Peace practitioners and government officials have demonstrated increased interest in strategic religious engagement (SRE), or the process of collaborating and partnering with religious communities and/or faith-based organizations (FBOs) to advance shared humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding goals.

Photograph of Person Praying in Front Lined Candles (Rodolfo Clix/Pexels)

Despite this growing attention in faith-based partnerships, however, questions persist about their efficacy. Many reports and analyses have documented the wide and diverse range of projects now being implemented with religious communities and FBOs. Far fewer efforts have been made to systematically evaluate why and under what conditions such initiatives do or do not contribute to their intended outcomes.

Responding to the need to strengthen the evidence base for SRE, the U.S. Institute of Peace developed the Strategic Religious Engagement Evaluation Toolkit (StREET). This toolkit is one of the first frameworks designed specifically to assist with the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of programs that involve governmental and non-governmental partnerships with faith actors. It outlines how to track the progress, performance, and impact over a specific time period in order to assess the effectiveness of strategic religious engagement (SRE), or the process of collaborating with religious communities, institutions, and/or faith-based organizations (FBOs) to advance shared humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding goals.

What You'll Learn

  • Gain a deeper appreciation for the roots of strategic religious engagement (SRE) and what it means today.
  • Strengthen your knowledge of best practices for monitoring and evaluation.
  • Recognize, through examples, ways to adopt an SRE lens for monitoring and evaluation.
  • Identify sample tools to incorporate into your own practice.

Related Publications and Resources

Related Publications

How Ukraine is Navigating Russia’s Weaponization of Religion

How Ukraine is Navigating Russia’s Weaponization of Religion

Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Since 2014, Ukraine has been trying to repel escalating Russian aggression. But while Russia is a much larger country, with far more weaponry and manpower, their efforts to undermine Ukrainian state sovereignty extend far beyond armed combat. The Kremlin has used its close ties to the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) to weaponize religion in favor of Russian interests.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & PreventionReligion

Beyond the Dayton Accords: Resolving Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Frozen Conflict

Beyond the Dayton Accords: Resolving Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Frozen Conflict

Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Looking out from the town hall in downtown Sarajevo, you’d be hard pressed to find evidence of the nearly four-year-long siege that devastated the city during the Bosnian War. The surrounding area is clean and filled with new and repaired buildings — even the town hall itself is a restoration of the pre-war library that once occupied the space. 

Type: Analysis

Democracy & GovernancePeace ProcessesReligion

How to Advance the Evidence-base for Strategic Religious Engagement

How to Advance the Evidence-base for Strategic Religious Engagement

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Last September, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) released its first-ever strategic religious engagement (SRE) policy. During its first year, the framework has won praise from a wide range of policymakers and diplomats. Not only does the policy affirm the critical role of religious actors as partners in advancing shared development and peacebuilding goals, but it also provides guidance for collaboration with these religious communities and faith-based organizations (FBOs).

Type: Analysis

Religion

View All Publications