INTERNATIONAL PEACE & CLIMATE JUSTICE WEEKEND!

The US War Machine is out of control, causing chaos throughout the world and fueling the climate crisis. People power will stop it. That’s why we are organizing a series of actions in New York City from September 20 to 23 while the United Nations General Assembly meets.

When all of the world leaders gather, we will say we’ve had enough of the US War Machine.

We demand the US be held accountable for its lawlessness. It’s time for the US government to obey the United Nations Charter by stopping regime change operations, ending the use of unilateral coercive measures (aka sanctions) and ceasing military threats and attacks.

We demand the US sign the nuclear weapons ban treaty, rejoin the Iran nuclear and Paris climate agreements, disband NATO and close bases and outposts around the world.

We demand an immediate transition to a peace economy that uses our resources to meet human needs and protect the planet.

****More information on event times and other specifics will be added as we finalize details. For now, here’s what you need to know:

Friday, September 20 – People’s Climate Strike at 12:00 pm. March from Foley Square to Battery Park. We’ll bring messages connecting militarism and the climate crisis. See https://strikewithus.org/nyc/

Saturday, September 21 – Puerto Rico Independence March starting at 11:00 am at 59th St. Columbus Circle and marching to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza at the UN. It’s time to decolonize Puerto Rico!

Saturday, September 21 – Race, Militarism and Black Resistance in the “America’s” from 5:00 to 7:00 pm at the Green Worker Cooperative, 1231 Lafayette Ave in the Bronx.

Sunday, September 22 – People’s Mobilization to Stop the US War Machine and Save the Planet Rally and March at 2:00 pm, Northwest corner of Herald Square at 34th St and 6th Ave. Featuring Cornel West, Roger Waters, members of the Embassy Protection Collective and music by Ben Grosscup.

Monday, September 23 – Forum: “A Path to International Peace: Realizing the Vision of the United Nations Charter.” Location: Community Church of New York 40 East 35th St., New York City, 10016. Time: 6:30 pm (doors open at 6 pm). David Rovics will perform. The Peace Memorial will give an award. Panels featuring representatives from sanctioned countries, Ajamu Baraka of Black Alliance for Peace, Taryn Fivek of of the International Action Center, Rose asaf of CODEPINK, H. E. Leon Siu, of the Kingdom of Hawaii and Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report. You must pre-register at http://bit.ly/RSVPapathtopeace.

Representatives of 120 nations met in July to reaffirm their support for the UN Charter in a revival of the Non-Aligned Movement. Some of those representatives plus grassroots groups will join us for a discussion of the ways the United States is violating the charter, how they are organizing and what we can do to hold the US accountable.

https://peoplesmobe.org/

Bus coming from Baltimore, MD for Sunday, Sept. 22. Contact info@popularresistance.org for more information.

Organizers

IPB Youth Network, IPB in partnership with ITUC and ITUC Youth
With the support of DFG-VK, International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility (INES), Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung (tbc)

Introduction

In the 21st century, we experience multiple wars, destruction and injustice. Challenges and problems are becoming more visible at both small and large scales, ranging from threats with the potential to end human life itself to diverse destruction of the environment and other foundations of life. Militarism and injustice drive these potentials on multiple levels. Aspects of societies – i.e. lack of democracy, distribution of wealth, gender inequalities or the belief in infinite profit maximization – are at the base of many challenges and problems.

Young people are agents of change and need to discuss and exchange on these matters much more. We want to organize to amplify our voices and to engage much more in peace processes and struggles for societal progress.

The world youth congress is a youth-led congress, contributing to the vision of a world in peace and without war and to the vision of a more peaceful, just and sustainable future. The idea of the youth congress derives from the preparatory process of the youth gathering of the IPB World Congress “Disarm! For a Climate of Peace – Creating an Action Agenda” (www.ipb2016.berlin). Some of the discussions of this Congress as well as of an international working meeting on the weekend of the international day of peace 2018 (https://ipb-youthnetwork.org/2018/08/ipbyn-event-on-international-day-of-peace/) will be continued at the world youth congress.

The congress will focus on transformation towards a more peaceful, just and sustainable future. This will be achieved by informal learning to develop a sense of personal responsibility, by developing plans for concrete actions in day-to-day life as well as in societal processes. The Youth Congress will engage youth from various different backgrounds and with varying perspectives and approaches to peace, justice and sustainability as well as diverse experts and lays from different fields related to the Congress’ issues.

Objectives

The overall objective of the world youth congress is to build bridges and foster discussions among youth with different perspectives on and approaches to peace, justice and sustainability alongside non-youth stakeholders active in the peace movement and in the various fields. Voices of youth against war and for peace should be increasingly and strongly heard. Among others, the specific objectives are:

To speak out and act against war, militarism, injustice, and planetary destruction.
To equip young people with the confidence and competencies to build peace, sustainability, and justice.
To bring young people into regional national and international decision-making processes.
To facilitate intergenerational and interdisciplinary approaches to a global culture of peace, justice and sustainability.

Program
Friday, 20 September 2019
15:00 – 17:00 ITUC preparatory briefing for trade union participants (MA 143)
From 17:30 Registration (in front of MA 043)
19:00 – 21:30 Public Evening Debate (MA 043)
“Transform – #ChangeTheRules – how fundamental and how fast do we need change”
Welcome and Greetings: Jeroen Beirnaert (ITUC), Reiner Braun (IPB), Marie Cucurella (IPB Youth)
With: Joachim Spangenberg (SERI / INES), Sara Medi Jones (CND), Josef Holnburger (DGB Youth), Joseph Gerson (AFSC / IPB), Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker (Club of Rome), Chloé Meulewaeter (Centre Delàs d´Estudis per la Pau)
Moderation: Reiner Braun (IPB), Marie Cucurella (IPB Youth)

Saturday, 21 September 2019

From 09:00 Registration (in front of MA 043)

9:30 – 12:00 Smaller group discussions in the methodology of non-formal education
Floor for meaningful exchange of experiences and information and floor for open discussions in the framework of the topics of the Summit
Facilitators: Quique Sánchez (GCOMS), Emma Pritchard (IPB Youth), Marie Cucurella (IPB Youth), Anna Fendley (ITUC Youth), Jonas Skorzak (IPB Youth), Franziska Heinisch (IPB Youth), Theresa Kresse (IPB)
Groups: Bertha von Suttner (MA 043), Mahatma Gandhi (MA 549), Mairead Maguire (MA 550), Malala Yousafzai (MA Foyer 1), Martin Luther King Jr. (MA Foyer 1), Nelson Mandela (MA Foyer 1), Rigoberta Menchú (MA Foyer 1)

12:00 – 13:30 Lunch

13:30 – 15:00 Panel discussions on the themes of the Summit (separate rooms)

Parallel panels in the following rooms: MA 043, MA 549, MA 550. The rooms will be announced during lunch time.

• Transformation from militarism to non-violence – just transition from conflict to peace and resilience (MA 043)
o With: Kevin Martin (Peace Action USA), Emma Pritchard (IPB Youth), Jennifer Menninger (WILPF), Omar H.O. Abuzaydeh (PGFTU Palestine), Luisa Fernanda Ospina Madera (CUT Colombia), Michael Watt (ILO ACTRAV)
o Moderation: Arielle Denis (IPB)

• Transformation from environmental destruction to sustainability – just transition to climate ambition (MA 549)
o With: Tamara Lorincz (IPB), Jagoda Munic (Friends of the Earth Europe), Matt de Vlieger (IPB Youth) CUT Brasil, NLC Nigeria
o Moderation: Corazon Valdez-Fabre (Nuclear Free Philippines Coalition/IPB)

• Transformation from injustice to global justice – democracies for people – just transition to a new social contract (MA 550)

o With: Wong Kit Yip (HKCTU Hong Kong), Anis Jabeur (UGTT Tunisia), Giga Bekauri (GTUC Georgia), Chloé Meulewaeter (Centre Delàs d´Estudis per la Pau), Measho Berihu Gebreyohans (CETU Ethiopia), Nicoletta Merlo (CISL Italy)
o Moderation: Maria Tsirantonaki (ITUC Youth)

15:00 – 15:30 Break

15:30 – 18:00 Parallel working groups deepening the panel discussions (see above)

• Which strategies and actions can be applied and developed?
• What can we do together?

From 18:30 Social Event with light dinner

Sunday, 22 September 2019

9:30 – 11:00 Smaller group discussions in the methodology of non-formal education

Developing strategies & actions – Transform! #ChangeTheRules – just transitions towards peace, social justice and environmental sustainability

Facilitators: Quique Sánchez (GCOMS), Emma Pritchard (IPB Youth), Marie Cucurella (IPB Youth), Anna Fendley (ITUC Youth), Jonas Skorzak (IPB Youth), Franziska Heinisch (IPB Youth), Theresa Kresse (IPB)

Groups: Bertha von Suttner (MA Foyer 1), Mahatma Gandhi (MA Foyer 1), Mairead Maguire (MA Foyer 1), Malala Yousafzai (MA Foyer 1), Martin Luther King Jr. (MA 043), Nelson Mandela (MA 549), Rigoberta Menchú (MA 550)

11:00 – 11:30 Break

11:30 – 13:30 Panel discussion with open mic: How do we transform our societies?

(MA 043)

With: Jeroen Beirnaert (ITUC), Corazon Valdez-Fabros (IPB), Fridays for Future, Angelo Cardona (IPB Youth), Jordi Calvo Rufanges (IPB), Maria Tsirantonaki (ITUC Youth)
Moderation: Sara Medi Jones (CND), Emma Pritchard (IPB Youth)

Closing: Lucas Wirl (IPB Youth Network)

Contact
IPB Youth Network
Lucas Wirl
Email: l.wirl@gmx.net
ITUC Youth
Maria Tsirantonaki
E-mail: maria.tsirantonaki@ituc-csi.org
Marie Cucurella
Email: marie.cucurellafaure@gmail.com

Organizational Information:

Please register for the congress at info@ipb-office.berlin

We would like to ask participants for a financial contribution to the conference in the amount of 5 Euro / 20 Euro / 40 Euro. You may submit a contribution upon arrival or via bank/ PayPal transfer (https://www.ipb.org/donate/). European bank account holders may transfer a contribution to Bank Account Holder: Unterstützung des Internationalen Friedensbueros e.V.; IBAN: DE23 1005 0000 0190 6331 58; Bank: Berliner Sparkasse. PLEASE give the following reference: IPBYN congress 2019.

How to get there: TU Berlin is located close to S-Bahn station Tiergarten and U-Bahn station Ernst-Reuter-Platz. The entrance to the Mathematician Building is right next to Mathe Café. Geographic coordinates 52.513392, 13.326323

Accommodation: for cheap accommodation check www.booking.com or www.hrs.de. Around S-Bahn station Zoologischer Garten are various hostels and hotels. Furthermore, we will be able to offer limited private accommodation. Please contact us for more details.

Last year around 2,000 of our friends and comrades joined us as we marched on the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, where we called for a revival of a mass antiwar/anti-imperialism movement, attention on the toll war takes on women across the globe, the environmental impacts of war, and much much more.

In 2019, we’re fighting for the very same things and we’re taking our march to the White House—where we won’t be ignored!

We invite you to Rage Against the War Machine with us on Friday, October 11th for a non-partisan action against the bipartisan war machine.

