FAITH IN ACTION: YOUNG PEOPLE MAKING A DIFFERENCE, a CBS religion special about social action and making a change, will be broadcast Sunday, Sept. 26 on the CBS Television Network.  (Please check your local station for exact time).   

Young people are often at the forefront of social change; this program takes a look at how young people are creating change today in a world of conflict, poverty and social inequality.

The special visits Artsbridge, a conflict resolution leadership program that brings Israeli and Palestinian high school students together to inspire dialogue.  Each July, students are invited to Boston, Mass. to collaborate on an art project.  Part of the collaboration is meant to encourage new ways of communicating with one another.  The program's founder, Debbie Nathan, is a mental health counselor and art therapist who wanted to start a program that helps young people living in conflict.  She says, "What I want the students to get out of working together through art is how to take a challenging situation where you may not agree...but still come together and work constructively to solve challenges and build something."

The CBS special also follows students from Gates Presbyterian Church in Rochester, New York, as they spend a week in New York City volunteering for the Youth Services Opportunities Project (YSOP) alongside Lisa Gesson, the Program Director for this decades-old, service-oriented inspired by Quakers.  YSOP is a non-profit organization that offers students from across the United States a chance to volunteer in projects that help alleviate poverty and hunger.  The broadcast observes students working at the B'nai Jeshrun lunch program on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and their return to YSOP headquarters to reflect on their experiences.

While some young people like those in YSOP choose to work closer to home, American Jewish World Service provides the opportunity for others ages 16-24 to volunteer for summer projects in impoverished areas abroad.  The 25-year-old social justice and advocacy organization is dedicated to alleviating global poverty, hunger and disease around the world, as described in the special by Aaron Dorfman, Vice President of Programs.  Viewers will also meet a volunteer who recently returned from working in Ghana.

Finally, FAITH IN ACTION: YOUNG PEOPLE MAKING A DIFFERENCE follows Nadia, a young Muslim woman, as she fulfills her faith obligations during the holy month of Ramadan (a time when Muslims fast, pray and perform acts of community service).  The special also highlights the efforts of a non-profit organization, "Muslims Against Hunger," through an interview with its founder Zamir Hassan, a Pakistani American from New Jersey.  The group provides volunteers-of all faiths-to work in underserved communities in 20 different cities across the United States, serving hot lunches and dinners to the homeless and working poor.

John P. Blessington is the executive producer and Liz Kineke is the producer.  The special is produced with the cooperation of the National Council of Churches, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Islamic Society of North America, the Union for Reform Judaism and the New York Board of Rabbis.

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Press Contact:            

Jeremy Murphy            212-975-4577             jeremy.murphy@cbs.com