All posts by CPNN Coordinator

About CPNN Coordinator

Dr David Adams is the coordinator of the Culture of Peace News Network. He retired in 2001 from UNESCO where he was the Director of the Unit for the International Year for the Culture of Peace, proclaimed for the Year 2000 by the United Nations General Assembly.

Can popular art help us in the quest for truth and justice?


This question applies to the following articles in CPNN:

Algeria: National Graffiti Festival-Sétif; Fethi Mjahed wins 1st Prize

Towards an African renaissance through culture and history

Facing severe repression, Russians are turning to antiwar graffiti

Colombia: ‘HipHop Week’ begins in Cali

Senegal’s First Female Graffiti Artist Is Leaving a Fearless Mark

Popular Art at Oklahoma City Memorial

La bande dessinée face aux messages idéologiques

Comic Strips that Combat Ideology

Cuarto Concurso de Animaciones por la Paz

Fourth Contest of Animations for Peace

Vania Masías será jurado del Concurso de Coreografías de Hip Hop en Peru

Vania Masias Will Judge the Choreography Competition of Hip Hop in Peru

Yemen’s youth draw peace messages in Sanaa streets

d-education

‘Culture of peace’, a possible future according to David Adams (Editorial preview)

EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

A editorial preview from Aristeguin Noticias

For centuries, it has been believed that violence is part of the underlyig nature of the human being. But many thinkers and activists are not convinced of that assumption.


video

(Review continued in right column)

( Click here for the original version in Spanish.)

Question for this article:

What are the most important books about the culture of peace?

(Review continued from left column)

In Culture of Peace: A Possible Utopia (Herder), David Adams presents a detailed study based on biology, history and civilizations to locate the origin and cultural causes of violence for more than 2000 years. Likewise, he proposes strategies and traces paths to achieve peace, not as an idea, but as a culture. With his scientific idealism, this neurobiologist of aggression and manager of peace pursues a premise: if war and violence are a human invention, then the human being can also invent and build peace.

Together we can create ourselves as free and responsible beings to act with our own reflections and never again to the dictates of anyone, according to the developer of the UNESCO Culture of Peace Program.

Below and with the permission of Herder editorial we offer part of his book to our readers. (Click here).

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, global

Mexico: Oaxaca’s Judicial Power promotes a culture of peace

… EDUCATION FOR PEACE …

An article reprinted from the Quadratin Oaxaca (translation by CPNN)

The Superior Court of Justice of Oaxaca has signed a collaboration agreement with the College of Scientific and Technological Studies of the State of Oaxaca (CECyTEO) to promote the culture of peace.

The President of the Court, Eduardo Pinacho Sánchez reported that “together, combining our efforts, resources, wills and the corresponding technical capacities, we can work with better results to achieve a culture of peace among the educational community.”

(Article continued in right column)

(click here for a version in Spanish).

Question for this article:

Mediation as a tool for nonviolence and culture of peace

(Article continued from left column)

He pointed out that an approach to peace will be offered through the Alternative Justice Center; the approach includes school mediation and restorative justice as conflict resolution mechanisms that empower students to collaborate and contribute to harmonious educational and social spaces.

Pinacho Sánchez stressed that this agreement signifies the recognition and awareness that justice does not depend solely on the Judiciary. “The solution of the conflicts that arise within society does not only correspond to the judges who at a given moment have to pass a sentence. The responsibility rests with all people without exception, to all sectors of society and institutions; it is a general responsibility that we must assume. ”

Gathered in the facilities of the Council of the Judiciary, under the sanitary measures decreed by the federal and state authorities, the President of the Court stressed that the culture of peace must be fostered from the family and the areas in which the first contacts and relationships of a social nature take place, such in the schools where children and young people can acquire the ability and capacity to resolve our own conflicts.

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, Latin America

Adolescents in Cuba delve into the culture of peace

TOLERANCE AND SOLIDARITY .

An article from the Inter Press Service of Cuba (translation by CPNN)

Although for adolescents the pandemic has closed schools, canceled projects and distanced them from their friends, a Cuban initiative is encourageing the creation of new ways to have fun together.

The initiative uses the potential of culture to identify and protect adolescents from acts of discrimination, abuse or violence, both in the domestic sphere and in digital spaces, according to a summary of the project.


Foto from UNICEF Cuba

It is also an opportunity for young participants to develop creative skills and enjoy free time in new ways.

This is the first edition of the virtual workshop “Living adolescence in times of covid-19: promoting good practices from culture as a protective environment”, held from June 15 to 26, with 30 adolescents living in the Cuban capital.

