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DU PLAIN INTERNATIONAL SPEAKERS BUREAU TO SHOWCASE

INTERFAITH SPEAKERS AND DIALOGUE

This year, DuPlain International Speakers Bureau celebrates their tenth anniversary. We are apart of a very special community of speaker bureaus - The International Association of Speaker Bureaus (IASB). The bureaus offer expert speakers from former CEOs, sports coaches, Wall Street gurus, to presidents of banks, companies, studios and networks. And, oh yes, former Presidents of the United States. They encompass whole worlds of interest. There are speakers who can tell you how to invest your dollar, and entertain you in the process.

In spite of a vast wealth of information that is constantly streaming from the world-wide Internet, an abundance of media outlets, publications and network, in spite of all those words and all that talk, we feel there still exists today an absence of open dialogue, an absence of informational, cultural and spiritual exchange. This problem aids and abets and makes possible much of the conflict and tensions which exists in the world today. In particular, it is at the heart of the existence of world-wide terror and the ongoing war against it.

The focus of today's conflicts appears to center around the differences between particular religions, cultures, ethnic groups and regions. This makes it a struggle to understand each other on grounds of religion, nationhood, culture, gender, race, and class. This misunderstanding always results in intolerance, ignorance, strife and potentially disastrous conflict. The warden in the classic Paul Newman movie Cool Hand Luke still has it right when he said "what we have here today is a failure to communicate."

We've noted with pride the success of the powerful series of dialogues we've sponsored between Dr. Akbar Ahmed and Dr. Judea Pearl, the father of slain Wall Street Journalist Daniel Pearl. Dr. Ahmed, who has seen the dangers that exist in the world first hand as a former government leader in his native Pakistan, has always moved with passion in establishing dialogues and friendships with prominent voices in the Interfaith community.

Since our speaker Dr. Akbar Ahmed arrived in Washington, DC several years ago, he has established powerful and pragmatic friendships with many of Washington powerbrokers. Two of the most significant friendships are with Rabbi Bruce Lustig, Senior Rabbi of the Washington Hebrew Congregation and Bishop John Chane, the 8th Episcopal Bishop of Washington. From their ongoing and close friendship, interfaith discussions, events, marches, panels and debates have emerged. we have seen a powerful movement toward interfaith dialogue emerge stronger than ever in Washington, DC.

We want to embrace the spirit of interfaith dialogue within the framework of the DuPlain International Speakers Bureau even more. We will identify the bureau as an inter-faith speakers bureau, both in the most specific sense, and the broadest sense. We are, we believe, the first speakers bureau in the nation's capitol (and perhaps the country) whose primary focus is on interfaith programs. (www.interfaithspeakersbureau.com OR www.interfaithspeakers.com) We offer a speaker's bureau with a focus that's not only informative, interesting, dramatic and thoughtful, but one that will ignite discussion, action, debate and further exploration. The possibilities and opportunities, we feel, are enormous.

We expect to not only offer interfaith keynote speakers, but also organize debates, panel discussions, retreats and dialogues between and among members of different faiths, cultures and ethnic groups.

For us, it's a new beginning. It is a happy way for us to also begin "Our News", our website's newsletter. While there are changes to our speakers bureau, we will maintain our regular speakers, and continue in our other activities and as we gain momentum, we'll be talking about how our new interfaith focus will affect our speakers and clients and translate into future activities and plans.

Jan Du Plain, President of Du Plain International Speakers Bureau, said:

“Our bureau is inter-cultural, inter-national, inter-ethnic and even inter-gender. Wherever there are opportunities for dialogue, discussion, debate, information, exchange, the breaking down of barriers created by intolerance, false chichés and misrepresentations, our bureau wants to be there, too!