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The Religious Responses to COVID-19 Project: Changing Pace

Each day makes it clearer that the COVID-19 crisis continues relentlessly. However, its focus, nature, and tempo are shifting. That calls for shifts in the Religious Responses to COVID-19 project that we launched in the crisis’ early days. Today’s highlight reports on findings from the survey we sent to those who have been receiving these daily emails and outlines our proposed ongoing work. Given the large uncertainties involved, we will keep plans under review. We also aim to ensure that we build on synergies with other initiatives to “track” faith responses. Above all, we welcome feedback.
 
Fifty-two people answered our survey on possible next steps. The feedback was generally positive and was certainly not unanimous. On balance, however, the advice confirmed our sense that while the overall project should continue, shifts in tempo are justified. Thus:

• We will in the future send emails with highlights weekly, instead of daily. We plan to send them each Wednesday. The notes will highlight interesting developments during the week in question, with a continuing focus on faith responses to humanitarian and development challenges across the world. 
  • Share the sign-up form to receive weekly highlight emails and view all archived daily highlight emails in the last section of the resource repository.
• We will maintain and add to the resource repository. We plan to shift it to a different platform and to review both categorization and search capabilities. We recognize that it serves multiple functions that range from immediate operational guidance to research and will seek to respond to different needs. 
  • View and share the resource repository. 
• Webinars will continue, roughly every two weeks. We have organized nine to date and participated in many more. We see these events as a way to garner new insights and information, especially from communities where reporting in mainstream media is limited. For some prior events we have prepared summaries, commentaries, and transcripts, all available on the Berkley Center events page for the event in question. For some webinars linked to faith and COVID-19 hosted external to this project, we have posted summaries in blog form. 
  • View the event pages, webinar videos and blog posts. 
• We plan to continue writing blog posts and other analytic pieces drawing on the information collected through the repository, webinars, and interviews, and other discussions. All past events and writings can be found here, in a section of the Berkley Center website devoted to the Religious Responses to COVID-19 project overall. 

We are grateful for your contributions and support and hope, with you, for a swift return to less turbulent times.