Contributed articles presented at the Colombo Conference on "Building Spirituality and Culture of Peace Beyond Globalization" held on Aug. 13-16, 2003; with reference to Asia and Africa.

The concept of the culture of peace has been developed under the UNESCO auspices by prominent academicians, scientists and artists. The challenge is to replace the culture of conflict, which is oriented towards violence and conflict resolution by force, by the culture of peace. Its underlying basics are non-acceptance of violence, devotion to democratic principles, promotion of freedom, justice, and solidarity ant tolerance, mutual respect for others’ cultures, ideologies, beliefs and other humanistic values. As far (...) as sport is concerned from this point of view, there are numerous issues, such as: Whether sport is one of the educatingelements of the culture of peace, that is one of those elements of society which provide for development and establishment of such culture To what extent and how effectively sport has actually served this purpose Whether there is a conflict between competition which is inherent in sport and the role of sport in development of the culture of peace Whether competition which can be especially fierce on the international level can impact negatively the objectives which the culture of peace is called to attain etc. Unfortunately the research into the culture of peace has very little mention of sport as one of the phenomena affecting this culture. The bibliography on the culture of peace published in 1999 does not have any reference to sport in this respect. During the last few years the author with a group of his colleagues have started working on analyzing sport as a factor of establishment and development of the culture of peace. The principal results of this analysis are as follows. (shrink)

Since UNESCO launched its Culture of Peace Programme, it has helped mobilize people from all walks of life and from all continents to support the transformation from a culture of war and violence to a culture of pace. This is a report of the Programme's actions.

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Buddhist-Christian Studies 21.1 (2001) 155-157 [Access article in PDF] Book Review Buddhist Peacework: Creating Cultures of Peace Buddhist Peacework: Creating Cultures of Peace. Edited by David W. Chappell. Somerville, Massachusetts: Wisdom Publications, 1999. 253 pp. This earnest book demonstrates the continuing vitality of Buddhism in many parts of the world. The contributing authors are the leading figures of contemporary engaged Buddhism, and they write from firsthand experience. (...) The Dalai Lama outlines methods for promoting harmony among different religious traditions. Thich Nhat Hanh shows how the principle of nonviolence was tested in the rescue ofVietnamese boat people during the 1970s. A.T. Ariyaratne presents the work of the influential Sarvodaya movement in Sri Lanka. Shih Cheng-yen, sometimes called "the Mother Theresa of Asia," describes the relief work ofTzu Chi, the largest charitable organization in Taiwan. Dhammachari Lokamitra documents the impact of an adopted Buddhism among former "untouchables" in India. Robert Aitken surveys engaged Buddhist activity in North America, including hospice work, prison reform, and sustainable farming. Many of the writers have personally suffered the deprivations of war and oppression; in some cases they continue their work amid threats of violence or arrest.An aim ofBuddhist Peacework is to offer a Buddhist response to a declaration that emerged from a 1994 meeting of world religious leaders organized by UNESCO. This document, "Declaration of the Role of Religion in the Promotion of a Culture of Peace," is included as an appendix. Two of the book's contributors, the Dalai Lama and the senior Cambodian monk Maha Ghosananda, participated in the UNESCO meeting. Indeed, some of the declaration's language has an engaged Buddhist ring: "We must be at peace with ourselves; we strive to achieve inner peace through personal reflection and spiritual growth, and to cultivate a spirituality which manifests itself in action."One of Buddhism's distinctive teachings on the subject of peace is the practice of "internal disarmament," the term used by the Dalai Lama in his essay. Unless individuals are able to tame the forces of greed, anger, and delusion in their own minds, the prospects for peace between communities and between nations are slim. For an engaged Buddhist, there must be alignment between "inner" and "outer" disarmament. One cannot work for peace--or any other worthy social goal--in an agitated, antagonistic way. In this collection, peacework is something one does as spiritual practice.Shakyamuni Buddha approached the existential problem of suffering by analyzing the causes of suffering. In a similar spirit, engaged Buddhists have embarked on a Buddhistic analysis of the causes of war and peace. Contributor José Ignacio Cabezón writes: "Peace cannot arise simply by wishing it into existence, but only by the cultivation of its causes.Viewing peace in this way has the salutary effect of shifting the emphasis of peacework from result to causes." Somewhere in that mix of causes we [End Page 155] eventually encounter ourselves. If the world is truly interdependent, we share responsibility for violence and atrocities occurring "elsewhere."Thich Nhat Hanh, in his essay, declares: "If we look deeply, we will observe that the roots of war are in the unmindful ways we have been living. We have not sown enough seeds of peace and understanding in ourselves and others, therefore we are co-responsible: 'Because I have been like this, they are like that.'" The notion of sowing "seeds of peace" is reinforced in the image on the book's cover: two hands tenderly plant a seedling in receptive soil.But internal disarmament is not enough. As editor David Chappell asserts, "Today there is a new urgency for that [inner] peacework to be manifest socially, ecologically, and materially."Witness the plight of several Buddhist (and formerly Buddhist) nations in Asia. "Recently, Buddhist countries have become notorious arenas of genocide and brutality," writes Karma Lekshe Tsomo. Citing Burma, Cambodia, China, Sri Lanka, and Tibet, Tsomo asks, "What went wrong?" Peacework also has new meanings in an age of ecocrisis. For Stephanie Kaza, "a first step in keeping peace with nature calls for contact with ecological suffering." Kaza highlights four ways to... (shrink)

