Dear Friend,

We have some exciting news to share with you as 2022 draws to a close. Thanks to the generous gifts from our supporters, we have accomplished great things this

year.

Our Temple of Understanding Summer Internship Program expanded its reach to include youth from around the world thanks to the wonders of technology. During four weeks in July, these young adults virtually attended U.N. meetings, engaged in service work, and visited different religious sites. These meaningful opportunities culminated in each intern presenting what they had learned on a topic of their choice to the group. This internship has been the springboard for many of the participants to expand their understanding of the moral voice of Interfaith work, find their passion and orient their studies towards a new vision of their future.

For the past three years, the Temple of Understanding has held a dynamic FORUM on climate change. This year’s was on the impact of climate change on the planet and what each of us can do to restore our biosphere. Our presenters came from such diverse fields as religion, science, agriculture, ancient and Indigenous wisdom, the arts and more. Each speaker expanded on our intimate relationship with the environment and emphasized the interconnectedness of all life. If you missed FORUM2022 or want to view it again, go to the TOU website, www.templeofunderstanding.org

We held monthly ECO JUSTICE FOR ALL Dialogues this year with 36 participants representing Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Jewish and Christian religious leaders as well as representatives of science, agriculture, Indigenous Earth-based practices and more. We contributed to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women annual program highlighting environmental and human rights issues. Our U.N. representatives have attended numerous conferences where we strategized with colleagues on how to lift up moral perspectives. As you can see online, we continue our work towards food sovereignty, sustainable oceans, ending biological diversity loss, dealing with climate change, funding for sustainable development and more, all from a "people and planet over profit" perspective. 

There is still much to be done and your gifts will help build and broaden the vital Interfaith education and engagement work we are doing. 

Please include the Temple of Understanding in your end-of-year donations by going to our website www.templeofunderstanding.org or mailing a check to:

TOU, P.O. Box 1715, W. Tisbury, MA, 02575.

Thank you,

Rev. Dr. Michael Bos, Chairman of the Board

Karen van de Vrande, President of the Board