Events

SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH OVERCOMING VIOLENCE: RESTORING EARTH; RESPECTING WOMEN

March 19, 2016

Pasos Peace Museum and the International Institute on Peace Education invite you to a symposium on the themes of CSW 2016 at Fordham Law School. This symposium, illuminating the intersections between environmental and gender violence, will explore modes of learning and action toward the achievement of ecological sustainability and gender justice with a comprehensive framework of change from families to global society. For more information, please see the event announcement here.

FJK DANCE FUSION OF CULTURE  AND DANCE

February 26, 2016

Pasos is co-sponsoring this program with the Consulate General of Lebanon in New York City and the Arabic Studies Center at Hunter College that aims to communicate peace, diversity, tolerance, and harmony, to educate and share the endless possibilities in finding connections within our differences. Click here to learn more about the program and find out where to purchase tickets.

PASOS ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER, DR. BETTY REARDON, SPEAKS AT EVENT WITH SOKA GAKKAI-INTERNATIONAL USA

October 27, 2015

SGI-USA welcomes three accomplished peacebuilders – Anwarul Chowdhury, Asha Hans, and Dr. Betty Reardon – for their Culture of Peace Distinguished Speaker Series. Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury will moderate a conversation between Dr. Betty Reardon and Dr. Asha Hans from India. In their Dialogue on the Future, Hans and Reardon will invite attendees to think creatively and practically about responses to global problems and how we, the people, can affect the discussion and eventual resolution of those problems. Their focus will be particularly from the perspective of women’s daily and local realities.

FIGMENT NYC PARTICIPATORY ART EVENT – QUILTING WITH PASOS

June 6-7, 2015

Pasos was thrilled to return to figment with our Children’s Rights Quilt Project. Participants decorated panels that will be sewn together and exhibited in the fall of 2015.

THE RANA PLAZA COLLAPSE AND THE TRIANGLE FIRE: CONSEQUENCES AND ACCOUNTABILITY

March 14, 2015

Pasos and the International Institute on Peace Education organized a program focusing on crimes against women. Co-sponsored by the Biosophical Institute, CONNECT, The Global Campaign for Peace Education, The Network for Peace through Dialogue, The Peace Education Initiative at The University of Toledo, Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition, Voice of Women for Peace-Canada, the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction, and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, this symposium was organized to discuss the on-going struggle for women’s economic rights and worker safety and was a side event to the annual meeting of the United Nations Committee on the Status of Women. The event took place at Fordham University and included words from Betty Reardon, Robin Berson, Tiffany Milloen, and Janet Gerson. Click here for more information on the program.

EIGHTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERNECE OF MUSEUMS FOR PEACE

September 19-22, 2014

The Eighth International Conference of Museums for Peace organized by the International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP) was held this year at the No Gun Ri Peace Memorial Park in South Korea. Pasos Board Member, Tiffany Milloen, attended the conference and presented on the Pasos Children’s Rights Quilt Project.

FIGMENT NYC PARTICIPATORY ART EVENT – QUILTING WITH PASOS

June 7-8, 2014

Banner Figment Quilt photo 3a

As part of the Figment Festival at Governor’s Island, NYC, Pasos Peace Museum had a quilting program to teach about this ancient art form and its analogies to peace building. Participants decorated fabric panels, which were sewn together to represent how individuals are connected to other members of their community.

 

A PEACE OF MY MIND EXHIBIT

February 21 through March 25, 2013

Pasos hosts A Peace of My Mind, an exciting new photo essay exhibit that opened Thursday, February 21st at New York University’s Kimmel Center, 60 Washington Square South in New York City. The opening reception included a program prepared by the artist, John Noltner, speeches by Pasos’ founder, Nitza Escalera and by Executive Director, William Repicci, as well as readings from Noltner’s interviews. A Peace of My Mind was on view at the Kimmel Center through March 25th. On March 15th, The National Peace Academy partnered with Pasos Peace Museum to hosts a special evening of dialogue in conjunction with the Peace of My Mind exhibit.
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Pasos Executive Director William Repicci and artist John Noltner at the opening reception for A Peace of My Mind