The "culture of war" has been formed firmly and minutely enough by humanity and is used with greater effectiveness than the "culture of peace" in modern world. Scepticism is one of the philosophical traditions where conceptual idea was worked out and later became a theoretical base of culture of peace. Seeing the meaning of scepticism in formation of culture of peace as an ideological paradigm in proper perspective one should mark those intentions which (...) were offered and taken by philosophical society. The following principle can be referred to such philosophical intentions as principle of “isosthenea”, principle of “epoche”, tradition of “ataraxia”, principle of religious tolerance. The admission of principle of isosthenia means that the most preferable (that is valid, logical) way of settling the argument or conflict is a peaceful, compromise way because nobody can rely on greater truth of one's statement in comparison with the statement of an opponent. Principle of abstention from judgment (epoche) means that nobody can establish some values as absolute ones, nobody can possess the role of a judge while appraising the situation, and nobody can interfere the case which doesn't concern him. The result of abstention from judgment is the reaching of “ataraxia”. Scepticism of XVI - XVII centuries played a great role in methodological formation of culture of peace by means of manifestation and detailedbasing of principle of religious tolerance. (shrink)

First published in 2001. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

To build cultures of peace, one must often lay aside the "expert" label and become a student in the world who is willing to learn from other cultures in pursuit of peace. To set up an intercultural dialogue on this topic, the Committee for the Psychological Study of Peace, in conjunction with the University for Peace and the Institute for Psychological Research of the University of Costa Rica, sponsored the 6th International Symposium on the Contribution of (...) Psychology to Peace. This special issue extends the dialogue which began at the Symposium. Aiming to help define the role and contributions of psychologists in building cultures of peace, the articles in this issue address: *topics relating to human rights; *how psychologists can contribute to democratization; *how psychology has much to say on the causes and dynamics of intolerance and the processes of building tolerance in the context of intergroup relations; *how psychology can contribute to understanding and fostering nonviolence; *how cultures of peace will not be possible without a concerted effort to bring about global environmental security and that our failure to restore environmental health is fundamentally a psychological problem; and *psychologically informed policies for the promotion of cultures of peace, including the importance of gender equity. (shrink)

Have humans evolved as violent and warlike? Studies of peaceful societies, historical trends of warfare and violence, and cooperation say otherwise. Evolution is not destiny; human choices are important interventions in the process. A science of intentional change, using alternative learning techniques that support human interactions based on nonviolence and peaceful coexistence, might help to evolve a culture of peace.

This is the first volume in the trilogy "Many Peaces" on transrational peace and elicitive conflict transformation. It proposes an innovative analysis of peace interpretations in global history and contemporary cultures of peace, the so-called five families of energetic, moral, modern, post-modern, and transrational.

