World Peace Conference coming to Michigan in 2017

The Rotary Club of Ann Arbor in conjunction with other Rotary clubs in the Midwest and Rotary International will convene the World Peace Conference 2017 on March 31 and April 1 at the University of Michigan’s Michigan League.

The conference will empower its participants to actively practice peace and reduce violence locally, nationally and globally.

Jody Williams, the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and two dozen other respected experts on peace and conflict resolution will explore ways people can contribute to building a peaceful world. The conference is open to the public.

Keynoters, panelists and breakout sessions will cover seven tracks:

• Peace and conflict resolution;
• Poverty, hunger and health;
• The role of faith-based organizations in peacemaking;
• The role of media in peacemaking;
• Preserving basic human rights;
• Violence prevention;
• Youth in peace and conflict resolution.

“Promoting peace is about more than ending conflicts,” said Ashish Sarkar, convener of the conference and immediate past president of the Ann Arbor Rotary Club. “It’s about bringing people together to work on solutions to the underlying issues and causes of those conflicts.”

Rotary International President John Germ will keynote the conference.
In 1921, Rotary adopted as one of its objectives the advancement of international understanding, good will and peace. Today, the Rotarian Action Group for Peace supports the peace work of Rotarians worldwide. The Peace Conference 2017 is part of this effort.

Jody Williams won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for her successful work toward the banning and clearing of anti-personnel landmines, which inspired an international treaty to ban the mines.

Williams subsequently took the lead in establishing the Nobel Women’s Initiative, which brings together six of the female peace laureates alive today to promote the efforts of women working to promote peace with justice and equality.

Other speakers include Jeffrey Sachs, UN advisor and Columbia University professor, economist and author; Carrie Hessler-Radelet, Peace Corps director; and Owen Greene, a professor at the University of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England, and a widely published expert on conflict resolution.  Greene has served as a consultant to the United Nations, European Union and the United Kingdom.