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Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS)

News

Reporting on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.

Location:

United States

Description:

Reporting on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.

Twitter:

@BahaiNews

Language:

English

Contact:

+972 (4) 835-8412


Episodes
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In Conversation: Hope inspires action in Central Asia

9/11/2025
The latest podcast episode explores how young people in Central Asia are overcoming social barriers and contributing to the betterment of their communities. In the latest podcast episode of “In Conversation,” four members of the Board of Counsellors explore efforts to contribute to social progress in several countries across the Caucasuses and Central Asia, from neighborhoods in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, to Tbilisi, Georgia.

Duration:00:18:49

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In Conversation: Families foster belonging in Australian neighborhoods

8/7/2025
The latest podcast episode explores how neighbors and groups of families in Australia are learning to support one another by applying spiritual principles to daily life.

Duration:00:18:39

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In Conversation: Advancing women’s education in Cambodia and Malawi

7/28/2025
The latest podcast episode explores how Bahá’í educational programs in Cambodia and Malawi are empowering women to transcend traditional roles and contribute to progress.

Duration:00:16:04

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In Conversation: Cultivating harmony in Azerbaijan for over a century

7/4/2025
Members of Azerbaijan’s Bahá’í community reflect on how efforts to foster harmonious relationships at the grassroots have informed national discussions on pressing issues

Duration:00:16:50

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In Conversation: BIC Brussels on education and societal attitudes that empower youth

6/8/2025
In the latest podcast episode of the Bahá’í World News Service we hear from Rachel Bayani and Alessandro Benedetti, representatives of the Brussels Office of the Bahá’í International Community (BIC), who explore conditions that enable young people’s capacities for meaningful social contribution to flourish.

Duration:00:18:20

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In Conversation: BIC explores oneness and interdependence in governance

5/27/2025
The latest podcast episode from the News Service explores the need for global governance that recognizes humanity as an interdependent whole rather than competing units.

Duration:00:24:13

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Insights from the Field: Zambia communities empowered to reshape their future through education

5/13/2025
In a recent podcast episode from the News Service, we hear from Musonda Kapusa-Linsel, member of the Board of Counsellors in Africa, as she reflects on the transformation fostered through Bahá’í material and spiritual educational initiatives in Zambia over the past four decades. Mrs. Kapusa-Linsel explains that, over time, educational programs created spaces where participants could explore concepts such as the essential oneness of humanity, the elimination of prejudice of all kinds, the equality of women and men, and the power of consultation as a tool for achieving collective vision and harmonious action.

Duration:00:20:33

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Insights from the field: Canadian youth re-envision life’s purpose

4/27/2025
In a recent podcast episode from the News Service, Ilya Shodjaee-Zrudlo from Canada explores how Bahá’í moral and spiritual education programs in that country are inspiring young people to see their lives through a new lens—one where service to humanity becomes the central organizing principle that brings coherence to all aspects of life. Dr. Shodjaee-Zrudlo, draws on experiences as a collaborator of Bahá’í training institutes in Montreal and as a member of Wordswell Association for Community Learning—a Bahá’í-inspired organization in Canada that empowers youth to develop their academic, intellectual, and moral capacities while contributing meaningfully to community transformation.

Duration:00:15:04

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In Conversation: Youth in the Canary Islands and living a coherent life

4/2/2025
The latest podcast episode of the Baháʼí World News Service explores how a growing number of young people in the Canary Islands are learning to live a more coherent life centered on service to their society through their participation in Bahá’í moral and spiritual educational programs. Orlando Ravelo Hernández, member of the Board of Counsellors in Europe, and Alejandro Sarmiento González, member of the Auxiliary Board in the Canary Islands, discuss how these educational programs are fostering a new understanding of the period of youth in communities throughout that region of Spain, one that contrasts sharply with prevailing societal narratives.

Duration:00:36:03

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In Conversation: Exploring spiritual foundations of equality of women and men

3/9/2025
In the latest Bahá’í World News Service podcast episode, representatives from the Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, and New York Offices of the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) reflected on the advancement of women and the spiritual foundations of equality.

