Shaping Our Future Together: Series 8: “Recovering Better for an Equitable and Sustainable World”
In celebration of the September 21 UN International Day of Peace, Global Peace Foundation Philippines and Consuelo Zobel Alger Foundation hosted the latest session of the ongoing webinar series “Shaping Our Future Together.” Convening on the 2021 Day of Peace theme, “Recovering Better for an Equitable and Sustainable World,” the webinar was live-streamed on Facebook.
GPF International President James Flynn welcomed participants and remote viewers from Washington, DC. Noting that the pandemic poses a further threat to global peace and unity, he said that GPF’s vision of peace offered a simple but profound antidote to division and extremism. The key, he said, “is our common human identity and our experience of family.”
Nicholas Lee, GPF Thailand director and secretary-general for Global Peace and Development Service Alliance, explained how GPF initiatives support GPDSA through empowering communities, advancing sustainable development, and uplifting a culture of peace. GPDSA is “a unique platform wedding the power of youth social enterprise with the nexus of sustainable environment and peacebuilding solutions,” he said.
Co-founder and President of KRIS for Peace Arizza Nocum, a daughter of a Muslim and Christian parents, said her peaceful home was a model of how two religions could coexist in harmony. This upbringing guided her in leading her organization, KRIS, to help promote peace in conflict-stricken areas through education and youth leadership programs.
Addressing the importance of the environment, Jefferson Estela, Co-founder of Youth Strike for Climate Philippines, said changing the approach to resolving the climate crisis should include prioritizing the well-being of people in policies and involving young people for advocacy. “There is no better time than today,” he said, “for meaningful action for our future, for the environment, and the planet. Loving the environment is loving yourself.”
The webinar also featured an interactive quiz for the audience to encourage them to participate in peacebuilding in their communities. The top three quiz participants were awarded cash prizes. The webinar reached out to organizations and young people to encourage them to work together to realize a better world.