If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention and we’re committed to educating everyone about the atrocities of the War Machine.

Those interested in learning more about civil disobedience and who need to make signs before the event, please meet us at 10 am in Lafayette Square.

White House – RAGE AGAINST THE REPUBLICANS

IMF – RAGE AGAINST THE BANKSTERS AND SANCTIONS

A War Profiteer (TBD) – RAGE AGAINST WAR PROFITEERS

Farragut Square – RAGE AGAINST THE DEMOCRATS

Atlantic Council – RAGE AGAINST THINK TANKS

Washington Post – RAGE AGAINST PROPAGANDA, THE 1%, & AMAZON

The International Peace Bureau´s Triennial Meeting is scheduled for Saturday the 19^th of October 2019 in London.

The Triennial Meeting (hereafter called the Assembly) of the International Peace Bureau (IPB) is coming up on Saturday, 19th of October 2019, at St Thomas’ Hospital, London, opposite the Houses of Parliament.

The Assembly is the highest policy-making body of the IPB. It is also a forum for the exchange of ideas, information and resources among civil society movements, scholars and activists. It is open to Council members, plus individuals belonging to IPB member organisations, individual IPB members and observers. More details on the voting procedure and the purpose of this assembly can be found via this link: /ipb-constitution/

During the Assembly the new board and council will be elected for the next three years and the organisation´s future development and projects will be discussed and agreed upon.

Member organisation of IPB have the right to join for the Triennial and make their voices heard and are very much encouraged to make use of this right to increase the quality of IPB´s work and strengthen the network of civil society organisations that are working for a better world in which war and armed conflict is not a resort of diplomatic strategy. Via this registration and nomination form you will be able to register yourself as an attendee and submit proposals. The deadline for submissions is the 31st of July, midnight, CEST.

October 7th, 60 cities worldwide.

Full information about actions around the world can be found HERE:
>>> https://rebellion.earth/international-rebellion/

Starting Monday October 7, for 2 weeks, Extinction Rebellion and allied movements will gather in major cities across the globe and continue to rebel against the world’s governments for their criminal inaction on the Climate and Ecological Crisis.

Respect existence or expect resistance.

Move the Nuclear Weapons Money is a specific initiative linking nuclear disarmament with peace, climate and sustainable development. The campaign calls for cuts in nuclear weapons budgets, an end to investments in nuclear weapons corporations, and a re-allocation of these budgets and investments to support peace, the climate and sustainable development.

The campaign will run a huge action in UN Disarmament Week (Oct 24-30) to Count the Nuclear Weapons Money.

Register at: bit.ly/abolishnuclear
In the context of the suffering and changes being wrought by the pandemic, the two- hour world conference will focus on the continuing urgent need to abolish nuclear weapons and its relationship to stanching the climate emergency and challenging injustices which have left so many people marginalized and vulnerable. Additional sessions of the World Conference and four workshops will be for a healthier time in the future.
To accommodate people across the world the conference will be held at 9-11 a.m. New York/Boston time (3-5 p.m. in Europe, 10 p.m.-12 a.m. in East Asia) with simultaneous interpretation. The conference will be held in concentric circles with up to 500 people in the conference itself with simultaneous live streaming so everyone can join by listening in. The conference will also be recorded and posted and made available on the world conference2020.org and co-sponsors sites for continuing availability.
Speakers include:
• Sharon Burrows (ITUC, Australia)
• Reiner Braun (IPB, Germany)
• Joseph Gerson (AFSC/CPDCS/IPB, USA)
• Emad Kiyaei (IDG Group, Iran)
• Hiroshi Takakusaki (Gensuikyo, Japan)
• Rev. Liz Theoharis (Poor People’s Campaign, USA)
• Dr. Carlos Umana (IPPNW, Costa Rica)
• Wada Masako (Japan Confederation of A- & H- Bomb Sufferers Organizations, Japan)Invitations pending to United Nations Office for Disarmament, the Sunrise Movement, and Marshall Islands
ONLINE WEBINAR – April 25th, 2020 @ 9-11 a.m. EDT
REGISTRATION: https://bit.ly/abolishnuclear
For more information: see the facebook event; or write: JGerson80@gmail.com April 25, 2020

The elimination of nuclear and all other weapons of mass destruction remains a central but elusive objective of the United Nations. Despite commitments from Member States, there has been limited progress on this long-standing goal. For nuclear weapons, this is largely due to growing tensions between nuclear-armed States and the rigidity of the disarmament machinery.

In the meantime, the Southern hemisphere of the planet has already become almost entirely one nuclear-weapon-free zone by virtue of regional treaties: the Treaty of Rarotonga, covering the South Pacific, the Treaty of Pelindaba, covering Africa, the Treaty of Bangkok covering Southeast Asia, the Treaty of Tlatelolco, covering Latin America and the Caribbean and the Antarctic Treaty. Recently we have witnessed the entry into force of the Treaty on a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia, the first such instrument situated entirely north of the Equator.

The adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was a defining moment for global efforts to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit arms trade: the Agenda included a specific target to significantly reduce illicit arms flows by 2030.

The General Assembly and other bodies of the United Nations, supported by the Office for Disarmament Affairs, work to advance international peace and security through the pursuit of the elimination of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction and the regulation of conventional arms.

The Office promotes:

• Nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation
• Strengthening of the disarmament regimes in respect to other weapons of mass destruction, and chemical and biological weapons
• Disarmament efforts in the area of conventional weapons, especially landmines and small arms, which are the weapons of choice in contemporary conflicts.

The New World Disorder.
Speakers include: Tariq Ali; Medea Benjamin; Lindsey German; Kaye Hudson; Reiner Braun; Aaron Bastani; Kerry-Anne Mendoza; Arielle Denis

On the 3rd and 4th of December the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) will mark its 70th anniversary with a Heads of State Summit in London. With Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan set to attend this gathering of the world’s largest nuclear-armed military alliance, it’s vital that the peace and anti-war movements are mobilised to full capacity to oppose what John Pilger calls an ‘American invention designed to impose American power on Europe’.

In advance of the protests being organised around the Queen’s reception for NATO leaders on the 3rd of December, we are hosting a counter-summit in Central London. The event will bring together anti-war voices from across Europe and beyond, to discuss NATO’s nuclear warmongering, its interventionist wars, and set out how civil society can work to abolish NATO and create a more peaceful world.

NATO is by design a powerful arm of US foreign policy, and increasingly dangerous in the hands of the reckless Donald Trump. We must take action against NATO – Join us in saying “No to NATO” on November 30th.

From December 2 to 4 it will take place in Bogotá (Colombia) one of the biggest arms fairs in Latin America, organised by Eurosatory (Paris’ arms fair) with participation of many arms companies and estate delegations.

Our Colombian partners from War Resisters International, Ramalc and ACOOC (conscientious objectors) are preparing actions to denounce and boicot the arms fair, a space where governments, companies and military personnel meet and bargain, preparing for future wars.

Global Day of Protest: No War On Iran!

The Trump administration is dragging the United States into a war with Iran that could engulf the whole region and could quickly turn into a global conflict. On Saturday, January 25 in cities across the globe, there will be protests against a new war in the Middle East.

Check out if there’s a protest prepared in your city be clicking here

The interdependence between nuclear weapons and civilian nuclear power, in terms of skills and infrastructure, means our government continues to champion expensive new nuclear at the expense of clean renewables.

We need to break this cycle. Climate justice can only come with radical demilitarisation.

In 2020 we mobilize against ecocide, white supremacist policy and war in all its forms. We gather to put the issue of peace before the voters in an election year and to protest against anti-immigrant policies. Our principles of unity will be strengthened as we gather to stop the wars at home and abroad.

The UNAC conference will be a place where we deepen that unity and build the our movement for the next stage of struggle.

Seventy-five years after Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Trinity, nuclear weapons are still an existential threat. Nuclear weapons states are investing trillions of dollars to upgrade their weapons systems.
The problem of nuclear weapons will not be solved by non-nuclear nations alone—those of us living in nuclear weapons states and under the nuclear umbrella have a primary obligation not just to work for, but to achieve abolition.

The Nuclear Resister, Nukewatch, and the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance invite you to an international conference May 22-25 in Maryville, Tennessee.

What is it about?
We want to develop ways to collaborate globally to advance the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and achieve nuclear abolition. We will have workshops, strategy sessions, panel presentations, music, and opportunities for networking, training, action, and cake.

Who is it for?
You—if you want to be part of a coherent, effective movement, blending multiple strategies, to get rid of nuclear weapons. We’re planning sessions on resistance, divestment campaigns, legal challenges, local organizing, and political action. We are stronger when we understand and collaborate with each other.

Where is it?
Maryville College, Maryville, TN, is 20 miles from the Y-12 Nuclear Weapons Complex in Oak Ridge, TN, where US thermonuclear weapons components are made.

How do I get more information?
We are in the early planning stages. For more information check: nukewatchinfo.org/stop_new_nuclear_arms_race,
email actionfortheban@gmail.com
or visit the facebook event

Why now?
It’s two minutes to midnight—the nuclear threat is real and urgent. 2020 also marks 75 years since Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And 40 years of the Nuclear Resister, Nukewatch, and the Plowshares movement.

Download the brochure and poster

On February 9-11, 2019 in PyeongChang, more than 500 people from 50 countries and 200 organizations gathered to review the crises and prospects of peace. In a country where the agony of war and deep division spans seven decades, participants have collectively sought ways to end the long, tragic tradition and prepare for a sustainable future. After six months of preparation, a civil-society-led Global Peace Forum was held with support from Gangwon Province, PyeongChang Municipality, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and the Korean people.
The astonishing peace process ushered in by the Candlelight Revolution and manifested at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and Paralympic became a great inspiration for people around the world. Breaking through thick historical and political barriers erected during the previous century, the new process presents a ground-breaking model for peacebuilding efforts. By participating in sporting events, cultural and art exhibits collectively, we consolidate efforts for lasting peace. These steps are necessary to build trust and show there is a commonality for peace talks and processes.
We note with special attention that democracy and a galvanized civil society are constitutive of all peacebuilding efforts.
For three days, to prepare for the framework of PyeongChang Agenda for Peace (PCAP) 2030, we have deliberated over the peace process on the Korean Peninsula, cooperation between North and South Korea, nuclear disarmament, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), militarization, Northeast Asian relations, restorative justice, sports and peace, public diplomacy, and the human right to peace. We also highlighted the roles of women and youth, international cooperation, parliamentarians and other elected officials, interfaith cooperation, and more.

Join Lindsay Koshgarian of the Institute for Policy Studies and Bill Hartung of the Center for International Policy for the first of two national calls on Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS).

Thursday, March 19, 2020  
8 – 9 pm EDT;  7 – 8 pm CDT;  6 – 7 pm MDT;  5 – 6 pm PDT
Click here to register.

Lack of preparedness for the COVID-19 epidemic reveals the potentially grave consequences of slashing social safety net spending while deluging the military-industrial complex with our tax dollars. Trump and the Pentagon are pressing yet another massive increase in military spending. Critics from Washington think tanks working with the Poor People’s Campaign, reinforced by grassroots activists across the country are demanding that money be moved from wars and preparations for wars to addressing our urgent human needs: health, climate, housing, education and more.

