The Global Peace Foundation announced the appointment of Mr. James P. Flynn as the new international President at a meeting of senior leadership in Seattle on February 25. Outgoing Global Peace Foundation President (GPF) Young Jun Kim has been named Senior Vice President and will focus on family education initiatives and organizational development.
As Global Peace Foundation’s President, Mr. Flynn will oversee educational, peace-building, and human development initiatives in 15 nations. Mr. Flynn will also guide organizational partnerships with national and regional governments, faith-based organizations, and volunteer and philanthropic groups to advance objectives in GPF’s focus areas of building interfaith partnerships, strengthening families and communities, and promoting a culture of service and peace.
Mr. Flynn has more than 25 years experience in the development and management of educational and service projects in the non-profit sector, including operations, grant writing and grant management, and program design and implementation. He previously served as GPF’s Senior Vice President with responsibilities for the Foundation’s educational programs worldwide.
Prior to his executive experience at GPF, Mr. Flynn served as the president of the American Family Coalition, a grassroots educational organization with chapters in all 50 states advocating the promotion of family-friendly public policies. He previously worked as an adjunct professor for the State of Colorado’s Community Colleges system, focused on the design and delivery of business applications training.
Mr. Flynn is a co-founder of Street-Smart Inc. a nationally recognized non-profit organization serving at-risk youth in Denver, Colorado, and served on the Supervisory Committee of the Denver Community Development Credit Union.
Global Peace Foundation Vice President and Board member Dr. Charles Phillips said the appointment of Mr. Flynn reflects the growing importance of values-based education, service training, and collaboration among the world’s faith traditions in realizing peace.
“Ethnic and religious divisions continue to exacerbate conflict and undermine opportunities in an increasingly integrated global community,” Dr. Phillips said. “Having worked closely with Jim Flynn for more than a decade, I am enthusiastic about this appointment. Not only is he a consummate program manager, he thinks big, acts big, and expects big results. I believe GPF can play a transformational role in redefining what is believed possible in bringing peace among peoples and nations.”
The Global Peace Foundation also announced the appointment of Dr. Tony Devine as Vice President. Dr. Devine will oversee character and creativity education initiatives in Kenya and the United States, as well as educational projects in partnership with governments in the Philippines, Malaysia, South Korea, Indonesia, and Paraguay.