Stephen A. Fuqua (saf)

a Bahá'í, software engineer, and nature lover in Austin, Texas, USA

Pre-Blog Articles and Presentations

These pieces were originally written for publication or presentation elsewhere. They are collected here as archives in case the original source disappears.

Bahá‘í Faith

Unity - The Mortar of World Peace (September, 2002)

The article comes from a brief presentation and guided discussion I gave on the topic of world peace from a Bahá’í perspective.

The Bahá’í Faith - Religion Reborn for a New Era (1997, updated May 2006)

Originally written for a publication called the Global Spirituality Report in 1997, this piece by Roxanne Lalonde and Stephen Fuqua is an introduction to the Bahá’í Faith written in the context of spiritual and religious renewal for the current state of humanity’s development.

Interfaith

The Global Interfaith Movement (April 2003)

Since 1893, a movement has grown up around the idea that religious people can find common ground through dialogue; and while they may not agree on who the mouthpiece of God is-or even what to call that Supreme Deity-they are beginning to learn that their shared values can be put to use for the betterment of the world. Originally published in The Fertile Field, a Baha’i youth webzine.

Why and How to Join the United Religions Initiative (June 2006)

A presentation for NAIN Connect 2006 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: Learn the steps for a new or existing group or organization to become a member of the United Religions Initiative (URI).

URI Response to Darfur: A Model for Collective Action (Feb 2006, updated Sep 2007)

A description of how a small, international group of individuals active in the URI came together in response to a global crisis and agreed on two responses in keeping with the URI charter. These responses resulted in Global Council support for the Darfur Unity Statement, an unknown number of individuals and groups contacting their government representatives to support international intervention, and three independent articles mentioning URI actions with respect to Darfur.

United Religions Initiative Global Council Endorses Darfur Unity Statement (April, 2005)

In April of 2005 a number of members of the United Religions Initiative (URI) rallied around the Darfur Unity Statement from the Save Darfur Coalition, requesting that the URI Global Council endorse this document as a show of support for international action to halt the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. This press release generated three newspaper articles and several blog postings.

The United Religions Initiative: A Grassroots Organization of Interfaith Cooperation and Action (August, 2000)

On June 26th, 2000, the United Religions Initiative was officially born at a ceremony in Pittsburgh, PA. It was a tremendous moment, being in the audience as a witness to the birth of an ambitious organization. This article includes some pre-conference reflections as well as a post-charter signing write up.

The Great Bridge–Maker (April, 2005)

Originally written for Spiritual Degrees, a short-lived attempt at “a Bahá’í magazine for the 5th Epoch,” with substantial, beneficial contributions from Mark Derewicz.

Other

Writing a Business Plan (2003)

This short article was written as an overview presentation while I was a business counselor at BiGAUSTIN, a micro-enterprise development corporation in Austin, TX.

To Infinity and Beyond! The Physics of Superconductivity (September, 2002)

Whilst its real-world applications are yet difficult to find, superconductivity may well prove to be one of the greatest discoveries of the 20th century. Herein we examine the physics behind this phenomenon, touch upon some of the applications we have developed thus far, and give some indication of the future development. Intended for the literate yet not necessarily technical audience, with no pictures or equations but plenty of links. Originally published at Kuro5hin, a techno-geek community website.