Chiu sees cultural differences being played out in religious differences.

Question: Where are we?

Melissa Chiu: I think, of course the environment is one big issue; but another perhaps even greater issue is an issue of cultural difference that we see played out in religious differences. And we have seen it most recently in London. I think it’s also an issue of course here for the United States, and it’s dealt with very differently in different places. But I think that the way the communities, societies, and nations are able to deal in a sophisticated way with cultural difference, most societies today are much . . . contain much . . . many more different kinds of communities. There are very few places in the world that are ________ today. And so I think in the future, our ways of dealing with different cultures in our society will have a great impact on our . . . great impact on peace, for example, and a great impact on the quality of life.

Recorded on: Jul 11 2007