Geneva Peace Talks, 20 September 2013

'Geneva Peace Talks' is a public event organized on the occasion of the International Day of Peace in a partnership between the l'Office des Nations Unies à Genèvela Plateforme de consolidation de la paix de Genève and Interpeace. The event aims to catalyse practice and ideas on themes related to peace that resonate from Geneva's diverse community of practice and the broader peacebuilding field.

'Geneva Peace Talks' seeks to expand the space for discussions on peacebuilding and practical solutions to violent conflict beyond the sphere of peacebuilding practitioners. It encourages speakers from across a wide range of disciplines to relate their stories about peacebuilding, bringing in to the international arena voices from violent and fragile environments, but also from the business, scientific, artistic or other sectors.

"What peace means to me"

The theme of the first 'Geneva Peace Talks' is "What peace means to me." Speakers will relate their own personal stories about practical involvement in peacebuilding, dispute resolution, or violence reduction, emphasizing how their engagement shaped their own understanding of peace. It will show how multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral peace really is. Speakers and participants will look at what peace means within their own lives and to have a better sense of what they can do to play a more active role in promoting peace. The theme also aims to trigger reflection among the audience about what peace means to them.

'Geneva Peace Talks' 2013 will take place on 20 September – the day before Peace Day, from 16:00-19:00, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.

Speakers will include:

Fatuma Abdulkadir Adan, Founder of the Horn of Africa Development Initiative, Kenya
Dimitar Andonov, Market Operations Manager Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia, The Coca-Cola Company
George A. Kohlrieser, Professor of Leadership and Organizational Behavior at IMD business school Lausanne; former hostage negotiator, Lausanne, Switzerland
Antoine Laham, Programme Manager to the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Bern, Switzerland
Dennis McNamara, Senior Humanitarian Advisor, Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, Geneva, Switzerland
Léa Narjoud, Collège Jeanne d'Arc à Gex, France
Conradin Perner, Former Professor of French Literature at the University of Khartoum, Davos, Switzerland
Jeremy Lack, independent lawyer and conflict mediator, Geneva, Switzerland
James Shilue, peacebuilder, Director of P4DP, Liberia
Noam Shuster, peacebuilder, Communications Officer, Interpeace, Israel
Christopher Vakkur, The International School of Geneva, Switzerland

Video contribution from:

Jeremy Gilley, Founder of Peace One Day, London, United Kingdom

Registration

Registration for the event has closed.

Media accreditation

Representatives of the mass media - press, photo, radio, television and film - will need to be accredited for the coverage of the meeting. Please contact the United Nations Office at Geneva Information Service (Fax: 022 917 0073 or e-mail: accreditation-media@unog.ch) for all accreditation requests.

You can follow developments at #GenevaPeaceTalks and at the UN et un UNOG websites.