The International Law Society (ILS) at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy today kicks off a week−long capstone event intended to facilitate conversation on how to promote a culture of peace.
The event, running from March 5 to 11, is titled "From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace? A Week of Reflection" and is centered on a major photographic exhibition brought to Massachusetts for the first time. The programming climaxes on Wednesday with a roundtable discussion bringing together experts from different fields.
The ILS aims to promote a multi−disciplinary understanding of international law and its applications and to consider issues pertinent to humanity. This capstone event, which members have been planning since October, furthers this goal.
Sarah Riley, ILS co−chair and Master of Laws (LL.M.) candidate, said that organizers sought to be more innovative with this year's event.
"This year, we wanted to try to revise it and do some different kinds of events, as opposed to the traditional social hour or movie night," she said.
Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a non−governmental organization whose members practice Nichiren Buddhism as a path to peace, provided the photo exhibit entitled "From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace: Transforming the Human Spirit."
SGI is a lay Buddhist organization with 12 million members in 192 countries whose goal is to advance peace through human transformation, according to Tanya Henderson, a chairperson for the event and an LL.M. candidate.
"[SGI promotes] peace, culture and education through personal transformation and cultural contribution," she said.
The exhibit asks viewers to consider the abolition of nuclear weapons and, in particular, seeks to engage youth, featuring a series of panels thematically tied to the anti−nuclear sentiment.
"It is focused on nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament and really on what constitutes peace, not just an absence of war," Henderson said.
The panels make up an exhibit of a total of 1,200 feet. The visual component will be complemented by quotes on the subject of peace. Viewers can expect to see quotes from thinkers like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., according to Henderson.
The exhibit was first presented in September 2007 and in 2008 was shown to the United Nations in Geneva. It is this week making its first appearance in Massachusetts. Henderson, an active member of SGI, provided the link that eventually led to the exhibit being brought to The Fletcher School.
Though the event opens today, the formal opening ceremony and reception will be held on Monday. Howard Hunter, a former Tufts University Emeritus Professor in the Department of Religion, will deliver the keynote address, while Gerard Sheehan, executive associate dean at The Fletcher School, will also give a speech introducing the capstone week to the Fletcher community and its guests.
The roundtable discussion will take place at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in the Asean Auditorium. Guest speakers will be joining The Fletcher School faculty to represent the roles of their respective fields in the discussion.
Henderson described the purpose of the roundtable as a means of facilitating the integration of a variety of perspectives in a conversation on achieving a culture of peace.
"We're able to really bring together people from very distinct sectors that aren't always talking to each other, and actually having them at the same table engaging in dialogue is very exciting for me as a student to be able to witness," she said.
Professor Michael Glennon, director of the LL.M. program at Fletcher, will be delivering the welcoming address, and Professor of the Practice Eileen Babbit, director of the International Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Program, will be facilitating the discussion.
Riley added that the roundtable would include speakers such as Michael Zee, Google's Asia/Pacific legal director, who will present a legal sector perspective on human rights. Meanwhile, Fletcher student Godfrey Otobi will offer a viewpoint on children and youth in armed conflict, derived from his own fieldwork. Senior Legal Advisor of the Office of Legal Affairs, United Nations Secretariat Arnold Pronto will also be present to discuss applying and enforcing international law.
"We've brought together a pretty diverse group of panelists," Riley said.
Henderson agreed, saying the roundtable reflected the interdisciplinary nature of The Fletcher School curriculum and was made up of speakers from different sectors who will likely engage in stimulating dialogue.
"It takes all of those components to be really integrated to be able to create peace," she said.
Riley expressed her hope that the week−long event will spark a dialogue that continues long after the exhibition ends. "We're hoping we can build off the momentum this exhibit will bring," Riley said.
Ian Davis, assistant director of international media relations at The Fletcher School, told the Daily that the capstone event is open to the larger Tufts community, including undergraduate students.
The photographic exhibit will be located at The Fletcher School Hall of Flags starting today.
