Peace, becoming the first woman and first Muslim to lead the international interfaith coalition. She succeeds William F. Vendley, who served as secretary general for 27 years.
Karam is currently a professor of religion and development at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam and the lead facilitator for the United Nation’s Strategic Learning Exchange on Religion, Development and Diplomacy.
Previously, she served as the UN’s Population Fund senior advisor on culture and as chair of the UN’s Interagency Task Force on Religion and Development. She was also the head of Religions for Peace’s Global Women of Faith Network from 2000 to 2004.
