One Thousand Paper Cranes launches online resources
‘One Thousand Paper Cranes’ launched its online toolkit, including a video message of peace and hope from young people in Hiroshima, story of Sadako Sasaki and instructions on how to fold the origami crane.
The project developed by the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building, supported by the Community Relations Council and endorsed by Japan House London celebrates the culture of peace and links between Northern Ireland and Japan.
The aim of the project is to make 1000 origami paper cranes with messages of lasting peace. The cranes will be offered at the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima to mark the 75th anniversary of the bombing later this year.
In addition, as part of the project, Visiting Professor in Immersive Futures and diversity and inclusion specialist Deepa Mann-Kler with team from Ulster University will create Tsuru – an artistic intervention using Augmented Reality to explore peace building in digital and physical spaces of Belfast and Hiroshima.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP, Chairman, Centre for Democracy and Peace Building said:
“We are delighted to be launching this project which is aimed at strengthening relations between Northern Ireland and Japan through the sharing of our respective experiences in peace building.
Drawing our inspiration from the work of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation, we will be particularly encouraging young people to value the peace process and to engage in collective learning as we work towards reconciliation in our troubled and divided land.
An added benefit of the project is the study of peace through cultural exchange and exploring the richness of our cultural diversity as well as all that we have in common through our shared humanity.”
Michael Houlihan, Director General, Japan House London said:
“Japan House London is privileged to be associated with such an inspiring initiative. Culture can sometimes be the simple expression of how different societies find very different solutions to the same challenges of everyday life and living.
Sharing and understanding the experiences of others can teach us much about ourselves, and offer answers as to how we can build a more peaceful world. It is part of Japan House London’s mission to be a cultural bridge bringing the United Kingdom and Japan together.”
Watch video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4sHJ2EWbCg
Online Resources are HERE.
TEDxStormont: TED Circles April 2020
In April, TEDxStormont will host a special online TED Circles programme themed around COVID 19, changing world and your well-being. The ZOOM webinars will take place each Monday afternoon at 4pm (BST) and will be co-hosted by Lord Alderdice and special guests. Please join in to learn, share your perspective and connect with new ideas.
TED Circles is an open platform for meaningful conversations about ideas. Imagine a book club for TED Talks! A new TED initiative, at TED Circles you will meet others who are inspired by TED and interested in joining small discussions, facilitated by our volunteer hosts, on a variety of relevant and timely topics.
Register at: https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEvcO6opjorP38HmqMPp9TyVSODLzeOnw
Programme
• Monday, 6 April
Emotional first aid with special guests Professor Siobhan O’Neill and Peter McBride
Watch Guy Winch: Why we all need to practice emotional first aid HERE.
• Monday, 13 April
The art of stillness with special guest Fr Mark Patrick Hederman OSB and Bridgeen Rea-Kaya
Watch Pico Iyer: The art of stillness HERE.
• Monday, 20 April
Compassion with special guest Padraig O’Tuama and Sr Judith Leckie
Watch Krista Tippett: Reconnecting with compassion HERE.
• Monday, 27 April
Gratefulness with special guest Karen Sethuraman and Rev Dr John Dunlop
Watch David Steindl-Rast: Want to be happy? Be grateful HERE.
CO-HOST Professor, the Lord Alderdice FRCPsych
Professor, the Lord Alderdice FRCPsych is a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords and was the Chairman of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords during the Liberal/Conservative Coalition Government. Previously a consultant psychiatrist at the Centre for Psychotherapy he established in Belfast, Lord Alderdice is currently a Senior Research Fellow and Director of the Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict at Harris Manchester College (University of Oxford). He is also a Clinical Professor in Psychiatry at the University of Maryland (Baltimore) and Chairman Emeritus of the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building (Belfast).
TED Circle: COVID19 and the social distancing problem
Our first TED Circle webinar on COVID 19 and the social distancing problem will take place on Monday, 30 March from 3pm to 4pm (BST).
TED Circles is an open platform for meaningful conversations about ideas. Imagine a book club for TED Talks! A new TED initiative, at TED Circles you will meet others who are inspired by TED and interested in joining small discussions, facilitated by our volunteer hosts, on a variety of relevant and timely topics.
The webinar will be facilitated by the team at TEDxStormont and co-hosted by Lord Alderdice and Sinead O’Sullivan. We will discuss TED talk by Robert Waldinger: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness and article by Scott Atran: Coronavirus & The Social Distancing Problem.
Please join in to learn, share your perspective and connect with new ideas.
Join us live on Facebook @TEDxStormont or register HERE.
