Grassroots Civilian Diplomacy

We were so pleased to find FOR featured in this month's Yes! magazine in a feature about "DIY Foreign Policy Heroes."

Yes! published a photo (without credit) of members of our December Iran delegation, but did give us credit for being "Citizen Ambassadors" in this short piece:

Last September, the Fellowship of Reconciliation awarded its annual International Pfeffer Peace Prize to the Nonviolent Peaceforce, an inspiring international NGO working to support peacemaking efforts in conflict zones around the world. Mel Duncan, an FOR member in Minnesota who is executive director of the Nonviolent Peaceforce (NP) and who co-founded the idea with FOR member David Hartsough of San Francisco, came to Nyack to FOR's Festival of Peace to accept the award in person.

This past weekend, FOR and Interfaith Peace-Builders (IFPB) held a successful advocacy training event on Capitol Hill in Washington, where two dozen participants came together and walked the halls of Congress to call for an end to military intervention and aid in the Middle East, Latin America, and at home. We met with staff from 20 offices of U.S. Senators and Representatives, encouraging each of those political leaders to choose peace at a time when the White House -- and many in Congress -- continue to default to war.

My colleagues have been working hard for the last few months to organize a training for activists who want to more effectively influence legislation. Here's the info:

On Sunday and Monday, Nov. 4-5, in Washington, D.C., FOR will host an advocacy skills training for people interested or engaged in grassroots civilian diplomacy. This training opportunity will feature several members of FOR's program staff as well as participants in various international peace delegations and nonviolence programs.

The flyer be downloaded as a PDF here, and you can download the registration form here.

Yesterday the FOR staff at USSF facilitated a workshop on Grassroots Civilian Diplomacy. We all had a great time and really enjoyed sharing our stories and perspectives.