(Une version française suit en dessous)
Dear readers,
Last month’s blog requested your suggestions on how to relaunch a global movement for the culture of peace.
You responded handsomely and there are 10 suggestions printed at the bottom of the blog.
One of the suggestions came from David Hazen. In subsequent correspondence with him, and with the engagement of a third David, David Wick, we have come up with a more refined initiative, for which we again request your suggestions.
Request for proposal
Does the state of deadly world conflict suggest to you that after years of experience in the development of a culture of peace we must renew and amplify our efforts?
We are writing to you in the hope that you can help us develop an interactive system on the Internet that would inspire people around the world to take action for a culture of peace.
To begin this century, in the year 2000, the United Nations declared the International Year for the Culture of Peace. The UN adopted a resolution that defined the culture of peace and proposed 8 action areas: human rights, peace education, sustainable development, women’s equality, democratic participation, tolerance and solidarity, free flow of information and disarmament and security. During the year, 75 million people signed the Manifesto 2000 promising to work for a culture of peace in their daily lives. The paragraphs of the Manifesto corresponded to the programme areas of the UN programme of action.
But the culture of peace did not develop as we had hoped, and now we need it more than ever!
We propose taking up the Manifesto 2000 where it left off, renaming it the Manifesto 2025, gathering signatures once again and initiating action.
We need to go beyond signatures and inspire people to take action in their daily lives as part of a global movement for a culture of peace. We need an internet system that promotes this movement. It needs to be interactive.
Ideally, it could encourage small working groups to make a commitment to the culture of peace, beginning with an exchange of their own values, feelings, and experiences and leading to the development and implementation of actions. Such a system could be partly automatic including a way to upload photos and descriptions of their comments and actions so they could be shared with other groups, with an effective means to avoid spam content.
There would need to be a way to exchange questions and answers, and, although some questions could be answered automatically, others would require human intervention by the system managers.
To make the system grow, participants could be encouraged to promote other similar working groups, and there could be means for direct messaging between groups.
The system should be simple enough for people of all ages and levels of education to use and should be available in several languages.
The three of us, being from an older generation, have previously developed websites in which we tried to get interaction and discussion from readers, but we couldn’t make it work. It seems that the task of developing interaction and discussion on the Internet is not an easy task!
For that reason, we turn to you, members of a newer generation, for your advice and, if possible, proposals.
Do you know of any system on the internet that could succeed in developing the kind of interaction that would motivate people to take action for a culture of peace as described above? Or can you propose how to develop such a system?
We have enough resources to produce a website, but not enough to pay experts for its development.
The system should be based on the definition of the culture of peace in the UN Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, and its everyday version in the Manifesto 2000, re-named the Manifesto 2025.
Click on the link here to read the UN Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace. Go to the bottom of the page to click on the language that you want.
Click on the link here to read the Manifesto 2000. And click on this other link to read where the 75 million signatures were gathered.
We look forward to your response, even if just to say that you will think about it.
Peace through struggle and patience,
David Adams, Culture of Peace News Network
David Hazen, Eugene City of Peace & Compassionate Action Network
David Wick, President, Pathways to Peace
Please feel free to send this request to anyone you think can propose an effective interactive system.
Again, as last month, the space is open below (after the French version) for you to enter your suggestions.
* * * * *
Chères lectrices, chers lecteurs,
Le blog du mois dernier sollicitait vos suggestions sur la manière de relancer un mouvement mondial pour la culture de la paix.
Vous avez répondu généreusement et 10 suggestions sont imprimées au bas du blog.
L’une des suggestions est venue de David Hazen. Dans une correspondance ultérieure avec lui et avec l’engagement d’un troisième David, David Wick, nous avons abouti à une initiative plus raffinée, pour laquelle nous sollicitons à nouveau vos suggestions.
Demande de proposition
L’état de conflit mondial meurtrier vous suggère-t-il qu’après des années d’expérience dans le développement d’une culture de paix, nous devons renouveler et amplifier nos efforts ?
Nous vous écrivons dans l’espoir que vous pourrez nous aider à développer un système interactif sur Internet qui inciterait les gens du monde entier à agir pour une culture de paix.
