Professor Dimitri Spivak’s new paper on intercultural dialogue in the cultural strategy of UNESCO, was recently published by one of the leading journals in the field, ‘Culture and Dialogue’,
The paper is mostly a result of internal discussions, conducted at the UNESCO chair in St. Petersburg, Russia, and of talks given to local students and societal activists, interested in the UNESCO policies, as well as discussions with our colleagues from other UNITWIN/UNESCO Network chairs.
Abstract
UNESCO is a scientific, educational, and cultural branch – or specialised agency, to speak in technical terms – of the United Nations organisation, which has for the latest seventy years been instrumental in setting standards, promoting scientific research and societal discussions, and supporting innovations, both nationally and internationally. Intercultural dialogue has invariably served as a focal point of its manifold activities. Tracing back some of the basic issues in the elaboration of intercultural dialogue as well as the most actual trends in its development forms the main objective of the present paper. This account comes from years of experience as head of one of the well known and respected UNESCO research and educational chairs: Comparative Studies of Spiritual Traditions, their Specific Cultures and Interreligious Dialogue.1
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