Peace
Peace is a radical call for freedom from oppression and a bold challenge to rethink how we live together
“Many think of ‘peace’ and ‘conflict’ as antagonisms; peace, then, evokes images of calm and tranquility. But struggle—including the political struggles we have seen unfold on college campuses—can be animated by a desire for peace. In this case, peace isn’t necessarily quiet and tranquil. Instead, it is a radical call for freedom from oppressions, and a bold challenge to re-think how we live together in ways that not only honor each other’s dignity but that recognize and redress the violence that has marked—and continues to mark—the everyday. Peace, then, is an ongoing call to imagine living otherwise.”
— Jennifer C. Nash, Assistant Professor, American Studies & Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Director, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
International Day of Peace
21 September
2024 Theme: Cultivating a Culture of Peace
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace.
In that declaration, the United Nations’ most inclusive body recognized that peace “not only is the absence of conflict, but also requires a positive, dynamic participatory process where dialogue is encouraged and conflicts are solved in a spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation.”
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Culture of Peace
It is of utmost importance that the United Nations continues to support the global movement to promote the culture of peace, its Declaration and Programme of Action, and that our response and recovery efforts are guided towards implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
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Defining the Concept of Peace: Positive and Negative Peace
There are two common conceptions of peace — Negative Peace, or actual peace, and Positive Peace.
What is Negative Peace?
The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP)’s definition of Negative Peace is understood as ‘the absence of violence or fear of violence — an intuitive definition that many agree with, and one which enables us to measure peace more easily.
Measures of Negative Peace are the foundation of the IEP’s flagship product, the Global Peace Index.
However, while the Global Peace Index tells us how peaceful a country is, it doesn’t tell us what or where we should be investing in to strengthen or maintain levels of peace.
This leads us to Positive Peace, derived from the data contained within the Global Peace Index. Positive Peace provides a framework to understand and address the many complex challenges the world faces.
What is Positive Peace?
Positive Peace is defined as the attitudes, institutions and structures that create and sustain peaceful societies.
It provides a framework to understand and then address the multiple and complex challenges the world faces. Positive Peace is transformational in that it is a cross-cutting factor for progress, making it easier for businesses to sell, entrepreneurs and scientists to innovate, individuals to produce, and governments to effectively regulate.
Difference between Negative and Positive Peace
In addition to the absence of violence, Positive Peace is also associated with many other social characteristics that are considered desirable, including better economic outcomes, measures of well-being, levels of inclusiveness and environmental performance.
A parallel can be drawn with medical science; the study of pathology has led to numerous breakthroughs in our understanding of how to treat and cure disease.
However, it was only when medical science turned its focus to the study of healthy human beings that we understood what we needed to do to stay healthy. This could only be learned by studying what was working.
Are you interested in learning more about peace? Sign up for the free, online Positive Peace Academy
UNSCR 1325
UNSCR 1325 stands as the inaugural formal and legal instrument from the Security Council mandating conflict parties to prevent violations of women’s rights, promote women’s involvement in peace negotiations and post-conflict reconstruction, and safeguard women and girls from sexual violence during wartime. Notably, it marked the Security Council’s first explicit acknowledgment of the gendered dimensions of conflict. Since its inception, the resolution has evolved into a guiding framework for the women, peace, and security agenda, aimed at advancing the principles articulated in Resolution 1325.
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