PASOS PARTICIPATES IN THE ACTING TOGETHER TRAINING FOR TRAINERS

Acting Together On the World Stage: Performance and the Creative Transformation of
Conflict Using the “Toolkit for Continuing the Conversation”
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club, New York City

February 25-26, 2012

acting_together_3Program Director Lea Giddins participated in the Acting Together” Training for Trainers. The Acting Together project (documentary, anthology, toolkit, and website) started 6 years ago as a partnership between Brandeis University and Theatre Without Borders. The project is primarily lead by Dr. Cynthia Cohen in the Peacebuilding and the Arts Program at Brandeis University.

Facilitated by Dr. Cynthia Cohen and coordinated by David Diamond, the training contained experiential learning activities, an overview of the Acting Together toolkit, mini-presentations, and small group brainstorming and collaboration. Some of the key concepts discussed were: the moral imagination, aesthetic power and socio-political effectiveness, minimizing the risks of doing harm, and the permeable membrane between art and society. Participants included educators, artists, practitioners and trainers with knowledge of the Acting Together Project or experience in peacebuiling and/or the artscussion of new programs and strategies in the coming year.

 

 

 PASOS ADOPTS A NEW LOGO

December 14, 2011
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PASOS STAFF JOINS GLOBAL YOUTH CONNECT FOR THEIR FIRST ANNUAL YOUTH FOR HUMAN RIGHTS GALA

November 17, 2011

Pasos staff joins Global Youth Connect and its Executive Director, Jesse Hawkes, for their Gala honoring Valentine Iribagiza,
a survivor of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. GYC is an international organization of youth acting together for human rights,
responsibilities and compassion.

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Jesse Hawkes, GYC Executive Director and Rwandan Genocide survivor Valentine Iribagiza.

JOINT EFFORT WITH METRONOME-ISRAEL INTERNATIONAL PEACE EDUCATION INSTITUTE

October 7, 2011

Museum staff and board met with Adi Foksheneanu of Metronome-Israeli International Peace Education Institute to
discuss collaborative efforts in facilitating and developing the practice of peace education internationally through
join work of academics and practitioners. The goal is to execute novel peace education programs that move beyond
region-insular perspectives to reflect a holistic understanding of the field.

Left to right: Museum Founder Nitza Escalera, Metronome Founder Adi Foksheneanu, and Museum
Advisory Board Member Betty Reardon; Museum ED William Repicci, and Adi Foksheneanu.

PAUSE FOR PEACE

September 21, 2011

PAUSE for Peace (Peaceful Acts Under Surveillance Event) takes place at noon on the International Day of Peace.
People participate across the globe at noon in their time zone.

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE DINNER CELEBRATION

September 17, 2011

day_of_peace_dinner_2011Museum members gathered at Colors Restaurant in NYC
to celebrate the International Day of Peace and to recognize
the strides made by the organization in the past year.
Participants engaged in an analysis of the current state of
world affairs with regard to peace initiatives, which provided
a basis for a thoughtful discussion of new programs and
strategies in the coming year.

 

 

 

COLLABORATION WITH CENTER FOR THE ARTS

September 12, 2011

center_for_art_posterBoard Chair, Nitza Escalera and Executive Director, William Repicci met with Lois Saperstein,
Executive Director of the nonprofit Center for the Arts and President of The Arts Marketing Partnership.
Given the synergy of our respective organization’s mission statements, we have joined in a collaborative
effort. Center for the Arts is dedicated to raising awareness of the impact of the arts. It offers a broad array
of workshops for both adults and children that facilitate expression through a supportive framework.
For more information, visit: www.center4arts.org.