The initiative is led by the Caribbean island office of the United Nations Children’s Program (UNICEF), as part of the new Cooperation Program (2020-2024), between UNICEF and the Government of Cuba.

A team of specialists from the a + adolescent spaces Center , the University of Havana and the Enrique José Varona University of Pedagogical Sciences also participated .

It is aligned with the principle that “all children should be protected from violence and exploitation”, focused on preventing violence and strengthening the protective environments of adolescence with a focus on rights and equity.

According to the organizers, this experience constitutes a pioneering and innovative way of learning in the country and paves the way for reaching adolescents through the responsible use of technologies.

Complex stage

Adolescence is a very complex stage of life, due to the multiple physical, psychological and emotional changes that are experienced, which generate fears, anxieties, doubts and uncertainties.

(Article continued in right column)

(Click here for the original version in Spanish)

Question for discussion

How can we work together to overcome this medical and economic crisis?

As a consequence of the pandemic and the necessary physical and social distancing, this age group experiences more than others feelings such as loneliness and sadness, as they cannot share activities related to study, recreation and leisure with their peers, according to the specialists.

This can be especially heartbreaking for those who live in violent family environments or are more frequently exposed to the risks of digital scenarios, they warn.

“During this time I have seen my 13-year-old son, Adrián, at times anxious, irritable, not being able to go out to play with his friends and stay whole weeks at home,” said Yuriana Sáez, a resident of the city of Moa, in the eastern province of Holguín.

For her part, Tailenis Céspedes, a resident of Old Havana, stated that her 15-year-old daughter Adianet “has been fortunate to live with one of her cousins, which is why she is not so bored: otherwise, I imagine she would have been very depressed without someone her age to share with.

The experience

According to specialists added to the initiative, isolation reduces the chances of receiving professional advice and services from professionals.

For this reason, the workshop was implemented through the WhatsApp social network, an easy-to-use tool that is very popular with adolescents.

This allowed psychologists, sociologists, social communicators and artists to reach a group and encourage them to participate in processes that contribute to the promotion of their rights and the prevention of violence under the concept of culture as a protective environment.

At the same time, it provided them with tools to resolve doubts, socialize experiences and opinions, as well as obtain resources for better performance and self-protection in situations of discrimination, abuse or violence.

Due to limitations in connectivity, so far only 30 adolescents from the capital have participated in the experiment, but the objective is to benefit at least a hundred from different provinces of the country.

The aim is to facilitate the exchange with the teaching team, the study of support materials, the analysis of bibliographic and audiovisual materials and participation in debates.

Some of the participants acknowledge that they have increased their knowledge and tools to prevent domestic violence and violence on digital platforms.

The workshop has encouraged the use of various artistic expressions such as poetry, drawing, photography, song, and radio messages, among others.

Through these manifestations, the participants have reflected their views on the importance of culture to understand and transform attitudes, traditions, customs, behaviors and habits that hinder and negatively impact the normal development of childhood and adolescence.

It also increased their motivation to be part of a social movement that raises their voice, with the aim of ending all types of violence.

Latin America, TOLERANCE & SOLIDARITY, United Nations,

United Nations: ‘Women Rise for All’ to shape leadership in pandemic response and recovery

. WOMEN’S EQUALITY . .

An article from UN News

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has generated an unprecedented global health, humanitarian and development crisis, it has also revealed the power of women’s leadership, according to the UN Deputy Secretary-General.



Graça Machel in video from UN Web TV

“Over the past months, people around the world have come to see what many of us already knew: women’s leadership makes a profound difference”, Amina Mohammed said on Tuesday.

In this devastating #COVID19 crisis we have an opportunity to hit the reset button, to deliver on the Decade of Action. This will only be possible when we recognize the value of women front and centre, together leading the way and rising for all.

“The evidence has shown — in country after country — how governments led by women are more effective in flattening the curve and positioning for economic recovery.”

Ms. Mohammed was addressing Women Rise for All, a virtual gathering of influential women from across different regions, sectors and generations, to examine how their leadership is shaping pandemic response and recovery that benefits all people.

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Question related to this article:
 
How can we work together to overcome this medical and economic crisis?

Do women have a special role to play in the peace movement?

(continued from left column).

“We want to shape the way we define leadership. And ensure that we emerge from this pandemic with women leading, in equal numbers, and equal partnership”, she explained.

‘Silver lining’ in the crisis

Women’s proven leadership has emerged as a “silver lining” in the pandemic, one of the world’s leading advocates for the rights of women and children told the gathering.

Graça Machel believes it was no accident that countries with women Heads of State—such as New Zealand, Germany, Finland and Taiwan—have been comparatively successful in beating back the deadly new coronavirus.

