Forthcoming Event Calendar
Annual Peace and Reconciliation Conference 2023
- Coming up in December 2023.
- Theme : Justice for Peace
- Call for Papers is announced
About the theme - Justice for Peace
Time and the world never seem to stand still. As humanity grows its ambitions to live, prosper, lead, dominate and stay ahead of one another, there is perhaps a consistent and continuing strand of humanity that advocates balance, moderation, renunciation and adoption of methods that bring the planet together. These two strands are in many ways opposed and have their own votaries. Without taking sides of one or the other, but coming in from a deeply conserving, nurturing and oneness perspective, the fulcrum of the world is the individual. It begins with him or her. Understanding, knowledge, behaviour and beliefs of the individual can have a direct impact and are causative for the society to change and improve or change and be adversaries.
How much does the individual understand justice and its relationship with peace? Where does peace stop being pervasive and get eroded? Is it in the word, action and the beliefs? The individual human is really the first mover. The sutradhar of the change and perception towards the concepts of justice, peace and the connected dynamics with society and their ways of living. It is therefore imperative to view justice and peace from these lenses. Individual, society, collective sustenance and well being, methods and practices for becoming a better version of ourselves and more are the pathways to work and harness peace that is equitable and stems from shared values.
Reinforcing this line of thinking was Her Holiness Swami Sri Gnanananda Sarasvathi where she locates the individual and the actions within a sphere of detachment and ego as two sides of the coin,
‘When you act, or rather before you act, think and ask yourself, am I doing this because I like to do it or because I want to do it or because it is the right thing to do. Or am I doing it because everybody wants to do it? Am I doing it as an offering to God or as an offering to myself?’ (from Her Upadesams)
Within this construct are visible many strands. The implications being that word which is unsuited, actions that are self directed are perhaps unjust and have an impact on peace.
Peace emanates from behaviour. That which adheres to the principles of dharma, empathy and the overarching feeling of oneness. Thinking before saying, acting or taking a stance is the first step forward in the oneness journey. Peace possibly has its origins there.
Shifting focus to violence which may sound like the opposite of peace is also a form of behaviour. A bhavam and in some cases the chosen way of living for some. Where does this violence begin? Possibly in the word, in the tatvam and in the pressures of living and that pervasive and fetishist feeling of me and mine. The lenses of oneness have given way to the piercing glares of difference and domination. In such a world how can knowledge help us? What are those strands that will help us reconcile, become aware and start rebuilding our penchant for peace and justice? How do we revive that kindred spirit starting with the transformation of the individual?
This is the larger import of the 8th Peace and Reconciliation Conference that will be held in December 2023.
The sub strands of the Conference will touch upon these areas:
- Conceptualising positive peace
- Modern consumer capitalism and current models of economic growth and social peace
- Considering sustainability and the right use of resources for peace preservation
- Respecting the rights of all sentient beings and deconstructing hierarchies of human value
- Truth telling, deep listening, justice, and healing
- Building positive peace for ethnic and racial underrepresented populations, and other communities marginalised by mainstream culture
- Rethinking/deconstructing “the enemy” and “welcoming the stranger”
- Embracing the roles and contributions of specific disciplines to the study and practice of positive peace and social justice
- Preserving and furthering the rights of women and women peace builders
- Promoting spirituality, in peace-filled contexts
- Creating and curating peace-filled narratives, storytelling, myths, folklore, poems, ballads
- Connecting peace building with non-traditional peace studies disciplines, including but not limited to food and nutrition, health, agriculture, education, business, music, engineering, architecture, fashion, environmental science, history, and library science
Speakers would be drawn from a mix of areas. Contemporary thinkers, academics, observers of human behaviour, policy makers and more.