Culture, civilization and religion are among the factors that contribute to the formation of identity.

Culture comprises a variety of factors associated with a community such as shared language, shared belief systems, ethical codes, worldview, lifesytle and traditions.

Human agency is a critical factor in the inheritance and adoption of a culture since the culture of a community is not biologically inherited but learnt from the older generations (Heywood, 2014, 235).

Firstly, culture refers to the endeavours of both people and communities in the artistic and scientific fields such as fine arts, literature, civil engineering, etc. towards reaching a point of perfection. Secondly, the term culture is used to mark the products of these endeavours. While these products carry the distinctive features of the national or civilizational cultures they have been produced within, they are also currently regarded as sources of inspiration for the humanity in general (Fischer, 2006, 28).

Thirdly, culture is used to mark the common features of the communal life, and consequently highlights its distinctive features (Fischer, 2006, 28).

Ideology, in its general definition, is “a system of ideas that aspires both to explain the world and to change it”.

“Cultural diversity” refers to the manifold ways in which the cultures of groups and societies find expression. These expressions are passed on within and among groups and societies.

Worldview is briefly defined as “a particular philosophy or view of life; a concept of the world held by an individual or a group” (OED, 1989). 

Three definitions are classified as substantial, functional and family resemblance model definitions (Little, 2016).

Substantial definitions attempt to define what a religion is or is not either inclusively or exclusively. Emphasis on the “belief in the supernatural” is the common feature of substantial definitions. 

Functional definitions focus on the functions of religions in helping the members of a society to solve their problems or to guide them to live meaningful and purposeful lives.

Civilization, in its general definition, is “the stage of human social development and organization which is considered most advanced” (OED, 2017).

The expression of “White Man’s Burden” is based on the idea of the supremacy of the white race over other races. This perception puts a burden on the superior white race, namely the Europeans, to civilize other races which were colonized by European powers since the 15th century; and it was promoted by a range of prominent European politicians, soldiers and intellectuals such as Arthur de Gobineau and Rudyard Kipling.

“In modern history, industrial revolution is the process of change from an agrarian and handicraft economy to one dominated by industry and machinemanufacturing. This process began in Britain in the 18th century and from there spread to other parts of the world” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2017).

These developments include colonialism, the emergence of bourgeoisie as a strong social class with demands, the struggle for power between the Church and the state authorities and the Industrial Revolution.

Secularism is the seperation of religous institutions from the state.

In addition to civilizational roots, religion, culture and many other factors such as ethnicity, a common past, the political system and geopolitics play an important role in the formation of national identity (Tekin, 2015).

Following the World War II, the world was theoretically seperated into two ideological camps named as the Western Bloc led by the United States of America (US) and the Eastern Bloc led by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

A classification in terms of their economic development divided the countries in the world into three groups:
First World (Developed Western countries)
Second World (Communist countries)
Third World (Developing countries including but not entirely composed of the former European colonies)

Globalization can be described, in its narrow definition, in terms of economics as “an increasing internationalisation of markets for goods and services, the means of production, financial systems, competition, corporations, technology and industries” (UNSTATS, 2002, p. 170).

As a non-governmental organization (NGO) refers to the organizations which are not established or coordinated by a government or any public institution, a civil society organization (CSO) is also an NGO. However, a CSO is also expected not to be attached to interest groups in the society which gather to secure or promote financial interests, e.g., business organizations. Consequently, NGOs with religious and cultural orientations or philanthrophic activites belong to the category of CSOs (Stivachtis, 2007, p. 15).