“This crisis has brought to light an undeniable truth: that the leadership of women is essential for us to effectively recreate the world…that is more human-centred, that is more equal; a world in which such social justice is the goal”, she said in her keynote address.

For former Mozambican minister Ms. Machel, the pandemic must also lead to a re-examining of dominant value systems as the world cannot return to how it was prior to the crisis.

“We must live on a planet where materialism, greed, inequalities no longer divide the human family”, she stated.

Solidarity for all

Women Rise for All was launched on social media in April, to support the UN Secretary-General’s call for solidarity and urgent action during the pandemic.

Even in the midst of this “devastating crisis”, there is an opportunity to build a better world that works for all, according to Ms. Mohammed.
“That will only be possible when we recognize the value of women front and centre, together leading the way and rising for all”, she said.

(Thank you to Phyllis Kotite, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

global, United Nations, WOMEN'S EQUALITY,

Third edition of the Paris Peace Forum

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

Press release from the Paris Peace Forum

The third edition of the Paris Peace Forum, which is set to take place 11-13 November 2020, will be the first event on the international calendar focused on constructing a better world post-pandemic. During the Paris Peace Forum, the Finance in Common Summit on 12 November will highlight the role of Public Development Banks in reconciling the necessary short-term responses to the crisis with sustainable recovery measures that will have a long-term impact on the planet and societies.


Bouncing back to a better planet

Amid suffering, anxiety and uncertainty, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the urgency to better organize the planet through innovative new forms of collective action.

Chiefly devoted to the multi-actor response to the COVID-19 pandemic and serving as a platform to push forward solutions both to improve our immediate response and to be better prepared in the future, the 2020 Paris Peace Forum is based on the conviction that we can collectively overcome the enormous challenges before us – and learn from this crisis to rebuild a more sustainable world. The main issues covered throughout the Forum will focus on solutions to recover from the pandemic: to improve global governance of health; to fix and make capitalism greener; and to get data and social media to help, not hurt.

In 2020, the Forum will thus emphasize projects and initiatives from around the world seeking to respond to the COVID-19 crisis, improve our collective resilience and build a more robust and sustainable world. All key actors of global governance, from Public Development Banks, states, international organizations, NGOs, companies, foundations, philanthropic organizations, religious groups, trade unions, think tanks, universities, and more are invited to submit innovative solutions to the 2020 Call for Projects of the Paris Peace Forum, currently open through 12 May at 6pm (Paris time).

(continued in right column)

Click here for the version in French)

Question(s) related to this article:

Global meetings, conferences, assemblies, What is the best way for delegates to interact afterwards?

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As the Paris Peace Forum convenes actors of change from around the world to discuss global governance and multilateralism, the Finance in Common Summit will gather the whole development bank community, comprising more than 400 Public Development Banks (PDBs). PDBs are public institutions controlled or supported by governments, with a mission to perform public mandates, so that certain social and economic objectives drive their operations. The Summit will examine their crucial role, both during the crisis and in the long-term, in building a more resilient and sustainable world going forward. The first gathering of its kind, the Finance in Common Summit is a unique opportunity to build a new coalition of Public Development Banks, to foster cooperation among them, and to reconcile the entire finance community in support of common action for climate and Sustainable Development Goals.

The ambition of the Summit is to release a collective statement from all Public Development Banks declaring their willingness to align with sustainable finance principles and incorporate the goals of the Paris Agreement, the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the 2030 Agenda into their business strategy, core standards and impact analysis.

Leading up to the Summit, a research conference will be held on 10 November, during which a consortium of prominent academic institutions will present papers and share insights about how PDBs can produce better finance over the long term.

“The current crisis shows how dependent national leaders are – even those rejecting multilateralism – on collective action for essential tasks like finding and distributing a vaccine, supporting fragile countries, and restoring a Coronavirus-free world. Never has the multi-actor approach that underpinned the creation of the Paris Peace Forum been so necessary.”

– Justin Vaïsse, Director General of the Paris Peace Forum

“IDFC members have collectively mobilized their financial capacity and expertise to provide an immediate response to the short-term health challenges as well as to prepare for a postCOVID-19 world that will require a long-awaited paradigm shift.”

– Rémy Rioux, IDFC Chairperson

“We need to think multilateralism in networks, closer to the people; we need to work hand in hand with regional organizations but also financial institutions, development banks and specialized agencies.”

– António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General

As the global public health situation is at this stage impossible to predict come midNovember 2020, the event is currently planned to take a hybrid format: partly inperson, partly online.

