I am sure there are multiple researchers pondering weighty questions with deep social significance, however, until some of the structural barriers inherent in academia that make interdisciplinary resource sharing difficult are overcome, I doubt there is much movement in this field.

Dear Chris, thanks for you comments. You mentioned one side of the path, originating from the Academia; my main concern is how the Academia should systematically scan and identify societal complex problems. You are right that structural barriers are very important but I add cultural factors Please share you thoughts and experiences.

Hi Carlos,

You may be interested in a 1999 press release about the Center for the Study of Religion, which launched just the kind of interdisciplinary initiative you have in mind at Princeton University (USA). The Director of the Center is renown Princeton Sociologist Robert Wuthnow. Here is a portion of the press release about the Center:

"Over the past two decades, Princeton has emerged as one of only a few universities in which teaching and research are being conducted on the diverse manifestations of religion through the distinctive lenses of varied disciplines, says Wuthnow. In addition to the Department of Religion, more than 50 faculty members in a dozen other departments and programs contribute regularly to the understanding of religion through their various scholarly perspectives. These include disciplines as diverse as Anthropology, Creative Writing, English, Music and Politics." (http://www.princeton.edu/pr/pwb/99/0322/religion.htm)

I can add to that list of disciplines "History" as I participated in a year-long Religion and Culture seminar at Princeton directed by Wuthnow in the 1998/1999 academic year; and it was decidedly interdisciplinary with participants from all of the aforementioned disciplines. However, some of the best contributions to the seminar (in terms of presenting their ongoing interdisciplinary work) were made by historians who hailed from not only Princeton but also from other universities in the Tri-State area of NJ, NY, and PA and were invited to participate as the seminar functioned like a writers' workshop).

Gwen