PASOS REACHES OUT TO THE NATIONAL JAZZ MUSEUM IN HARLEM

August 10, 2011

The National Jazz Museum in Harlem opened its doors to Pasos ED Bill Repicci recently with Jazz Museum Executive Director Loren Schoenberg playing host. As a preeminent Harlem institution, the Jazz Museum on E126th St not only offers exhibits, a resource center, concerts, lectures and workshops, it also builds the local community with its focus on opportunities for socialization. Schoenberg shared plans of their new 40,000 sq ft museum that is in development on 125th Street. Pasos is also using its Virtual Museum to feature the humanitarian work of jazz musicians connected with the museum. Check out more on the National Jazz Museum in Harlem at: http://www.jazzmuseuminharlem.org/

Check out our Jazz Corner exhibit featuring Jazz Museum Co-Director Christian McBride.

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Left to right: Loren Schoenberg—Jazz Museum Executive Director, conductor, saxophonist, and
scholar; the National Jazz Musem in Harlem.

PASOS PARTICIPATES IN THE WALT WHITMAN CHAMPION LITERACY AWARDS

June 26, 2011

Pasos Program and Exhibit Director, Lea Giddins joined Soka Gakkai International-USA (SGI) and The Walt Whitman Birthplace Association for the presentation of the Walt Whitman Champion Literacy Award, which took place at his birthplace in West Hills, NY. SGI is a worldwide Buddhist network, which promotes peace, culture and education through personal transformation and social contribution. This year’s award went to philosopher, peacebuilder, educator, author and poet Daisaku Ikeda.

“The eyes of a poet discover in each person a unique and irreplaceable humanity. While arrogant intellect seeks to control and manipulate the world, the poetic spirit bows with reverence before its mysteries.”—Daisaku Ikeda

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Left to right: Lea Giddins (Pasos) and Lenora Wade (SGI-USA) Peace and Community Relations Chairperson; Presentation of
The Walt Whitman Champion Literacy Award.

PASOS PRESENTS PAPER AT 7TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF MUSEUMS FOR PEACE

Barcelona International Peace Center, Montjuïc Castle

May 4–7, 2011

At the 7th International Conference, Pasos presented two papers: ED William Repicci presented The Inspiration and Challenges of Creating a Museum that Empowers the Peacebuilder in Each of Us. Board member Dr Joyce Apsel presented Educating for Peace and Human Right: Peace Studies and Museum Studies. The International Network of Museums for Peace sponsored the event. Over 60 peace museum leaders from around the world gathered to focus their attention on the theme “The Role of Museums in the Transformation of a Culture of War & Violence to a Culture of Peace & Nonviolence.”

The 20th century was the most violent century in history—witnessing many wars, violent upheavals and revolutions, the Holocaust and other genocides, as well as gross human rights abuses. These instances of human suffering and cruelty have been memorialized in museums and sites around the world. They aim not only to remember, but also to educate in the hope of preventing similar atrocities from ever occurring again. Many museums and sites have also become places of reconciliation and peacemaking.

The same century has also shown the power of nonviolence, of civilian resistance movements, and of grassroots peace activism. Museums and centers dedicated to these ideas and struggles—and their leading advocates, such as Mahatma Gandhi, Jane Addams, Martin Luther King, Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela—provide inspiring examples of the possibility and effectiveness of nonviolent social change.

More generally, peace museums demonstrate the ways and means in which societies can promote peace, justice, and development by peaceful means, without recourse to the ancient, largely discredited and now often wholly counterproductive instruments of the past, first and foremost armed force.
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PASOS JOINS PEACEBUILDING IN THE ARTS 

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY

April 1-3, 2011

Board member Bridget Gauntlett and Executive Director William Repicci participated in the Brandeis University Peacebuilding and the Arts Weekend Intensive in Waltham, MA. The Peacebuilding and the Arts program is part of the University’s International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life.

Facilitated by Dr. Polly Walker and Dr. Cynthia Cohen, the program is designed for students, practitioners, administrators, advocates and policy-makers in the fields of the arts, cultural work and conflict transformation. This allowed for engagement in discussions and activities designed to address key issues in the field, such as balancing artistic and socio-political intentions and the need to “do no harm.” A prime focus was the development of designs for arts and peacebuilding initiatives that reflect the basic principles of the moral imagination and the Acting Together project (a documentary film—featured in our Virtual Museum).
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Left to right: Pasos ED William Repicci and program facilitator Polly Walker, PhD; Assoc. Professor/Ellen Smith (Assoc. Dir. Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program), Bridget Gauntlett (Pasos board member) and Libbie J. Shufro (AdLib Consulting); Cynthia Cohen, PhD, Director of Peacebuilding and the Arts program at Brandeis.

