The Peace Studies Working Group of Pacific Lutheran University consists of faculty and staff who take seriously Pacific Lutheran University's mission to educate for lives of thoughtful inquiry, service, leadership, and care.

We define "peace" as the prolonged struggle to resolve conflicts through non-violent means, and the building of just social arrangements that embody respect for human rights.

We welcome your interest and support.
     
Mission Statement
     
   
The Peace Studies Working Group takes seriously PLU’s mission to “Educate for Lives of Thoughtful Inquiry, Service, Leadership and Care.” As such, we seek to cultivate graduates who are aware, responsible, and actively engaged in the affairs of the world.

By “Peace” we mean both the prolonged struggle to resolve conflicts through non-violent means and the building of just social arrangements that embody respect for human rights. To this end, we emphasize both the study about and the prevention of violence necessary to increase sustainable peace and justice in the world.

This means, first, a commitment to understand the origins and causes of conflict that creates
violence and intolerance. Second, it requires a dedication to strategies, and visions of movements seeking sustainable justice and peace. The objective is to educate students who in turn create a better world where respect and dignity form the foundation of just and peaceful relations among individuals, institutions, and conflicting traditions.

Understanding that the study of conflict, justice, and peace is not the monopoly of any one discipline, formal interdisciplinary academic study is combined with experiential education. Students engage a wide range of approaches to knowledge, including the visual and communication arts, to explore in breadth and depth the possibilities of developing the traditions of nonviolence and ethical social behavior. The combination of experiential inquiry with analytical and critical skills enables students to bridge the theory and practice of peace and justice.

The goal of this initiative is to provide students an academic means to integrate an understanding of the many crises facing the world and to encourage involvement in nonviolent attempts to build a world of peace and justice, from individual to international relations. In the end, students unite rigorously disciplined study with practical approaches to explore responsibly both the obstacles and solutions to sustainable peace and justice.
 
History of Peace Studies Working Group
     
   

 

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