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Peace Boat in Pictures
Peace Boat sets sail for a voyage
around the world |
Objectives
Peace Boat is a Japan-based international non-governmental
and non-profit organization that works to promote peace,
human rights, sustainable development and respect for
the environment. |
Nanjing writing on a banner
Peace Boat was founded in 1983 by a group of Japanese
students who were angered by the censorship of history
textbooks regarding Japanese military aggression prior
to and during World War II. They chartered a ship to travel
to various World War II sites with the objective of meeting
people, discovering for themselves the truth about Japan's
past invasions of Asian countries and reconciling people
on different sides of the conflict. Following a study
program on the 1937-38 Nanjing Massacre, young Japanese
Peace Boat participants joined Chinese youths from Nanjing
in writing messages of remembrance and pledges to work
for peace together. |
Chinese
and Japanese youth write messages of remembrance and
hopes for building peace together, Nanjing, China
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Peace
Boat’s ship TSS The Topaz
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The ship
Peace Boat carries out its main activities on a chartered
passenger ship, ‘TSS The Topaz,’ that travels
the world on peace voyages. The ship creates a neutral,
mobile space that makes it easier for people from different
countries to talk about difficult issues while at sea
and in port. Peace Boat’s ship ‘TSS The Topaz’
– 31,500 tons and 195 meters long – can hold
up to 1600 passengers. She was built in the United Kingdom
and first set sail in 1955. Peace Boat has been chartering
this ship since 2003 and has adapted many of the onboard
rooms for use as meeting spaces and classrooms. |
Group workshop
With the participation of around 50 guest educators
from across the globe, Peace Boat organizes a range
of educational activities onboard during each voyage,
including peace education workshops and lectures, language
classes and cultural programs. The themes of these activities
are linked to contemporary issues in the countries they
visit.
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An intergenerational peace education
workshop |
A music festival at night on
deck
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Festival on deck
All participants onboard are encouraged to contribute
to programmes, resulting in a daily schedule of more than
100 events and activities, from expert lectures on global
issues to salsa dance classes, from Arabic conversation
lessons to music festivals, from documentary movie screenings
to soccer games on deck. |
Linking hands at the World Social
Forum
Peace Boat works in partnership with other civil
society organizations and communities around the
world, bringing people together for mutual understanding,
peace education and action towards positive social change.
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Linking hands across cultures
– World Social Forum, Porto Alegre, Brazil
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No to War, No to Terror –
World Social Forum, Porto Alegre, Brazil
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No War march
Peace Boat aims to contribute to the advocacy work of
its local partners through the organization of joint
appeals in port that aim to raise local, national and
international awareness about a particular issue. Sometimes
this is done through public advocacy actions such as
street demonstrations or by highlighting a particular
issue through a study programme or symposium. By raising
awareness in this way, Peace Boat hopes that these activities
will help people direct their actions towards positive
social change.
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Mostar study
In order to create sustainable peace, we need to recognize
the diversity, complexity and interconnectedness of
the world we live in. Study programmes organized by
Peace Boat in port aim to develop a common understanding
of particular problems and to explore innovative local
actions to find solutions.
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Examining the scars of war during
a visit to Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina (in Southeastern
Europe) and the efforts that local people are making to
rebuild their lives and their town |
Planting mangroves near Cartagena,
Colombia
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Planting of mangroves
During a port visit, typically one to three days in
length, Peace Boat works with local organizations to
organize activities that promote peace and sustainable
development. Here, Peace Boat participants join members
of a community near Cartagena, Colombia (South America)
in planting mangroves as part of a coastland recovery
project. |
Bicycle project
Activities in each port are organized jointly with Peace
Boat's partner organizations. These activities seek
to support the grassroot projects of civil
society organizations while at the same time serving
as a powerful peace education experience and mobilizing
tool for Peace Boat's participants. In this photo Peace
Boat joins a cycle ride through the streets of San Salvador,
in El Salvador (Central America) to promote green transport
together with a local sustainability organization, CESTA.
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A bicycle ride to promote sustainable
transport, San Salvador, El Salvador |
Sharing dances in a cultural exchange
– Belem, Brazil
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Dancing
Exchange programs bring Peace Boat participants and
local people together to share common activities and
move beyond the barriers of language and cultural difference.
By dancing together, playing sport or learning each
other’s handicraft skills, Peace Boat hopes that
participants will identify with each other on a human
level, building the friendship links across nations
and cultures that are a pre-condition for peace and
sustainability. In this picture, young people share
some simple dance steps in Belem, Brazil (South America).
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Please join us as we bring you updates
from some of the ports Peace Boat will visit on its
46th voyage to build a culture of peace around the world.
See http://www.peaceboat.org
for more information.
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Dolphins photographed from 'TSS
The Topaz.' |
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