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Organization: Eugene City of Peace
The following information may be cited or quoted as long as the source is accurately mentioned and the words are not taken out of context.
Posted: Dec. 18 2009,15:48 If you wrote this report, you will find a button here that you may click
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Postal address of organization/institution

4349 Shadow Wood Drive
Eugene, Oregon 97405-5865

E-mail address of organization/institution

innercom@peak.org

Website address of organization/institution

https://sites.google.com/site/eugenecityofpeacepublic/Home

Telephone of organization/institution

1-541-343-2109

PRIORITIES: All of the organization's domains of culture of peace activity

EDUCATION FOR PEACE
DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION
UNDERSTANDING, TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY
FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

TOP PRIORITY: The organization's most important culture of peace activity

UNDERSTANDING, TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY

PARTNERSHIPS AND NETWORKS: What partnerships and networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the global movement for a culture of peace?

We are creating the meeting-ground for local peace and justice groups, physically at gatherings and over the internet.  We are also sharing our progress with  Facebook, The Peace Alliance campaign for a US Department of Peace, and a nascent -- and at this date nameless -- international network of others who are building their own City of Peace in Atlanta Georgia, Freetown South Africa, Haverford England and others.

ACTIONS: What activities have been undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and nonviolence during the ten years of the Decade? If you already made a report in 2005, your information from 2005 will be included in the 2010 report.

February 7, 2009:  Twenty people participated in a lively brain-storming session that generated lists of goals, barriers, resources, alternative strategies and conference format ideas.  

March 28, 2009:  63 imagineers met for 7 hours to answer the questions, 
• how would Eugene be different without violence?  
• how would our lives change? 
• if our success were guaranteed, what bold steps might we choose to take?  
We heard reports from prevention specialists in the police department and the schools, and trauma counselors that work with veterans and battered women.


                        Most of the 60 people who  participated in our March 28, 2009 event.

November 14, 2009: 139 people participated in a 4-hour gathering that featured    
* Open Mic for your story, poem, song or inspiration
* Create a vision of peace postcard
* THE YOGA OF PEACE
* STORYTELLING  We dreamt up surprising new endings to old stories  * ALL AGES TALKING STICK  Sharing dreams and visions of a city of peace.
* SHARE YOUR VISION via video recording.
* NONVIOLENT COMMUNICATION, TOOL FOR PEACE  Learn how self empathy and  gratitude can contribute to caring for ourselves and others, giving us the energy to persevere.
* CELEBRATING CURRENT PROJECTS - the buzz of enthusiasm for peace, justice, and sustainability already occurring in our city.
* DANCES OF UNIVERSAL PEACE - simple circle dances using melodies and sacred words from many spiritual traditions.
* DIALOG WITH EUGENE MAYOR, KITTY PIERCY  
* VIDEO BRAINSTORM - creative, personal, short videos that communicate simple, inclusive, mainstream, necessary and achievable facets of local peace.
* COOPERATIVE GAMES encourage team-work, creative thinking, and problem solving,
* FUTURE PROJECTS  Brainstorm new projects needed to nurture a culture of peace in Eugene.

A 30 minute documentary video of this event is in process of being edited.

PROGRESS: Has your organization seen progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of action and in your constituency during the second half of the Decade?

We've seen growth in the number of people interested in receiving our newsletter and participating in project teams.  We have the support of the Mayor.  As a result of efforts by another organization, the City has made a small grant to the neighborhood associations for conflict resolution training.  Another small start-up organization is addressing the issue of police-community relations.

OBSTACLES: Has your organization faced any obstacles to implementing the culture of peace and nonviolence? If so, what were they?

Perhaps the biggest obstacle is the impatience of anti-war, anti-government people who want to leap immediately into their preconceived idea of a solution before all stakeholders have been heard.  In addition, we have encountered well-intentioned people who have not done sufficient internal work on themselves to be able to communicate with empathy and respect.  A third obstacle is the general dis-empowering cynicism and disbelief that a nonviolent culture is truly possible.

PLANS: What new engagements are planned by your organization in the short, medium and long term to promote a culture of peace and nonviolence?

Our intention is to expand the size of each forum exponentially until we build a common story, a new definition and understanding of what's valued.  We want to create connection that is heart-to-heart, face-to-face, and to encourage listening and empathy skills with an abundance of time and space for conversation to occur.  We believe a new social norm of peace-building can become so commonplace and empowering that actions to manifest a more peaceful city will flow naturally.  We will not take positions, make declarations, become institutionalized, or issue-focused.  We will maintain a vision and hope of what is possible, focusing on strengths and positive assets, so they become stronger.

GLOBAL MOVEMENT: How do you think the culture of peace and nonviolence could be strengthened and supported at the world level??

We are using the internet to communicate what is working at the local level and to create an international network of cities of peace.  See http://www.internationalcitiesofpeace.org/index.html
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Organization: Eugene City of Peace

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