GDAMS 2020 will take place from April 10 – May 9. We hope that you will consider organizing a local event. To help you prepare for this year’s GDAMS and for longer term efforts to change our national spending priorities, we have scheduled an inspiring briefing call featuring these two leading authorities on military spending and alternatives.

Lindsay Koshgarian: Lindsay’s work and commentary on the federal budget and military spending has appeared on NPR, the BBC, CNN, The Nation, U.S. News and World Report, and others. Now at the Institute for Policy Studies, her work is at the intersection of military and domestic federal spending. She got her start as a clinic worker and organizer at Planned Parenthood in central and suburban Philadelphia, and led economic development and affordable housing studies at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute prior to joining the National Priorities Project in 2014

Bill Hartung: Bill is director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy. He has also served as a Senior Research Fellow in the New America Foundation’s American Strategy Program and is former director of the Arms Trade Resource Center at the World Policy Institute. He specializes in issues of weapons proliferation, the economics of military spending, and alternative approaches to national security strategy. Hartung was the director of the Arms and Security Initiative at the New America Foundation. Prior to that, he served as the director of the Arms Trade Resource Center at the World Policy Institute. He also worked as a speechwriter and policy analyst for New York State Attorney General Robert Abrams.

Ruth Benn, of the National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee and the New York War Resisters League has prepared a fine short peace announcing this year’s Global Days of Action on Military Spending along with background about this U.S. and international campaign. Click here to read the article.

Click here to register for the March 19 briefing call

International webinar: April 21, 2020

Held in conjunction with the Global Days of Action on Military Spending, April 10 – May 5, 2020
CHAIR: Vanda Proskova, Move the Nuclear Weapons Money campaign
WELCOME AND INTRO: Tony Robinson, Abolition 2000 Coordinating Committee
Session 1: Divestment and ethical/impact investment. 11:00-12:30 (EDT, New York Time)
• Thies Kaetow (Germany). Divestment Researcher, World Future Council.
• Susanna Choe (USA). Executive Director, Regeneration Fund, Investment Community Visibility Group.
• Jeff Perkins (USA). Executive Director, Friends Fiduciary Corporation.
• Matt Robson (New Zealand), Former Deputy Leader of the Progressive Party and New Zealand
Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control.
• John Ingram (USA). Member of 350NYC.org Steering Committee, Divest NYC Coalition and
Divest NY State Coalition.
Coffee/refreshment break

Session 2: Legislative action and public promotion. 13:00-14:30 (EDT, New York Time)
• Jennifer Blemur (USA). Director, Women Legislators’ Lobby.
• Marzhan Nurzhan (Kazakhstan/Switzerland). Member, Abolition 2000 Coordinating Committee.
Deputy-Director, Basel Peace Office.
• Kehkashan Basu (UAE/Canada). Youth Ambassador, World Future Council. Winner, 2016
International Children’s Peace Prize.
• Quique Sánchez (Spain), Global Campaign on Military Spending.
• Representative of PNND (tbc)

OUTLINE:
The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the need for governments and the international community to focus
more on human security issues and to shift resources from military spending, especially the nuclear weapons
budgets, to accomplish this. However, the nuclear weapons and fossil fuel industries have vested financial
interests in maintaining the nuclear arms race and a fossil fuel economy. They are a potent political force
preventing change.
Governments, cities, religious communities, universities, banks and private investors can shift these financial
incentives by divesting from the nuclear weapons and fossil fuel industries and re-allocating these investments
according to ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) principals. Such actions provide political support for
legislative efforts to cut nuclear weapons budgets, especially in the USA and UK.
This webinar will highlight examples of nuclear weapons and fossil fuel divestment and examine how these can
assist initiatives to cut nuclear weapons budgets and support public health, climate protection and sustainable
development. The event will include the preview of a Handbook on Nuclear Weapons Divestment which will be
produced by the Move the Nuclear Weapons Money campaign.

More info here

The Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) 2020 bring attention to the vast opportunity costs of the current levels of military spending, 1’82 trillion US$ a year, almost $5 billion per day, $239 per person. When a minority of the global population decides to finance war preparations, we all lose the opportunity to fund policies that tackle our real security threats.

Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) will take place from April 10 to May 9.

These dates include 🗓️

– April 15: Tax Day in the U.S (postponed))
– April 27: GDAMS press conferences on the occasion of SIPRI’s release of new data on military spending (figures for 2019)
– May 1: International Workers Day
– May 9: Europe’s Day of Peace & Unity

Take action to move the money from the military to health, join GDAMS 2020!

·       Join our online campaign!
·       Use and share our statements and infographics.       
·       Sign and share IPB’s petition: Invest in Healthcare Instead of Militarization
·      Organize a webinar or a national press conference on April 27. So far we have confirmed Seoul, Sydney, Berlin, Barcelona, Washington D.C, Buenos Aires, Rosario, Montevideo and Cucutá.
·   Contact online your local/national representatives/congresspeople and ask them to position themselves and support demilitarization and major reductions of military spending.
·      Use your social networks, stay active on social media debates, find allies, write an op-ed! How we understand and tell the story of this crisis as a society will define the measures to be taken afterwards.

The Opportunity Costs of Military Spending:
How and Why it’s Time to Rethink Our Priorities

Date/Time
Date(s) – Wednesday – Apr 22, 2020
11:00 am – 1:00 pm (CET, GMT+2)

As part of the Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS) 2020, IPB will host a seminar for students and young professionals interested in learning more about how military expenditures weigh up against social spending on issues such as combating climate change, improving infrastructure, and investing in education. The webinar will commence with a overview of worldwide and country-specific military spending based on available data from SIPRI and other reliable sources. Subsequently, the group will look at the figures for spending on various social programs.

In addition to presenting a review of military and social spending, the webinar will lay out practical methods and procedures of demilitarization and disarmament at a governmental level as well as how individuals can engage others in the conversation to produce societal change and pressure on national governments. Participants will be given the opportunity to brainstorm and share their ideas with each other and the IPB team and explore how they can best use their skills to engage in the conversation about disarmament and demilitarization.

The event will be held online and is open to 20-25 participants who are students or young professionals in the field. Data will be presented by Reiner Braun, Executive Director of IPB, and Amela Skiljan, IPB Coordinator, and discussion will be led by IPB Interns Eskil Grav and Sean Conner. Those interested can register for free by sending an email to info@ipb-office.berlin with their name and profession or area of study.

WEBINAR 

Challenging Nuclear Weapons in Europe

Monday April 27 – 15:00-16:30 CET

Registration : arielled@ipb.org

The tensions between nuclear weapons possessors states have worsen dramatically these last months and Europe is at the centre of the storm. The suspension of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia has directly exposed Europe to a new nuclear arms race and there is no indication that a successor to the US-Russian New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) will be negotiated before the February 2021 deadline. NATO states are much too silent, worse, French President Macron suggested that France’s nuclear weapons could become a European “deterrent”.

But, along with the 74% Millenials thinking that war and nuclear annihilation can be avoided, let’s point the historical movement building up around the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) ratified by 36 states and 81 have signed the Treaty, putting it on its way to entering into force in the coming months. What is the situation from different perspectives in Europe? How can civil society bring its contribution?

This Webinar replacing a Side Event due to take place at the opening of the 2020 NPT session will host experts and activists to discuss with the participants how to challenge of nuclear weapons in Europe.

CHAIR : Reiner Braun IPB Executive Director

• Hans Kristensen – Federation of American Scientists – Points of tensions in regards to Nuclear Weapons in Europe
• Oleg Bodrov-Coalition for a Clean Baltic/Russia – A view from Russia of the nuclear tensions in Europe
• Kate Hudson Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament – UK nuclear developments
• Bastien Lachaud French MP – French situation
• Katherine Vogler German MP – German situation – 5min
• Daniel Hogsta  ICAN – Potential tracks for progress in Europe(TBC)
• XXX ITUC Representative
• Susi Snyder –Pax/ Don’t Bank On the Bomb campaign on divestments and financial institutions
• Philip Jennings– IPB- building coalition with the social movements

Thank you for registering at adenis@ipb.org

Date/Time
Date(s) – Thursday – May 28, 2020
4:00 pm – 5:30 pm

Important note: this webinar takes place from 4:00-5:30pm Central European Summer Time.
If you are in a different time zone, please ensure that you check the event’s time in your location.

Dr. Pedro Páez Pérez, professor at the Central University of Ecuador and specialist on economic development and the political economy, joins IPB to discuss contemporary Latin American politics with particular attention to the ascension of far-right forces to power and their role in the militarization of the region.

In recent years, Latin American politics has shifted and brought to power far-right leaders. A central aspect of these politicians’ platforms has been a glorification of national militaries and policies of confrontation. Such positions highlight the increasing militarization of the region. Dr. Páez will cover these developments and provide insights into what this means for the future of the region.

After the presentation, there will be time for discussion and questions.

The webinar will be in English.

To register, please send an email to info@ipb-office.berlin.

George Floyd’s atrocious murder at the hand of the police in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25 represents only the most recent incident of racism and police brutality in the United States. The resulting protests have spread not only across major US cities, but have gone global.

The International Peace Bureau (IPB), the Campaign For Peace, Disarmament & Common Security (CPDCS), and Peace Action have invited three racial justice and peace movement leaders to provide background about the institutional racism and structural violence that led to George Floyd’s murder, as well as the massive resistance to racism and police brutality. Speakers include:

Karlene Griffiths Sekou, Black Lives Matter

Lewis Webb, American Friends Service Committee

Jim Anderson, Peace Action

Moderated by and Joseph Gerson (AFSC) with concluding remarks by Philip Jennings (IPB).

To register, please send an email with your name and interest to info@ipb-office.berlin.

IPB presents a two-part webinar series to explore the past two centuries of peace movement activities, including the role of the IPB, which was founded in 1891.

In the first session, speakers Guido Grünewald and David Cortright will discuss the peace movement of the 19th century and early 20th century, leading up to the First World War. Special attention will be given to the role of the IPB prior to, during, and upon the conclusion of World War I. The presentation will then turn to the interwar period, the Second World War, and the years immediately following the war.

In the second session, Colin Archer and Reiner Braun will outline the developments in the peace movement during the Cold War period with video contributions from activists who were involved in protests in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s in different countries. The webinar will continue with the post-Cold War adaptation of the peace movement and present the modern context in which peace movements operate.

Both webinars will present opportunities for questions and comments from participants. The sessions are focused primarily on the peace movement in Europe and North America, although the speakers will connect their experiences to the global peace movement which has come together strongly in recent years.

Participants may choose to attend a single session but are encouraged to take part in both to understand the complete picture. To register, send a message to info@ipb-office.berlin with your name and a short description about yourself.

Speakers:

Part 1: 1815-1949 | Tuesday, June 9, 5-6:30pm CEST

Guido Grünewald, Author & Historian

David Cortright, Director of Policy Studies at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies

Moderated by Amela Skiljan, IPB Coordinator

IPB presents a two-part webinar series to explore the past two centuries of peace movement activities, including the role of the IPB, which was founded in 1891.

In the first session, speakers Guido Grünewald and David Cortright will discuss the peace movement of the 19th century and early 20th century, leading up to the First World War. Special attention will be given to the role of the IPB prior to, during, and upon the conclusion of World War I. The presentation will then turn to the interwar period, the Second World War, and the years immediately following the war.