Duration:00:30:54

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In Conversation: Contributing to prevalent discourses in Kazakhstan

2/3/2025
In the latest podcast episode of the Bahá’í World News Service, Lyazzat Yangaliyeva and Timur Chekparbayev, members of Kazakhstan’s Bahá’í Office of Public Affairs, shared insights from their participation in some of the prevalent discourses in their country over the years, particularly those related to societal harmony.

Duration:00:22:54

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In Conversation: Exploring contributions of the BIC to the discourse on societal harmony

1/15/2025
In the latest Bahá’í World News Service podcast episode, representatives of the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) from offices in Brussels, Cairo, Geneva, and New York explored approaches to building societal harmony amid contemporary challenges. The representatives examined how foundational principles found in the Bahá’í teachings—particularly an understanding of the essential oneness of humanity and the inherent nobility of every person—can illuminate paths toward greater unity among diverse populations while fostering their collective spiritual and material advancement.

Duration:00:23:57

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Insights from the field: Contribution of the Bahá’ís of Uzbekistan to society

12/21/2024
In a recent podcast episode from the News Service, Farrukh Rasulov, a member of the Bahá’í Office of Public Affairs of Uzbekistan, explores contributions of the Bahá’ís of that country to social progress over the past decades. The Bahá’í Faith has been present in what is now Uzbekistan since the 19th century, when it was part of the same broader region as Ashgabat (in present-day Turkmenistan), where the first Bahá’í House of Worship was constructed under the guidance of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Around this temple emerged schools for both girls and boys, inspired by the Bahá’í principle of equality between women and men.

Duration:00:20:17

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Insights from the field: Bahá’í Chair examines conditions essential for lasting peace

11/18/2024
In the latest podcast episode of the Bahá’í World News Service, Hoda Mahmoudi—holder of the Bahá’í Chair for World Peace at the University of Maryland—discusses the Chair’s distinctive approach to promoting dialogue and understanding and its research with programs on peacebuilding and development.

Duration:00:24:13

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Kazakhstan: New documentary explores paths toward social progress

11/6/2024
A new documentary examines how Bahá’í community-building initiatives in Kazakhstan are fostering social progress while drawing from the country’s rich cultural heritage.

Duration:00:01:59

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Insights from the field: Contribution of the Bahá’ís of Iran to the advancement of society

10/28/2024
In the latest podcast episode from the Bahá’í World News Service, Mina Yazdani—a professor of history at Eastern Kentucky University in the United States—explored the profound contribution of the Bahá’í community in Iran to their society. Dr. Yazdani shared some accounts of these contributions in several areas, including health, agriculture, and education. She explained how the Bahá’ís of Iran, despite relentless persecution, have embodied constructive resilience and have persisted in their endeavors to serve the needs of their society from its inception in the mid-nineteenth century.

Duration:00:27:17

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BIC Geneva: UN experts condemn Iran’s persecution of Bahá’í women

10/22/2024
In a joint letter of allegations, eighteen UN experts condemn Iran’s systemic persecution of the country’s Bahá’í women.

Duration:00:06:22

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Insights from the field: Exploring annual conference of the Association for Bahá’í Studies

10/2/2024
A new podcast episode of the Bahá’í World News Service explores the rich discussion and collaborative spirit that characterized the recent 48th annual conference of the Association for Bahá’í Studies (ABS) in North America. The conference, held in Atlanta, Georgia, brought together nearly 2,000 participants from diverse fields of study to explore the application of Bahá’í teachings to contemporary discourses on humanity’s well-being.

Duration:00:20:42

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In Conversation: Exploring contributions of the BIC to the discourse on global governance

9/19/2024
In the latest Bahá’í World News Service podcast episode, two representatives of the Bahá’í International Community (BIC)’s New York Office, Bani Dugal and Liliane Nkunzimana, discussed the BIC’s contributions to the discourse on global governance ahead of the UN Summit of the Future.

Duration:00:23:17

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In Conversation: Stories from temple dedication in Papua New Guinea

8/1/2024
In the latest podcast episode of the Bahá’í World News Service, we are transported to the dedication of the Bahá’í House of Worship in Papua New Guinea, hearing firsthand accounts from three participants of the historic occasion. Full story on: news.bahai.org/story/1743/

Duration:00:20:50