UN International Day of Peace, September 21st 2015

 

Peace is essential in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

 

                   (Andrew Benson Greene)                                                    (Maxwell Adew)                                                                                

Of B-Gifted Foundation at the UN IDP in there “Quest for a Just and Sustainable Peace”

On the September 21st 2015,  Andrew Benson Greene and Maxwell Adew from B-Gifted Foundation of Sierra Leone were invited to the UN , the International Day of Peace (IDP) in New York which is hosted every year on September 21st  and  observed around the world. The General Assembly declared this day as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples. The event also marked the 70th Anniversary of the United Nations, and the Hiroshima/Nagasaki Atomic Bombing.

The theme of this year’s commemoration is “Partnerships for Peace – Dignity for All” which aims to highlight the importance of all segments of society to work together to strive for peace.
The UN event International Day of Peace of September 21st 2015 reminds us all of our oneness of humanity and the importance of waging peace. It motivates us to increase our efforts towards the urgent need to pursue national, regional and global peace against the rising tide of societal discord and increasing problems of international violence.
At this time when we acknowledge huge problems in our midst including climate change, poverty, regional and global wars and the problem of violence itself, there is an ever-growing need for a vital force and global platform from which to seriously wage peace.
The UN International Day of Peace, puts the task on every institution and well-meaning citizens of the world to act now and to put every institutional heft behind an effort to address the causal issues of violence, and diminishing its psychological force before violence erupts into material conflict.
 “The Quest for Just and Sustainable Peace

Deborah Meldow and Andrew Benson Greene at the UN IDP 2015 in “the Quest for Just and Sustainable Peace”. After 18 years of peace correspondence, the two were able to meet for the very first time in New York.

Various contributors denounce the rise of child abuse, genocide, mass murder and the slaughter of thousands and realized how increasingly senseless it is to merely wait until violence has erupted before addressing the deeper well from which it springs.

One renowned religious scholar at the UN IDP noted that:
“Peace is within your reach,
Do not be afraid to feel it,
Touch it or share it
When peace is multiplied, love is multiplied,

When love is multiplied God love is multiplied heart training gives us peace, gives us infinite peace
Peace is inner achievement not under-compromised. Our search for world peace will one day be crowned successful and supreme. But without love there will never be peace”
(Peacemakers from around the world at the United Nations International Day of Peace 2015)

Other speakers were not too optimistic and laid bare the problems of violence. One decried violence and noted that ‘violence remains in many layered forms and its solution will be, as well a complicated one. Indeed, no one action including UN, governmental or otherwise — will provide a single solution to such entrenched and deeply rooted problems in our world today. Therefore, we must treat the problem of war itself with all its seriousness it demands as a breakdown in the systems that trigger war, correspondingly requires an all-out response to curb the violence’.

Peacebuilding is only one aspect of a fundamental response to the problem of violence. It represents an important collective effort, citizens of the world need to undertake and to ensure that we do everything we can possibly do to save the world for our children’s children

Flag-raising ceremony during the 2015 UN IDP.

Global Peacebuilders at the Flag-raising ceremony UN IDP 2015.

Peacebuilders from B-Gifted (Maxwell and Andrew) during the  Flag-raising ceremony IDP 2015

B-Gifted Founder (Andrew) and other Participants at the UN International Day of Peace September 2015

It was an opportunity to also joined countless peacebuilders, peacemakers and peacebuilding organizations whose skills have helped in ameliorating the effects of violence. We met Religious leaders sharing their interfaith, we met experts in conflict resolution experts to nonviolent communicators – have proven their effectiveness at treating root causes of violence. We discussed our efforts to Promote peace in Sierra Leone and around the world through innovative, creative means and technology and our successes and challenges at B-Gifted Foundation. It was a great networking opportunity. Many participants identified with the importance of peace, and maintained that “Peace is more than the absence of war; it is a positive state of being predicated on the presence of a peaceful heart”.

In celebrating it’s 70th year in 2015, the work of the United Nations would not be possible without the initial partnerships that were active in its creation and the thousands of partnerships each year between governments, civil society, the private sector, faith-based groups and other non-governmental organizations that are needed to support the Organization in achieving its future goals.”
The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by resolution 36/67 of the United Nations General Assembly to coincide with its opening session, which was held annually on the third Tuesday of September. The first Peace Day was observed in September 1982.
 In 2001, the General Assembly by unanimous vote adopted resolution 55/282, which established 21 September as an annual day of non-violence and cease-fire.
The United Nations invites all nations and people to honor a cessation of hostilities during the Day, and to otherwise commemorate the Day through education and public awareness on issues related to peace.

The international Day of Peace and the week-long UN event provided B-Gifted Foundation and opportunity to network with various stakeholders who are determined to make the world peaceful and a better place and who were equally passionate about sharing their experiences for a more peaceful world.

We listened to a world renowned violinist play her wonderful songs and listened to music amidst a serene and distinct quietude of an audience, we watched arts exhibits for peace, we had reflections and brief multi-faith prayers, we witnessed the ‘Ringing of the Peace Bell’ and the World Minute of Silence’, we had various meetings and dinners where we found more time to network, share first-hand experiences of peace efforts.

Our UN Peace event was concluded with a few extra days spent visiting universities and institutions including the Adelphi University in New York, Globecomm and the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center.

Maxwell and Andrew at the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center NY 

(And End to Intolerance).

Andrew and Carleen at the Adelphi University NY

Andrew at GlobeComm after a successful meeting with staff for the creation of rural connectivity in Sierra Leone to promote sustainable peace and alleviate poverty through Information Communication Technology.

Our participation was supported and accredited by The World Peace Prayer Society, The Committee of Religious NGOs at UN, Church Center for the United Nations, General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church, International Day of Peace NGO Committee, International Day of Yoga Committee at the UN, Loretto Committee, NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace and Security, NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values and Global Concern, NGO Committee on Sustainable Development, Pan-Pacific and South –East- Asia Women’s Association –Thailand, Presbyterian Church USA, United Methodist Women, Unitarian Universalist, UN Office, the United Religious Initiatives and families.

UN Secretary General’s Message

UN Secretary-General’s Message for Sep 26, 2015
SEPTEMBER 23, 2015

The year 2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the first and last use of a nuclear weapon in war.
The norm against the use of nuclear weapons – the most destructive weapons ever
created, with potentially unparalleled human costs – has stood strong for seven decades.
But the only absolute guarantee that they are never used again is through their total elimination.
The international community has proclaimed the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, there are growing rifts between Member States about how and when to achieve it.
This was on stark display during the Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in May of this year.
I call on all States to engage constructively to find a way forward.
The elimination of nuclear weapons would also free up vast amounts of resources that could be used to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The consequences of any further use of nuclear weapons, whether intentional or by mistake, would be horrific. When it comes to our common objective of nuclear disarmament, we must not delay — we must act now.
Ban Ki-moon


Thank You!!!
Andrew Benson Greene and Maxwell Adew


Thank you.

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