In the second session, Colin Archer and Reiner Braun will outline the developments in the peace movement during the Cold War period with video contributions from activists who were involved in protests in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s in different countries. The webinar will continue with the post-Cold War adaptation of the peace movement and present the modern context in which peace movements operate.

Both webinars will present opportunities for questions and comments from participants. The sessions are focused primarily on the peace movement in Europe and North America, although the speakers will connect their experiences to the global peace movement which has come together strongly in recent years.

Participants may choose to attend a single session but are encouraged to take part in both to understand the complete picture. To register, send a message to info@ipb-office.berlin with your name and a short description about yourself.

Speakers:

Part 2: 1949-present | Tuesday, June 16, 5-6:30pm CEST

Colin Archer, Former General Secretary of IPB

Reiner Braun, Executive Director of IPB

Featuring video contributions from:

Bruce Kent, former General Secretary of CND

Arielle Denis, former ICAN Campaign Director for Europe

Paul Walker, Senior Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH)

Kate Hudson, General Secretary of CND

Moderated by Arielle Denis.

:

Next Thursday, June 16, the Webinar “Arms waste in times of crisis” will be held to present the latest report by the Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau, which analyses the Spanish defence budgets for 2019 and 2020.

The Webinar will be attended by the president of the Centre Delàs, an expert in military spending and author of the report, Pere Ortega, who will present the latest publication of the Centre Delàs, ” Critique of reason for military spending (years 2019-2020). Despite the COVID-19 crisis, the arms race continues”. The panel will include Sara del Río (Greenpeace Spain), Koldobi Velasco (Antimilitarist Alternative and ADNV), Ana Barrero (AIPAZ), Andrés Amayuelas (CONGDE), Josemi Lorenzo (Desarma Madrid) and Jordi Calvo (GCOMS, International Peace Bureau and Centre Delàs).

At the event, which will be held by videoconference, the analysis of Spanish military spending will be discussed, emphasizing the enormous opportunity cost involved, and the urgency of redirecting it to health and other expenses to face the current crisis caused by the Covid-19.

The event can be followed live on the YouTube channel and Facebook of the Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau. Through the Youtube Channel a chat will be opened for participants to comment, ask questions and participate in the debate.

Follow the event by videoconference here

CANCEL RIMPAC, the international Rim of the Pacific naval war practice in Hawaiian waters originally scheduled from June through August 2020 but due to citizen activism and COVID19 is now scaled back to the middle to the end of August. Even this shortened war practice is provocative on a regional level and with the COVID19 virus, military personnel arriving in Hawaii will endanger citizens of the isolated island state of Hawaii. RIMPAC MUST BE CANCELLED!

Event:

https://www.facebook.com/events/253768719187709/

Petition:

https://diy.rootsaction.org/petitions/help-hawaii-stop-the-largest-naval-war-practice-in-the-world

IPB’s own Angelo Cardona is joined by prominent Colombian Senator Iván Cepeda Castro and journalist and political analyst Dr. Victor de Currea-Lugo to reflect on the 2016 peace agreement and its implementation. Many have questioned the peace deal’s survival since President Iván Duque Márquez’s ascension to power in 2018. Further attention will be given to the recent deployment of US troops to Colombia and its effect on relations with Venezuela. Finally, there will be a discussion on the role of the international peace movement in the peace process. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the topic with the speakers.

The Organizing Committee of the World Conference against A and H Bombs met on May 8 in full session and proposed that on August 6 through 9 of this 75th year of the A-bomb tragedies it launches an international joint grassroots action “Peace Wave” with the common aim of the elimination of nuclear weapons and with the signature campaign for the “Appeal of the Hibakusha for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons” (petition enclosed) as our common action.

Starting from Hiroshima at 8:15 am on Aug. 6, the time the bomb was dropped, waves of many creative forms of actions will encircle the globe westward along with its rotation until 11:02 am on Aug. 9, the time the A-bomb was dropped over Nagasaki.

By origin, the “Peace Wave” was jointly proposed by the delegates of the then Soviet and US peace movements at the 1987 World Conference against A and H Bombs, as an international joint action making the signature drive in support of the “Appeal from Hiroshima and Nagasaki”, which called for a total ban and the elimination of nuclear weapons, a common action and the elimination of nuclear weapons as common goal. Coupled with the unique idea of the waves of action encircling the globe at the fixed time, the first Peace Wave enjoyed extensive support worldwide and took place at noon of Oct. 24, the first day of the 10th UN Disarmament Week in 1987, moving from the international date line westward through 50 countries of the five continents and Pacific islands. The “Peace Wave” was altogether held five times until 1991, and played an unparalleled role in making the elimination of nuclear weapons a common demand of the anti-nuclear peace movements worldwide, bringing it onto the agenda of the international politics.

The Peace Wave campaign we are now launching will bring the global trend for a nuclear weapon-free world onto a new stage. Given the world facing wars and conflicts, Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, economic gap, poverty and many other critical problems, it is urgently called for to overcome the divisions and confrontations caused by “My Country First” particularism, and to stop conflicts, abolish nuclear weapons and ensure that the cooperation and solidarity will prevail. Let us make the “Peace Wave” a tremendous campaign by which the anti-nuclear movements, in cooperation with all other movements demanding the cut in military expenditures, protection of human lives, livings and jobs, gender equality and other vital needs, will take the lead in establishing a nuclear weapon-free, peaceful and just world.

The Peace Wave can be taken up by anyone in any form — from a lone action at home to big demonstrations with tens of thousands of people, including virtual, social network-based events or in-person meetings or marches suited for respective conditions at different places. You can prepare and join any activity at any country under any circumstances, making full use of your imagination, creativity and solidarity. The key to success is your willingness and actions.

Please send in information on your planned activities to the Peace Wave Action Committee, using this form and sending it to intl@antiatom.org.  They will gather and compile all the information of planned activities in different parts of the world in the Peace Wave News, which will shared and sent out across the planet, offering a global platform for solidarity.

Conversations hosted by Foreign Policy in Focus about budget priorities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic:
– Underlying trends that strengthen the case for a fully sustainable recovery from the pandemic;
– Pertinent facts, statistics and case studies that bolster the progressive case;
– Examples of new organizing energy related to a “pandemic pivot.”

With:
Jeff Abramson, Wendela de Vries, Cora Fabros, Bill Hartung, Miriam Pemberton, Jordi Calvo, Lindsay Koshgarian and David Vine

Facilitates:
John Feffer

The Gaesong Industrial Complex (GIC, located in North Korea) is a joint project between North and South Korea that promotes peace and economic development through inter-Korean economic cooperation. The project was launched in 2003 as a result of the 2000 Korea summit talks. In 2016, the project was shut down, and sanctions on North Korea prevent the complex from re-opening. As tensions on the Korean peninsula once again rise – including the destruction of the Liaison Office by North Korea – this webinar aims to share the values of peace cherished by the GIC.

Featuring:

Jin-Hyang Kim, President, Gaeseong Industrial District Foundation

Jun Kyu Lee, Institute for Reunification and Peace Policy, Hanshin University

Enkhsaikhan Jargalsaikhan, Blue Banner/GPPAC

Hyun Lee, Women Cross DMZ

Introduction and moderation by Lisa Clark, Co-President of IPB

Concluding remarks by Reiner Braun, Executive Director of IPB

Register by sending your name and affiliation to info@ipb-office.berlin

IPB is a co-sponsor of an IPPNW-produced film, “The Vow from Hiroshima”, which will be available on the video platform Vimeo for 24-hours on August 9^th. The link is https://vimeo.com/424163926. Please keep this in mind an share it prior to (and on) August 9^th!

2020 World Conference against A and H Bombs (online）

Theme: “With the Hibakusha, Let Us Achieve a Nuclear Weapon-free, Peaceful and

Just World – for the Future of the Humankind and Our Planet”

(Zoom webinar: 1000 participants + YouTube)

Opening Session:

Report from the Organizer: Noguchi Kunikazu, Co-Chair of the Steering Committee of the

World Conference

Greetings from Nihon Hidankyo (Japan Confederation of A-and H-Bomb Sufferers

Organizations)

Report from the Hibakusha: Setsuko Thurlow

Guest speaker: Takami Mitsuaki, Archbishop of Nagasaki

Introduction of messages

Session I: Cooperation for the abolition of nuclear weapons, survival of humanity, peace and justice in the world:

Joseph Gerson, Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security, U.S.A.

Kate Hudson, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, U.K.

Oleg Bodrov, Public Council of the South Coast of the Gulf of Finland, Russia

Reiner Braun, International Peace Bureau

Yasui Masakazu, Japan Council against A & H Bombs (Gensuikyo)

Session II: A nuclear-free, peaceful Asia and the role of Japan as the A-bombed country

Lee Jun Kyu, Senior Researcher, Institute for Unification and Peace Policy,

Hanshin University

Dong Huy Cuong, Vietnam Peace Committee

Anuradha Chenoy, AEPF, India

Japan

Closing Session:

Q & A, Discussion

Release of the conference statement

Closing remarks

2020 World Conference against A and H Bombs (online）

Theme: “With the Hibakusha, Let Us Achieve a Nuclear Weapon-free, Peaceful and

Just World – for the Future of the Humankind and Our Planet”

(Zoom Webinar: 1000 participants + YouTube)

Organizer’s Report: Tomida Koji, Drafting Committee Chairperson of the International Meeting

Testimony of the Hibakusha

Announcement of the start of the “Peace Wave” international joint actions

Guest speakers:

Mayor of Hiroshima City

Representative of the U.N. (TBC)

Ambassador Thomas Hajnoczi, Austria

Introduction of messages

Session I: Global Cooperation for a Nuclear Weapon-Free World

Podemos, Spain (TBC)

Beatrice Fihn, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

Nakano Koichi, Civil Alliance for Peace and Constitutionalism, Japan

Yasuda Natsuki, Photo journalist, NGO tackling poverty and economic justice, Japan

Cultural program/ Mini-concert

Session II: Grass-roots Activism across the World

Peace Action, U.S.A.

Kate Hudson, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, U.K.

Peace March (Video)

Medical worker (Japan)

Inaba Minako, Youth Section, National Confederation of Trade Unions, Japan

New Japan Women’s Association

Appeal from Hiroshima

2020 World Conference against A and H Bombs (online）

Theme: “With the Hibakusha, Let Us Achieve a Nuclear Weapon-free, Peaceful and

Just World – for the Future of the Humankind and Our Planet”

(Zoom webinar: 1000 participants + YouTube)

Organizer’s Report: Anzai Ikuro, Committee of Chairpersons of the World Conference (TBC)

Testimony of the Hibakusha

Guest speakers:

Ambassador of Mexico to Japan (TBC)

Amir Hamzah Mohd Nasir, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of Malaysia to the U.N.

