TMP's upcoming one-day conference in Lima, Peru, will tackle three pressing issues from a media perspective: increasing criminal violence, religion's role in conflicts over natural resources, and the growing political influence of evangelicals in Peru.

The fight for control over natural resources between local and regional authorities against a central government is a key conflict zone in many countries. Religious leaders often get involved on behalf of their churches and parishes, adding an important religious dimension to the conflict. Dr. Jose Luis Pérez Guadalupe, a well-known author and scientist will be the speaker on this topic. Rolando Perez, a professor of journalism and evangelical Christian, as well as a blogger and scholar of religion, will address the role of the Peruvian media in this complex issue.

Violent crime is also affecting Peru more than ever. Criminal gangs and drug networks routinely threaten journalists, particularly in the Andean and Amazonian regions, where the state has difficulty providing governance. The speaker on this topic will be Dr. Jose Antonio Camborda. His distinguished career included stints as a former editor in The Miami Herald, CNN in Español, and La Republica-Peru.  Camborda is now a senior professor in the Bausate y Meza Journalism University in Lima.

In predominantly Catholic South America, numbers of Protestant evangelical Christians have grown rapidly over the past 20 years. Today roughly 80 percent of Peruvians are Roman Catholic, while the number of evangelicals has grown to more than 12%. Peru's mainstream press has few journalists who understand the basic principles of evangelical practices, and so the number of stories on the community is minimal.  Dr. Tomas Gutierrez, sociologist and journalist, and a senior advisor of the Peruvian congress for the new law for the religion freedom will address the topic: “Evangelicals – a challenge for politics in Peru?”

The one day conference set for Saturday, August 25, 2012, in Lima is sponsored by The Media Project in partnership with the Lima Press Club (Club de Periodistas de Lima). More than 20 journalists from various parts of Peru will attend together with the CEO of The Media Project, Dr Arne H. Fjeldstad.