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Multimedia exhibit to feature culture of peace

Carole Leigh Engblom
January 21, 2007

Throughout February, St. Olaf College will host "Building a Culture of Peace for the Children of the World." The multimedia exhibit will be open to the public in the Tostrud Recreation Center and Skoglund Athletic Center lobbies beginning Feb. 5.

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The exhibit, first shown at the United Nations World Headquarters and on display in venues throughout the world, is created and sponsored by Soka Gakkai International to support the UN Culture of Peace program. The Culture of Peace exhibit brings together the ideas and examples of hundreds of people, organizations and movements dedicated to opening a path to lasting peace and focuses on the limitless potential of the individual to build peace.

The idea first emerged in 1997, when the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the year 2000 to be the International Year for the Culture of Peace. Given that most war victims in the 20th Century were innocent women and children, every living Nobel Peace Prize laureate signed a petition appealing to world leaders for not just a year, but a decade of peace and nonviolence for the children of the world.

On Nov. 10, 1998, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 2001 to 2010 as the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence for the Children of the World. The mandate for the decade specifically emphasizes the need for the international community to recognize and implement strategies that will ensure assistance for children exposed to harmful and violent situations.

Soka Gakkai International is an association of 12 million members in more than 180 countries and territories around the world. Among its basic guidelines is a commitment to join other nations in ongoing efforts for world peace by supporting the UN's ultimate goal of abolishing nuclear arms and universally renouncing war.

Contact Carole Engblom at 507-786-3271 or leigh@stolaf.edu.