On April 19th, 2016, speakers from a range of backgrounds will deliver 8-minute talks exploring the theme, “Let’s build peace through diversity” at the first ever Ottawa Peace Talks. The Ottawa Peace Talks are co-organised by the Global Centre for Pluralism and Interpeace.

DATE:  Tuesday April 19th, 2016
TIME: Reception at 5:30 PM, the Ottawa Peace Talks will commence at 6:00 PM sharp
PLACE: The Delegation of Ismaili Imamat, 199 Sussex Drive. Media are asked to check in at the Boteler Street entrance (across from 100 Boteler)

Media opportunities include interviews with speakers and coverage of the event. Accredited media must register with media@pluralism.ca by Friday, April 15th. The event is sold out; any media not registered will unfortunately not be able to attend. There will also be a live webcast of the event at http://peacetalks.net.

Speakers at the Ottawa Peace Talks include:
Adrienne Clarkson, 26th Governor General of Canada
Maryam Monsef, Canadian Minister for Democratic Institutions
Roméo Dallaire, retired Lieutenant-General, former Canadian Senator and humanitarian
Alaa Murabit, founder of The Voice of Libyan Women
Emmanuel Jal, former child soldier turned recording artist and activist
Roberta Jamieson, Lawyer, First Nations activist, President and CEO of Indspire
Michele Brandt, Director of Interpeace's Constitution-making for Peace programme
Hamoon Ekhtiari, Director of Strategy and Innovation at Telus
Giovanna Mingarelli, technology entrepreneur
Erum Hasan et un Nisreen Ismail, Syrian refugee sponsor and former refugee
Désirée McGraw, Director of Pearson College – United World Colleges

The event will be moderated by Althia Raj, Huffington Post Canada’s Ottawa bureau chief

About the Peace Talks:
The Peace Talks are an international platform that brings together speakers from diverse backgrounds to share their personal stories and ideas to resolve conflict. The Peace Talks were initiated in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2013 at the United Nations through the first-ever Geneva Peace Talks co-organized by Interpeace, the United Nations Office at Geneva and the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform.