Transforming a Culture of Violence Through Peace Education

Emily Zionts, Global Issues Teacher Friday, August 20, 2010

 Educating for Dismantling the Culture of War

(also known as a Culture of Violence): The goals of this theme are to encourage a moral
commitment to non-violence, to recognize the Culture of War around and within the
individual, to acknowledge the roots of violence and visualize the potential for peace, take
steps towards abolishing the arms trade and understand and practice the principles of
Conflict Resolution.

 Educating for Living with Justice and Compassion

The objectives of this subject include raising awareness of the consequences of profit
driven development. It also consists of a thorough examination of lifestyles and the way
in which they connect to crises, such as poverty, urban slums, rich-poor inequalities, and
hunger. Connections of lifestyle to racism, sexism, classism, and environmental
degradation will be included as well.

 Educating for Building Cultural Respect, Reconciliation and Solidarity

Lessons for this aspect of Peace Education will not only emphasize “enjoying and
celebrating diversity,” but move towards developing a deeper understanding and a strong
sense of empathy and responsibility to advocate for those groups who are suffering
injustices. An examination of past conflicts and reconciliation processes, both successful
and failed is an important component of this topic.

 Educating for Promoting Human Rights and Responsibilities

In order to teach about the responsibilities that we have as global citizens to protect the
Human Rights of others, it is vital to raise awareness of those rights and how they are
violated around the world. A critical goal for this theme is to explore the role of Human
Rights education in peace building.

 Educating Living in Harmony with the Earth

A foundational principle of this petal is that humans are not separate from nature. This
implies that our actions have reactions within the natural world and currently this has
caused a state of environmental emergency. Lessons for this petal will include exploring
the limits to growth, as well as the visionary and practical actions of the sustainable
development movement.

 Educating for Cultivating Inner Peace

The goals of this unit include introducing students to tools that help them to manage their
own emotions. These tools include but are not limited to: how to react to feelings of anger
and sadness, techniques for calming ourselves, non-violent communication, deep
listening, and encouraging outlets for self-expression.