This paper explores the effects of performativity on the culture of a Scottish secondary school, Lochview High School. This is set against a backdrop of the Scottish education policy context which in recent years has been heavily focused on reducing the poverty-related attainment gap, namely through the Scottish Attainment Challenge (SAC). The analysis of the empirical data is supported by a cultural and ecological framework which emphasises the interwoven and complex nature of the school system. In particular, the paper (...) provides a critique of accountability and performative agendas which often run counter to other national agendas, such as the SAC. Through observations, staff interviews (teachers and senior management), and student interviews, task-based activities and group discussions, the data suggests performative and accountability measures are inextricably woven through the education system within which Lochview is situated. Despite this, Lochview provides a case study of a school which successfully navigates competing agendas. However, it is not without its struggles, but the school community often finds rewards and benefits in the positive school culture which develops as a result of responding to the local community’s needs. (shrink)

One of the most intriguing and underappreciated aspects of Alfred North Whitehead’s philosophy is his treatment of peace as a civilizational aim of culture. The problem of peace is the subject in the final chapter of Whitehead’s Adventures of Ideas. It is considered along with the other four qualities of civilized societies, “Adventure, Art, Beauty, and Truth.” Although his analysis is driven by examples from Western and Christian history, respectively, the treatment of peace developed is not (...) limited to this or any specific experiential epoch. Peace is a transcultural value, the “harmony of harmonies,” which lies at the heart or in the “nature of things.” Whitehead designates the permanence-flux contrast of peace in human life as a tension between the “dream of youth” and “harvest of tragedy.” Our lives give way to the dance of the possible and actual that both unites and divides us. This article explains how Whitehead attempts to argue for peace by way of “balanced intensity” in response to the triumphs and tribulations of life. Section one deals with the ways in which youth and eros symbolize possibility and orient us toward the possible. Tragedy, or the determination of the individual in its own subjective realization and the consequent nature it produces through the “unity of adventure,” is the focus of the second section. In section three, the erotic-tragic contrast is presented in relation to peace as an “intuition of permanence.” In conclusion, Whitehead’s humanism will be offered as a viable alternative against the modern belief of progress or the quest for worldly success, in which prosperity becomes antithetical to the achievement of peace given its propensity to evade or outrun tragedy. (shrink)

In 2017, more than one billion females needed protection from sexual violence by a private accomplice, while an expected 1.5 billion were without lawful assurance against sexual harassment at work. While there is tremendously justified consideration on finishing violence, the regions of family equity and corrective equity, among others, have been moderately ignored. Around the planet, oppressive normal practices, and laws, compounded by numerous layers of inconvenience – because of neediness, nationality, inability, topography, and transient status – stay amazing obstructions (...) to rise to rights and openings for countless ladies. Today, the world faces the critical assignment of quickening progress. The security of females and their financial, political and social status in Pakistan are obstructed by lethargic state establishments, unfair enactment, and rigid social inclinations; their occupations and lives are also destabilized by savage radicalism. Despite the fact that, Admittance to value for everything is a fundamental litmus preliminary of quiet, just, and far-reaching social orders and a sine qua non extensive correspondence, essential freedoms, and reasonable unforeseen development. Across for the globe, Females' requests for responsibility for infringement and misuses have acquired more prominent consideration than at any other time. This is a turning point for gender equality, with missions and developments overall like MeToo, NiUnaMenos and SheDecides, with ladies' walks, neighborhood and public level unsettling, and numerous legislatures and partnerships underlining their obligation to change. These developments have uncovered the persevering divergence between the guarantee of equity and the real factors on the ground, at home, in networks and in the working environment. Females keep on confronting legitimate separation, inconsistent lawful securities, and lopsided execution of existing protections. (shrink)

Summary. Religious differences may rise and actually historically rose tensions and even wars. In the history, Christians also caused wars and were a threat to social integration and peace, despite the fact that Christianity is a religion of peace. God in Christians’ vision is a God of peace, and the birth of Son of God was to give peace «among men in whom he is well pleased». Although Christians themselves caused wars, died in them, were murdered (...) and had to fight, the social doctrine of Christianity is focused on peace. Also the social thought of the Roman Catholic Church strives to build peace. Over the years, the social teaching of the Roman Catholic Church was formed, which sees the conditions and foundations for peace. These are: the dignity of the human person, the natural law, human rights, common good, truth, freedom, love and social justice. The development of the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching on peace was contributed by popes of XX century: Pius XI, Pius XII, with high impact – John XXIII, Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. After Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation, the most important role of the preceptor in the Church of Rome fulfills Francis – the pope from Argentina. Although his pontificate is not long, and teaching is not complete, but you can tell that he continues to build the social doctrine of the Roman Church in matters of peace through the development of so-called «culture of encounter». Based on selected speeches and letters of two years’ pontificate of Francis, the first figure of «culture of encounter» can be lined out as a way of preventing and resolving tensions in the contemporary world. Fundamentals of the concept of dialogue Francis created in the days of being a Jesuit priest and professor at Jesuit universities. He based it on the concept of Romano Guardini’s dialogue. Foundations of the look at the dialogue – in terms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio are strictly theological: God enters into dialogue with man, what enables man to «leaving himself» and enter into dialogue with others. Bergoglio dealt with various aspects of the dialogue: the Church and the world, culture and faith, dialogue between religions and cultures, dialogue inter-social and inter-national, dialogue rising solidarity and co-creating the common good. According to him the dialogue is a continuous task, not a single event; is overcoming widespread «culture of effacement» and «culture of fight» towards a «culture of encounter»; it releases from autism, isolation, gives strength and meaning of life, renews the ability to listen, lets looking at community in the perspective of the whole and not just selected units. As Bishop of Rome Jorge Mario Bergoglio continues and develops his idea of «a culture of dialogue and encounter». In promoting dialogue, he sees his own mission and permanent commitment imposed on him. He promotes the atmosphere – a kind of «music» – of dialogue, by basing it on emotions, respect, intuition, lack of threat and on trust. The dialogue in this sense sees a partner in each person, values the exchange always positively, and as a result it leads to making life ethical, bringing back respect for life and rights of every human being, granting the world a more human face. «Culture of encounter» has the power of social integration: it removes marginalization, the man is the goal not the means of actions, it does not allow a man to be reduced to a mere object, tools for profit or authority, but includes him into a community that is created by people and for their benefit. Society integrated in this way, constantly following «culture of encounter» rule, renews itself all the time and continually builds peace. All people are called to such building: believers and those who do not believe, all of good will. Also, the heads of state have in this effort of breaking the spiral of violence and a «culture of conflict» – both in economic and political dimension – big task and responsibility. Pope Francis reminded about this in a special letter to president of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on September 14, 2014 year. In the letter he wrote: «it is clear that, for the world’s peoples, armed conflicts are always a deliberate negation of international harmony, and create profound divisions and deep wounds which require many years to heal. Wars are a concrete refusal to pursue the great economic and social goals that the international community has set itself, as seen, for example, in the Millennium Development Goals. Unfortunately, the many armed conflicts which continue to afflict the world today present us daily with dramatic images of misery, hunger, illness and death. Without peace, there can be no form of economic development. Violence never begets peace, the necessary condition for development». On thebasis of the current teaching of PopeFrancisthe following conclusion can be drawn, thatthe key topeace in the worldin many dimensions- evenbetweenreligions–isadialoguedeveloped under «cultureof encounter». (shrink)

There are two contrasting cultures in every religious tradition, the holy war and peaceable garden cultures. Examples are given for Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Conflict is basic to human existence, stemming from the uniqueness of human individuals and their groups. Churches, instead of helping their societies develop the middle‐ground skills of negotiation and mediation, have insisted on a choice between two extreme behaviors: unitive love or destruction of the enemy. In international affairs this has led to the identification of the (...) church with the state in wartime and kept it from claiming the important middle ground of peacemaking. Institutionalized religion can pick up its missed opportunities. (shrink)

