Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace
The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace, in which Peace Partnership International is a co-founder and active participant, is a worldwide community of individuals and organizations working to support and encourage the institutional expression of a culture of peace in governments around the world. The Global Alliance's website is
a source of valuable information on latest news, events, trainings,
publications, web links, etc., in the growing field of peacebuilding
and conflict transformation around the world.
So far, some 35 countries are in the Global Alliance community, over half of which have active campaigns for ministries or departments of peace underway. Others are in the planning stages, and still others are in the exploratory stage. And some countries, such as Nepal and the Solomon Islands, already have ministries of peace.
Within the United States, Peace Partnership International works closely with The Peace Alliance, which is spearheading the nationwide, grassroots campaign to support legislation in Congress to establish a U.S. Department of Peace.
African delegates to the Global Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace in Japan in September 2007 founded the African Alliance for Peace. May 2008 provided three opportunities for Peace Partnership International to assist the African Alliance for Peace to develop its capacity to grow and thrive:
• First AAP Regional Summit
• Intensive training in nonviolent communication (NVC)
• Public outreach and training for the ministry for peace campaign in Nigeria.
Culture of Peace Program Planned for October 21 at UN
Anne Creter, Peace Partnership International's liaison to the United Nations, reports that "the Culture of Peace Working Group of the United Nation's NGO Committee
on Spirituality, Values and Global Concerns (CSVGC) has been diligently
putting together an event to be held October 21 at UN Headquarters as
part of the second annual week of Spirituality, Values and Global
Concerns. Co-chairing this effort has been my focus the last few
months."
Anne Creter, liaison to the United Nations from Peace Partnership International, has been leading an effort within the UN NGO community and the Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace to draft and promote a UN General Assembly resolution calling for structures in governments that support the culture of peace.
Peace Mnistries on the Table for Israel and Palestine
The Israel/Palestine Center for Research and Information (IPCRI), founded in Jerusalem in 1988, is the only joint Israeli-Palestinian public policy think-tank in the world. It is devoted to developing practical solutions for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
IPCRI co-founder Gershon Baskin, who attended the Third Global Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace in Japan, reports that, "We are on the road to establish Ministries of Peace in Israel and Palestine!"
The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace held its Third Global Summit in Japan, September 21-October 3, 2007. The Summit was attended by 50 people from 21 countries on six continents (see photo) and included a six-day conference in Kisarazu, which opened on the International Day of Peace, followed by press conferences, public symposiums, and other public outreach events in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa.
Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio sent the following message, which was read at the Summit:
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
We are joined as family in our mutual desire to build a culture of peace on our precious and fragile planet. It was my privilege and pleasure to join you last year when you gathered in Vancouver in June for the post Summit World Peace Forum.
The importance of your work cannot be overemphasized, for it is by reaching across national borders, oceans and cultures that we begin to build the bridges of trust and understanding that will enable us to create a world blessed by peace understanding and compassion.
I wish you all the very best with your Summit and thank you for your dedication to building a better world.
Sixty people from 18 countries on five continents, including a contingent from the Peace Alliance and Peace Partnership International (then the Peace Alliance Foundation), came together in Victoria, Canada, June 19-22, 2006, for the Second People's Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace. The Summit included training in principles and practices of peacebuilding and conflict transformation and nonviolent communication, discussions about how to connect with the growing global network of peace organizations and how to involve youth integrally and effectively in the movement, establishment of the Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace, and formation of five working groups to expand the global network for and conversation about ministries and departments of peace.
The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace, which Peace Partnership International participates in, presented a program on June 25, 2006, to a standing-room-only crowd at the First World Peace Forum in Vancouver, Canada. This program was open to the public and included a panel, moderated by Marianne Williamson, of government leaders from around the world discussing the importance of and what it will take to establish ministries and departments of peace. The panel was followed by five parallel workshops on related topics.
Read more for transcripts of panelist remarks and audio interviews with three of them.
The purpose of the Summit was to strengthen and grow the international movement for government departments of peace and ministries for peace. Forty activists from 12 countries came together for the two-day Summit, which was preceded by two days of training on the latest concepts and practices in peacebuilding and conflict transformation around the world. The group agreed to form an international initiative for departments of peace by coordinating efforts, sharing information, and encouraging expansion to and inclusion of similar efforts in other countries.It was also agreed to proceed with planning for the Victoria Summit in June 2006, with several countries lining up to host future Summits.
The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace, in which Peace Partnership International is a co-founder and active participant, is a worldwide community of individuals and organizations working to support and encourage the institutional expression of a culture of peace in governments around the world. The Global Alliance's 
African delegates to the Global Summit for Ministries and Departments of Peace in Japan in September 2007 founded the African Alliance for Peace. May 2008 provided three opportunities for Peace Partnership International to assist the African Alliance for Peace to develop its capacity to grow and thrive:
Anne Creter, Peace Partnership International's liaison to the United Nations, reports that "the Culture of Peace Working Group of the United Nation's NGO Committee
on Spirituality, Values and Global Concerns (CSVGC) has been diligently
putting together an event to be held October 21 at UN Headquarters as
part of the second annual week of Spirituality, Values and Global
Concerns. Co-chairing this effort has been my focus the last few
months."
The Global Alliance for Ministries and Departments of Peace held its Third Global Summit in Japan, September 21-October 3, 2007. The Summit was attended by 50 people from 21 countries on six continents (see photo) and included a six-day conference in Kisarazu, which opened on the International Day of Peace, followed by press conferences, public symposiums, and other public outreach events in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa.
The purpose of the Summit was to strengthen and grow the international movement for government departments of peace and ministries for peace. Forty activists from 12 countries came together for the two-day Summit, which was preceded by two days of training on the latest concepts and practices in peacebuilding and conflict transformation around the world. The group agreed to form an international initiative for departments of peace by coordinating efforts, sharing information, and encouraging expansion to and inclusion of similar efforts in other countries.It was also agreed to proceed with planning for the Victoria Summit in June 2006, with several countries lining up to host future Summits.