Vatican city: TRENDS Research and Advisory, through its virtual office in Italy, organised a dialogue session at the Vatican with Monsignor Dr. Yoannis Lahzi Gaid, member of the Vatican Secretariat of State in the Section for General Affairs and Representative of the Holy See in the Higher Committee of Human Fraternity. The session highlighted the role of interfaith dialogue in promoting peace, tolerance, and coexistence, aiming to advance global harmony.
According to Emirates News Agency, the TRENDS team also held a panel discussion with Professor Raffaele Marchetti, Director of the Centre for International and Strategic Studies at Luiss University in Italy, attended by a group of experts and researchers. The discussion focused on strengthening research cooperation and exchanging expertise, particularly in economic studies and artificial intelligence. It also explored organising annual scientific conferences and forums and fostering partnerships in training young researchers.
Dr. Mohammed Abdullah Al Ali, CEO of TRENDS, stated that the dialogue session at the Vatican underscored the importance of promoting interfaith dialogue and peaceful coexistence. Al Ali emphasised that all divine religions call for compassion, peace, tolerance, coexistence, and acceptance of others. He noted that the talks focused on areas such as economic and foresight studies, AI, strategic analysis, training and development, launching joint research and training programmes, and enhancing the integration of diverse research methodologies in addressing regional and international issues.
Monsignor Dr. Gaid praised the intellectual role played by TRENDS amid growing global challenges. He explained that this dialogue reflects a belief that interfaith dialogue is not an intellectual luxury but an urgent human necessity. The session highlighted the role of think tanks in reinforcing values of moderation and developing strategies to spread peace and human coexistence values. It also focused on strengthening global solidarity through interfaith dialogue as a foundation for achieving sustainable development and shared prosperity.
Marchetti emphasised that TRENDS is among the influential research institutions committed to advancing knowledge and promoting scholarly dialogue. He stated that they will work to establish practical frameworks for cooperation, including sharing research expertise, conducting joint studies, and organising conferences.