Dr. Pedersen's fields are comparative religious ethics and the religions of Asia. Her research interests include global ethics, interreligious dialogue and cooperation, human rights and the relevance of asceticism to ethics, especially environmental ethics. She is the editor of a special issue of CrossCurrents on Asceticism Today and Co-Editor of Earth and Faith: A Book of Reflection for Action as well as the author (publishing as Kusumita P. Pedersen) of articles on environmental ethics, interreligious questions, and Buddhism. She joined the faculty of St. Francis College in 1995 as Chair of the Department of Religious Studies, which merged with the Department of Philosophy in 2007. Before coming to the College she was Executive Director of the Project on Religion and Human Rights and Joint Secretary for Religious Affairs of the Global Forum of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders on Human Survival. She has been involved in the worldwide interfaith movement for twenty-five years.