The vandalism of a Rexdale mosque, the desecration of a Jewish cemetery in North York, racism on the Ryerson University campus: while Toronto is lauded for being a harmonious hodgepodge of cultures and religions (the novelist Pico Iyer once wrote that Toronto's diversity creates "not dissonance but a higher symphony"), the veneer of multiculturalism belies a city that can sometimes be deeply divided.

Hilary Keachie and Danny Richmond are working to change that, and tell a different story about the relationship between religious and cultural groups in the GTA. Last year, the Torontonians were appointed to be part of the inaugural group of 30 international fellows for the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, an organization that promotes respect and understanding among the world's major religions.

From their offices in the Canadian Centre for Diversity at Yonge and York Mills, Keachie and Richmond act as ambassadors for interfaith service and the Millennium Development Goals. The "Faiths Act Fellows," both in their early twenties, travel around the GTA speaking at conferences and high schools, meeting with religious leaders and students, and planning grassroots fundraisers.

On a busy Sunday before an event-planning meeting with local youth, the fellows paused to talk about the particular challenges and opportunities facing Torontonians of faith, the surprising layers of their city, and why they think interfaith work is the way forward.

Julia Belluz: How did you become involved with interfaith work?

Danny Richmond: I have always been involved with my own faith tradition, working with the Jewish community. I became fascinated by the way people of different faiths can work together and I was ready to maintain an aspect of what I thought was important in my life and religion, and enter into the broader interfaith context.

Hilary Keachie: I started out the same way, being very involved in my Christian community: teaching Sunday school, helping with holiday events. In high school, I had a unique opportunity to travel to India where I saw faith communities [Muslim and Hindu] that had had a long history of conflict working together on building a school for children. Seeing that interplay, how much good could come out of working together, left an impression on me.

As part of the inaugural group of Faiths Act Fellows, what do you hope to achieve?

Danny: We are working to build an interfaith hub of activity directed at interfaith cooperation. So all our work is based in Toronto and the idea is to build bridges locally while having this rallying call of a global issue we all agree we can work on.

What global issue will you tackle?

Hilary: The focus is on the Millennium Development Goals. The sixth goal is halting the spread of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other diseases. The Blair Foundation identified malaria as the most immediate concern or focus. So we are committed to malaria eradication. We've known for a long time how to treat and prevent it. It's achievable and we have the capacity, the tools and resources to solve this, so it's a good starting point. In addition to that, through malaria, you touch on so many other Millennium Development Goals: you deal with maternal health, child mortality, education, poverty.

Why should Torontonians care about malaria, a disease that typically afflicts those in the southern hemisphere?

Danny: In Canada, for over 35 years, we have had this belief central to our identity, that our social standing and background should not determine how something as simple as a cold should kill you. Canadians see themselves as global citizens, so Canadians should look beyond their borders and try to help with something that's preventable.

What are the most challenging faith-related issues facing Torontonians?

Hilary: There's some geographic boundaries that are difficult in Toronto in that various communities are segregated or localized to different areas of the city, so it's sometimes difficult to bring them together.

Danny: For me, it's the immensity of the city. We're so rich in our diversity but at the same time that's a tad overwhelming. Also, competing with city life, getting people to slow down and get to know each other can be a bit of a challenge.

How do you think Torontonians can overcome those community boundaries?

Hilary: Torontonians need to take advantage of the plethora of multicultural or multi-faith events going on in this city.

Danny: One thing that has been wonderful is starting at a grassroots, personal level. For example, we've organized SolidariTea  [A multi-faith celebration of International Women's Day on March 7 at the University of Toronto's Hart House. Women from different faiths and cultures will hear speakers including Sally Armstrong, watch cultural performances, and prepare gift baskets for a Toronto women's shelter. All proceeds go to a women's organization in West Africa]. We're getting 20 women on board to reach out to ten or 15 women in their community. That brings in 200 women, and it keeps it personal so things remain organic and warm. Beyond that, people can simply explore the terrain of another community. Looking at the corkboards in their coffee shops is a good way to see what's going on.

How does Toronto compare to other cities -- such as London, for example, where you trained for your fellowship and met the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair -- in terms of interfaith cooperation or conflict?

Danny: One thing that's amazingly unique about Torontonians is the immense pride we have in multiculturalism. Our diversity is seen as a strength and we celebrate it in our restaurants, festivals and cultural scene. More than other cities, Toronto aspires to have multiculturalism as a central value by choosing to celebrate it, rather than simply being satisfied with a tolerant coexistence.

Hilary: The problem is that these can sometimes be superficial interactions or experiences. We still need to build substantial bridges between communities so that our children can genuinely get to know one another and so that our workplaces reflect an understanding of our diverse mosaic.

As Toronto natives, have you learned anything new about the city through your interfaith work?

Danny: People say Toronto has many layers. I have learned that even though it's the city I grew up in, I hadn't touched a lot of it. We went to this Islamic community centre called the Noor Cultural Centre. Unless I was in this job or getting involved in multi-faith work, I would never get to know an amazing organization like that. Also, people talk about Toronto as a multicultural, open and welcoming city. In the last few months, it's proven to be true. When people have the opportunity, they are willing and open and want to get to know each other.

Why focus on religious issues today?

Danny: I think religion or faith is a part of many peoples' lives and people are looking for positive avenues to express that. Our boss will always say that the greatest challenge of the 21st century will be the challenge of how to get people of faith to work together.

Hilary: Because we have the chance to tell a new story of religion. The story about religion in the media is so often that of religious violence or intolerance. It's important to let the world know that there are communities and people of faith working together, who are so welcoming and eager to take on social justice issues and change that story.

Julia Belluz is a Toronto-based freelance writer, editor, and researcher.