PASOS CO-SPONSOR OF CONFERENCE

Dreaming the Americas: Global Change in Performance

March 4 & 5, 2011

Pasos joined noted art organizations as an artistic affiliate of the 5th Annual NoPassport Conference:
Dreaming the Americas: Global Change in Performance.

NoPassport was founded by playwright Caridad Svich in 2003 as a Pan-American theatre alliance & press devoted to action, advocacy, and change toward the fostering of cross-cultural diversity and difference in the arts with an emphasis on the embrace of the hemispheric spirit in US Latina/o and Latin-American theatremaking. The conference is initiated and curated by Caridad Svich and co-curated by Catherine Coray (NYU) & Daniel Gallant (Executive Director, Nuyorican Poets Café).

The conference was on March 4 and 5, 2011 at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe (236 East 3rd Street) with pre-conference special salon NO CUTS on MARCH 3, 2011 at INTAR Theatre. Presentation topics included: “Activism in Performance,” “Genocide and Political Atrocity in Theater,” and “The Global South” (speaker: Jose Rivera—Oscar-nominated screenwriter of “The Motorcycle Diaries” and award-winning playwright). There was also a work session with Sundance Institute Theater East Africa.

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Left to right: Playwright and Oscar-nominated screenwriter, José Rivera, delivers the Keynote address; Sundance Institute Theatre East Africa: Deborah Ashmwe (playwright, and specialist, East Africa), and Philip Himberg (Producing Artistic Director); Genocide & Political Atrocity in Theater Erik Ehn (Head of Playwriting, Brown University), and Marcus Gardley (Prof. of African-American Theater and Playwriting, University of Mass.)

WINTER CELEBRATION OF PEACE

Central Park East II Elementary School

January 21, 2011

Board Members and the Executive Director of Pasos took part in the Central Park East II Elementary School (103rd Street, New York City) Winter Celebration of Peace in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. CEO Bill Repicci addressed the gathering of approximately 300 children, parents, and teachers. Attendees were introduced to our organization, it’s goals, and how they could become—and already are—part of the movement that inspires Pasos.

An interactive booth displayed books, the Pasos quilt, artwork, and sign up sheets where children, parents, and teachers could learn about and become engaged in our efforts. The event also featured a student art exhibit, video presentations, a choral group, and orchestral performances which beautifully demonstrated the meshing of the arts and a theme of peacebuilding.

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A DAY OF PEACEBUILDING

February 22, 2009

Friends of PASOS: The Museum and Center for Peacebuilding, sponsored its inaugural event at the Schomburg Center, the New York Public Library on 135th Street and Malcolm X Boulevard in Manhattan.

The day’s activities, all of which were free to the public, included a lecture and discussion, an art exhibition, peacebuilding activities for children and their families, and a dance performance.

PROGRAM
Presentation Topic: Steps Towards Building Peace
Location: The Langston Hughes Auditorium

SPEAKERS

Joyce A. Apsel, Board Member of The International Network of Museums for Peace, Professor – New York University

Betty Readon, Author, Founding Director of the Peace Education Center at Teachers College Columbia University, UN consultant and recipient of the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education 2001.

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Dance Performance
SUITE 9/11—TOGETHER
Dance Performance by DanceWorks
The Dance Company of Westchester Community College
Choreographed by Company Director Mollyann Franzblau
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Art Exhibit
MUSES ON THE PEACE PROCESS
Artists: Tobi Khan and Mary DeVincentis

Family Activities
BECAUSE CHILDREN AND THEIR PARENTS CAN CHANGE THE WORLD
Peace Through Play / PEACE Unlimited, Inc.

Video Interviews of Event Participants
REFLECTIONS ON PEACE
Visitor Interviews conducted by Jose Luis Colon & Associate