Share the Love

The Peace Alliance is a grass-roots organization whose mission is to bring peaceful conflict resolution skills into our communities, into our work with other nations, and into the highest areas of our government.

The Peace Alliance is promoting the adoption of House Resolution #808, which seeks to create a Cabinet level Department of Peace in our government. If this resolution were adopted into law, we as a nation would have a Cabinet level advocate for peaceful resolution to speak for us on a national and international level. When world conflicts next arise and the President of the United States calls his or her Cabinet together, an expert in peaceful conflict resolution could be sitting at that table to aid in the discussion.

In addition, House Resolution #808 would create a Peace Academy, a four-year college education that would produce graduates who are experts in peaceful conflict resolution. Somewhat like West Point, these graduates would then be expected to go into public service both internationally and in our own communities here at home. Their goals would be to create programs to decrease violence, increase understanding and teach others how to "get along."

Imagine the potential for positive change in our society

if we had a cohesive system for running

parenting education programs,

conflict resolution training in schools,

anger management programs in jails and juvenile court systems,

…the potential is very exciting!

There are many nations considering a similar Department of Peace in their own countries, but many of them have stated that they are waiting for the United States to make the first move. This does not necessarily mean that we won't need to use force in the future, but it simply makes sense that we have more discussion and focus on peaceful conflict resolution than we do now.

Since 1993, Seeds of Peace has been working with teenagers in areas of conflict around the world, teaching them skills in conflict resolution, negotiation, communication and leadership. They develop empathy and respect for each other through the International Camp in Maine and then continue their learning through follow-up programs such as international youth conferences, regional workshops, educational and professional opportunities, and an adult educator program. These teenagers learn not only how to live together but how to thrive in each other's company and are taking those skills back to their communities.

Seeds of Peace started their work by bringing together youths from Israel, Palestine, and Egypt, and they still focus much of their energy on this area of the world that so desperately needs them.

They have also expanded their work into other war-torn communities such as South Asia, Cyprus, and the Balkans.

Seeds of Peace now has over 3500 young people in their leadership network around the world. They are expanding their efforts to reach as many teens as possible, to help them see people on the other side of the divide first as human beings and then as potential friends.

Healing the Wounds of War

The Center for Mind/Body Medicine has been an organization with which we have been involved for several years. We are both certified in Mind/Body/Spirit Medicine through CMBM and have seen first-hand what Mind/Body Skills Groups can do to help people deal with stress, get in touch with their own intuition, and develop compassion for others.

Dr. Jim Gordon is the Founder and Director of CMBM and was the Chairman of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy. He also served as the first Chair of the Program Advisory Council of the National Institutes of Health's Office of Alternative Medicine and is a former member of the Cancer Advisory Panel on Complementary and Alternative Medicine of the NIH.

Dr. Gordon has been taking his work, through his Healing the Wounds of War program, to war-torn countries and to traumatized areas in our own country with phenomenal results. Here in the United States , he has helped the firefighters and other victims of 9/11 and those caught in the Katrina hurricane and its aftermath. Kosovo, Gaza, Israel, Macedonia, and Bosnia have all been the lucky recipients of his healing techniques.

First, CMBM trains healthcare professionals in managing their own stress by using scientifically validated approaches, including psychological self-care, self-expression (through words, drawings and movement), mind-body techniques (meditation, guided imagery, biofeedback, yoga, etc.) and group support. They then instruct program graduates in how to effectively incorporate these techniques into their work with clients, patients and the local populations they serve, so that more and more people will learn how to handle trauma and stress in a peaceful and effective way.

We firmly believe that the great hope for our troubled world lies with our women and children. Since it is primarily the women who raise our children, our moral and spiritual future is truly in women's hands. We dearly need the Sacred Feminine in all of us to come together with one voice to insist on a more peaceful world for ourselves and for those who come after us. Too often, though, this deep power for positive change has been buried under violence, prejudice, war, and intolerance.

Women for Women International is a humanitarian organization dedicated to financial, educational, and interpersonal support of women survivors of war, poverty and injustice. As women are empowered to make their own lives better, they are also empowered to make the world around them better for everyone. As we help each other, we create a true global community.

Women for Women International has a one-year program that starts with personal support for women who may have lost everything to war and conflict. They offer food, clothes, medicine, and emotional support to help women transition from victim to survivor.

The next step is to transition from survivor to active citizen. This process includes training, loans, and other services to give women a chance to get their own lives in order. They then move on to teaching these women leadership skills and having them get involved in making a positive difference in their communities.

For Shamanic Studies

The Venus Rising Institute is an organization that we have been associated with since 2000, and we recommend their work highly. Venus Rising was founded by the woman we consider our first shamanic mentor, Linda Star Wolf.  Star Wolf is one of those rare people who has mastered the art of deep visionary spirituality that is also firmly grounded on the Earth. Star Wolf and her equally phenomenal husband, Brad Collins, use a technique she developed called Shamanic Breathwork that is powerfully healing and transforming. 

These two bring a humor, a seriousness, and an integrity to their work that is wonderful to experience. They are doing amazing work in helping people to become their own shaman, teaching them to tap deeply into their own healing power and their connection to something larger than themselves. They teach that the healing starts from within but that it is just as important to recognize our connection to all that is around us so that we can each do our part in making our world a better place.

Star Wolf and Brad and their Venus Rising Institute associates have recently created the Transformation House, a healing retreat for people who want or need to do intensive emotional and spiritual exploration. This is a safe and loving place to do soul searching, a place to allow yourself to fall apart for a while so that you can pull yourself back together - healthier, stronger, and more connected to the world around you. We know what gems they have in their allied staff, and what they have created at the Transformation House is just simply groundbreaking. We are thrilled to be able to support their cause.