Summary. Religious differences may rise and actually historically rose tensions and even wars. In the history, Christians also caused wars and were a threat to social integration and peace, despite the fact that Christianity is a religion of peace. God in Christians’ vision is a God of peace, and the birth of Son of God was to give peace «among men in whom he is well pleased». Although Christians themselves caused wars, died in them, were murdered (...) and had to fight, the social doctrine of Christianity is focused on peace. Also the social thought of the Roman Catholic Church strives to build peace. Over the years, the social teaching of the Roman Catholic Church was formed, which sees the conditions and foundations for peace. These are: the dignity of the human person, the natural law, human rights, common good, truth, freedom, love and social justice. The development of the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching on peace was contributed by popes of XX century: Pius XI, Pius XII, with high impact – John XXIII, Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. After Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation, the most important role of the preceptor in the Church of Rome fulfills Francis – the pope from Argentina. Although his pontificate is not long, and teaching is not complete, but you can tell that he continues to build the social doctrine of the Roman Church in matters of peace through the development of so-called «culture of encounter». Based on selected speeches and letters of two years’ pontificate of Francis, the first figure of «culture of encounter» can be lined out as a way of preventing and resolving tensions in the contemporary world. Fundamentals of the concept of dialogue Francis created in the days of being a Jesuit priest and professor at Jesuit universities. He based it on the concept of Romano Guardini’s dialogue. Foundations of the look at the dialogue – in terms of Jorge Mario Bergoglio are strictly theological: God enters into dialogue with man, what enables man to «leaving himself» and enter into dialogue with others. Bergoglio dealt with various aspects of the dialogue: the Church and the world, culture and faith, dialogue between religions and cultures, dialogue inter-social and inter-national, dialogue rising solidarity and co-creating the common good. According to him the dialogue is a continuous task, not a single event; is overcoming widespread «culture of effacement» and «culture of fight» towards a «culture of encounter»; it releases from autism, isolation, gives strength and meaning of life, renews the ability to listen, lets looking at community in the perspective of the whole and not just selected units. As Bishop of Rome Jorge Mario Bergoglio continues and develops his idea of «a culture of dialogue and encounter». In promoting dialogue, he sees his own mission and permanent commitment imposed on him. He promotes the atmosphere – a kind of «music» – of dialogue, by basing it on emotions, respect, intuition, lack of threat and on trust. The dialogue in this sense sees a partner in each person, values the exchange always positively, and as a result it leads to making life ethical, bringing back respect for life and rights of every human being, granting the world a more human face. «Culture of encounter» has the power of social integration: it removes marginalization, the man is the goal not the means of actions, it does not allow a man to be reduced to a mere object, tools for profit or authority, but includes him into a community that is created by people and for their benefit. Society integrated in this way, constantly following «culture of encounter» rule, renews itself all the time and continually builds peace. All people are called to such building: believers and those who do not believe, all of good will. Also, the heads of state have in this effort of breaking the spiral of violence and a «culture of conflict» – both in economic and political dimension – big task and responsibility. Pope Francis reminded about this in a special letter to president of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on September 14, 2014 year. In the letter he wrote: «it is clear that, for the world’s peoples, armed conflicts are always a deliberate negation of international harmony, and create profound divisions and deep wounds which require many years to heal. Wars are a concrete refusal to pursue the great economic and social goals that the international community has set itself, as seen, for example, in the Millennium Development Goals. Unfortunately, the many armed conflicts which continue to afflict the world today present us daily with dramatic images of misery, hunger, illness and death. Without peace, there can be no form of economic development. Violence never begets peace, the necessary condition for development». On thebasis of the current teaching of PopeFrancisthe following conclusion can be drawn, thatthe key topeace in the worldin many dimensions- evenbetweenreligions–isadialoguedeveloped under «cultureof encounter». (shrink)

O projeto de ética mundial, desenvolvido pelo teólogo ecumênico Hans Küng, propõe que somente por meio de um diálogo inter-religioso é possível estruturar princípios básicos que sejam válidos globalmente e que proporcionem a construção de uma cultura da paz. Essa possibilidade no campo da ética estabelece um amplo diálogo com diferentes autores. No entanto, como o próprio autor assume, o projeto possui limitações, sendo que uma delas é a exclusão de temas que envolvem questões de Bioética que são importantes para (...) as relações em sociedade. Os temas hoje avaliados na área de Bioética são de difícil consenso, entre eles: aborto, uso de embriões, reprodução assistida, questão de gênero. Desse modo, novas frentes de diálogo se fazem necessárias, principalmente no tocante às ciências biológicas, ou seja: a relação entre religião e ciência e cultura e ciência. Para que esse diálogo se torne possível, é necessário reconhecer as possibilidades e os limites do diálogo, numa exigente proposta de transcendência do individualismo, das culturas e da própria religião. Por isso é necessário aprofundar a reflexão começando pela identificação dessas novas questões para se buscar novos espaços de diálogo. Palavras-chave : Ética mundial; Cultura da paz; Bioética; Ética da transcendência.The world ethics project, developed by the ecumenical teologian Hans Küng, indicates that only by a inter-religious dialogue is possible to built basic principles that would be wordly accepted and helpfull in the building of a culture of peace. This possibility on ethics research brings a large dialogue with several thinkers. Although, as the author himself accepts, the project has some limitations, being one of them the exclusion of themes that are discussed in Bioethics and are important to relationship in society. The issues that are studied in Bioethics are of rare consensus, like: abortion, utilization of embryo for research, medically assisted reproduction, gender’s subjects. Thus, new fronts of dialogue are needed, mainly related to biological sciences, it means: relation between religion and sciences, and between culture and sciences. For the dialogue to be possible it is needed to recognize possibilities and limits of it, from an exigent proposal of transcendence of individualism, culture and religion itself. Them, it is needed to deep the thinking starting on identificating this new questions to look for new spaces of dialogue. Key words : World ethics; Culture of peace; Bioethics; Transcendence. (shrink)

Papers presented at the conference held in 2003-2004 at Ahmedabad, India, organized by Department of Philosophy, Gujarat University.

