BY DILNOOR PANJWANI
“The challenge of diversity is now a global challenge – and how we address it will have global consequences… Pluralism is a process and not a product. It is a mentality, a way of looking at a diverse and changing world.” .– Aga Khan
His Highness the Aga Khan, the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, on October 15, delivered in Toronto the prestigious 10th Annual LaFontaine-Baldwin Lecture to a distinguished audience, at the invitation of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC). Former Governor General of Canada, the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, who founded the ICC in 2005, introduced His Highness the Aga Khan as somebody who “embodies the values that we Canadians most cherish and the actions that have created the country that we are. He not only celebrates diversity, he also honours the differences between people that can paradoxically give them their greatest bond.”
His Highness talked about the long history of pluralism, the intensification of these challenges and how best to respond to that challenge. “The world we seek is not a world where difference is erased, but where difference can be a powerful force for good, helping us to fashion a new sense of cooperation and coherence in our world, and to build together a better life for all,” said the Aga Khan.
Ismailimail 