Governance of Religious Diversity in Post-Socialist Albania

The research project explores how people from different religious communities in Albania engage in dialogue and actively shape exchanges between them. At its core is interreligious dialogue encounters in which members of various religions discuss shared values, peaceful coexistence, and social responsibility. In many countries, interreligious dialogue is primarily used to overcome tensions or conflicts between religious groups. In Albania, however, the situation is different. Five religious communities Islam, Orthodoxy, Catholicism, the Bektashi Order, and the Evangelical Union, an association of smaller Protestant churches have traditionally lived together in relative peace. The project examines how such dialogue develops and functions in this distinctive context. The research focuses on the role of religious minorities, often smaller communities with fewer privileges and less public visibility. Three groups are examined in particular, each with its own interest in interreligious exchange: the Catholic Church, which despite its long tradition in Albania represents a numerical minority; Sufi orders as subgroups within Islam; and the Bah community as a newer religious group. The study investigates how these communities participate in dialogue and whether they have similar opportunities for involvement as larger religious groups. The project assumes that religious minorities experience interreligious dialogue differently depending on their history and structure. The shared experience of state-imposed atheism during the socialist period may have fostered a sense of solidarity among religious communities. Newer religious groups, however, may face challenges in participating due to limited visibility and resources, while established communities often dominate such exchanges. Smaller subgroups are often represented by larger communities rather than speaking for themselves. In Tirana, Albanias capital, most interreligious events take place. There, the researcher meets representatives of different religions and participants in these gatherings, observing how trust and understanding develop and where differences or forms of exclusion become apparent. The project aims to deepen understanding of how religious diversity is lived in Albania and what interreligious dialogue means for coexistence in a changing society. The findings help strengthen cooperation between religious communities, give a voice to those religious minorities seeking greater visibility, and reduce prejudice in Albania and beyond.