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We face a crisis of belonging. Nations that once provided a meaningful sense of home are now failing to do so. Into the void pour sectarianism, mistrust and hatred – which only exacerbate the sense of anomie.
How do we break this cycle? In this lecture, Rana Dasgupta returns to the work of the great philosopher Ibn Rushd, or Averroes (1126-98) in order to find a different principle for modern life, society and politics. He shows how ideas developed in medieval Andalus can help us heal the era of fake news and weaponised knowledge. Rana Dasgupta, author of acclaimed new book 'After Nations: The Making and Unmaking of a New World Order' will argue in the 2026 Ibn Rushd annual lecture that the time has come to develop a new conception of citizenship - one that corresponds to our globalised and ecologically fragile condition.
Please RSVP here Tickets in advance only. Limited places.
Rana will be signing copies of After Nations. A hot buffet will be served.
 Rana Dasgupta is a British novelist and essayist. Born in Canterbury in 1971, he studied at Balliol College, Oxford and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His novel, Solo (2009), won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. He won the Ryszard Kapuściński Award and the Prix Émile Guimet for his subsequent novel Capital. His new acclaimed book, After Nations: The Making and Unmaking of a New World Order (2026), describes four crises of the contemporary nation-state (“God”, “Money”, “Law”, “Nature”) & presents a path to a fairer and more peaceful global future. |
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Community Empowerment Fund 2026 launch.At the Ibn Rushd event we will also be formally launching a new and significant expansion of our Community Empowerment Fund. The Muslim Institute has always been an independent platform for Muslim thought, debate, and action in Britain. From the outset, it has considered ideas and ideals as inseparable from practice.
In 2023, the Muslim Institute established the fund with over £25,000 invested to date. The Fund sits alongside the Institute’s wider activities, helping to resource areas of concern that have long been part of its mission.
From 2026, the Institute will allocate a budget of £100,000 to its Community Empowerment Fund (CEF). This will be distributed over the next 3–5 years.
We wish to fund educational, research and capacity-building initiatives in three interconnected areas where deeper understanding and informed public engagement are needed: community wellbeing, supporting young people, and defending civil liberties in British Muslim communities and wider society. Allocation will be an open process dependent on our published criteria and the quality of applications.
Community wellbeing, supporting young people, and civil liberties are closely bound together: they highlight the need for communities to advance, to live healthy lives and with dignity, to be heard on their own terms, and to participate in society without fear.
A new dedicated CEF web page, including an on-line application form, will be published next week on the Muslim Institute website, along with details on how to apply for the first tranche of funds: community wellbeing. In addition a soft launch of the fund at the Muslim Council of Britain’s Mental Health Summit this Saturday. More info on the summit here.
Birmingham's Muslims: a new report commissioned by the Muslim Institute.
To accompany and underpin the CEF launch, the Institute will be publishing a new report: Birmingham's Muslims: Conversations on grassroots community and change: An analytical overview.
The report, written by Humera Khan of the An-Nisa Society, takes a deep dive into the experiences, concerns, aspirations and emerging trends of those Muslim-led organisations and individuals who are working at a grassroots level across the city. The report provides an insight into the changing realities facing Birmingham's Muslim communities, and centres the voices of those working hard to create positive change for all its people and institutions.
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Special Muslim News Award for Dr Ghayasuddin Siddiqui.
On Monday 6th July, the Muslim News at their annual awards ceremony in London posthumously awarded Muslim Institute founder Dr Ghayasuddin Siddiqui a special lifetime achievement award for his services to the Muslim community and British public life. The award - modelled on an astrolabe - was accepted by his son Salman Siddiqui, who received the award from Muslim News founder/editor Ahmed J Versi. Also present was Dr Siddiqui's daughter Uzma, & members of the Muslim Institute and Halal Food Authority boards of trustees. Muslim News Awards 2026 report here.
Over 300 people gathered in Kenton Hall, north London, on Sunday 31 May, to memorialise and celebrate the life of Dr Ghayasuddin Siddiqui (1939-2026).
You can watch the video of the entire event here. A full report can be found here.
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Date for your diary:
Muslim Institute Winter Gathering 2026
Fri 27 — Sun 29 November 2026
Sarum, College, Salisbury
Theme: 'Muslim Europe and the curious case of amnesia'
Registration for fellows only will open in early September. Click here for details
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| Notice: The annual Muslim Institute Ibn Sina lecture, that was due to take place in June in Sheffield has been postponed due to circumstances beyond our control and is being rescheduled for Autumn 2026. We will update fellows and supporters as soon as we have more details. |
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