The Intellectual Life of a Community

with Nwandi Lawson 2023 ABS Conference - Atlanta, GA Often intellect is described from the perspective of individuals who appear to be gaining the capacity to resolve complex problems all by themselves. Yet the House of Justice describes a scenario in which there is a collective responsibility for expressing and applying Bahá'í principles to the challenges and aspirations of a people: "The more the intellectual life of a community blossoms and thrives, the greater the capacity to answer this call." How are Bahá'ís and our collaborators learning to release communities' capacity to acquire and apply knowledge through contributions to discourse, social action, and expansion and consolidation? And what does this have to do with the promotion of the political unity of the nations, or the Lesser Peace?