Mayor of Nagasaki City (Video message)

Introduction of messages

Session I: Global Cooperation for a Nuclear Weapon-Free World

Carlos Umaña, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War

Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom

Philipp Jennings, International Peace Bureau

Takemoto Masahiro, environmentalist, Japan

Yoshiwara Tsuyoshi, Federation of Promotion of Zero-Nuclear Power and Renewable

Energy, Japan

Cultural program/ Mini-concert

Session II: Grass-roots Activism across the World

Solidarity for Peace and Reunification of Korea (SPARK), Republic of Korea

French Peace Movement, France

(Nagasaki) Japan

(University student) Japan

(High school student) Japan

Announcement on the conclusion of the “Peace Wave” international joint actions

Organizer’s statement (Letter to Governments of the World)

Commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: An Online Gathering to Call for a World Free From Nuclear Weapons

August 5, 2020 | 12:00 pm Central Europe/ 7:00 pm Japan

Join the IPB and esteemed speakers for an online gathering to remember and reflect on the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki 75 years ago. In commemorating the past, we are simultaneously outlining a plan for the future – one that includes the complete abolition of nuclear weapons. Speakers will share what the anniversary means to them, how it has influenced their lives and work, and how every individual can contribute to the campaign to ensure that the atrocities that occurred in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are never repeated.

Speakers:

• Noam Chomsky, social and political activist, by video recording
• Masako Wada, Nagasaki Hibakusha and Assistant Secretary General of Hidankyo
• Daniel Högsta, Campaign Coordinator of the International Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)
• Sara Medi Jones, Campaigner for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and IPB Council Member
• Owen Tudor, Deputiy General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)

Moderated by Lisa Clark, IPB Co-President

To register, send an email to info@ipb-office.berlin with your name and affiliation.

Date/Time
Date(s) – Friday – Sep 25, 2020
11:00 am – 5:30 pm

Location
Konferenzraum der IALANA/IPB

Day: Friday September 25^th, 2020

Time: from 11am to 5.30 pm (Central European Summer Time)

Location: 10117 Berlin, Marienstraße 19/20 (Meeting room)

Virtualization: Hybrid conference with additional zoom participation

Initialized by Stopp Air Base Ramstein, with participation and support from:

• European Left
• International Peace Bureau
• No to war – no to NATO

The Campaign „Stopp Air Base Ramstein“ (www.ramstein-kampagne.eu) invites you to the 4^th international congress against military bases and wars.

We will discuss about the international political situation and how to enlarge our struggle against war machinery and warfare. A focus should be the discussion about the protection of the environment and how military bases, war machinery and wars are destroying the environment and the climate.

Key points of the international conference will be:

• the actual political situation and relevance of military bases and presence of war machinery in conflict regions worldwide
• what to do to come back to an international policy of cooperation
• exchange of information about the actions against military bases in different countries in the world
• analysis of social movements worldwide for cooperation in our struggle for disarmament
• coordination for future common actions, specially how to strengthen the international Anti Bases network

Corona changes many things including the structure and the arrangement of our congress. It will be a hybrid meeting with physical presence and video participation (details see last page).

We hope you can attend the conference personally in Berlin. All security needs demanded from the authorities will be handled by us.

Program

11:00 Opening plenary

Welcome Kristine Karch, No to war – no to NATO, campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein, Heinz Bierbaum, President of the European Left

11.10 to 11.25 Opening Lecture

Ludo De Brabander, vrede vzw, Belgium

11.45 till 12.30 Talk

Environmental destruction and climate pollution by military bases with Pat Elder, World Beyond War, USA (zoom) and Karl-Heinz Peil, campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein

Moderation: Kristine Karch

12.30 till 1.30 Case studies

Four military bases – our fights – one world

• Suzuyo Takazato, All Okinawa Peace Network,
  Japan (zoom)
• A-Young Moon, Peacemomo, South Korea (zoom)
• N. Nomuos, Sicilia
• Conny Burkard-Schmitz, local initiative against the Air Base Ramstein, campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein

Moderation: Alain Rouy, Mouvement de la Paix, France

Break

2.15 till 3.45 Further information
about fights against military bases and maneuver
(DEFENDER …)

• Julietta Daza, activist, Venezuela (zoom)
• Ann Wright, Code Pink, veterans for Peace,
  Hawaii/USA (zoom)
• Angelika Becker, Netzwerk Cuba – informationsbüro – e.V.
• John Lannon, Shannonwatch and PANA, Ireland
• Dave Webb, CND, UK

4.00 till 5.30pm Visions
for a world without military bases, nuclear weapons, and wars

• Introduction Reiner Braun, IPB, campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein
• Alexander Neu, Member of the German Bundestag

Open discussion

www.ramstein-kampagne.eu/ | facebook.com/stoppramstein | twitter.com /Stopp Ramstein | youtube.com/MoveNOW.TV | instagram.com/stoppramstein/

International Day of Peace Lecture

Presented by:
Dr Gillian Triggs and Dr Tillman Ruff

FREE EVENT
September 21, 2020
7:00 PM to 8:00 PM

St John’s Cathedral
405 Ann St, 373 Ann St, Brisbane, QLD 4000 (Australia)

In the 75th year of the United Nations formed after 60 million people died in WW2,
the International Day of Peace will be held both virtually and limited in person.
Gillian Triggs will deliver the keynote address with an introduction by Dr Tilman
Ruff ICAN board member. Gillian has been appointed Assistant Secretary-General,
Assistant High Commissioner for Protection.

To book a seat at the Cathedral (max 70 persons) register at:
https://www.trybooking.com/BLHQB
To virtually attend register at:
https://www.trybooking.com/BLHQY

Organised and supported by:
– United Nations Australia
– Just Peace Qld
– WILPF
– St. John’s Cathedral
– University of Queensland
– Griffith University
– Rotary Peace Scholars

Download the flyer here

WEBINAR: Militarised Geoplitics versus People’s Alternatives

Join our upcoming webinar where we will seek to analyse and question the hegemonic & militarised trends in global geopolitics and contrast these with peoples’ security approaches, focussing on social and economic justice and equality.
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_6TTZ4N_MTByvkgjaGDCb2A

Even as the world is caught in the multiple impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, climate and ecological crises, recession, inequality, hollowing out of democracies, suppression of dissent and minorities by elected authoritarian regimes, geopolitics and a race for hegemony between great powers, regional powers and power blocs continues.
These geopolitical rivalries are a variation of past ideological/ inter-imperialist confrontations with current neoliberal rivalries and the race for hegemony and influence.
The geopolitical and geo-economic contradictions range from the play between the existing great power (USA) and rising powers power (China); to resurgent power Russia; to the assertions of the EU; aspirations of Asian powers like Iran, India, Turkey; to frozen conflicts like between North and South Korea, India-Pakistan, China, etc.
These rivalries encompass the control /influence over territories, maritime routes, seas, outer space. The race for influence includes control over financial flows, communications, new technologies, scientific and cultural competition. This competition is backed by trans-national capital and corporations that is willing to backs chauvinist/racist nationalisms, and turn a blind eye to disasters in the interest of profit. This is evident in the rise of conflict embedded and failed states, migration and refugee flows, suppression of dissent, crushing of labour rights, etc. This strategic competition has deep ecological consequences, negatively impacts the climate and damages people’s lives

In this webinar, we seek to analyse and question the hegemonic/militarised trends in global geopolitics and contrast these with peoples’ security approaches, focussing on social and economic justice and equality.

Speakers:
Marga Ferré (Transform!; Spain)
Lavinia Steinfort (TNI; The Netherlands)
Walden Bello (Activist/Writer/Former MP; The Philippines)
Tariq Ali (Activist/Writer; UK/Pakistan)

Moderators:
Anuradha Chenoy & Kris Vanslambrouck

The webinar will be in English, with translation to Bahasa and Urdu.

Webinar: A Climate for Peace
by the Peace Union of Finland and the IPB

Saturday November 7th
10.30 – 12.30 Peace, Health and Development

The world is facing an array of crises: from great power conflict and nuclear weapon buildups to climate change, health pandemics and inequality. With peace as a center point, this webinar will discuss today’s challenges and the linkages between the issues. The wide range of speakers will discuss how to address the issues and create a true climate of peace.

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/94378862463 

10:00–10:10 Opening words Lisa Clark , IPB co-president.

10:10–10:30 The two interlinked mega challenges in today’s world:

– How to prevent nuclear war and achieve nuclear disarmament
– How to stop global warming and promote sustainable development

Key note address by Dan Smith, the Director of SIPRI

10.30–11.15 Comments by Philip Jennings Co-president IPB – International Peace Bureau, and Kaisu Kinnunen, Chair of Sadankomitea.

Questions and comments

(Short break)

11.30–12.15 Peace, Health and Development

1. Early lessons of the COVID pandemic on the concept of Health and Development
2. The links between Disarmament and Development

Remarks by Sally Wambui Kamiti (IPPNW), Binalakshim Nepram (CAFI), Jordi Calvo (Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau and IPB).

Questions and comments

12.15–12.30 Concluding statement on Prospects for a Culture of Peace by Ingeborg Breines, peace educator, former director of the Women and a Culture of Peace Programme of Unesco

12.40 Closing words by Tarja Cronberg, chair Peace Union

Date/Time
Saturday – Oct 31, 2020
1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Tensions around nuclear weapons are growing on the European continent, between Russia and the US and their allies, and the main nuclear bilateral disarmament agreements have been destroyed. Nevertheless, the Treaty the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons will soon enter into force and it clearly prohibits any nation from allowing any stationing, installation or deployment of any nuclear weapons or other nuclear devices in its territory or at any place under its jurisdiction or control.

Despite this international prohibition, the determination of the US government to “modernize” the nuclear weapons hosted in the 5 states (Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and Turkey) is unaffected, and is planned to begin next year. The new bombs (B61-12) will start to be produced next year. With a guided tail kit that increases their targeting accuracy and efficiency, they can cover all bomb missions (tactical as well as strategic). On top of this « efficiency » to kill and destroy, the cost of the weapons and the aircraft carrier is huge in terms of money, resources, and environmental degradation, at a time where resources and cooperation are urgently needed for healthcare and environmental preservation.

In the 5 hosting states, the protests are building up and there is a will to coordinate actions and expand them beyond each country.

This Online Conference is dedicated to:

– Informing and debating about the global situation and in each hosting state
– Exploring possible joint actions against the “modernization” of the nuclear arsenals

To register for the Zoom Meeting contact: arielled@ipb.org

1:00-1:10 Opening Presentation of the NUCLEAR WEAPON FREE EUROPE NETWORK- Reiner Braun, IPB
1:00-1:15 What is the impact of the TPNW on hosting states? ICAN representative
1:15-1:20 Overview and proposals: Ludo de Brabander, VREDE
Updates from national networks against nuclear weapons in hosting states:
1:20-1:30 Situation in Italy
1:30-1:40 Situation in the Netherlands
1:40-1:50 Situation in Germany
1:50-2:00 Situation in Belgium
2:00-2:10 Summary of possible common actions
2:10-3:50 Discussion- Q&A
3:50-4:00 Conclusion

WEBINAR AEPF-GCOMS
Military Spending and Global (in)Security.  

Date: 3 December 2020
Hour: 14h (CET)

Speakers include:

– Walden Bello
– Binalakshmi Nepram
– Michael T. Klare
– Tarja Cronberg
– Jordi Calvo and Corazon Fabros (moderators)

Together with the Asia-Europe People’s Forum (AEPF), GCOMS is organizing a webinar on Military Spending and Global (in)Security, which is part of a wider shared strategy to put military budgets and spending priorities in the agenda.

