February 3, 2014
The Global Security Institute (GSI) works to strengthen international cooperation based on the rule of law, with a particular focus on achieving the security of a world without nuclear weapons. You can support our work by sharing this eNews with friends, following us on social media, and by your tax-deductible donations to our work. Thank you.
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RSVP for Transformative Art, Transformative Policies
{THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED.}
We are thrilled and honored to partner with the New-York Historical Society to host an extraordinary event on February 19, 2014 titled “Transformative Art, Transformative Policies: An evening with the Armory Show at 100.” Co-hosts include Christie Brinkley, Michael Douglas, Ambassador Thomas Graham, Ambassador Robert Grey, Ambassador James Goodby, and other exceptional individuals.
PNND Assembly in Washington
Senator Markey will also be receiving the Alan Cranston Peace Award at the conference opening dinner, a special event co-hosted by Green Cross International and the Global Security Institute.
PNND Conference in the French Senate
On January 15, 1964, as French nuclear weapons became operational, General de Gaulle signed a decree authorizing policy for their use. No public or democratic discussion of such nuclear weapons doctrine was conducted by French parliamentarians or policymakers then or in subsequent years.
Fifty years later, on January 20, 2014, this taboo subject was brought to the attention of French parliamentarians at an international conference in the French Senate (Palais du Luxembourg), organized by Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament (PNND) and the Observatoire des Armements and hosted by PNND leaders Senators Richard Tuheiava and Leila Aichi, with the support of Observatoire des Armements.
Nearly 200 people – including parliamentarians, government officials, diplomats, policy analysts and civil society representatives – participated in the day-long conference, and engaged in discussion on core issues of nuclear weapons, humanitarian impact, environmental consequences and the role of parliament to advance nuclear disarmament.
Read the full report by Jean-Marie Collin, the PNND France Coordinator who organized the event.
Earth Dialogues
On September 3, 2013, Green Cross International hosted the seventh meeting of its “Earth Dialogue” series, which were founded by former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and former UN Under-Secretary-General Maurice Strong in 2002, in Lyon, France. The 2013 gathering at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, aimed to confront the challenges of the 21st century, including, but not limited to climate change, water stress, food production, ocean acidification, biodiversity decline, widespread poverty and inequality, and the elimination of nuclear weapons.
Participants included former Dutch Prime Minister Ruud Lubbers and other former heads of government, as well as many world leaders and experts in the fields of governance, environment, security, and economics.
GSI President Jonathan Granoff had the honor of reading a letter on behalf of President Bill Clinton at the conference opening session. In addition, Mr. Granoff moderated a panel titled “Building a Peaceful and Sustainable World,” featuring other notable leaders including Frederico Mayor, Deputy Director-General of UNESCO; Mohan Munasinghe, Chairman of the Munasinghe Inst. of Development; Mirian Vilela, Executive Director of the Earth Charter International; Julia Marton-Lefevre, Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature; Jane Youyun Zhang, Executive Vice-President China Association for Employment Promotion; and Garry Jacobs, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, World Academy of Art and Science. The panelists explored the current top international priorities, as well as the threats that are just over the horizon.
The meeting was part of the 20th anniversary of Green Cross International, the sustainability-focused NGO founded by GSI Advisory Board member Mikhail Gorbachev, who delivered the keynote speech. At the event, Mr. Granoff shared a presentation titled “Our Choice: Creativity or Destruction.” In it, he called for states to “work together, with a shared sense of urgency and responsibility, to address three critical challenges: making sure the interdependence of financial markets– which impact Wall Street and Main Street and cause many to live on No Street– become just, equitable, stable, and sustainable; protecting the global commons; and eliminating nuclear weapons.”
Read more about the Earth Dialogue 2013
Download the official program of the Earth Dialogue 2013
Read the declaration from the Earth Dialogue 2013
Watch more videos from the Earth Dialogues
Read more about the Green Cross 20th Anniversary
Religions and Peace: Panel at Harvard Divinity School
On December 2, 2013, Harvard University Divinity School (HDS) convened a group of scholars, practitioners, and advocates to address “Religions and Peace: Do Universities Have a Role?” for a public panel followed by an in-depth evening discussion at HDS Dean David Hempton’s residence with experts in religion, ethics, negotiations, and conflict resolution from across the Harvard community.Thinking Creatively: In and Out of the NPT Box
On December 11, 2013, the Global Security Institute (GSI), in partnership with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), hosted an informal roundtable discussion with presentations by Ambassador Libran Cabactulan of the Phillippines, President of the 2010 Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and Ambassador Thomas Graham, Jr., former US diplomat now serving as Chairman of the Bipartisan Security Group. The discussion also included several highly prominent non-governmental experts, including Joan Rohlfing of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, Tom Collina of the Arms Control Association, Stephen Young of the Union of Concerned Scientists, Leonie Willenbrik of FES, and Aviva Kushner of GSI. Pia Bungarten, FES Representative to the United States, and Jonathan Granoff, GSI President, chaired the event. Sign up to receive the GSI eNewsletter.
Jonathan Granoff is the President of the Global Security Institute, a representative to United Nations of the World Summits of Nobel Peace Laureates, a former Adjunct Professor of International Law at Widener University School of Law, and Senior Advisor to the Committee on National Security American Bar Association International Law Section.
