Eboo Patel, international interfaith leader, will visit Grand Valley State University to discuss interfaith collaboration and helping the community.

The event will occur today from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the Grand River Room of the Kirkhof Center. Eboo Patel will present “Interfaith Leadership: Engaging Religious and Philosophical Diversity in the 21st Century.”

“This presentation will explore how differences in our identities can become bridges for cooperation rather than barriers,” said Katie Gordon, Kaufman Interfaith Institute program manager.

Eboo Patel is a leading presence in the movement for interfaith cooperation and is the founder and president of Interfaith Youth Core, a national nonprofit that has been working to make the cooperation of different religions a social norm. He is a national and international interfaith leader, who has experience in multiple disciplines, including higher education, policy and service sectors. Patel has worked with governments, social sector organizations and college and university campuses with the goal of bringing about a future where religion forms cooperation between people rather than a barrier between them, according to his website.

“GVSU has been trying to get Eboo Patel on campus to speak for years, and we are excited that his visit is now aligning with the Kaufman Interfaith Institute’s Year of Interfaith Service Initiative and Grand Rapids Community Foundation Grant,” Gordon said.

The overall goal of the institute is to promote interfaith understanding and mutual respect in West Michigan and attempts to teach students to tackle social issues collectively. Patel’s presentation to the GVSU community will support this idea of tolerance, understanding and respect, as well as provide students with the tools they need to apply their passions onto social issues in their community he said.

The student interns of the Interfaith Institute are also looking forward to this opportunity to learn more about interfaith relations from Patel.

“The skill sets that I’ve acquired from this community will help he in my professional career, and I feel more equipped to help the community become a better place after gaining an education in interfaith,” said Derek Zuverink, a student intern for the institute. “I believe that Eboo Patel will be able to inspire individuals in the community about something they maybe didn’t even know they are passionate about.”

Zuverink said he and other interns know what it is like to work first-hand with the Interfaith Institute and said that the prospect of students discovering they want to pursue an education in interfaith after being inspired by Patel’s speech is exciting.

“He won’t tread lightly around the hard subjects involving religion, but he wants to show others how each faith can be connected through service,” said Will Miller, interfaith intern. “We may worship a different deity or none at all, but that doesn’t mean we can’t go out into the world and help those who truly need it.”

For more information about Eboo Patel’s work or his presentation, or the work of the Kaufman Interfaith Institute, visit www.gvsu.edu/interfaith.