Euronews: Baku Forum on Intercultural Dialogue helped look at the world beyond conflicts

The VII World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue on the theme "Dialogue for a Common Future" in Baku allowed people to look at the world beyond conflicts.

This was reported by Euronews in a feature dedicated to the forum, which took place in Baku from October 27 to 29.

The report notes that building such bridges of culture and dialogue makes it possible to bring together leaders and representatives from around the world to better understand existing disagreements and find common ground.

Deputy Minister of Culture of Azerbaijan Farid Jafarov noted that a distinctive feature of the Azerbaijani people has always been the aspiration to break stereotypes.

"The geographical location of Azerbaijan, which, as we always say, is at the crossroads of East and West, North and South, has determined the influence of various cultures, traditions, as well as religions and beliefs on it. As for professional art and culture, Azerbaijan was a pioneer in many areas of cultural history, especially in the context of Eastern culture," he noted.

Founder and CEO of the organization Lead-Integrity, Azza Karam, stated that art is the language of the heart and soul.

"Today we cause a lot of harm and create very little art. We need to use the language of art much more," she said.

The report also emphasizes that issues of understanding secularism and exchanging religious practices became part of the forum's agenda.

Member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gary Stevenson, emphasized that all religions and cultures must protect values common to humanity — peace and human dignity.

In his opinion, the awareness that all people are brothers and sisters promotes greater mutual understanding. He also noted that dialogue between people is the only path to preventing conflicts, reducing tensions, and countering hate speech.

Chair of the youth branch of the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN) in Côte d'Ivoire, Anaïs Dagrou, in turn, noted that such forums make it possible to meet people from different countries, with diverse life experiences and cultural traditions.

As noted in the Euronews report, the forum became an open platform not only for discussing global issues but also for establishing personal contacts between representatives of different countries and cultures.