As known, stronger international consciousness in this field has culminated recently in the United Nations proclaiming 2001 as the Year of Dialogue Among Civilisations. The Organisation of the Islamic Conference took a leading role in this field on behalf of the Muslim world by adopting the Tehran Declaration on the Dialogue of Civilisations and initiating the process of drafting a universal declaration on this subject. The OIC s action in this field will certainly bring a fresh stimulus towards reinforcing both inter-Islamic dialogue and dialogue with other nations and communities. The themes referred to above, and many others, were incorporated into the Centre s fields of interest gradually over the years. A closer look at the evolution of the Centre s activities in terms of their objectives, themes and types as depicted in the present book would show that many external and internal variables influenced the Centre s course of action and helped to define its character as a dynamic research institution adaptable to the changing circumstances of the international environment.
Anniversaries are landmarks in the history of institutions.
They offer opportunities to recapitulate past activities, take stock of failures and successes, revise existing strategies and plan for the future. Taking into consideration the two main aspects of the Centre s status, i.e. that it is an international organisation and at the same time, a research centre specialised in Islamic culture, these functions were organised as diplomatic and scholarly events in which Member States representatives, international organisations, intellectuals, writers, researchers and people of the artistic, cultural and media circles were invited to generate constructive cultural exchanges around the Centre s areas of interest. This acquires further relevance in the case of this anniversary, because it coincides with the thirtieth anniversary of the OIC, at the start of a new century and a new millennium. These momentous occasions take place in an environment of growing inter-dependence of peoples where the importance of solidarity, including cultural solidarity, comes to the fore. For all our achievements so far, we are immensely indebted to the Member States of the OIC, in particular the Republic of Turkey, which originally proposed to host the Centre in Istanbul, granted it diplomatic status, unfailing state patronage and most suitable premises in the prestigious and historical Y ld z Palace.