AS a celebration of the International Day of Peace on September 21, Peace is Possible are offering free viewings of the Pace e Bene Campaign Nonviolence conference to interested locals.

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Pace e Bene, which translated from Italian means ‘peace and all good’, is an independent organisation formed in 1989 by the Franciscan Friars of California to spread the power of peace and nonviolence.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, local group Peace is Possible are unable to run their normal International Day of Peace celebrations and decided to offer an online option for locals wanting to learn more about the global peace movement.

“Because of the COVID restrictions on gathering, we have decided to find what we can online,” said group organiser Norman Ainsworth.

“The Pace e Bene conference commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing and includes a memorial which took place in America, at the site they developed the atomic bomb.

“We at Peace is Possible decided to offer people the opportunity to see that conference.”

The conference runs for seven hours and features a host of speakers from around the globe on the topics of global peace and non-violence.

“The conference features some very interesting speakers including Richard Rohr, a Franciscan with a peace-based community in Albuquerque. He is always very inspiring to listen to but there is a host of excellent speakers.

“The link that is on the invitation allows you to choose what speakers you would like to listen to,“ said Mr Ainsworth.
A full conference schedule can be found at https://paceebene.org/cnv-2020-conference-schedule.

Contact Peace is Possible for a link to view the conference for free by emailing peaceispossible365@gmail.com or call 0433320845.

Peace is Possible was formed in the Port Stephens area following a trip by Mr Ainsworth and his sister Ronda Odgers to the centenary commemorations of the Battle of Gallipoli, in Canakkale Turkey in 2015.

“We brought back to Port Stephens a gift from the Governor of the Canakkale region of a large six by ten metre banner that had been displayed on a building in the city centre.

“The message carried on the banners is Peace is Possible along with the image of a Turkish soldier carrying a wounded Australian soldier back across the trenches during a cease fire in the Battle of Gallipoli.”

Since 2015 the Peace is Possible banner has been displayed in Nelson Bay, Newcastle, Canberra, Melbourne and Adelaide.

By Doug CONNOR