The article covers the achievements of the social teachings of the Catholic Church in overcoming the «culture of death» through the consolidation of peace as a component of the values and principles of the «culture of life».

Glowacki's work meshes well with our view of human nature as having evolved to use culture to improve survival and reproduction. Peace is a cultural achievement, requiring advances in social organization and control, including leaders who can implement policies to benefit the group, third-party mediation, and intergroup cooperation. Cultural advances shift intergroup interactions from negative-sum (war) to positive-sum (trade).

We can conceive of peace in many different ways, and these differences are related to a variety of assumptions and practices we can adopt in our culture. This book is about those differences. Part I describes the ways in which we usually talk about peace. It argues that our conception is fundamentally obscure. We do not know what peace is and we do not know how to promote it. Part II develops an explanation of how (...) class='Hi'>peace has been obscured. It has been obscured by a network of beliefs and institutions in our culture. Part III critically evaluates some key parts of this cultural web and argues that there is an alternative cluster of assumptions and practices which we ought to adopt. It is a cluster which is intrinsically better—regardless of whatever it may imply about peace. Part IV argues that it happens to imply that we should think of peace as an activity—a practice we can cultivate at high levels of excellent performance. It draws on Gandhian satyagraha, Quaker process and practices of "principled negotiation" using the Harvard model to illustrate. (shrink)

Peace encourages humans to eliminate the impulse of violence within themselves. Peace in students can drive the development of peace in their social environment. Educators should be able to play the role of peace educators to take part in creating true peace. This study aims to identify the attributes of peace educators through the life experiences of KH Ahmad Dahlan, as narrated in the novel Sang Pencerah (The Enlightener). This qualitative research employs the hermeneutic (...) approach. The research stages include overall understanding (whole), understanding of parts and obtaining an understanding of the underlying meaning. The results indicate that the attributes of peace educators, according to KH Ahmad Dahlan, include showing affection, being sincere, having a good attitude, performing practices aligning with the educators’ knowledge and teaching knowledge based on tolerance and empathy. Those attributes of peace educators can be used as a guide for developing the competencies of educators to encourage students to achieve peace-loving characters. This character supports the emergence of a culture of peace in their environment.Contribution: This research has contributed to the successful implementation of education through teachers who have the attributes of peace educators. The characteristics of peace educators based on KH Ahmad Dahlan are a reference for teachers to become educators who can create peace through school settings. (shrink)

Western civilization since the Renaissance, argues Gray Cox, conceives of material things as objectively knowable and hence manipulable by the detached subject. We knowers are masters of nature. The presuppositions about how things are known and used also color our attitudes concerning human problems. Our culture is conflict centered. When we try to give substance to the concept of peace, we draw a blank: peace is the static absence of war. We do not bring peace to (...) fruition because we have no inkling of the kind of thought it requires. Cox shakes up our habitual ways of thinking in order to give peace a chance. The ways of peace are activities in which subjects mutually engage with openness to understanding. We grow in intersubjective community by working together. (shrink)

Western civilization since the Renaissance, argues Gray Cox, conceives of material things as objectively knowable and hence manipulable by the detached subject. We knowers are masters of nature. The presuppositions about how things are known and used also color our attitudes concerning human problems. Our culture is conflict centered. When we try to give substance to the concept of peace we draw a blank: peace is the static absence of war. We do not bring peace to (...) fruition because we have no inkling of the kind of thought it requires. Cox shakes up our habitual ways of thinking in order to give peace a chance. The ways of peace are activities in which subjects mutually engage with openness to understanding. We grow in intersubjective community by working together. (shrink)

