The Friends of the Center research awards provide up to $2,500 for travel or research support related to the dynamics of religion and conflict or its resolution. These awards are made possible through the generous support of the Friends of the Center, a group of private individuals committed to advancing the research and education mission of the Center. Both undergraduate and graduate students from all fields of study are invited to apply for these awards. Award funds may be used to cover the costs of participation in programs, including tuition and airfare, or to underwrite the cost of research (including travel, summer support, or archival research). Activities that can be funded through this program range from:
(A) research support for an honor’s thesis, master’s thesis, or doctoral dissertation; to
(B) participation in reputable, internationally-oriented training programs in religion, conflict, and peacebuilding (
see a list of examples for program ideas); to
(C) research activities that advance understanding of the intersections of religion and conflict.
This year, the Center also will consider applications to support research programs or projects that focus on local vulnerable communities, particularly those that have been impacted disproportionately by the Covid pandemic.
Details and Application Form:
Undergraduate and Graduate students from all majors and years of study are encouraged to apply:
>> Applications for 2021 are now open
>> Due date: April 2, 2021
>> Student Awards - Descriptions and Eligibility
>> Student Awards - 
Application Form
Contact:
Matt Correa
Email Matt.Correa@asu.edu with any questions
2020 Winners
2020 Friends of the Center Research Award winners, clockwise from top left: Saiarchana Darira, Taylor R. Genovese, Pablo Alberto Ortega Poveda, Eric Breault, Mario Orospe Hernández, and Jaxon Washburn
2020
Eric Breault, Phd - Religious Studies
Project: “An Icon Of Death: Material Culture And La Santa Muerte”
Taylor R. Genovese, Phd - Human And Social Dimensions Of Science And Technology, SFIS
Project: “Dark Cosmism: An Ethnographic Genealogy Of Russo-Soviet & American Techno-Utopianism”
Mario Orospe Hernández, Phd - Religious Studies
Project: “Capitalism As Religion: On The Spiritual Life Of A Commodity Across Secular Bordering”
Pablo Alberto Ortega Poveda, Phd - Political Science
Project: “(Un)Usual Suspects: Explaining Violence Against Leaders And Members Of Religion-Based Organizations In Non-Religion Civil Conflicts”
Saiarchana Darira, Social And Cultural Analysis; Global Management; Psychology
Project: 2020 Oxpeace Conference
Jaxon Washburn, Religious Studies; History
Project: Internship At The Joseph Smith Papers Project
2019
Peyman Asadzadehmamaghani, Ph.D. student in Politics and Global Studies
Project: Patterns of Participation in Insurgency: Religious versus Leftist Groups
Brett Goldberg, Ph.D. student in Justice Studies
Project: Building Community in a World on Fire: Transformational Justice Responses to Challenge Rape Culture in the US
Jihye Jung, Ph.D. student in Political Science
Project: Korean Protestant Church Overseas Missions and Religious Conflicts in Muslim Countries
Ayesha Ashan, Economics, Sociology
Project: 2019 American Institute on Political and Economic Systems (Prague, Czech Republic)
Jeena James, Biological Sciences
Project: The Refugee Crisis in the U.S. and Italy
Katherine Panopoulos, Political Science
Project: Philosophical Underpinnings of Peacebuilding Mechanisms
Irene Rubio, Journalism and Mass Communications
Project: 2019 University of Chicago Data and Policy Summer Scholar Program
Madeline Stull, History
Project: Memories of Guilt and the Conception of Peace in the Former Yugoslavia
2018
Leila Asadi, PhD - Justice Studies
Project: Dwelling in Possibility: Living as Syrian Refugee Women in the United States
Haroon Atcha, PhD - Political Science
Title of project: Religious Rhetoric and Nationalist Violence in Myanmar
Terry Shoemaker, PhD - Religious Studies
Project: Dwelling in Possibility: Living as Syrian Refugee Women in the United States
BrieAnna Frank, Journalism & Political Science
Project: Christian Allegiances to Israel in the US and Abroad
See the "Archive" tab above for previous years
2017
Kyla Pasha, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: Fleeting Utopias: Creating Ritual and Community Space from Queer Muslim Longings
Nathan Tarr, Ph.D. student in Political Science
Project: Repressing Faith: Repression, Religion, and Variations in Violence
Tiffany Trent, Ph.D. student in Theatre
Project: Radical Welcome in Youth Performing Arts Spaces on Chicago’s South Side
Alana Vehaba, Ph.D. student in Justice and Social Inquiry
Project: Harnessed Flames: Analyzing Self-immolation in Tibet and its Impact in Exile
Margaret Tucker, Geography and Political Science
Project: Critical Cartography and Conflict Resolution in the Caucasus
2016
