News Article

Gonzaga University will host “Peace Conference: Causes of Conflict, Conditions for Peace” Friday and Saturday, March 30-31. The conference, which features United States Institute of Peace Senior Fellow Betty Bigombe as the keynote speaker, is free and open to the public.

The several other speakers at the conference will be from the Institute of Peace (USIP), Gonzaga, the University of Washington , and Whitworth College. The conference begins at 7:30 p.m., March 30 in the Globe Room of Cataldo Hall with a keynote address by Bigombe, who will discuss, “The African Role in Conflict Prevention, Management, and Resolution.”

On Saturday, March 31, the conference begins at 8:30 a.m. in the Jepson Center for the School of Business Administration with coffee hour, followed by the welcome and opening remarks in Wolfe Auditorium.

Particpants will spend the rest of the day in three of the following 90-minute sessions:

Gonzaga University will host “Peace Conference: Causes of Conflict, Conditions for Peace” Friday and Saturday, March 30-31. The conference, which features United States Institute of Peace Senior Fellow Betty Bigombe as the keynote speaker, is free and open to the public.

The several other speakers at the conference include representatives the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), Gonzaga, the University of Washington , and Whitworth College . The conference begins at 7:30 p.m., March 30 in the Globe Room of Cataldo Hall with a keynote address by Bigombe, who will discuss, “The African Role in Conflict Prevention, Management, and Resolution.”

On Saturday, March 31, the conference begins at 8:30 a.m. in the Jepson Center for the School of Business Administration with coffee hour, followed by the welcome and opening remarks in Wolfe Auditorium.

Particpants will spend the rest of the day in three of the following 90-minute sessions:

· “: The Unfinished Peace,” led by Linda Bishai, USIP education program officer;

· Presentation by student essay winners;

· “Peace and Interreligious Dialogue in Africa : Christianity and Islam,” led by Rev. Patrick Baraza, a GU religious studies professor;

· Student simulation on peace and conflict resolution led by David Smith, an officer in USIP’s education program;

· “Cultivation Theory and Media Violence: Searching for Solutions to Create a Culture of Caring,” by GU communication Professor John Caputo, Ph.D.;

· “Postcolonial African Philosophy: Reflections of Tradition and Modernization,” led by Jay Ciaffa, Ph.D., a GU philosophy professor;

· “Elections: Opportunities for Peace or Warnings of War,” led by Dorina Bekoe, from the USIP Center of Conflict Analysis and Prevention, and Dan Chirot, a former USIP senior fellow and professor at the Jackson School of International Studies at UW;

· “Educating for Peace: Intercultural Education and Study Abroad,” a panel discussion by GU faculty members Raymond Reyes, associate vice president for mission; Molly Kretchmar, a GU psychology professor; Mark Alfino, GU philosophy professor; and Sima Thorpe, director of the GU Center for Community Action and Service Learning; and

· “The Child Soldier: Causes and Solutions,” a panel discussion with Bigombe, Smith and James Waller, a psychology professor at Whitworth.

For more information, contact Ellen Maccarone, GU assistant professor of philosophy, at maccarone@gonzaga.edu or (509) 323-3955.