Faith to Action Network brought together 26 participants for a five-day Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) workshop in Kenya, a gathering built around one central idea: faith and human dignity are not in competition, but can walk together.
Over the course of the week, participants moved through a carefully sequenced journey from personal reflection to interfaith dialogue, theological exploration and, finally, institutional action engaging honestly with questions of faith, identity, gender, sexuality and belonging.
Creating a Safe and Brave Space
From the outset, the workshop was designed as a “brave space” an environment where participants could speak openly, listen deeply and engage respectfully with different perspectives.
Participants co-created shared norms for the week, grounding their conversations in confidentiality, mutual respect and a commitment to hearing experiences different from their own.
That spirit of openness was reinforced through interfaith devotions, with Christian and Muslim participants sharing prayers and reflections. The experience highlighted shared values across traditions, particularly love, compassion, justice, courage and responsibility towards others.
Personal Journeys, Shared Humanity
Much of the week centred on storytelling. Through guided meditation, sketching and small-group sharing, participants reflected on the experiences, relationships and encounters that had shaped their understanding of faith, identity and difference.
They also examined the messages they had absorbed since childhood about God, gender and sexuality and where those messages came from, including family, faith leaders, schools, culture and wider society.
The conversations then moved into the Kenyan context, exploring who is seen as belonging and who is pushed to the margins, as well as the social and institutional forces that shape those boundaries.
From Caregiving to Institutional Change
A recurring thread throughout the week was the shift from good intentions to meaningful practice.
In a session on “Finding Solid Ground,” participants explored how to respond when someone comes to them for help moving from rescuing to coaching, fixing to supporting, and creating spaces where people can retain their dignity and agency.
Participants then turned to theology itself, exploring how grace, protection, love and justice can help shape safer, more compassionate and affirming faith communities.
The conversation ultimately moved beyond individuals to institutions, with participants considering the role of policies in protection, inclusion, accountability and addressing sexual harassment.
A Shared Commitment Going Forward
Across the five days, one message ran through the conversations: faith communities can play a powerful role in creating spaces where people are heard, affirmed, protected and treated with dignity.
Participants left with a renewed commitment to carry these conversations into their communities and organisations moving from judgement to listening, exclusion to belonging, rescuing to empowerment, and individual concern to institutional responsibility.
For Faith to Action Network, the workshop reflects an important part of our wider work: equipping faith actors to draw on faith as a resource for justice, compassion, dignity and transformation.