You can find more information about the book here:
https://www.routledge.com/Military-Spending-and-Global-Security-Humanitarian-and-Environmental-Perspectives/Calvo-Rufanges/p/book/9780367493394

PEACE AND DISARMAMENT – CAMPAIGNING FOR PEACE & DISARMAMENT
In partnership with the International Peace Bureau

Our speakers are: Binalakshmi “Bina” Nepram (left), an indigenous scholar and a woman human rights defender; Chloé
Meulewaeter (centre), collaborator of the Centre Delàs of Peace Studies and a PhD student in Peace Culture; and Arielle Denis
(right), former campaign Director for the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) for Europe, Middle East and
Africa, and consultant for for the International Peace Bureau (IPB).
The webinar will highlight key issues for peace and disarmament, as well as present and discuss campaigns and the peace
movement to foster a more peaceful world. Furthermore, possibilities of engagement and personal action in the presented
fields will be introduced and discussed.

Webinar 2
Time: 15:00 UTC
Date: Monday, 23 November 2020
Register: https://event.webinarjam.com/channel/LBE_Webinar2

This webinar is part of a series consisting of 12 webinars for students, youth leaders and youth peace activists, on various topics related to
Human Rights, Nonviolence and Conflict Resolution, Leadership, and SDGs, presented by experts in the field of Peace Building, including Nobel Peace Laureates and Organisations.
The webinars form part of the Permanent Secretariat’s Youth Program of Nobel Peace Laureates, Leading by Example, and the series is presented in partnership with the Gandhi King Foundation (India).

Next Sunday, January 24 at 17 hours (CET), our campaign will be hosting a webinar on military spending within the World Social Forum, as part of the activities scheduled during the “Peace and War” Day of this year’s edition. The main goal of our session will be to bring attention to military spending as a key issue for social movements around the world seeking environmental & social justice.

Our conference will get together experts and activists of GCOMS, who will discuss current levels of military spending globally from a critical perspective, arguing that ever-growing military power perpetuates and exacerbates conflicts and instability around the world. In line with IPB’s and GCOMS message, speakers will argue that military spending does not provide true security to people and prevents us from adequately dealing with the global challenges social movements present at this Forum are facing, such as climate change, increasing inequality, migrations, systemic racism or even the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moderator: Jordi Calvo – Moderator (Spain), GCOMS Coordinator, IPB Vice-President and Centre Delàs Coordinator.
Panelists:
– Colin Archer (UK), former IPB Secretary‐General and Sean MacBride Peace Prize Winner
– Chloé Meulewaeter (Belgium), GCOMS Consultant and Centre Delàs researcher
– Tori Bateman (USA), American Friends Service Committee
– Quique Sánchez (Spain), GCOMS Officer

After an introduction by Jordi Calvo, Colin Archer will cover the 10 years of GCOMS history and activism to reduce military spending; Chloé Meulewaeter will speak about the connections between military spending and conflict and about the Peace Dividend; Tori Bateman, for its part, will analyse military spending in the U.S., which amounts to 38% of the world’s total; After that, Quique Sánchez will discuss military spending from a human security perspective, giving context to military budgets around the world and trying to make evident what current levels of military spending entail for the struggles of other social movements.
After the Q&A, the hosts will close the session with a Call to Action for the Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS), this spring, and will bring attention to IPB’s World Peace Congress, which will take place in Barcelona from October 15 to 17, 2021.

Following your registration you will receive a link to our Zoom room where the webinar will take place.
If you prefer so, you could also follow the session on our YouTube Channel.
If you have any doubts or comments you can also send an email to: coordination.gcoms@ipb.org

The programme of the January 24 Thematic Space for “Peace and War” within the 2021 World Social Forum will cover geopolitics, militarization, refugees and migration, and has been put together by Leo Gabriel (Network Against Right Wing Extremism and Populism), Kristine Karch (No to War – No to NATO), Reiner Braun (IPB Director), and Eskil Grav (IPB Officer). See more details and the full program here.

You can register to the GCOMS session and receive the link to our Zoom room by filling in this form:
https://forms.gle/sDoNWpDiBeY9vy7Q7

Date/Time
Date(s) – Friday – Jan 22, 2021
1:00 pm CET

Register to join the event here: https://bit.ly/ipbprt

Dear IPB Family and Friends,

On January 22^nd, the world will celebrate the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), supported by over 120 states at the UN in July 2017.

On this historic day, we call on members of the IPB family, our friends and all peace lovers to celebrate this historical step, and deliver this great news with noise and fun in your countries all across the globe, as the road to a world free of nuclear weapons is now wide open!

We invite you to join us for a virtual IPB Zoom party where we will celebrate this milestone toward nuclear disarmament together!

During the celebration, we want to pay tribute to generations of activists that have tirelessly raised awareness about the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons, since the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The victims of these bombings and the survivors, the Hibakusha are in our hearts to celebrate together a new era: with the TPNW filling a gap in international law, we are closer than ever to the complete abolition of nuclear weapons.

Our party will start at 1 p.m. CET and last approximately until 3 p.m. CET on Friday the 22^nd of January.

You can look forward to drinking one (or many) of our delicious signature TPNW cocktails in the company of fellow supporters of peace and disarmament.  We have a couple of surprise virtual guests and activities prepared for you but you will have to come and see by yourself!

You can attend by signing up to the event here: https://bit.ly/ipbprt

We are looking forward to seeing you there!

Greetings from Philip, Lisa, Reiner, Amela, Arielle, Sean, Eskil and Julia.

Global Civic Agenda for Peace and SDGs in 2021

15:00-16:30 on 8 Feb. (Monday) 2021 – GMT+9

(New York 1 AM, London 6 AM, Rome/Paris 7 AM, New Delhi 11:30 AM, Bangkok 1 PM)

Virtual / Updated 24 January 2021

Background and Objectives

The session aims at introducing and setting global agenda for civil society advocacy for democratic global governance and people-centered multilateralism in 2021 in the context of Building Back Better from the COVID-19 Pandemic. The agenda which are inter-connected in nature will be addressed for cross fertilization and synergy to overcome silos and fragmentation.  The agenda will include the Global Campaign on Military Spending (GCOMS), C20 action on 2021 G20 Summit in Rome, Italy UN Decade of Action to Deliver the SDGs by 2030, UN Declaration on the 75^th Anniversary of the UN and COVID-19 Pandemic.  The outcome of the session will be incorporated into the 2021 revision of the PyeongChang Agenda for Peace (PCAP) 2030.

Co-Organizers

Asia Civil Society Partnership for Sustainable Development (APSD) / CIVICUS / Action for Sustainable Development (A4SD) / Civil 20 (C20) on G20 / Coalition for the UN We Need  / International Peace Bureau (IPB) / UN Foundation

in partnership with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)

Program Agenda and Timeline

Contact Person / Moderator

Anselmo Lee, Asian Coordinator of the APSD

Asia@APSD2030.org / www.APSD2030.org  / +82-1042930707

The International Peace Bureau invites you to a RoundTable Discussion on:

US-China Relations – Challenges & Prospects for Disarmament in Asia Pacific

Feb.18 Thursday 13.00 CET 7:00am US Eastern time

(8:00pm PH-China-Mongolia; 9:00pm Japan/Korea; 7:00pm Bkk/Jakarta/Hanoi; 5:30pm Delhi)

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwtfuyrqDwqG9EQFh3OhrkZmIDMWniO_EFV

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting

About the Speakers: 

Wang Danning 

Professor, China Women’s University
Research Fellow, Charhar Institute

After graduating from Peking University with a bachelor degree in sociology,

she went to the City University of New York (CUNY) to pursue her doctoral

degree in anthropology. As the “center of Marxism in the west hemisphere”,

CUNY is strong in the studies of capitalism, globalization, and political economy

of modern society. Dr. Wang received her Ph.D. in 2002 and taught in three

universities in the USA and Hong Kong before she joined CWU in Beijing.

Between 2012 and 2015, Dr. Wang was the associate director at the Gender

Research Center in Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and the co-chair

of Chinese Society of Women Studies (CSWS), a global NGO organized by

scholars and activists in the field of women studies. Her research specialties

are: gender and family studies in East Asia; economic anthropology; urban

anthropology. She has published numerous articles and chapters in these
fields and she worked with her colleagues to edit a collective volume and

published by Routledge.

Since 2015, Dr. Wang’s research focus shifted to the studies of Belt and Road

initiative and peace and development in Northeast Asia. She has been working

with the Global Peace Foundation, GPPAC, and Charhar Institute on the topic

of peace and development issues in the NEA region. Currently, while teaching,

writing, and conducting researches in CWU, Dr. Wang also started a foundation

in Hong Kong to catalyze the cultural exchanges along the Belt and Road.

Belt and Road Culture Exchange Foundation for Women was designed to

support women and youth in participating in the cultural exchanges in Northeast

Asia and East Asia.

Joseph Gerson

Joseph Gerson is President of the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and

Common Security and Vice-President of the International Peace Bureau,

co-founder of the Committee for a SANE U.S.-China Policy and convener

of the U.S.-based Asia-Pacific Working Group. He is also associated with

other peace. justice and climate organizations.

He helped launch to nuclear weapons Freeze movement of the 1980s,

and has long worked closely with Japanese A-bomb survivors, and Asia-Pacific

and European nuclear disarmament and peace movement leaders. He was

the lead organizer of the 2020 online World Conference: Abolish Nuclear

Weapons, Resist and Reverse Climate Change, for Social and Economic Justice

with participants from 39 nations and is currently leading the Peace & Planet

Network’s planning for civil society actions on the eve of August’s Nuclear

Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference

Gerson’s PhD is in Politics and International Security Studies, and his books

Include With Hiroshima Eyes: Atomic War, Nuclear Extortion and Moral Imagination,

The Deadly Connection: Nuclear War and U.S. Military Intervention, The Sun Never Sets

and Empire and the Bomb. He has taught at Tufts University, the College of the Holy

Cross, and Regis College. His recent articles include “The South China Sea: Conflict

or Common Security in the Epicenter of Global Geopolitics” and “Facing

History and Ourselves: Full Spectrum Dominance from White Supremacy to Hiroshima & Nagasaki”

A Civil Rights movement activist and Vietnam War era draft resister and organizer,

he later joined War Resisters International i n Europe, where he worked with WWI

conscientious objectors, nonviolent resisters to Nazi rule, PLO representatives

and Israeli pacifists.

Commentators:

Anuradha Chenoy is the former dean at School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

She has been chairperson of Area Studies Director in the Centre for Russian and Central Asian Studies. She has written many books,

monographs and articles in the domain of security studies, development studies and gender studies. She has held short term

consultancies with the International Committee of the Red Cross, UNESCO, Action Aid International, UN Women, UN Peace keepers.

She has also evaluated the work of organisations like Focus on the Global South and the Asia Europe Peoples Forum.

Enkhsaikhan Jargalsaikhan

Former diplomat of Mongolia and a Leader of Blue Banner, an NGO that has

consistently campaigned for a nuclear free Mondolia and is part of the Ulanbaatar Initiative for a Northeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty.  He is a Board Member of IPB

Lee Junkyu

University of North Korean Studies in Seoul,South Korea. A firm believer of the power of the people.

Our expert in North Korean concerns in IPB where he is a member of the Board

Moderator: Cora Fabros, Co–Vice President, IPB

Date/Time
Date(s) – Friday – Mar 5, 2021
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

In order to mark the upcoming International Women’s Day, the IPB would like to introduce its webinar, “Gender and Disarmament”. 