In the Northern region of Ghana in the mid-1990s a coalition of NGOs came together to mediate an end to a large-scale inter-ethnic conflict. This essay develops the theoretical concepts of conflict and peace narratives to show how this process was able to transcend the violence. It also examines how the NGO-mediated negotiations compared and related with concurrent state initiatives. NGO advantage derived from the social capital that these organisations had accumulated through local service provision, and the perceived neutrality (...) of the talks they arranged, highlighting the complex relationships between the provision of services, state resources and conflict resolution effectiveness. (shrink)

Creating a new discourse of peace in schools offers educators a choice in how they think, believe, and act in response to student wrongdoing and conflict. In this article the reader is introduced to how restorative justice principles can be used in education as a way of supporting a school-wide culture of care, where building and maintaining healthy relationships are fundamental principles. Thisnew discourse offers an alternative to the traditional discipline practices in schools, which focus on rules and (...) consequences. The literature, research and major findings underlying this new discourse are explained. Finally, circles are described as an application of this new discourse. (shrink)

As a natural result of globalization and migration from village to city, peace, ease, and happiness of people who have to coexist in cities are extremely important. Beliefs, systems, ideologies, and institutions aim to achieve this. This situation forces individuals and groups who live together, whether they want to or not, to get to know and communicate with each other within a trust environment. The most important factor that makes recognizing segments of society with different characteristics and communicate with (...) them in a healthy way is to develop a culture of coexistence among the community members. Coexistence means that people with different identities and affiliations are united around the citizenship denominator and contributing to the continuation of social life in unity and solidarity. This understanding must be transformed into a cultural consciousness in the community members. Because, polarization, marginalization, discrimination, and violence become common among individuals who live in societies where the culture of living together and the awareness of citizenship are not developed. It is not possible to ensure coexistence only by law. In societies where a culture of cohabitation develops, differences are not seen as a cause of separation, but as a richness that diversifies society and gives dynamism to social life. In societies dealing with political, social, economic, and moral problems, religion, language, race, ethnic identity, and regional sense of belonging might be more likely used as terrorization tools. The self-confidence that accurrate religious knowledge gives to individuals might weaken such a possibility. Islam anticipates a social system that facilitates a pecaful and easeful life for the people. Giving importance to principles such as love, respect, tolerance, justice, consultation, assistance, and solidarity in the Qur'an is an indication of the need for this system. The Prophet Mohammad had the opportunity to apply an example of this system in Madinah anticipatedin the Qur'an in Madinah. After the migration, some principles related to the basic rules of coexistence were included in the Madinah agreement, which the Prophet signed with representatives of different segments living in Madinah. It is very important that these principles are able to shed light on the issues happenin in the recent world. The experience of living together in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) should be introduced to the next generations with correct information. Because, The Medina Agreement, which has an important place in the history of Muslims, is an important example of the ability to live together in peace and ease by maintaining differences in society. The Medina Agreement is the first written document that allows different groups of people residing in Medina to live together. The main purpose of this agreement, which the Prophet made with the Jewish, Christian, and polytheistic tribes in Medina after the migration, is to protect the fundamental rights stemming from the citizenship of people who live in the same city by having different faiths and cultural values. If so, the Madinah Agreement might be an example for many societies that recently experience discord and unrest due to their characteristics such as religion, language, race, political thought, and etc. In this regard, this article focuses on the importance of the culture of coexistence in the context of the Madinah Agreement and the process of formation of this culture and offers some suggestionsthat will facilitate peace and ease for different groups living in the same society. Some of these suggestions are as follows: Differences such as language, religion, race, culture, and political thought among the realities of social life should not be seen as an element of discrimination, everyone should contribute to the peace and well-being of society by combining in the common denominator of citizenship. In educational institutions, it should be taken into account values such as human love, respect for the other, tolerance, freedom of thought, empathy, and peace. In addition to educational institutions, all segments operating in the field of law, politics, economics, religion, and media should unite, and thus, should develop a consciousness of citizenship in society, where differences in race, religion, language, culture and political views are seen as richness. (shrink)

The pioneering ideas of Glenn D. Paige for a paradigm shift from killing to nonkilling are highlighted. The relevance of anthropology for this paradigm is advanced. The accumulating scientific evidence proves that nonviolent and peaceful societies not only exist, but are actually the norm throughout human prehistory and history. This scientific fact is elucidated through a historical inventory of the most important documentation. Ethnographic cases are summarized of the Semai as a nonviolent society, the transition from killing to nonkilling of (...) the Waorani, and the critiques of the representation of the Yanomami as a killing society. Several of the most important cross-cultural studies are discussed. The assertions of some of the most vocal opponents to this paradigm are refuted. The systemic cultural and ideological bias privileging violence and war over nonviolence and peace is documented. (shrink)