Pour commencer ce siècle, en l’an 2000, les Nations Unies ont déclaré l’Année internationale de la culture de la paix. L’ONU a adopté une résolution qui définit la culture de la paix et propose 8 domaines d’action : droits de l’homme, éducation à la paix, développement durable, égalité des femmes, participation démocratique, tolérance et solidarité, libre circulation de l’information, désarmement et sécurité. Au cours de l’année, 75 millions de personnes ont signé le Manifeste 2000 promettant d’œuvrer pour une culture de paix dans leur vie quotidienne. Les paragraphes du Manifeste correspondaient aux domaines de programme du programme d’action de l’ONU.
Mais la culture de la paix ne s’est pas développée comme nous l’espérions, et maintenant nous en avons plus que jamais besoin !
Nous proposons de reprendre le Manifeste 2000 là où il s’est arrêté, de le rebaptiser Manifeste 2025, de recueillir à nouveau des signatures et d’engager des actions.
Nous devons aller au-delà des signatures et inciter les gens à agir dans leur vie quotidienne dans le cadre d’un mouvement mondial pour une culture de paix.
Nous avons besoin d’un système Internet qui favorise ce mouvement. Il doit être interactif.
Idéalement, cela pourrait encourager de petits groupes de travail à s’engager en faveur de la culture de la paix, en commençant par un échange de leurs propres valeurs, sentiments et expériences et en débouchant sur l’élaboration et la mise en œuvre d’actions. Un tel système pourrait être en partie automatique, comprenant un moyen de télécharger des photos et des descriptions de leurs commentaires et actions afin qu’elles puissent être partagées avec d’autres groupes, avec un moyen efficace d’éviter le contenu spam.
Il faudrait trouver un moyen d’échanger des questions et des réponses et, même si certaines questions pourraient recevoir une réponse automatique, d’autres nécessiteraient une intervention humaine de la part des gestionnaires du système.
Pour faire grandir le système, les participants pourraient être encouragés à promouvoir d’autres groupes de travail similaires, et il pourrait y avoir des moyens d’échanger des messages directs entre les groupes.
Le système doit être suffisamment simple à utiliser pour des personnes de tous âges et de tous niveaux d’éducation et doit être disponible en plusieurs langues.
Nous trois, appartenant à une génération plus âgée, avons déjà développé des sites Web sur lesquels nous essayions d’obtenir une interaction et une discussion de la part des lecteurs, mais nous n’arrivions pas à le faire fonctionner. Il semble que développer l’interaction et la discussion sur Internet ne soit pas une tâche facile !
C’est pourquoi nous nous tournons vers vous, membres d’une nouvelle génération, pour vos conseils et, si possible, vos propositions.
Connaissez-vous un système sur Internet qui pourrait réussir à développer le type d’interaction qui motiverait les gens à agir pour une culture de paix comme décrit ci-dessus ? Ou pouvez-vous proposer comment développer un tel système ?
Nous disposons de suffisamment de ressources pour produire un site Web, mais pas assez pour payer des experts pour son développement.
Le système devrait être basé sur la définition de la culture de la paix dans la Déclaration et le Programme d’action des Nations Unies pour une culture de la paix, et sur sa version quotidienne dans le Manifeste 2000, rebaptisé Manifeste 2025.
Cliquez sur le lien ici pour lire la Déclaration et le Programme d’action des Nations Unies sur une culture de paix. Allez au bas de la page pour cliquer sur la langue souhaitée.
Cliquez sur le lien ici pour lire le Manifeste 2000. Et cliquez sur cet autre lien pour savoir où les 75 millions de signatures ont été recueillies.
Nous attendons votre réponse avec impatience, ne serait-ce que pour dire que vous y réfléchirez.
La paix par la lutte et la patience,
David Adams, Culture of Peace News Network
David Hazen, Eugene City of Peace & Compassionate Action Network
David Wick, président, Pathways to Peace
N’hésitez pas à envoyer cette demande à toute personne qui, selon vous, pourrait proposer un système interactif efficace.
Encore une fois, comme le mois dernier, l’espace est ouvert ci-dessous pour que vous puissiez envoyer vos suggestions.
I applaud, respect and honor what you are doing – – and I share your intentions totally. How to do this is something I am thinking about now and have thought about a lot over the last 20 years.
