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WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE CHESTER RONNING CENTER
A Note from the Director
Greetings!
Winter is coming and we've had an energizing fall at the Ronning Centre!
Founding Director, David Goa, visited the Camrose Community to give a Philosopher's Café at Fox & Fable.
We hope to see him again on the first Thursday of each month throughout the academic year.
The "Religion and War in Ukraine" event was a very stimulating discussion with 85 engaged audience members. Scholars Heather Coleman, John-Paul Himka, and David Marples led us through the complexities and context of church and politics in the region.
The evening also featured student projects from Advisory Board member Geoffrey Dipple's class, "Religion, Radicals, and Conflict."
A huge thank you to everyone who joined us!
Sincerely,
Joseph R. Wiebe
Director, Chester Ronning Centre
Associate Professor of Religion and Ecology Faculty Website
Have you met...
Nakita Valerio
PhD Student
Religious Studies
Nakita Valerio is an award-winning writer, researcher, and community organizer based on Treaty 6 territory in Edmonton. She is a current PhD student in Religious Studies at the University of Alberta, studying Muslim women’s Qur’anic literacy and leadership in Morocco.
Her previous graduate studies were in Islamic-Jewish Moroccan history at the University of Alberta, and she also acts as an academic strategist/mentor for graduate students in the arts, especially history, religious studies, and psychology. She served as the Research Director for the Institute for Religious and Socio-Political Studies (I-RSS) for almost 3 years and remains the Editor-in-Chief for the RSS Journal, published through the U of A Libraries Open Journal System.
Latest News
Chester Ronning Centre Community Report Launch
What do religious organizations need in Camrose and Edmonton? How can the Chester Ronning Centre and the U of A engage and be informed by these needs? Nakita Valerio will present the report followed by a conversation moderated by Joseph Wiebe.
Creating a Platform for Meaningful Dialogue and Understanding
Take a moment to catch up with Dr. Joseph Wiebe where he discusses plans for the Ronning Centre as well as the community of Camrose.
Philosopher's Café: “Gaza and Israel: Origins of Conflict and Canadian Policy”
Tomorrow, December 7th, David Goa, Founding Director, Chester Ronning Centre for the Study of Religion and Public Life, will open up our conversation, reflecting on the Gaza–Israel conflict and Canadian policy.
Read the 2022-23 Annual Report
We had a wonderful year, and the report gives you a chance to look back on our events, publications, and more!
On Our Bookshelf
We are looking forward to sharing more of what Nakita Valerio has been working on at the Ronning Centre. In the meantime, we'd like to highlight her book recommendation for November!
Leaving Iberia: Islamic Law and Christian Conquest in North West Africa
By moving beyond Iberia and following Christian conquerors and Muslim emigrants into North Africa, Leaving Iberia links the juristic discourses on conquered Muslims on both sides of the Mediterranean and critiques the perceived exceptionalism of the Iberian Muslim predicament.
Fun Fact: This book was written by Jocelyn Hendrickson, who happens to be a former member of our Ronning Centre Advisory Board!
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We'd love to hear your suggestions for the themes and topics you'd like the Centre to address in the community. We welcome any ideas you have.