Michael Bluhm, Ph.D. Student in Journalism and Mass Communication
Project: Tunisia and the Arab Spring: Religion and the Role of Social Media
James Edmonds, Ph.D. Student in Religious Studies
Project: Performing Authoritative Ambiguity: Contemporary Indonesian Islamic Actualities
Terry Shoemaker, Ph.D. Student in Religious Studies
Project: Emerging in the South: The Emerging Church Movement within the Bible Belt Region
Roopa Singh, Ph.D. Student in Justice Studies
Project: Who Gets to Heal: Mapping Religionization and Propertization in Yoga
Mahshid Zandi, Ph.D. Student in Religious Studies
Project: Tehran’s Holy Defense Museum: Mediating Religion, Politics, and Collective Memory
Viviane Linos, Masters Student in Women and Gender Studies
Project: Constructions of Kinship and Female Empowerment: Orthodox Christianity and Domestic Violence in Greece
Catie Carson, Psychology and Barrett, the Honors College
Project: Peacebuilding through Cultural Exchange and Service in Tajikistan
Connor Murphy, Journalism, Political Science, and Barrett, the Honors College
Project: Journalism, Freedom of Speech, and Violence in Pakistani Media
Ryan Schneidewind, Political Science
Project: Turkey’s Refugee Crisis
Jennifer Swicegood, Psychology
Project: Religion and Domestic Violence in Suva, Fiji
2015
Farina King, Ph.D. student in History
Project: The Journey of Diné Students in the Four Directions: Navajo Educational Experiences in the 20th Century
Justin Nadir, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: Constructions of Identity and Conflict among Hindu Minorities in Muslim Java, Indonesia
Ashley Brennan, Psychology
Project: Deepening Democracy, Cultivating Community, and Building Peace: Youth Participatory Budgeting in Romania
Brieanna Griffin, Global Studies and Anthropology
Project: American Perceptions of the Muslim World: Seeking Grassroots Solutions
2014
Lucia Cash, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: The Role of Religious Leaders in Peace-Building and Reconciliation in Post-Dictatorship Uruguay
Emily Fritcke, English Literature and History
Project: Understanding Religious Conflict: An Investigation of the Tension between the Greek Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church of Romania
A.J. Simmons, Ph.D. student in School of Politics and Global Studies
Project: Civil War Duration and its Influences
Holly Williamson, Ph.D. student in School of Politics and Global Studies
Project: The Implications of Gender Asymmetries: Socialization, Religion, and Wartime Rape in Bosnia
2013
JoonSik Hwang, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: The Urban Religiosity of Jaipur
Galen Lamphere-Englund, Global Studies
Project: Galway University Summer School in Cinema, Human Rights and Advocacy
Brittany Morris, Journalism
Project: Women’s education and participation in civic society in Kuwait City, Kuwait
2012
Gabrielle Filip-Crawford, Ph.D. student in Psychology
Project: The Effects of Tolerence Messages on Religiously-Infused Conflict
Cheikh Amadou Bamba Seye, Master’s student in Religious Studies
Project: Peacebuilding and Anti-Violence in Mouridism
Brittany Morris, Journalism
Project: Women and the Veil in France under President Nicholas Sarkozy
Rachel Bishop, Global Studies
Project: Quaker’s Alternatives to Violence
2010
Danielle Back
Project: Interfaith Peacebuilders Program
Scott Ross
Project: Education and Global Studies major who travelled to Lira, Uganda on a four-month research trip
2009
Bennett Furlow, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: Religion and Politics in Somalia: The Islamic Union Court
Semiha Topal, Ph.D. student in Religious Studies
Project: Pious yet Modern Subjects: Turkish Muslim Women in the Public Sphere
Nastja Cijic, Political Science, Global Studies
Project: South African Human Rights and Peacebuilding Program
Leticia Martinez, Justice Studies
Project: South Africa Community Fund—Programs in Peacebuilding
2008
Blake Jones, Ph.D. student in History
Project: Secular and Religious Influences in Jimmy Carter’s thoughts on Peace, Human Rights and the Global Community
Iona Mateson, Ph.D. student in Political Science
Project: The Participation of Hamas in a National Unity Government
Whitney Meshay, Barrett Honors College, Political Science, German, Religious Studies
Project: South Africa Community Fund—Programs in Peacebuilding
2007
Blake Smith, Masters student in Art Education
Project: South Africa Community Fund—Programs in Peacebuilding
Sandra Afloeri, Journalism
Project: South Africa Community Fund—Programs in Peacebuilding
2006
Alex Ginsburg, Barrett Honors College, Religious Studies
Project: Rabbis for Human Rights, Israel
Elizabeth Fritze, Barrett Honors College, English Literature
Project: South Africa Community Fund—Programs in Peacebuilding
*formerly known as the Hardt Scholarships/Fellowships in Religion, Conflict and Peace Studies