The program relies on two distinct methods of study. Seminars at the University of Cambridge employ an innovative interdisciplinary approach to give fellows an overview of key issues in the field. Fellows also pursue a course of independent, private research into a specific area of interest within the larger topic. Potential areas of study include comparison of the methods of science and religion, origins of life, cosmology, genetic engineering, astrobiology, and spirituality and health.
Fellows will be paid a $15,000 honorarium in addition to a book allowance and travel expenses.
During the term of the fellowship, June through July, the program provides time for study, a set of colleagues who will promote critical discussion, access to renowned experts in relevant fields, and an extraordinary intellectual and cultural setting. A combination of optional and required activities are organized around:
- an initial week of preparatory study
- an intense two-week seminar on science and religion, May 30–June 13, 2009, conducted by scholars, scientists, and thinkers drawn from the United States and Europe, and convened at Queens’ College of the University of Cambridge
- introductions to important thinkers in the field
- a detailed program of readings tailored to individual interests, including the development of a personal library of some 50 books that will act as a continuing resource for each fellow in the ensuing years
- five weeks working at home (beginning June 14) to prepare an in-depth article and an oral presentation on a topic of particular interest to the fellow
- a final one-week seminar, held at the University of Cambridge, July 26-July 31, at which each fellow will make an oral but ultimately publishable presentation of findings and ideas
Fellows will be encouraged to write and publish news stories, editorial pieces, or magazine articles at the end of the program, contributing to a more informed public discussion of the relationship between science and religion.
The fellowship has two administrative offices, one in New York and one in Cambridge, UK.