Hope For Peace in A World of Conflict

Written By Mohammed Alkurashi

On 8 May 2025, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and its youth initiative, Reverse The Trend, in collaboration with Soka Gakkai International, International Academy for Multicultural Cooperation, and Light of Awareness International Spiritual Family, convened a side event on interfaith dialogue and nuclear disarmament. Speakers included: Professor Jefferey Sachs, Director of Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University; Dr. Andrea Bartoli, President of Sant’Egidio Foundation for Peace and Dialogue; Mr. Jonathan Granoff, President of Global Security Institute; Ms. Anna Ikeda, UN Representative of Soka Gakkai International; and Ms. Audrey Kitagawa, President of the International Academy for Multicultural Cooperation and Light of Awareness International Spiritual Family. The panel discussed how faith leaders and communities can engage with politicians to avoid nuclear catastrophe and resolve conflict. The event’s moderator Dr. Ivana Nikolic Hughes, President of Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, remarked about the timeliness of this event—referencing the new pope’s announcement moments prior to the panel discussion. She also mentioned the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ doomsday clock being at the closest to midnight it has ever been, reminding attendees of the urgency of nuclear disarmament demands.

Jeffery Sachs opened the panel by emphasising the importance of mutual respect. He highlighted how lack of dialogue has prolonged conflict in Ukraine and Gaza and is likely to have a similar effect on current events between India and Pakistan and in the relationship between the United States and China. Sachs made it clear that mutual respect and security are essential to peace. He highlighted how faith leaders can help pave the path towards peace and used as an example the third encyclical letter of the late Pope Francis entitled “Fratelli Tutti,” which rejected wars and emphasised human solidarity. Sachs’ sentiments on interfaith dialogue were echoed by Dr. Bartoli, who further emphasised internal dialogue between same-faith communities. He shared how religion was used in the past to commit genocides—before a word for such an act existed. He also shared how the upkeep of nuclear weapons and nuclear waste derived from plutonium is a form of “silent genocide” which stands to devastate the environment.

Following Bartoli’s statement, Anna Ikeda provided a Buddhist perspective on nuclear disarmament. She focused on Buddhist principles of inner transformation and challenged the concept of nuclear deterrence. Audrey Kitagawa recalled the contributions of faith communities to the UN Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She also noted past UN efforts to integrate interfaith dialogue in 2010 through the creation of the UN Interagency Task Force on Religion and Sustainable Development. Jonathan Granoff closed the panel. He underscored the importance of ethical norms and told a personal anecdote about Robert McNamara’s realisation of the universality of the golden rule—treat others as you would like to be treated. He noted how this concept is shared across religions and could foster productive interfaith dialogue. Granoff also found it crucial that religious institutions invest in responsible enterprises that promote peace and other sustainability goals.