Panellists scheduled to speak are:

Ms. Emiko Hirano, New Japan Women’s Association (Japan)
Emiko joined the anti-nuclear peace movement when she took part in the World Conference against Atomic & Hydrogen Bombs in 1984 for the first time as an international secretariat staff member. Struck and deeply touched by the Hibakusha’s testimonies, she committed herself to working for the elimination of nuclear weapons by making the best use of her language skill.
After graduating from the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies where she majored in Spanish and got involved in the solidarity movement with Asia, Africa and Latin America along with the nuclear abolition movement, she taught English at a private high school, engaged in family farming with her husband’s parents, and in 1998, she started to work full time at national office of the New Japan Women’s Association (Shinfujin). Shinfujin is a women’s non-governmental organization founded in 1962, whose mission is to achieve a nuclear-free and sustainable world, to promote rights women and children, and to build solidarity of women around the world for peace. It holds a special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Emiko takes charge of Shinfujin’s international work at UN, attending the UN Commission on the Status of Women, and other conferences and meetings related to gender equality and peace. Since November 2019, Emiko is assigned also to promote the peace campaign.

Dr. Lisa Natividad, Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice (Guam)
Lisa Linda Natividad is a Professor of Social Work at the University of Guam.  She is also the primary convener of the Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice and a founding member of I Hagan Famalao’an Guahan.   She is an indigenous CHamoru who has championed the exposure of the human rights violations against her people and homeland Guahan, which is a military colony of the United States.  She has spoken globally on the topics of demilitarization, decolonization, and the critical role women play in the creation of safe and thriving communities.  Dr. Natividad has presented interventions on the halting of the massive military build-up on Guahan before the United Nations Fourth Committee, Decolonization Committee, and the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.  She is a former member of the Guam Decolonization Commission and has spoken on these issues in Japan, the Philippines, the Untied States, Norway, Ecuador, Fiji, and other countries.

Ms Jung Min Choi, World Without War (South Korea)
Jung Min Choi is the coordinator of nonviolence training at ‘World Without War’, a South Korean antimilitarists organisation based in Seoul that supports conscientious objectors and takes action against the arms trade. She also worked on the migrant women program at Durebang, a women’s rights organization in Gijichon in 2012-18.
World Without War is a pacifism and anti-militarism organization that works to eliminate various causes of war and war based on the belief that every war is a crime against humanity, and began its activities in 2003 with a group of conscientious objectors and their supporters. Currently, World Without War is expanding its activities through various peace campaigns such as arms trade monitoring campaigns and nonviolent programs in addition to conscientious objection.

Opening remarks will be given by IPB Co-President, Lisa Clark.
The event will be moderated by IPB board member and Founder-Director of the Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network,  Binalakshmi “Bina” Nepram.

To register for the event, please click here.

About the event

“He recalled his mother’s last letter. ‘What would she feel,’ he wondered, ‘if she saw me here now, on this field, with cannon aimed at me?’ ~ Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace, 1865

For more than a century women and women’s organisations and movements have mobilised in support of peace and disarmament. There have been examples of women’s organisations and movements at the national, regional and international level with a primary focus on peace and disarmament. It is noted as early as in 1904 when women of Manipur fought using non-violent tactics against British Colonial Rule in First Women’s War and exploitative policies in and later in April 28, 1915 for the first time in history when nearly 1,200 women called “International Congress for Women” from warring and neutral countries came together to protest the conflict at The Hague in Holland.

During the Cold War, women lobbied against stockpiling and possible use of nuclear weapons. After a 1959 Conference on the “Responsibility of Women in the Atomic Age”, the newly formed “European Movement of Women Against Nuclear Disarmament” and other women’s groups, embarked on a massive educational and petition campaign. Around the world, in the Pacific region, women have organised against nuclear testing. For instance a group of women in Japan set up a peace camp at the base of Mount Fuji. Women’s groups in Africa have also been involved in advocating for peace and reconstruction as seen in Angola, Burundi, Somalia and Niger.

An individual’s decision to disarm is influenced by his/her/their perception of personal and economic security, an issue which is closely related to women. This makes disarmament a continuing process that is dependent on myriad factors such as the state’s ability to protect its citizens, crime levels, economic opportunities and the degree to which a weapon has become legitimate within society. A key to understanding why women have organisations in favour of disarmament is the link many women have made between gender equality and peace. The United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security was adopted in October 2000. This resolution specifically mentions the need to incorporate gender perspectives in disarmament, demobilisation and rehabilitation initiatives. This resolution was a monumental turning point in recognizing the concept of women’s direct contribution to Disarmament.

The webinar on 5 March is being organised by Asia Group of International Peace Bureau to mark International Women’s Day of 2021 and will be focusing on the sharing of important ongoing work done in this field. We look forward to having you with us.

The international peace movement is gathering in Barcelona in October! Join us!!

The Second IPB World Congress aims to build on the foundation established during our gathering in Berlin in 2016 by
bringing together vast swathes of civil society groups to cooperate on identifying strategies and solutions to the challenges of our times. With the support of local, national, regional, and international organizations and individuals working for peace, disarmament, climate justice, human rights, and more, the congress will offer something for everyone and inspiration for us all as we strive for a better future after the Coronavirus pandemic.

This World Congress will bring together a wide variety of experts and advocates from all around the world. Speakers will come from all kinds of disciplines and backgrounds, including both high level representatives and grassroots level voices. It will equally involve diverse fields: peace organizations, feminist and civil rights groups, labor unions, environmentalists, educators, religious and spiritual groups, development workers, human rights defenders…

Five years after our 2016 Berlin Congress, “Disarm! For a Climate of Peace”, the International Peace Bureau is proud to host the Second IPB World Peace Congress, “(Re) Imagine our World: Action for Peace and Justice” in the Mediterranean city of Barcelona. Our goal is to bring together vast swaths of civil society – from peace and disarmament movements to human and trade union rights campaigners, environmental activists, and social movements – to generate a unified response to the anxiety of the current crises.

We have a planetary crisis: a world in which confrontational policies have replaced international cooperation on issues ranging from arms control and common security to the climate emergency, threats to democratic institutions, and health crises – most notably the Covid-19 pandemic. Only by coming together can we address these interlinked and overlapping problems that threaten us all; therefore, our gathering aims not only to bring these groups together, but to envision shared policy solutions that can serve as a call to action for social movements and decision makers at the global, regional, national, and local levels.

At the center of these policy proposals comes the idea of ‘building back better for peace’. The Covid-19 crisis has made clearer than ever the costs of returning to the status quo and the necessity to create a better system – one that promotes equality, addresses the existential threat of climate change, and understands the need for true security, not the faux security of yearly increases in military spending at the cost of social services. We firmly believe that the only way to truly do so is to put peace at the center of the ‘new normal’.

Date/Time
Date(s) – Wednesday – Mar 17, 2021
9:00 am – 10:30 am

In 2020, the annual IPB Séan MacBride Peace was awarded to US-based movement Black Lives Matter (BLM) and the International Signature Campaign in Support of the Appeal of the Hibakusha, one of the largest global signature campaigns to date, launched in 2016 by Japanes organization HIDANKYO.

On March, 17th 2021 at 17.00 JST/Tokyo, 9.00 CET, the Prize will formally be awarded during a virtual Ceremony featuring speeches by IPB Co-Presidents Lisa Clark and Philip Jennings, remarks by IPB-Board Member Asato Rieko and HIDANKYO Co-Chair Terumi Tanaka and Moderation by IPB Executive Director Reiner Braun.

Please find the full programme below.

SéanMBride Prize Programme FINAL

Register here:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEucOytrzMjHNJ0SfE1rnjsIFU85aTlLAMJ

AEPF 13: an overview

From 17th until 24th May 2021, the Asia Europe People’s Forum (AEPF) will hold its 13th biennial People’s Forum under the title “Asia Europe Peope’s Forum for a Just, Peaceful and Sustainable World”.

AEPF13 will be a virtual event with an exciting series of interlinked dialogues, workshops, actions, policy debates and plenary sessions. The outcome of this meeting in the form of a Final Declaration will be presented to the 13th Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM13) where heads of states from Asia and Europe will have discussions on future priorities and plans.

This is a call to social movements, frontline communities, campaigning networks and progressive NGOs, academics & parliamentarians across Asia and Europe to come join us and be part of an event that is open, dynamic and inclusive and focuses on meaningful and practical discussions for change.

Read More

 Programme & Registration

AEPF13 will take place from Monday 17^th of May until Monday 24^th of May.
The opening activity is planned on 17^th of May at 10AM CET.
The final programme is available here.

Registration to the GCOMS workship is available here.

Time : 15:10 pm – 16:30 pm (Seoul Time), 06:10 am – 07:30 am (UTC), 02:10 am – 03:30 am (EST) on 21 May 2021 

You can see the detailed program of each session from the below link. We invite you all to share your views and insights on building peace on the Korean Peninsula!

Please ▶ pre-register at the DMZ forum website or watch it through Youtube live stream. You can find the Youtube link from the DMZ forum website on the day.

*Korean-English simultaneous interpretation will be provided

NATO Heads of State will meet for their annual summit on Brussels on 14th June. Over the past decades the focus of these summits has been the increasing expansion and globalisation of NATO. This year it will focus on how to maintain western dominance in a world where China is rising economically. NATO’s answer as outlined in its recent NATO 2030: United for a New Era document, is to expand its orientation to the Asia Pacific, to deal with the ‘impact’ of the emerging China.
There is no place for NATO in the world we want to build: join our virtual counter-summit to discuss alternatives – in solidarity for peace, justice and disarmament.

Join us at the anti-NATO events – Sunday June 13 1. Global NATO: a Threat to Peace

3am-6:30am PST | 9am-12:30pm EDT | 1pm-4:30pm UTC | 2pm-5:30pm UK | 3pm-6:30pm CEST Interpretation: English, French and Spanish Introduction Heinz Bierbaum, Germany, President – European Left

Part I: 3am-4:30am PST | 9am-10:30am EDT | 1pm-2:30pm UTC | 2pm-3:30pm UK | 3pm-4:30pm CEST

• NATO2030 – NATO’s new global vision: Ludo De Brabander, Belgium, vrede vzw
• Nuclear weapons – abolition or new arms race?: Kate Hudson, UK, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND)
• Military spending on the rise: Chloé Meulewaeter, Barcelona, Centre Delàs d’Estudis per la Pau
• War on terror – 20 years on: Lindsey German, UK, Stop the War Coalition

Moderation: Kristine Karch, Germany, No to war – no to NATO

Part II: 5am-6:30am PST |11am-12:30pm EDT | 3pm-4:30pm UTC | 4pm-5:30pm UK | 5pm-6:30pm CEST

• NATO sets its sights on Asia: Corazon Valdez Fabros, Philippines, Nuclear Free Philippines Coalition (Filipinas)
• Pacific and China – we need a Pivot to Peace: Ann Wright, USA/Hawaii, Veterans for Peace
• Latin America – how far will NATO go?: Julieta Daza, Venzuela/Colombia, Juventud Rebelde, Campaign Stopp Air Base Ramstein
• Russia is still a NATO target – flashpoint Ukraine: Reiner Braun, Germany, IPB
• NATO in Africa: Alain Rouy, France, Movement de la Paix (tbc)

