Draft:Coexist Foundation

Coexist Foundation
Formation2006
Type501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
Registration no.EIN 45-3842868
Legal statusActive
PurposeSocial cohesion; interfaith dialogue; education; innovation
HeadquartersNew York, United States
Region served
Worldwide
Key people
Dr. Tarek Elgawhary (President & CEO)
Websitecoexistfoundation.org

The Coexist Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in the United States that works to advance social cohesion through education and innovation. Originally established in London in 2006, the foundation's activities were subsequently carried forward by its American entity, Coexist Foundation America Inc., registered under EIN 45-3842868 with the Internal Revenue Service.[1] The foundation is led by President and CEO Dr. Tarek Elgawhary and operates from New York.[2]

The foundation's mission is to bring people together across religious, cultural, and national divides to work, learn, and thrive together, described by its leadership as capitalising on "the goodness of humanity in its vast diversity."[3]

History

London origins (2006)

The Coexist Foundation was founded in London in 2006 by a group of British businessmen. In its early years it operated as a traditional grant-making charity, awarding funding to religious literacy and interfaith dialogue projects across the United Kingdom and internationally.[4] The foundation was registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales and undertook a range of interfaith education initiatives in partnership with British universities and cultural institutions.

Transition to the United States

As the foundation grew, its trustees began to seek more sustainable long-term funding models beyond private grants. Coexist Foundation America Inc. was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to carry forward the organisation's charitable mission in the United States. The American entity was given its ruling year in 2012 by the Internal Revenue Service.[5]

Following the closure of the original London-based charity, the US entity assumed responsibility for continuing the Coexist Foundation's global work, with operations centred in New York. Elgawhary served as USA Director of the Coexist Foundation and delivered the opening remarks at the first-ever Coexist Prize Awards ceremony, held at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts at New York University.[6]

Leadership

Tarek Elgawhary

Dr. Tarek Elgawhary is the President and CEO of the Coexist Foundation. He is an entrepreneur, educator, and philanthropist with a background in comparative religion. His undergraduate studies focused on Judaic studies, his master's degree on Islam and Hinduism, and he holds a PhD in contemporary Islamic law from Princeton University.[3]

Raised in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Elgawhary formed an international communications company during his graduate studies, an experience he has described as the formative ground for the Coexist group of organisations. He became CEO in 2012, and under his leadership the foundation adopted a consumer-philanthropy model aimed at broadening access to giving beyond traditional donors.[4]

Elgawhary has spoken at major policy institutions on issues of religious pluralism and countering violent extremism, including events hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations and the Hudson Institute.[7] He also serves as an early investor and advisor at Coexist Corp, and leads Coexist Research International, which provides cross-cultural research and analysis.[3]

Mission and model

The Coexist Foundation has been characterised as a "fourth sector" organisation — one that bridges the traditional boundaries between nonprofit, for-profit, and public institutions. Nathan Dietz, a senior research associate at the Urban Institute's Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, has described such organisations as selling products and services to benefit the greater good rather than shareholders or investors.[4]

Under Elgawhary's leadership, the foundation developed a model of "passive giving," enabling supporters to fund its mission through everyday consumer choices rather than direct charitable donations, with the aim of lowering the barrier to philanthropic participation.[4]

The Coexist Campaign

The logo and bumper sticker

The foundation's identity is built around the Coexist image, originally created in 2000 by Polish graphic designer Piotr Młodożeniec for a competition at the Museum on the Seam for Dialogue, Understanding and Coexistence in Jerusalem. The word "COEXIST" is rendered using religious symbols: a crescent for the letter C, a Star of David for the letter X, and a Christian cross for the letter T, alongside other interfaith iconography.[8]

The image spread widely in the United States as a bumper sticker in the years following the September 11 attacks, becoming a popular symbol of interfaith tolerance. Elgawhary has described noticing the stickers along the Clara Barton Parkway near Washington, D.C., and recognising their value as ready-made brand recognition for the foundation.[4]

Coffee

A central pillar of the Coexist Campaign is the sale of fair trade coffee sourced from communities with histories of inter-religious conflict. In 2014, the foundation partnered with Peace Kawomera (Mirembe Kawomera, meaning "Delicious Peace" in Luganda), a multi-faith fair trade coffee cooperative in Mbale, Uganda, whose members include Muslim, Christian, and Jewish farmers working together.[4][9]

Revenue from coffee sales supports the foundation's education programs and directly embodies its mission by funding the construction of schools for young Ugandans in communities served by the cooperative.[4] The foundation has described its products as sourced from "conflict zones around the world," with the commercial activity designed to strengthen bonds between communities and generate a new generation free from prejudice and violence.[10]

The foundation also sells clothing and accessories under the Coexist brand, similarly sourced from communities in regions of historical conflict, including from Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills in India.[10]

The Coexist Prize

The foundation has hosted the Coexist Prize, an awards ceremony celebrating the positive role that religion plays in public life and honouring individuals whose work promotes interfaith understanding. The inaugural ceremony was held at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts at New York University.[6]

Programs

Global Citizenship Education

The Global Citizenship Education (GCE) program provides curriculum development, educational programming, teacher training, and classroom technology aimed at students of all ages. It seeks to equip students with the competencies to navigate a globalised world and overcome divisions rooted in prejudice and cultural misunderstanding. The program follows goals aligned with the United Nations Global Education First initiative.[5]

Collaborative Action

The foundation incubates projects that bring together communities across religious and national divides. Past projects have included facilitating the installation of greywater treatment infrastructure in Palestinian villages in the West Bank in partnership with Israeli non-governmental organizations, and supporting school-building in Uganda.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Tax Exempt Organization Search: Coexist Foundation America Inc". Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  2. ^ "Home". Coexist Foundation. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  3. ^ a b c "Meet Coexist Foundation President Dr. Tarek Elgawhary". Coexist Foundation. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "There's a Coffee Company Behind Those "Coexist" Bumper Stickers". Washingtonian. 2015-01-25. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  5. ^ a b "Coexist Foundation America Inc — GuideStar Profile". GuideStar. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  6. ^ a b "Coexist USA Director Tarek Elgawhary's Opening Remarks". Odyssey Networks / Dailymotion. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  7. ^ "Engaging Religious Communities in Countering Violent Extremism". Council on Foreign Relations. 2018-02-14. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  8. ^ "Coexist (image)". Wikipedia. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  9. ^ "Delicious Peace: Coffee, Music & Interfaith Harmony in Uganda". Wikipedia. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  10. ^ a b "The History Behind The "Coexist" Logo On Your Bumper Sticker". Urbo. 2017-07-10. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  11. ^ "News Post — Coexist Foundation". Landon School. Retrieved 2024-01-16.

Category:Organizations established in 2006 Category:501(c)(3) organizations Category:Interfaith organizations Category:Fair trade organizations Category:Social enterprise Category:Religious organizations based in the United States Category:Organizations based in New York City

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