Education is essential – especially the contrast between the culture we are now living in and what we are trying to move towards. The trick, it seems to me, is how to make that very engaging, challenging, fun and exciting. Perhaps the evolution of online games geared toward people of all different ages. But what is the “hook”? The entry point? Why would they want to spend the time? Certainly not by doomsday predictions, as that drives people away. Why do we do Wordle or Connections? Maybe therein lies the key— something short but daily! Keeping the ideas (the many facets of nonviolence) alive daily. Hmmm…
I thank Martin Jones for your input! I think you’re right about something fun, engaging, and daily. Marilyn King is talking about a phone app that records “peace points” for actions taken. I hope to hear more about it. Another friend, Peter Eberhardt, is proposing a scaled-down award version of the Nobel Peace Prize for projects completed by high school students.
I did what one of my students might do and asked ChatGPT: “What is the best way to motivate individuals to participate in building the Culture of Peace?” Its answered as follows. It seems to me that there is a striking correspondence between its recommendations and the project envisaged in the blog above.
Motivating individuals to participate in building a Culture of Peace involves addressing various psychological, social, and practical factors. Here are some effective strategies:
1. Education and Awareness
Promote Understanding: Raise awareness about the importance of a Culture of Peace through education. Utilize workshops, seminars, and courses to educate individuals about peace, conflict resolution, and the impact of violence.
Highlight Success Stories: Share real-life examples and success stories of peaceful resolutions and communities that have benefited from peace-building efforts. This can inspire and motivate individuals by showing tangible results.
2. Personal Relevance and Empowerment
Connect Personally: Help individuals see how a Culture of Peace can positively affect their own lives and communities. When people understand the personal benefits, they are more likely to get involved.
Empower Action: Provide tools and resources that enable individuals to contribute effectively. This includes training in conflict resolution, communication skills, and peace-building techniques.
3. Community Engagement
Foster Community Spirit: Encourage a sense of community and collective responsibility. Create spaces for dialogue and collaboration where people can come together to work on peace-building projects.
Local Initiatives: Support local peace initiatives that address specific community needs and concerns. People are more motivated to participate when they see direct impacts in their immediate environment.
4. Incentives and Recognition
Recognize Contributions: Acknowledge and celebrate the efforts of individuals and groups involved in peace-building. Recognition can be in the form of awards, public appreciation, or media coverage.
Provide Incentives: Offer tangible incentives, such as grants, scholarships, or career opportunities, for those who actively contribute to peace-building activities.
5. Leadership and Role Models
Leverage Influential Figures: Engage community leaders, celebrities, and respected figures to advocate for a Culture of Peace. Their influence can motivate others to follow suit.
Develop Role Models: Highlight individuals who exemplify peace-building values and practices. Role models can inspire others to emulate their behavior.
6. Collaborative Networks
Build Partnerships: Establish networks and partnerships with organizations, schools, businesses, and other entities to promote a Culture of Peace. Collaborative efforts can amplify impact and reach.
Facilitate Dialogue: Create forums for open dialogue where different groups can share perspectives, address conflicts, and find common ground.
7. Inclusive and Diverse Approaches
Promote Inclusivity: Ensure that peace-building efforts are inclusive and consider the perspectives of diverse groups, including marginalized and vulnerable populations.
Cultural Sensitivity: Respect and incorporate cultural differences in peace-building strategies. Tailor approaches to fit the cultural context of the target audience.
8. Sustainable Practices
Long-term Commitment: Encourage long-term engagement by demonstrating the ongoing need for peace-building efforts. Emphasize that building a Culture of Peace is a continuous process.
Measure Impact: Track and communicate the impact of peace-building activities. Showing measurable progress can sustain motivation and support.
Conclusion
By combining education, personal relevance, community engagement, incentives, leadership, collaboration, inclusivity, and sustainability, individuals can be effectively motivated to participate in building a Culture of Peace. Each strategy should be tailored to the specific audience and context to maximize its effectiveness.
Thank you, Joe,
This reply from artificial intelligence not only confirms the details of our proposal, but also adds several further details:
1. Need to reward best efforts and recognize role models;
2. Need to publicize celebrities and leaders who take part (although in the beginning the effort should be simply from the grass roots without the impression that it is top-down);
3. Need to encourage long-term commitment (that can be done by regularly re-contacting participants to ask how they are continuing their engagement);
4. Need to measure impact as the project develops.
Dear Mr. David Adams:
It is my honor to announce that a new global peace movement – a Global Movement of Nonviolence, For the Children (GMofNV) is prepared as an EMERGENCY PLAN and one last step remains to begin the movement.
