VU marks International Peace Day
VU and partners will hold a special live online forum with thought leaders and special guests on 21 September from 4pm to 5.30pm to explore notions of peace, marking the UN International Peace Day.
VU’s Cultural Diversity Office Manager, Dr Teresa De Fazio, will moderate the Forum.
Exploring the idea of peace, and what it means to Australians, is more important than ever in 2020, she said.
“This year has required the world to respond increasingly to challenges to our social cohesion, our notions of wellbeing and health, and our way of life."
The event is part of a global program of United Nations events to mark its 75th anniversary.
“It is important to revisit our individual and collective responses to participating in peace and community cohesion,” said Dr De Fazio.
The event is co-hosted by VU partners, the Victorian Multicultural Commission, the Institute for Economics & Peace, and the Australian Intercultural Society.
The panellists are:
- Mr Craig Foster, Sports Analyst and Former National Football Captain (Socceroos), Refugee and Human Rights Ambassador, Amnesty International, Advisory Board Member of the Australian Institute of Human Rights
- Ms Mazita Marzuki, Consul General of Malaysia, Former Deputy Director General, Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter Terrorism, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Malaysia
- Mr Charles Allen APM, Director Partnerships, Institute for Economics for Peace. Peace builder, former policeman, and board member with various not-for-profit social organisations
- Ms Rohini Kattadath, General Manager, Immigration Museum, 2015 Telstra Victorian Business Womens’ Award Winner
- Associate Professor Tom Clark, VU Academic and Researcher, President of the Australasian Universities Language and Literature Association (AULLA).
The event will include an address by the newly appointed Deputy Chair of the Victorian Multicultural Commission, Mr Bwe Thay, himself a refugee who came to Australia in search of a peaceful place to live.
This will be one of the last public events by the retiring Vice Chancellor Peter Dawkins whose commitment to social justice has been instrumental to the vision of VU’s Cultural Diversity Strategy.
