Odisha Peace Network (OPN) was founded by SWAD on 6th September, 2019, which is evolving as a pan Odisha network of PeaceLovers and PeaceMakers belonging to civil society organizations, academia, media, police, activists, lawyers, community leaders, people’s representatives and people from all walks of life who value individual and societal peace. Over the last several years, this network is trying to promote peace by addressing the issues of conflicts and violence at the local communities especially of the most vulnerable women, children and men. This is an effort to create an inclusive forum for dialogue, debate, discovery and dissemination of peace ideals to bring a culture of peace, nonviolence and communal harmony for the transformation of individual, families, communities and the society at large. OPN strongly believes ‘without peace there cannot be development and without development there cannot be peace’. Odisha, being one of the states with fragile socio-economic and ecological conditions cannot afford to have violent conflict mar its much needed sustainable development.
OPN adopts various strategies to promote peace and bring about a culture of peace suitable for different levels of participants. Starting from the community level, it sensitizes the community members to be conflict sensitive; at institution level like schools and colleges it inculcates peace values through different talent search activities like song, dance, debate, drawing, essay writing, sports; organize seminars and workshops at block, district and state levels on themes related to peacebuilding and conflict transformation, provides training to peace workers of civil society organizations; links up with government sectors with conflict sensitive development plans; conducts peace walks during International Day of Peace and International Day of Non-violence; appeals for maintaining peace and harmony during the time of conflicts at local, regional, national and international level; campaigns and advocates for inclusive peace and right to peace; carries out research and publications on peace and conflict issues; and trying to build human and technical resources in the state of Odisha for sustainable peace.
International Day of Peace, 21st September 2019, Bhubaneswar
In its meeting of 6th September 2019 at SWAD Office, Berhampur, Odisha Peace Network decided to celebrate at state level the International Day of Peace on 21st of September at Bhubaneswar, adhering to the theme of the United Nations’ International Day of Peace – ‘Climate Action for Peace’. The purpose of celebrating at the state level is to mobilize the grassroots level peace workers and create a platform at the state level to showcase the peace activities they are involved with, take a peace walk at the main roads of the State Capital to raise awareness on the importance of peace on this designated day, invite dignitaries and peace lovers for seminar for developing collective strategies to bring lasting peace at all level and for preventing conflicts escalating as violent conflicts. The belief is that the more people become aware of the importance of peace and how it is interlinked with development, the more people will become PeaceLovers and PeaceMakers. This campaign will create key people and more people to unite and include; and reduce number of people who divide and exclude.