Mark Gopin, James H. Laue Professor and Director of the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University, speaks on his national and international interfaith peacebuilding efforts focusing on “Self Examination’s Contribution to Peacebuilding.”

Gopin is an expert on the role that religion and culture play in conflicts and conflict resolution. He is an internationally respected speaker and trainer on peacemaking strategies and has engaged in diplomatic efforts with religious, political, and military figures on both sides of entrenched conflicts, especially in the Arab/Israeli conflict.

Gopin was ordained as a rabbi in 1983 at Yeshiva University in NYC, and received a Ph.D. in religious ethics from Brandeis University in 1993. He has authored three books on religious peacemaking – Between Eden and Armageddon: The Future of World Religions, Violence and Peacemaking and Holy War, Holy Peace. In a more recent book, Healing the Heart of Conflict, Gopin addresses personal conflicts and details an eight-step plan to address the emotional stages necessary to bring resolution to painful human conflicts.