The new narcissist is haunted not by guilt but by anxiety. He seeks not to inflict his own certainties on others but to find a meaning in life. Liberated from the superstitions of the past, he doubts even the reality of his own existence. Superficially relaxed and tolerant, he finds little use for dogmas of racial and ethnic purity but at the same time forfeits the security of group loyalties and regards everyone as a rival for the favors conferred by (...) a paternalistic state. His sexual attitudes are permissive rather than puritanical, even though his emancipation from ancient taboos brings him no sexual peace. Fiercely competitive in his demand for approval and acclaim, he distrusts competition because he associates it unconsciously with an unbridled urge to destroy. Hence he repudiates the competitive ideologies that flourished at an earlier stage of capitalist development and distrusts even their limited expression in sports and games. He extols cooperation and teamwork while harboring deeply antisocial impulses. He praises respect for rules and regulations in the secret belief that they do not apply to himself. Acquisitive in the sense that his cravings have no limits, he does not accumulate goods and provisions against the future, in the manner of the acquisitive individualist of nineteenth-century political economy, but demands immediate gratification and lives in a state of restless, perpetually unsatisfied desire. (shrink)

While some species have affiliative and even cooperative interactions between individuals of different social groups, humans are alone in having durable, positive-sum, interdependent relationships across unrelated social groups. Our capacity to have harmonious relationships that cross group boundaries is an important aspect of our species' success, allowing for the exchange of ideas, materials, and ultimately enabling cumulative cultural evolution. Knowledge about the conditions required for peaceful intergroup relationships is critical for understanding the success of our species and building a more (...) peaceful world. How do humans create harmonious relationships across group boundaries and when did this capacity emerge in the human lineage? Answering these questions involves considering the costs and benefits of intergroup cooperation and aggression, for oneself, one's group, and one's neighbor. Taking a game theoretical perspective provides new insights into the difficulties of removing the threat of war and reveals an ironic logic to peace – the factors that enable peace also facilitate the increased scale and destructiveness of conflict. In what follows, I explore the conditions required for peace, why they are so difficult to achieve, and when we expect peace to have emerged in the human lineage. I argue that intergroup cooperation was an important component of human relationships and a selective force in our species history beginning at least 300 thousand years. But the preconditions for peace only emerged in the past 100 thousand years and likely coexisted with intermittent intergroup violence which would have also been an important and selective force in our species' history. (shrink)

Those engaged in the fields of peace and political psychology need to maintain a balanced view. To obtain this balanced view of the future, the editors invited sociologist and peace researcher Elise Boulding to write a paper concerning "cultures of peace" and then invited scholars and researchers from across the globe to comment on it. This special issue is the result. Seeking a balanced view that does not ignore the harsh realities of today's world or drain us (...) of hope for the future, this issue discusses: *the positives and negatives of a possible paradigm shift from dominance to mutualism in both interpersonal and interstate relations; *how human peaceableness can not occur until the pervasive problems of poverty, violence, ecological destruction, and discrimination are resolved; *how peace does not mean acquiescence to an unjust patriarchal system of economic, ecological, and sexual exploitation; *how advances in technology and marketing that have strengthened the culture of peace have done the same for the malign culture of violence; and *the mission of transforming a culture of war to one of peace, presenting actions that are intended to facilitate the tranformation. (shrink)

Western civilization since the Renaissance, argues Gray Cox, conceives of material things as objectively knowable and hence manipulable by the detached subject. We knowers are masters of nature. The presuppositions about how things are known and used also color our attitudes concerning human problems. Our culture is conflict centered. When we try to give substance to the concept of peace we draw a blank: peace is the static absence of war. We do not bring peace to (...) fruition because we have no inkling of the kind of thought it requires. Cox shakes up our habitual ways of thinking in order to give peace a chance. The ways of peace are activities in which subjects mutually engage with openness to understanding. We grow in intersubjective community by working together. (shrink)

Glowacki discusses how humans regularly face collective action problems that may result in either peaceful or aggressive between-group interactions. Peace and war probably coevolved in humans. Using a gene–culture evolutionary framework is a powerful way to analyse why, when, and how humans have the capacity to build and maintain long-term peaceful interactions between groups and also to wage deadly wars.