Call for a United Nations
Global Peace Education Day

Please read our petition and add your name if you share our goal for a UN day of peace education!

Petition:

Call for a United Nations Global Peace Education Day

Bearing in mind the Charter of the United Nations, including the purposes and principles contained therein, and especially its dedication to saving succeeding generations from the scourge of war,

Bearing in mind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Recalling the Constitution of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, which states that, since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defence of peace must be constructed,

Recalling the Security Council Resolution on women and peace and security reaffirming the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peacebuilding, peacekeeping, humanitarian response and in post-conflict.

Recalling also the many historic UN resolutions on a Culture of Peace.

Recalling the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Goals 4, Quality Education; Goal 5, Gender Equality; Goal 13, Climate Action; Goal 16, Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions; and Goal 17, Partnerships.

We, the communities of peacebuilders and peace educators around the globe, call upon the United Nations to establish an official Global Peace Education Day. We recall the words of the Yamoussoukro Declaration issued in 1989 by the International Congress on Peace in the Minds of Men initiated by UNESCO that

• Peace is reverence for life.

• Peace is the most precious possession of humanity.

• Peace is more than the end of armed conflict.

• Peace is a mode of behavior.

• Peace is a deep-rooted commitment to the principles of liberty, justice, equality and solidarity among human beings.

• Peace is also a harmonious relationship of humankind with the environment.

Peace is a fundamental human need and a fundamental human right – a positive way of life that is much more than the absence of armed conflict. Peace can be humanity’s greatest achievement, but peace will not happen on its own.

Like every other worthwhile human endeavor, peace requires learning, study, skill building, practice, discipline and right effort.  We must prepare ourselves and our children with education, skills, knowledge and experience to build a peaceful world.

We must be prepared to practice peace at every opportunity – in personal, social, political, institutional and ecological spheres of life. We must equip ourselves and our children to face conflict, violence, inequity, and climate crisis with the power of peace.

We therefore call upon the United Nations to establish an annual observance of Global Peace Education Day to recognize the necessity of peace education for lasting peace, to bolster global education for peacebuilding, to highlight successful peace education initiatives and to encourage communication among peace educators with each other and the communities we serve.