Moderation: Sara Medi Jones, UK, CND

Since the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, NATO has developed into a global alliance through expansion into Central and Eastern Europe, conducting destabilizing military interventions in the ‘war against terror’ and forging bilateral and multilateral alliances worldwide. At the NATO summit, the report “NATO 2030: United for a new Era” will be discussed. Its militaristic approach to security defines Russia and China as systemic rivals while complex problems in the south are treated simply in terms of counter-terrorist responses to extremist violence. In this webinar we’ll analyse NATO as a global militarist actor. Register at: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIofuhpj8tHNzDhRHtpOYU31UO56dlbn3s

Protest action in Brussels – June 13th: 1 – 2 pm BruPlace de l’AlbertinePlace de l’Albertine – Brussels (close to the Central Station) Wearing a mouth mask is mandatory, as is respecting the distance rules of 1.5 meters. The peace movement calls for a protest action on the eve of the summit on Sunday, June 13, to send a clear signal to NATO leaders. We say no to NATO’s policy of confrontation and Cold War. We ask instead:

• A global common security and relaxation
• Drastic reductions in military spending. Towards a world in which armaments are kept at the lowest possible level
• Transfer of armament resources to sectors that effectively contribute to the security of the population: social security, environmental security, diplomacy, the fight for equality and against exclusion, etc …
• Signing the UN Convention against Nuclear Weapons
• Nuclear bombs away from Kleine Brogel
• Stop the F-35 contract

Organise by: intal, CNAPD, Comité Surveillance OTAN, Pax Christi Vlaanderen, Agir pour la Paix, Comité Belge de soutien au peuple sahraoui, Amsterdam Peace Initiative, Nav-Bel, Vrede vzw

Register at: https://forms.gle/tTDp5kSt562HXQYh7

Monday June 14th: 1pm to 2.30pm CEST 1am-2:30am PST | 7am-8:30am EDT | 11am-12:30pm UTC | 12pm-1:30pm UK | 1pm-2:30pm CEST Interpretation: English, French, and Spanish

2. Dissolution of NATO – for solidarity, sustainability and disarmament

By diverting attention and resources to militarism, NATO will also make it difficult to achieve the urgent Paris Agreement climate targets and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Global solidarity and international cooperation is needed to solve common challenges: the pandemic, the climate emergency, and inequality. With diplomacy, disarmament and sustainable development through a democratised United Nations system, there is no need for this western hemisphere-dominated, anachronistic military alliance. In this webinar we’ll discuss how we can challenge NATO and promote human security.

Opening Greetings: Özlem Demirel, Germany, MEP, THE LEFT Introductions:

• For nuclear abolition and common security: Sean Conner, USA/Germany, IPB
• Solidarity and resistance to war: Kate Hudson, UK, CND
• Transformation for sustainability and peace: Tamara Lorincz, Canada, Women for Peace
• Achieving disarmament: Quique Sanchez, Barcelona, GCOMS

Moderation: Jessica Pardo, Colombia, IPB

Register at: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_fbVLddx6RIWIDQDMhSdKhQ

Monday, June 14: Voices for Peace – you !!! can protest against NATO 5-7am PST | 11-1pm EDT | 3-5pm UTC | 4-6pm UK | 5-7pm CEST

Calling for 2 minutes “protest greetings against NATO”

Angelo Cardona, Columbia | Bernhard Trautvetter, Germany | Chris Nienham, UK | Darnska-Réty, France | David Swanson, USA | Isabelle Vanbrabant, Belgium | Jeannie Toschi M. Visconti, Italy | Jeremy Corbyn, UK | John Lannon, Ireland | Joseph Gerson, USA | Julieta Daza, Venezuela/Colombia | Laura Capote, Colombia | Leo Gabriel, Austria | Malalai Joya, Afghanistan | Marc Botenga, Belgium | Marta Di Giacomo, Italy | Marzia Ronconi, France | Nilufer Koc, Kurdistan | Oz Karahan, Cyprus | Özlem Demirel, Germany | Pablo Dominguez, Montenegro | Pablo Ruiz, Chile | Pat Elder, USA | Rae Street, UK | Rhonda Ramiro, USA | Sadet Karabulut, Netherlands | Sissy Vovou, Greece | Tamara Lorincz , Canada | Ulla Kotzer, Finland | Veronique Coteur, Belgium | Vijay Prashad, India | Yildiz Temürtürkan, Turkey | Yuri Sheliazhenko , Ukraine.

Moderation: Kate Hudson and Reiner Braun

Register at: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_u_NnALSuQ3uTMPgA19iafw

Twitter storm message(s) against the NATO Summit addressed to Stoltenberg and other NATO leaders, with hashtags like #NotoNato #NATODangerToPeace …

Date(s) – June 12, 2021 – 8:00 pm – 9:30 pm

Voices of the International Peace Movement
Building Toward IPB’s (Re)think Our Future – World Conference

June 12 Webinar 2 p.m. EDT, 8pm CEST

Register at: http://bit.ly/voicesjune12

From nuclear weapons abolitionists in Japan, to Belgians working to reduce military spending to meet urgent human needs and stanch climate change, Iranian Americans working to build a just society and prevent conflict between the U.S. and Iran, and Spaniards building an integrated justice and peace movement, we have allies and partners around the world.
They and thousands of others will be gathering in Barcelona and online this October. In preparation for this World Conference, join us in conversation on June 12 where you can meet, learn from, and build partnerships with them in our Voices of the International Peace Movement.

• Marc Batac – Initiatives for International Dialogue
• Reiner Braun – Executive Director, International Peace Bureau, Berlin
• Chloe Meulwaeter – Centre Delas, Barcelona
• Assal Rad – Senior Research Fellow, National Iranian American Council
• Quique Sanchez – International Peace Bureau, Barcelona
• Alicia Sanders-Zakre – International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Geneva
• Yayoi Tsuchida – Japan Council against A- & H- Bombs, Tokyo
• Tom Unterrainer – Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation London

Register at: http://bit.ly/voicesjune12

Organized by the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security, Peace Action of New York State, and the International Peace Bureau.

By World BEYOND War and partners

Facebook Event.

A broad and growing coalition of peace and environmental organizations has announced plans for an event on Thursday, 4 November, in Glasgow.

WHAT: Announcement of a Petition to COP26 Demanding that Militaries Be Included in Climate Agreement; colorful banners and light projection. WHEN: 4 November 2021, 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. WHERE: Buchanan Steps, on Buchanan Street, in front of the Royal Concert Hall, north of Bath Street, Glasgow.

Over 400 organizations and 20,000 people have signed a petition at http://cop26.info addressed to COP26 participants that reads, in part, “We ask COP26 to set strict greenhouse gas emissions limits that make no exception for militarism.”

Speakers at the event on 4 November will include: Stuart Parkinson of Scientists for Global Responsibility UK, Chris Nineham of the Stop the War Coalition, Alison Lochhead of Greenham Women Everywhere, Jodie Evans of CODEPINK: Women for Peace, Tim Pluta of World BEYOND War, David Collins of Veterans For Peace, Lynn Jamieson of the Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, and others to be announced. Plus music by David Rovics.

 

“Our purpose here begins with making people aware of the problem,” said David Swanson, Executive Director of World BEYOND War. “Imagine a limit on dangerous items you can carry on airplanes that makes an exception for nuclear weapons. Imagine a diet that limits your calories but makes an exception for 36 gallons of ice cream an hour. Here the world is all gathering to impose limits on greenhouse gas emissions that make an exception for militaries. Why? What possible excuse is there for that, unless killing people in the short term is so important to us that we’re willing to kill everyone in the long term. We need to speak up for life, and soon.”

“War and militarism are amongst the unnamed enemies of our ecosphere,” said Chris Nineham of the Stop the War Coalition. “The U.S. military is the biggest single consumer of oil on the planet, and the last two decades of war have polluted on an almost unimaginable scale. It is a scandal that military emissions are being excluded from the discussion. If we want to end warming we need to end war.”

“War is obsolete. There is no doubt, the quicker we get rid of it, the quicker we improve the climate,” added Tim Pluta, World BEYOND War Chapter Organizer in Asturias, Spain.

IPB Webinar: Peace Movement in Action 2: Peace Voices from Russia, Kazakhstan & Eastern Europe

Date/Time
Date(s) – Tuesday – Mar 15, 2022
6:00 pm

Join the IPB and our partners in Russia, Kazakhstan, the Czech Republic, and Hungary for a second discussion on the actions being taken to promote peace and nonviolence in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Featuring:

Asya Maruket, Member of the Russian Feminist Anti-War Resistance, women’s rights activist, psychologist

(Kazakh speaker to be confirmed)

Mirek Prokes, Friends of Nature, Coordinator of Prague Spring 2, Network Against Far Right Extremism and Populism

Vera Zalka, Prague Spring 2 Network

Register now at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMlc-2opzIsE9cL43zBxRpUtUIp5XNbgrrn

Organized by CodePink – We will take to the streets in Washington DC for disruption, political education, and community building through art. Final details to come!

Organized by Phoenix Anti-War Coalition – Attendees at the event will be holding signs and tax info flyers

Organized by 1040 for Peace – Penny Poll where public can “vote” on how they’d like to have their federal taxes spent. 1040 for Peace website.

Following an introductory presentation showing the links between militarism and climate change, a panel of experts will discuss how to proceed in uniting the peace and climate movements to avoid increasing militarism and worsening the climate crisis.

Moderator: Marcy Winograd of CODEPINK

Panelists:
• Ann Wright, author, activist, retired U.S. Army Colonel and U.S. State Department official
• Dr. David Vine, Professor, Department of Anthropology, American University and author of The United States of War
• Erik Edstrom, Afghanistan war veteran and author of UN-AMERICAN: A soldier’s Reckoning of Our Longest War

Presented by the Veterans For Peace Climate Crisis & Militarism Project: CCMP warns that an arms race resulting from the invasion of Ukraine will hinder efforts of major polluting countries to lower their CO2 emissions and will doom any meaningful international agreements later this year at COP27. In other words, we are no longer “sleepwalking to climate catastrophe,” we are running.

Learn more: veteransforpeace.org/ccmp

Organized by Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones – Street Theater

Join the Raytheon Peacemakers as we demonstrate against war and those who profit from it. Survival demands better ideas, not better weapons. The peace vigils are a regular, nonviolent presence in our community:

• to call for an end to wars and occupations waged by our government in our name and with our tax dollars
• to take a stand against war profiteering
• to remember the victims of war (including those killed by drones)
• to join others around the world in working for peace

Please note: Signs and banners will be provided, or you can bring your own. Find additional details here!

This North Alabama Peace Network event will focus on War Industry Resistance. War industry conversion to a sustainable future. The event will take place at the corner of Airport Rd and Whitesburg Drive.

Organized by California for a World BEYOND War – We will host a public demonstration and educational gathering in Ventura, California to coincide with Earth Day week festivities, in order to promote Divestment from the war economy and Investment in a peace economy, for the sake of people, planet, and a just transition. More details to come!

Organized by Demilitarize Western Mass – We’ll meet at weapons contractor L3Harris’ building, 50 Prince Street, Northampton, Mass. and march to downtown for a rally. If you prefer not to march, meet us in front of City Hall, downtown Northampton at 1 pm for the rally and speakers. The event, co-sponsored by Code Pink of Western Mass, will focus on militarism, its impact on the climate and racial justice. Join us for this rally for both Earth Day and a Tax Day action!