Founder’s Circle
You’re invited
We would love to welcome you as a member of the Founder’s Circle. By supporting IRF Secretariat and guaranteeing its survival, you are empowering a global movement and increasing its impact.
The Founder’s Circle at IRF Secretariat is a select community of individuals and couples who make a significant commitment to support and sustain the mission of building religious freedom from the ground up.
Founder’s Circle members are core partners in advancing the Secretariat’s global work through strategic initiatives such as Regional Secretariats, Multi-Faith Roundtables, NXT Gen leadership development, and cross-sector engagement in academia, business, media, and diplomacy.
By joining the Founder’s Circle, members invest not only in the operational strength of the Secretariat, but also in a long-term vision for cooperative engagement, equal citizenship, and freedom of thought, conscience, and religion for all.
It’s more than a gift — it’s a commitment to shaping a more peaceful, pluralistic world.
Founding Members play a critical role in:
Promoting freedom of thought, conscience, and religion worldwide, as described in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and
Empowering the execution of programs that build religious freedom and social cohesion from the ground up in communities around the world, which builds peace and prosperity.
MEMBERSHIP OVERVIEW
Base Membership
$5,000 per year
Per Individual or Couple
Renewable Terms
1 year, 3 years, or 5 years
Per Individual or Couple
Participate in Events
Global, Regional, National, Local
Additional Opportunities
Strategic Initiatives & Endowments
Events
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IRF Secretariat will welcome the Founders to join us annually for a time of strategic planning and networking in Florida, USA.
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As co-hosts of the annual IRF Builders Forum you will engage and develop friendships with fellow “builders” from all corners of the world who represent their countries and regions as government, parliamentary, religious, and civil society leaders. These leaders will discuss critical global issues related to religious freedom and national security.
Not only will you leave better informed with a deeper understanding of why the global movement to advance religious freedom needs stronger civil society leadership, innovations, and a holistic approach — but you will become a voice for change.
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Formerly in Washington, London, Prague and Berlin — the annual ministerial is the gathering centerpiece of the international religious freedom movement. IRF Secretariat is a collaborative partner and has been entrusted with providing a civil society program parallel to the ministerial conference, keeping civil society organizations at the core of building religious freedom globally.
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In partnership with the Article 18 Alliance Chair, Ambassador Robert Rehak — IRF Secretariat welcomes Founders to join an annual gathering that welcome dignitaries and high level officials in Prague held at the Czernin Palace.
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United Kingdom, Belgium, Ghana, Colombia, Israel, Costa Rica, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Pakistan, Panama, Brazil, Iraq, Nigeria, Armenia and more.
Strategic Initiatives
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To advance religious freedom at the grassroots and regional levels, the IRF Secretariat partners with leaders around the world to establish and support Regional Secretariats. These locally driven hubs foster cooperation, build capacity, and adapt the Builders Approach to diverse cultural and political contexts.
Current initiatives span North America, Central Europe, Central Africa, Central Asia, Central America, Southeast Asia, the South Caucasus, South America, the Middle East, and beyond — equipping regional champions to lead from within and sustain long-term impact.
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IRF Secretariat supports the launch and growth of Multi-Faith, Equal Citizenship Roundtables in countries around the world — locally led spaces that foster inclusive dialogue, build trust across religious and ethnic lines, and advance equal rights for all.
These Roundtables are active or emerging in Central Asia, Central Africa, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Central America, the South Caucasus, and other regions — each adapted to its unique context, but united in a shared commitment to cooperative engagement and equal citizenship under the law.
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IRF Secretariat advances religious freedom through cross-sector initiatives that shape culture, develop future leaders, and drive institutional change.
We collaborate with academics to integrate religious literacy and freedom into academic programs; partner with businesses to promote inclusive workplaces and global human rights; equip the next generation through NXT Gen Fellowships and leadership pipelines; and engage the media to amplify stories and shift public understanding.
These initiatives work in synergy to build a more just and pluralistic world — from lecture halls to boardrooms to broadcast platforms.
Endowments
In addition to the opportunities described, members can establish endowments to empower the long-term funding of IRF Secretariat activities and initiatives they care most about. The first endowment is the Cornerstone Endowment, which ensures IRF Secretariat has sufficient capacity to deliver. Others will:
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Support the operational backbone of one of the world’s most impactful and inclusive platforms for advancing religious freedom. The IRF Roundtable in Washington, DC brings together hundreds of faith leaders, civil society advocates, diplomats, and government officials in regular, collaborative dialogue — generating real-time solutions, amplifying urgent cases, and advancing policy reform.
Your contribution helps fund the staffing, convenings, communications, and infrastructure that sustain this trusted and action-oriented space. With your support, the Roundtable can continue to foster cooperation, respond rapidly to global needs, and empower a growing network committed to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion for all.
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Invest in the next generation of leaders advancing religious freedom around the world. The NXT Gen IRF Fellowship Program equips emerging advocates with the tools, networks, and experience they need to lead with integrity and impact.
Through intensive training, mentorship, and hands-on engagement, Fellows gain cross-cultural skills, policy insight, and a deep understanding of cooperative approaches to advancing freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
Your support helps cover program costs, fellow stipends, convenings, and resources — directly shaping a global pipeline of principled, strategic leaders committed to building religious freedom from the ground up.
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Help bring people together across borders, faiths, and sectors to build religious freedom where it matters most. By sponsoring Regional Events, you support in-country gatherings that foster trust, empower local leaders, and mobilize collaborative action tailored to regional needs and realities.
From high-level forums and roundtables to grassroots trainings and multi-faith dialogues, your sponsorship fuels meaningful, locally led engagement — advancing freedom of thought, conscience, and religion in some of the world’s most challenging and promising contexts.
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Help lay the foundation for lasting impact. By establishing emerging Secretariats, you enable local leaders to launch regionally driven hubs that advance religious freedom through cooperative engagement.
Your support provides critical seed funding for staffing, convenings, infrastructure, and strategic planning — empowering communities in high-need and high-potential regions to lead from within. Each Secretariat becomes a catalyst for trust-building, policy reform, and sustainable change rooted in local context and leadership.
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Advance peace and understanding by supporting Cross-Cultural Religious Literacy Programs that equip leaders, educators, and changemakers to navigate deep differences with respect and insight.
Your support helps develop and deliver trainings, workshops, and resources that promote empathy, reduce prejudice, and build the foundation for cooperation across faiths, cultures, and worldviews. These programs are vital to strengthening pluralism and preventing conflict in communities around the world.
Why it’s important to establish Roundtables around the world:
Roundtables deliver true religious freedom in action. They bring people together—people of all faiths and beliefs—and get them working with each other and their governments to improve public laws and policies, protect and defend each other, and solve social problems. This builds mutual understanding, respect, trust, and reliance—even love—between all faiths. Which undermines extremism and builds security and stability. It also builds religious and economic mobility, and better citizenship and governance. Ultimately, this builds peace and prosperity.
They repair the social fabric that has been torn apart.
IRF Builders Forum
The Founder’s Circle, a dedicated group of individuals and couples who feel called to support the work of IRF Secretariat, will serve as co-hosts of the annual event, IRF Builders Forum in Washington, DC which will become the centerpiece event for IRF Secretariat each year.
As co-hosts of the IRF Builders Forum you will engage and develop friendships with fellow “builders” from all corners of the world who represent their countries and regions as government, parliamentary, religious, and civil society leaders. Leaders discuss critical global issues related to religious freedom and national security.
Not only will you leave better informed with a deeper understanding of why the global movement to advance religious freedom needs stronger civil society leadership, innovations, and a holistic approach — but you will become a voice for change.
