150 Global Ethics for Leadership
from America know about these connections and influences on their
society. There are, of course, countless other such examples of those
who, through knowledge, connect our world. We need to highlight these
so that students may see role models who are positive peace builders as
opposed to seeing those lead other Muslims into darkness and violent
extremism.
Although these are the first books of their kind in English available
in Pakistan, their translation is absolutely necessary in order to reach a
wider audience. Therefore, the Centre for Dialogue and Action (CD&A)
has worked on these books and are translated into the local languages of
Urdu (Pakistan’s national language) and Pashto (the language of KP,
Pakistan, and of many people in Afghanistan). Translation of this sensi-
tive peace building material in itself has been a tricky area and has taken
longer than expected as, working with local translators, some material
was translated literally. The CD&A team had to also look out for cultur-
al and religious sensitivities and omit these. Ideas of dialogue and empa-
thy as emphasized in these books, available in the Pukhto language, will
be key in their impact on the FATA region in reminding people of their
rich culture and history of diversity and tolerance.
10.5 A New Subject on Accepting ‘the Other’
Courses called “Building Bridges” accompanying these textbooks
were taught at a number of universities in Pakistan, including at the Cen-
tre for International Peace and Stability at NUST University in Islama-
bad, as well as at Forman Christian College University in Lahore. In the
latter, the subject was offered under the Departments of Sociology and
Religion as a new subject. Swat University has also shown an interest in
the course outline which has been shared with the University in Swat. I
was privileged to design, teach this course and train other faculty to
teach further. It has been taught for three years now and is in its fourth