(Thank you to Phyllis Kotite, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

Europe, FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

The growing use of weaponised drones risks destabilising global peace and security

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from UN News

The growing use of weaponised drones risks destabilising global peace and security and creating a “drone power club” among nations, that face no effective accountability for deploying them as part of their “war on terror”, a senior UN-appointed independent rights expert said on Thursday.

At the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said that more than 100 countries have military drones and more than a third are thought to possess the largest and deadliest autonomous weapons.

‘No red lines’ in drone warfare?

States who used them on the grounds of self-defence, “defined in a very elastic fashion” against purported terrorists, risked creating a situation where “there will be no red lines really”, she told journalists later.

“As more Government and non-State actors acquire armed drones and use them for targeted killing, there is a clear danger that war will come to be seen as normal rather than the opposite of peace,” Ms. Callamard said. “War is at risk of being normalized as a necessary companion to peace, and not its opposite.”

Appealing for greater regulation of the weapons, and lending her support to calls for a UN-led forum to discuss the deployment of drones specifically, the Special Rapporteur insisted that their growing use increased the danger of a “global conflagration”.

(Article continued in right column)

Question for this article:

Drones (unmanned bombers), Should they be outlawed?

(Article continued from left column)

‘Influential States’ rewriting the rules

Such a move was necessary because “a small number of rather influential States” had sought to reinterpret the law of self-defence under Article  51 of the UN Charter, she explained.

She urged UN Security Council to meet in formal session to review and debate all such self-defence claim, before recommending that the High Commissioner for Human Rights should produce an annual report on drone strikes casualties for the Human Rights Council.

There was now the “very real prospect that States may opt to ‘strategically’ eliminate high-ranking military officials outside the context of a ‘known’ war”, she explained, and that they might seek to justify the killing “on the grounds of necessity – not imminence” as the target was classified as a “terrorist who posed a potential, undefined, future threat”.

Iranian general’s chilling death

In particular, she cited the killing by drone strike in Iraq of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani on 3 January for which the United States claimed responsibility and which she insisted was a violation of the UN Charter.

“Targeted killings until very recently to drones had been limited to non-state actors,” she told journalists. Until, for the first time in January 2020, a State armed drone targeted a high-level official of a foreign State and did so on the territory of a third State.”

Drone strikes were the preferred option for “decision makers and military alike for their relative efficiency, effectiveness, adaptability, acceptability, deniability, and political gain”, the rights expert maintained.

But she noted that their benefits were as “illusory” as the “myth of a surgical strike”. 

Because of the current absence of effective oversight, it was “practically impossible to know whether a person(s) killed in a drone strike was, in fact, a lawful target”, Ms. Callamard said, adding that harm to civilian populations, including deaths, injuries and trauma, was likely largely under-reported.   

(Thank you to Phyllis Kotite, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, global, Uncategorized, United Nations,

Dutch pension fund divests from two Israeli banks over settlements’ finances

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from WAFA, Palestinian News and Info Agency

The ABP, the largest pension fund in the Netherlands, has decided to divest from Israeli banks, Hapoalim and Leumi, for their finance of construction projects in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, according to a statement attributed to the ABP’s spokesperson.

The spokesperson reportedly pointed out that the location where companies operate plays a role in investment appraisals and criteria, which include revenue, costs, risks, and sustainability.

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Question related to this article:

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

Divestment: is it an effective tool to promote sustainable development?

(continued from left column)

“We expect companies operating in areas with high risk of human rights violations to have a human rights policy,” said the spokesperson.

In January 2014, PGGM, the country’s second largest pension administrator, announced the divestment from five Israeli banks, citing their activities in the illegal Israeli settlements built in the West Bank.

The Netherlands and the European Union consider Israeli settlements as illegal.
Last April, the European Union issued a warning against the Israeli government’s intention to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, saying that such a move “would constitute a serious violation of international law.”

The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said the 27-member bloc does not recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Palestinian territory and that it will “continue to closely monitor the situation and its broader implications, and will act accordingly.”

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, Mideast

Russia: Ambassadors of Specially Protected Natural Territories

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

Excerpts from the website of Vuz Ecofest (translated from the Russian by CPNN)

Here are the results from the Competiton for young leaders who are ready to contribute to the development of conservation in the Russian Federation.

The organizers of the Competition in 2020-2021 are the Autonomous Non-profit Organization “Territory of Sustainable Development” within the framework of the “VuzEcoFest-2020” and the ANO “Wildcamp National Park Development Center (Wild Camp)”. It receives information support from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation and the Autonomous Non-profit Organization “Good Surfing – Travels with Meaning”.

