The Council is excited to announce a new Education Speaker Series tailored directly to high school student audiences. This Series, scheduled for the last Wednesday of every month, will bring academics, policymakers and policy practitioners directly to your students through an immersive, virtual speaker platform. Students will have an opportunity to hear directly from these speakers and will have the opportunity to engage directly in a Q&A session with those speakers. Access to these speakers is complimentary with a High School Membership. If your school does not yet have a High School Membership with the Council, you can register on our website at https://wacphila.org/education/high-school-programs/high-school-membership 

NOTE: The virtual platform for this event will be Zoom. WAC staff will email the primary (and secondary if applicable) faculty advisers and registered students with a link to join the program prior to the program. Faculty advisers should also distribute the link to participating students.

For questions regarding the Education Speaker Series or High School Membership, please contact Kasey Trapp, Associate Director of Student Programs at ktrapp@wacphila.org or Eric Bumbaca, Director of Student Programs, at ebumbaca@wacphila.org

DATE: January 27, 2021 from 4:30pm-5:30pm

DESCRIPTION: Despite limitations posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing polarization, and instances of violent disruptions, peacebuilding, nonviolent movements, and reconciliation still continue to take place around the world today. From Afghanistan, to Armenia and Azerbaijan, from the United States, to Belarus, to Thailand, active peace talks and peaceful protest movements continue to facilitate change. While some movements continue to utilize mass gatherings and demonstrations (with the addition of COVID-friendly precautions such as facemasks), others have taken more socially-distanced approaches, such as Facebook Live protests and digital rallies, workers strikes, crowdsourcing emergency relief funds and supplies, and widespread information sharing, as a means of advocating for their cause. However, maintaining peaceful actions and peace talks between opposing parties requires continuous efforts to avoid a turn towards violence, and oftentimes the process is not a smooth one. This fourth installment of the Council’s new Education Speaker Series will explore the peacebuilding and reconciliation process, both within and among countries, along with taking a detailed look at some of the most prominent nonviolent social and political movements taking place around the world today.

A panel of expert speakers at this virtual program will provide answers to questions such as: What are the essential components for successful peace agreements, effective nonviolent movements, and long-lasting efforts for reconciliation? Where in the world today can we find strong examples of recent peace-driven change? What unique challenges and opportunities has the COVID-19 pandemic posed to creating and sustaining peace around the world? What can we learn from historically successful non-violent protests, like those of the Civil Rights Movement? What are the largest obstacles in maintaining peaceful action and conducting peace talks? Is the world overall becoming more or less peaceful in terms of social and political movements?

NOTE: The virtual platform for this event will be Zoom. WAC staff will email the primary (and secondary if applicable) faculty advisers and registered students with a link to join the program prior to the program. Faculty advisers should also distribute the link to participating students.

For questions regarding the Education Speaker Series or High School Membership, please contact Kasey Trapp, Associate Director of Student Programs at ktrapp@wacphila.org or Eric Bumbaca, Director of Student Programs, at ebumbaca@wacphila.org