A varied and enthusiastic crowd of nearly 3,000 was gathered at St. Olaf College on February 20th and 21st for the 16th Annual Nobel Peace Prize Forum. While plenary speaker, former President Jimmy Carter drew the largest audience, the wide range of other presentations the forum had to offer was equally impressive. Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland issued the opening plenary address with an “urgent call” to rally in our “common struggle to refocus goals and discover unity.” As a political environmentalist, former prime minister of Norway , and recent director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Brundtland drew attention to the necessity of investing in the planet and the health of the people on it as a prerequisite to creating a peaceful world. “There is no common future unless we invest in people…unless we invest in all people,” she said.
Other plenary sessions, like Dr. Brundtland's, seemed to challenge the oft uttered criticism that the peace movement is full of idealists who never really do anything or demonstrate how anything can be done to effect change. For instance, the Friday evening plenary panel from the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) presented a concrete means of peace-making through village banking, wherein people without any other access to credit are given small, short term loans to jump start their self-propelled escape from the cycle of poverty. It's difficult to argue with such a sustainable and effective system, especially after finding out that the on-time payback rate of FINCA's clientele is at about 97%, which is far higher than that of average bank loan recipients. FINCA's founder, John Hatch, explained that village banking lets “people come together for economic interests and become a community of friends on a path to peace.”
Dr. Eboo Patel presented a Friday Peace Skills Workshop entitled “Louder than a Bomb: Institution-Building as a Pathway to Social Change” in addition to the closing plenary address “Notes for a New American Song.” A founder of the Interfaith Youth Core in Chicago , Dr. Patel is as articulate as he is driven, and as realistic as he is idealistic. As a self-proclaimed “progressive,” he openly acknowledged that it seems like progressives “don't always want to win, [sometimes] we just want to bitch.” In his Peace Skills Workshop, Patel stressed the need to do more than complain. He said that activism is about building institutions that support important values and ideas. “If the people you disagree with are building the institutions, then it's their values that will be built into society.” In his address on Saturday and the Call to Action which closed the forum, he spoke personally of his “Muslim soul,” and poignantly expressed how the diversity of this nation was part of its strength, part of its “new song.”
For many, the highlight of the weekend was hearing former President Jimmy Carter speak on “Peace and Change,” on Saturday afternoon, where he exhorted a change of attitude and action on the part of both the government and citizens of the United Sates. As founder of the Carter Center , an organization whose central mission is “to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health,” Carter drew attention to the growing chasm between rich and poor and the general apathy of citizens of the U.S. to the suffering of others in the world. “There is no sense of shame in our country, or desire to improve…to be more benevolent, more caring, more knowledgeable.” He stressed a need for “partnership” across the class and wealth divide, so that resources can be mobilized to prevent unnecessary suffering, such as the preventable pain caused by the parasitic Guinea worm in countries with contaminated water supplies. Though critical of the current U.S. administration's actions and policies, Carter stressed that this is a “great country, with great potential,” and he clearly believes that people of conviction can bring that potential to its fruition.
As remarkable as all these speakers and their ideas were, what most profoundly shaped my perceptions as a forum participant comes into focus around the imagery of Professor Emeritus Mac Gimse's bronze sculpture “Roots and Wings.” On display through the forum, “Roots and Wings” is a piece that images the many phases of an individual's life in relation to others. Throughout its creation, Professor Gimse was intent upon making his artwork much more than just his own. He wanted each member of the forum to be a part of it, because they are what give it its meaning. Viewers found signs that read “Please Touch” where sculptures were on display. Gimse said, “I want everyone to get their hands on it, to be part of it.” During the ecumenical worship service on Saturday, individual sections of “Roots and Wings” were passed through the congregation, the metal soon warm to the touch as each person gave something of him or herself to the otherwise cold metal while its weight rested in their hands. Gentle smiles were exchanged as the piece was passed on, expressions of surprise at its weight and the detail of its design. This piece of art made me realize how many members of the Nobel Peace Prize Forum community there were. Student presenters from each of the five participant colleges, who taught about fair trade coffee, global economics and the FTAA; Veselica, St. Olaf's International Dance ensemble, who brought their energy and spirit through movement; the St. Olaf Gospel Choir, who President Carter said reminded him of home in the South; the Executive and Student Planning Committees, whose tireless commitment made the forum run so smoothly; professors and Northfield community members; artists, volunteers, and participants: all who gathered together for those few days helped to make St. Olaf College a place where a fledging peace can begin to take to the sky. |