The winners of the Competition are provided with an opportunity to participate in the design and educational program for one year on the development topics of protected areas of the Russian Federation, as well as the opportunity to communicate with a curator, mentor and expert.

The main objectives of the Competition are :

1. Attracting the attention and interest of young people to study and preserve the natural and cultural heritage of the Russian Federation, popularizing the activities of protected areas.

2. The involvement of young people in the development of ecological tourism in the Russian Federation.

3. Identification of young leaders who are ready to contribute to the formation of geo-brands of protected areas.

4. Teaching young people the knowledge and skills to work in institutions that manage protected areas, the formation and training of personnel reserve for them.

5. Promoting the development of nature conservation, environmental education of citizens, the formation of support for the system of protected areas from the general public.

From July 7, 2020 to June 1, 2021, the winners go through the educational and design program, which consists of the following stages:

July – August 2020 – introductory lectures, acquaintance with ambassadors, mentors, curators, experts; study of documents, functions of protected areas, analysis of recognition of protected areas geobrand, drawing up a portrait of protected areas;

September-October 2020 – studying the theory of wildlife management in Russia and abroad, leadership and team training; development, together with the mentor and leader of the work plan for the formation / development of the brand of protected areas;

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Question for this article:

What is the relation between the environment and peace

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October 2020 – June 2021 – project work on community formation, communication strategies and marketing of protected areas with regular practical tasks; promotion of the protected areas brand and implementation of the developed plan.

During July 2021, the “Best Protected Area Ambassador 2020-2021” will be determined based on the results of practical tasks, taking into account the mentor’s recall and presentation of the work done.

The winners and their protected areas.

Elizaveta Ramilevna Tairova
State Natural Reserve Utrish

Ekaterina Yuryevna Semenova
Polistovsky State Nature Reserve

Anna Alexandrovna Baeva
Caucasian State Natural Biosphere Reserve named after H.G.Shaposhnikov

Arina Veniaminovna Zaporozhtseva
Black Lands State Reserve

Margarita Vasilievna Reznichenko
Natural and historical park “Moskvoretsky” (Moscow)

Marina Borisovna Popova
Lapland State Nature Biosphere Reserve

Mariam Amayakovna Andreasyan
National Park “Bashkiria”

Sergey Igorevich Guryanov
National Park “Khvalynsky”

Elena Dmitrievna Syromyatnikova
Darwin State Nature Biosphere Reserve

Andrey Vasilievich Izmailov
Natural and Historical Park Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo (Moscow)

Anna Valerevna Begeba
Kenozersky National Park

Anastasia Igorevna Dubrovskaya
Natural and historical park “Kuzminki-Lublino” (Moscow)

Daniil Valentinovich Luchkin
Taganay National Park

Ekaterina Vadimovna Gushchina
Alanya National Park

Victoria Gennadyevna Koltinova
Curonian Spit National Park

(Thank you to Anastasia Okorochkova, for sending this to CPNN.)

Europe, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The Elders urge European leaders to stand firm on Israeli annexation threats

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

A press release from The Elders

The Elders have called on European leaders to maintain their resolve against Israel’s plans to annex swathes of the West Bank, and to insist that any such moves would have negative political and economic consequences for bilateral relations.

The absence of any direct military and legal moves towards annexation on 1 July – the deadline unilaterally declared by Israel’s Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu – should not be taken as grounds for complacency. Annexation of any part of the West Bank, including illegal settlement blocs, would constitute a flagrant breach of international law.

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Question related to this article:

Presenting the Palestinian side of the Middle East, Is it important for a culture of peace?

(continued from left column)

In letters to French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell, The Elders underscored the damage annexation would cause not only to any hopes of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but also to global respect for the rule of law.

Annexation “is fundamentally contrary to the long term interests of both the Israeli and the Palestinian peoples. [It] will not dampen future Palestinian demands for rights and self-determination, but destroying hopes in a two-state compromise will increase the risks of future violence in one of the most combustible areas in the world”, the Elders warned in their appeal to Europe’s leaders.

They called on the EU leaders to consider suspending the bloc’s Association Agreement with Israel if annexation does go ahead in any form, and recalled the UK’s historical and abiding responsibility to the region as the colonial Mandate holder in pre-1948 Palestine.

The Elders also reiterated their support for human rights defenders and civil society activists in Israel and Palestine, whose voices need to be protected and amplified at this challenging time.

[Editors’s note: The Elders is an international non-governmental organisation of public figures noted as elder statesmen, peace activists, and human rights advocates, who were brought together by Nelson Mandela in 2007.  They have included Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Graça Machel, Mary Robinson, Ban Ki-Moon, Juan Manuel Santos and Kofi Annan, among others.]

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, global