Resources for Peace Visioning

by Peter Bergel

Here, in no particular order, are websites (both articles and organizations) and books that I and others have found helpful in researching peace visioning.

Websites

•    Emergent Culture – a Movement to Unite All Movements; http://emergent-culture.com/a-movement-to-unite-all-movements/#coalition, http://emergent-culture.com/about-emergent-culture/

•    Mosaic Multicultural Forum;  http://www.mosaicvoices.org/page.cfm?id=21

•    “America 2.0” by Jay Hanson; http://campfire.theoildrum.com/node/5859

•    The Calvert-Henderson Quality of Life Indicators;  http://www.calvert-henderson.com/

•    Riane Eisler’s “Building Cultures of Peace: Four Cornerstones”;  www.amshq.org/documents/09_Building_Cultures_of_Peace.pdf

•    The Fun Theory; http://www.thefuntheory.com/ ; dedicated to strategizing around the understanding that more people will do what is fun to do than will do what is “merely” right. Suggests and reports on innovations based on this approach.

•    Academy for the Love of Learning; http://www.aloveoflearning.org/the_academy/strategicvision; promotes large-scale culture change, specifically, the activation of a culture of learning through which new forms of education, leadership and organizational practice emerge and thrive. Programs and services create the context for a deep and experiential inquiry into the personal and cultural values and practices underlying learning.

•    Idealist.org has one overarching goal — to help build a world where all people can lead free and dignified lives — and then focus on making it easier for more people and organizations to connect and take action on the issues that concern them.

•    The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (founding document of the U.N.);  http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/

•    “50 Visionaries Who Are Changing Your World,” Utne Magazine;  http://www.utne.com/2008-11-13/50-Visionaries-Who-Are-Changing-Your-World.aspx

•    Ashoka; http://www.ashoka.org/northamerica;  is a center for “social entrepreneurs” who are creating innovative solutions, delivering extraordinary results, and improving the lives of millions of people. Ashoka Global Headquarters, 1700 North Moore Street, Suite 2000 (20th Floor), Arlington, VA 22209, USA; Tel: 703.527.8300; Fax: 703.527.8383; Email: info@ashoka.org.

•    Randall Amster, “It’s Time to Escalate the Peace”;  http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/23366

•    Randall Amster, “What to Do When Peace Breaks Out”; http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/03/20-3

•    Resources from Beyond War; http://www.beyondwar.org/content/resources. Beyond War has been thinking about long-range peacebuilding for decades.

Books

•    Paul Hawken, Blessed Unrest.  Preview at http://books.google.com/books?id=S75R90V1IlUC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false

•    Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel, Looking Forward: Participatory Economics for the Twenty First Century Download free at http://2020ok.com/books/11/looking-forward-participatory-economics-for-the-twenty-first-century-9511.htm

•    Bertrand Russell, Proposed Roads to Freedom. Full text at http://www.zpub.com/notes/rfree10.html

•    Bill McKibben, Deep Economy. The bestselling author of The End of Nature issues an impassioned call to arms for an economy that creates community and ennobles our lives. http://www.billmckibben.com/deep-economy.html

•    David Adams, World Peace Through Town Halls. Foresees the coming collapse of the global economy and nation states as an opportunity to refound the United Nations on the basis of those who understand the need for a culture of peace: individuals, civil society organizations and local governments. It provides descriptions of initiatives already underway, as well as approaches that can be used by those who wish to take up the task. Order from http://www.culture-of-peace.info/books/worldpeace.html. Φ