Sustainable Peace through Interfaith Harmony

February 23, 2019

3:00 PM-5:30 PM at Zion Episcopal Church, Manchester VT

Co-organizers

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Bennington, VT

Yale Alum Non-Profit Alliance (YANA), VT

(Event listed on UN Calendar for World Faith Harmony)

In October 2010, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for World Interfaith Harmony Week as a way to promote harmony between all people regardless of their faith.  In the resolution, the General Assembly, points out that mutual understanding and interreligious dialogue constitute important dimensions of a culture of peace and establishes World Interfaith Harmony Week.  Following this resolution, Interfaith Harmony events are held throughout the world during the month of February.

At the core of all the faith systems and traditions is the recognition that we are all in this together and that we need to love and support one another to live in harmony and peace in a sustainable world. It is important to increase our efforts to spread the message of good neighborliness based on our common humanity, a message shared by all faith traditions.  The theme for the observance of the Interfaith Harmony for 2019 is therefore “Sustainable Peace through Interfaith Harmony.”

To this end, Zion Episcopal Church (Manchester, VT), St. Peter’s Episcopal Church (Bennington, VT) with support from the Yale Alum Non-Profit Alliance (YANA) for Vermont will organize an interactive discussion on interfaith harmony and sustainable peace, on February 23, 2019.  

This inter-active discussion will take place at Zion, from 3:00-5:00 PM, followed by a 30 minutes of prayer – February 23, 2019.  Zionis located at 5167 Main Street, Manchester Center VT. 

Healing, Empowering and Transforming 

For Inclusive Peacebuilding, Conflict Prevention and Sustainable Development

With the full integration of rural women in peace processes

Presented on October 26, 2018

            10:30 am -12:30 pm

The Justification

The framework for the workshop and the participants’ engagement includes: UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, respectively S/RES/2282 and A/RES/70/262, which called for sustaining peace by “preventing the outbreak, escalation, continuation and recurrence of conflict.”  Further, it integrates global agendas such as the UN GA High Level Meeting on Peacebuilding,  held 24-25 April 2018, which underscored the axiom that we must work “to save peace while it lasts, not to deal with the situation once peace is lost.” Also, it adheres to the 2030 Agenda goals, especially SDGs 1, 5, 12, 15, and 16.  This concept also takes into consideration US House H.R. 5273 and US Senate S 3368, to reduce global fragility and violence. 

To this end,  this workshop on “Circles of Trust” will focus on peacebuilding and conflict prevention, through transforming and sustaining grass roots rural communities, with a particular emphasis on integrating women into this process. Therefore, the overall discussion will emphasize and explore how sustaining peace should in practical terms include conflict prevention, and why and how this includes the full integration of rural communities and especially rural women.

Our Focus

This workshop focuses on integrating holistic goals for peacebuilding, conflict prevention and sustainable development.  It concentrates on transformation of lives in rural areas and the impact on women and girls. To this end, we will examine the possibilities for integrating the goals of community healing, of governance through peaceful discourse, and rural sustainable development through community supported agriculture and value-added crops, for nutrition, sustenance and income generation.  This includes transformation of causes of conflict, promotion of peace and the prevention of conflict through healing, empowering and transforming lives[1]of rural women, including internally displaced. Rural women endure victimization from: conflict; forced displacement[2]; domestic violence; lack of nutrition and employment.[3]

Agenda:

Ms. Yvonne Lodico:

Founder,  Grace Initiative Global

Introduction to Program  Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention:  Healing, Empowering and Transforming – for  Sustainable Development and Sustaining Peace

 H. E. Virachai Plasai: 

Ambassador of Kingdom of Thailand to the United States

    Insight to Community Agriculture: Thailand’s Experience in implementing the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP) to support rural community development as well as empowering women in rural areas

Dr. Massimo Tommasoli

Permanent Observer to the United Nations, International IDEA 

Fostering civic engagement and governance in rural areas for holistic and sustainable peace.

Mr. Robert Terry

Director, Merck Forest and Farmland

Training for Engagement, Efficient La Tra    Training of Trainers for Rural Development,            Efficient Land Resource Management

                                    Application for Rural Peacebuilding - Colombia

Mr. Gabriel  Laizer, Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)

Peace and Food Security: Investing in Resilience to Sustain Rural Livelihoods Amid Conflict in Colombia.

Diego García-Devis,

Senior Program Officer – Global Drug Policy, Open Society, Soros Foundation

Land management and active rural women participation in drug cultivation areas. The role of women in decision-making processes path to sustain programs aimed at reducing illicit crop production.

Ms. Juliana Valderrama

National Secretariat of Pastoral Social - Cáritas Colombiana

Mr. Mario Pineda

Kroc Institute, Cáritas Colombiana

Explanation of Current Peacebuilding in Rural Areas of Colombian 

Insight to application of Circles of Trust with Rural 

Women in Colombia, and reflection on Peacebuilding and Reconciliation in Choco

Commentary on Monitoring Localized Peacebuilding in Colombia

[1]https://www.usaid.gov/colombia/results/transforming-lives

[2]http://www.internal-displacement.org/countries/colombia

[3]https://www.nature.com/articles/palcomms201614