A GMofNV is a PEOPLE MOVEMENT designed to: “unite the people,” all the religions, movements – the peace and climate movements first (then others, for ex: Youth, Labor, Indigenous), and mayors and community leaders in every village, town, and city in every country under ONE UMBRELLA — NONVIOLENCE! . . .
A GMofNV includes: the structure and operating system, funding, distribution of funds, marketing, administration, implementation and follow-up plans, and the leadership to ensure long term success. All the mechanisms are in place and the timing could not be more important than now. The intricacies are complex, but there is simplicity in setting the movement in motion. . . .
Sincerely in Peace
Andre Sheldon
Founder and Director, Global Strategy of Nonviolence, For the Children
Cell number: +1-617-413-9064, Home number: +1-617- 964-5267
Email: Andre@GlobalStrategyofNonviolence.org
Website: http://www.GlobalStrategyofNonviolence.org (A new website is planned)
Facebook: Global Movement of Nonviolence
Dear 3 Davids
I am also very impressed with the chat GPT answers. My charity is called Religions for Peace UK. We are the UK chapter of the International Religions for Peace movement which started in 1970. Our international priority set includes gender equality, humanitarian actions, inter religious dialogue, environmental issues and navigating conflict.
We are at the moment putting together pieces of a puzzle to construct an overall programme. it is our experience that every time when we talk about peace and make a public event, we get hate mail. There are lots of people who do not agree with peace. so I think tackling the elephant in the room, we can fortify ourselves to be brave enough to stand up to be counted for our views in public when “they” are not far off, but up front, because people are increasingly feeling conflict is unavoidable, and we cannot let that win.
But before we deal with the outside world, the peace of mind within each individual is the starting point of wishing peace for the world, so we have a programme called Inner Well-being which shares different meditation methods and how the inner peace and strength in each person translates means and methods to face up to this fragmented world.
We are preparing to take Martin Birdseye’s Nuclear Morality chart forward, and programme development is going on at this very moment. we are investing starting a podcast, addressing all the moral struggles we encounter while deciding whether or not “deterrent” is a strong enough reason to stockpile on deadly weapons which can wipe out hundreds of thousands of people at one touch of a button.
Our charity is a new member of ICAN, and I’m hoping very much to network and find out whether we can run a “war education” programme, because while peace is a concept, an idea or even an imagination, wars actually destroy life, environment, chances of development, and the humanity in our hearts. If we run peace education, we are preaching to the choir since only those who agree with eace will come, I am quite prepared to invite people of opposite views, and find out why people think having weapons of mass destruction, loss of human life, devastation of the environment, and a desecration of humanity is something we can live with. Maybe in calmly discussing the pros and cons, we can actually learn something ourselves, and be able to understand how best to address these feelings.
We are prepared to construct a programme to take into religious or civil organisations, entry level material for example how much we spend on armament, survivor stories, the science of warfare, and other easy to digest material, so that we are not leaping into politics or high-level treaties at the UN on the word “go”, but something that matters to everyone. Modelling on our environmental programme that has checklists people can use to make changes on an individual basis, extending to the family, introducing into communities, and at last impacting the society, we can do the same with helping people who think and say “peace” into action. By asking ourselves to make the differences that individuals are capable of taking would be a good starting point.
I do agree that no matter what material we prepare for educational efforts, it has to be interactive and informing. I am afraid I do not agree that it has to be fun, of course we do not want to be glum at all times, the next generation is facing war and that we must not lose the gravity of that eventuality. The medium can be catered to be modern, but the let’s not allow popular approach dumb down the seriousness of the undertaking.
There is an excellent resource which is called Nuclear Information Services. It is a website that gives information of where we stand in terms of nuclear armament. There are other organisations and sites that have done massive research and have material we can use. If anyone reading this blog is interested in taking that kind of information and construct an entry level educational tool we can work together on making a proposal and I will try to resource the necessary support to bring it into being.
There is already a Peace Educator’s Network https://www.peace-education.org.uk, I am wanting to go beyond the education and bring it into life. Suggestion are most welcome.
Lastly, RfPUK is setting up a PeaceBuilders Network, it will be an online who’s who in peace work. Entries will feature name of individuals or organisations, their social media, their contact and their areas of work. There has to be a way for us to find each other!
Thank you for this platform so we can get in touch.
regards, Cinde