BEFORE WEBINAR
• WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KkKuTCFvzI
• READ: http://cric-oxford.org/2020/03/17/coronavirus-the-social-distancing-problem/
CONTRIBUTORS
Professor, the Lord Alderdice FRCPsych
Professor, the Lord Alderdice FRCPsych is a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords and was the Chairman of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords during the Liberal/Conservative Coalition Government. Previously a consultant psychiatrist at the Centre for Psychotherapy he established in Belfast, Lord Alderdice is currently a Senior Research Fellow and Director of the Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict at Harris Manchester College (University of Oxford). He is also a Clinical Professor in Psychiatry at the University of Maryland (Baltimore) and Chairman Emeritus of the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building (Belfast).
Sinead O’Sullivan
Sinead O’Sullivan is the CEO of Veriphix, a behavioural dynamics platform that detects and measures human emotion at scale. A Fellow at Harvard Law School (Center for Internet and Society) and a Senior Research Fellow at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sinead is also part of MIT’s COVID19 task force that seeks to implement immediate economic and governmental policies in response to the global pandemic.
An Aerospace Engineer from N.Ireland, with a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering from Queen’s University of Belfast, a Masters in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, a Certificate of Space Engineering from the International Space University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Her engineering experience includes human factors research at the European Space Agency, human spaceflight mission design at NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and autonomous robotics creation for the US Navy.
Belfast Lord Mayor launches ‘One Thousand Paper Cranes’ Project
Belfast Lord Mayor Cllr Daniel Baker has launched the ‘One Thousand Paper Cranes’ project at Ulster University, Belfast.
The project, developed by the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building in partnership with Ulster University and Craic NI, celebrates diversity, culture of peace and links between Northern Ireland and Japan.
Thanks to the support from the Community Relations Council, several community arts workshops will be hosted across Northern Ireland to make 1000 origami paper cranes with messages of lasting peace.
Eva Grosman, CEO, Centre for Democracy and Peace Building said:
“There is an old Japanese belief that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will see their wish come true. Our wish is a hate free Northern Ireland and a hate free world.”
“Approximately 10 million cranes from all across the globe are offered each year before the Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima.”
“This year, as we mark the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima we will also present 1000 origami cranes from Northern Ireland.”
Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Daniel Baker said:
“I’m delighted to support Ulster University and the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building in their One Thousand Paper Cranes initiative. A symbol of hope and longevity, the crane is an international symbol of peace and we’re all here to symbolise our shared wish for a hate free country and a hate free world.
“As we poignantly mark the 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing this year, we also remember the great friendship this land shares with Japan. Belfast is a member of the ‘Mayors for Peace’ initiative set up in 1982 by the Mayor of Hiroshima and we continue to celebrate our mutual desire for a peaceful society.”
Professor Duncan Morrow, Director of Community Engagement at Ulster University added:
“We are thrilled to host the launch of the One Thousand Paper Cranes project on our Belfast campus. Ulster University is recognised as a global leader in peace and reconciliation research and this creative project will bring communities together for a common purpose and facilitate important discussions on diversity, peace and reconciliation.”
“As part of the project, our Visiting Professor in Immersive Futures and diversity and inclusion specialist Deepa Mann-Kler will create an artistic intervention using Augmented Reality to explore peace building in digital and physical spaces of Belfast and Hiroshima.”
Next month the project will be launched in Japan House London to celebrate cultural and business links between Japan and Northern Ireland.
One Thousand Paper Cranes
Thanks to the support from the Community Relations Council we are launching One Thousand Paper Cranes project to celebrate culture of peace and to engage with diverse communities in Northern Ireland and beyond.
The first community workshop, organised in partnership with Craic NI will take place on 26 February at Ulster University.
One Thousand Paper Cranes
Wednesday, 26 Feb | 3pm – 5pm
Ulster University
York Street
Belfast BT15 1ED
The crane has long been a symbol of hope and longevity, and an international symbol of peace. There is also an old Japanese belief that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will see their wish come true…
Our ultimate wish is a hate free Northern Ireland. And a hate free world. A peaceful, prosperous and reconciled society at ease with itself. So, please join in and help us to make 1000 paper cranes!
Join us for the One Thousand Paper Cranes workshop to:
Learn the art of Japanese paper folding
Learn about the incredible story behind One Thousand Paper Cranes
Learn about diversity and peacebuilding
Help us to make 1000 paper cranes and see our wish come true
Register at: www.getinvited.to/cdpb/tsuruwww.getinvited.to/cdpb/tsuruwww.getinvited.to/cdpb/tsuru
In addition, we are working with an artist, Visiting Professor in Immersive Futures at Ulster University and diversity & inclusion specialist Deepa Mann-Kler to create an artistic intervention through the augmented reality (AR) tool using geospatial markers, to explore peace building in digital spaces and physical spaces of Belfast and Hiroshima.
More information to follow.