This conversation will look at issues where scientific findings, religious beliefs, and policy decisions meet and sometimes conflict, such as climate change, medical ethics, and public health. In small groups, we will talk about how our beliefs affect the way we think about these issues, sharing our perspectives and listening to one another.

Facilitator Prakash Chenjeri is a professor and chair of the philosophy program at Southern Oregon University. He was educated both in India and the US. His research and teaching focus on understanding the concept of citizenship, the role of scientific literacy in modern democracy, and debates over science and religion. His expertise spans both the classroom and the global stage: he has developed and led courses in science and religion and shared insights on the subject at international and domestic conferences. He co-directs the Democracy Project, a comprehensive examination of democracy around the world in the twenty-first century. He has lived in Oregon for more than three decades.