Trip update: We had a very dynamic meeting with the Hon. Barry White yesterday. As you all know, there is a lot of enthusiasm (inside and outside the US) about the Nobel Peace Prize Forum, so there was no shortage of interesting ideas that came out of our discussion with the ambassador. Highlights included:
The US Embassy in Oslo, Norway
- Hosting an essay contest for high school or college students
- Building a relationship with the United States Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C. (see fact sheet)
- Considering a workshop about: “Peace Efforts that Fall Short”
- Virtual “teach-ins” for students, led by professors or other experts (hosted on the NPPF website)
How do these ideas sound to you? Post your thoughts below…
Hi Maureen and Paul -
Just wanted to add to the conversation that two of the above mentioned ideas have been instituted before in the history of our Forum. Augustana and the Sioux Falls Argus Leader did an essay contest “What Peace Means to Me” in the SIoux Falls Schools many years ago (when we hosted in the early 90′s). The winner received a US Savings Bond and was presented at the Forum. In addition, Augustana received a $50,000 grant from the US Inst of Peace to help support the Forum that year. The money was used to give “legs” to our discussions – booklets with conference proceedings as well as information about the laureates and speakers were placed in every high school in South Dakota. Just some FYI as you continue your conversations…………..hope things are still going well! Brad
Hi Brad. Thanks for reminding us about the essay contest and USIP grant. We’ll definitely want to revisit these ideas. -Maureen