Each event of this Videoconference Series launched in July 2003 links schools, the United Nations and featured speakers including Dr. Jane Goodall, Congressman Dennis Kucinich and many others. Information is disseminated and discussed about conflict prevention through creating peaceful, sustainable societies. We, The World has already convened 3 excellent videoconferences, each involving hundreds of students, faculty and others (close to 1,000 total). Students and others interact with speakers and are encouraged to create a dream and vision of peace, and then put their dream into action. Students come away informed, inspired and motivated to participate in many different kinds of peace activities.

Exposure through the media has already multiplied the outreach of our videoconferences to tens of thousands or more! Education Update (a newspaper that reaches 200,000 parents, educators, and students) has made our Sept. videoconference the Cover Story of their 8th Anniversary issue! Utne Magazine website ran a feature story at the start of the series entitled "All About Solutions" Also excerpts from the first videoconference were broadcast on the INN Report with a viewership of tens of thousands of people via the Dish Network.

The mission of Art For Children's Sake is to connect artists who wish to make a difference with the organizations who are steadfastly addressing the conditions that rob children of their innocence: hunger, poverty, disease, forced labor/slavery, refugee crises, forced military duty.

We, The World generated publicity and helped raise over $1,300 for an International Youth Peace Conference in March 2003 on HIV/AIDS and Peace Education sponsored by the Apeadu Peace Center in Ghana.

Founded by Nana Apeadu, Queenmother/chief of Aburi, Ghana and Nina Meyerhof, Director of Children of the Earth in Vermont, the Apeadu Peace Center's conferences have resulted in many projects for youth to take back to their communities. For example, some Youth Ambassadors from the conferences are teaching essential survival and peace-building skills to young people in a Liberian refugee camp in Ghana.

One of the youth participants said, "I was inspired by the passionate drive for change in my global peers. I was inspired by the beauty and richness of my first trip to Africa. I was inspired by the deep spiritual awakening which seemed to pulse through the conference. But most of all, I was inspired with gratitude. Thank you..."

In proclaiming Interdependence Day, we are acknowledging that we are all connected, and that when one thread in the web of life is sundered, all are diminished. Where equity and mutual respect prevail, all benefit. Interdependence Day is a day of celebration, information and action.

In September 2002 We, The World launched Interdependence Day at the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. This year Co-Sponsors' September 2003 Interdependence Day activities included Interfaith Dialogues and took place in Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, India, Budapest, the United States, Canada, England, South Africa, Taiwan and elsewhere!

We, The World compiled and distributed an Interdependence Day 2003 Global Calendar of Events with dozens of lisitngs. The most prominent event took place on Sept. 12th in Philadelphia and was organized by WTW's Interdependence Day collaborators CivWorld and The Democracy Collaborative. The program featured a presentation of the Declaration of Interdependence, the premiere of a choral work, greetings from the Mayor of Rome, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and former Czech president Vaclav Havel, plus remarks by former Senator Gary Hart, a tribute by distinguished poet Sonia Sanchez.and many other prominent indivduals.

We are on our way to seeing international acceptance of Interdependence Day as a time for celebration, information and action in recognition of our global interdependence!

Exciting News! We have begun preliminary organizing to launch an ongoing series of Public International Events starting with 11 Days of Global Unity in September of 2004

This is part of We, The World's strategy for generating mass public involvement in creating a world that works for all!

We, The World convened this powerful Media Panel at the The American Spirit, Values And Power Conference. Panelists explored the integral role of the media in shaping American culture, public opinion and policy; and which informed attendees about the newest wave of independent media-makers who choose collaboration and grassroots empowerment as an alternative to mainstream media production models.

Speakers included: Amy Goodman (Award winning journalist and host of Democracy Now! on the Pacifica Radio Network), Danny Schechter (Executive Editor of Mediachannel.org, Co-Founder and Executive Producer of Globalvision, author of Media Wars: News at a Time of Terror and The More You Watch, The Less You Know), Frederick Lancaster (Founder, Sunrise Alliance Progressive Media Campaign), Mike Burke (Independent Media Center Network, co-founder of the NYC IMC's bi-weekly newspaper, the Indypendent, founded in 2000; producer for Democracy Now!, and Rick Ulfik/Moderator (Founder and Director of We, The World; Director InterConnect Collaborative Media program of WTW; Co-Chair of the Foundation for Ethics and Meaning; Producer of VISUAL VOICES  TV show of FEM.)

Launched in February 2003, InterConnect is designed to integrate all of our communications resources and widely disseminate information about the events, actions and ideas of our member organizations, advisors and colleagues.

InterConnect has three components:

A. MEDIA PRODUCTION

•  Student-UN Videoconference Series (see above): Building Peace and Security in the 21st Century Each event of this series links schools, the United Nations and featured speakers including Dr. Jane Goodall, Congressman Dennis Kucinich and many others.
• VISUAL VOICES TV Show (See below) Co-Sponsored by We, The World

Examples of events and actions that we widely informed people about include:

• The American Spirit, Values And Power (WTW Co-Sponsored) Conference convened by the New York Open Center and the Continuing Education & Public Programs of CUNY Graduate Center. Speakers included: Jerry Mander, Ralph Nader, Amy Goodman, Baldemar Velasquez, Satish Kumar, Nina Utne, John Mohawk, Leslie Cagan, Carl Anthony, Sarah Van Gelder, Danny Schechter and many others.
• Nonviolent Communication Workshops (WTW Co-Sponsored) with International Peacemaker Marshall Rosenberg and other NVC leaders
• February 15th Peace March (we issued an extensive international event calendar) and other peace rallies/events
• The PlaNetwork Conference (WTW Co-Sponsored) in San Francisco: Networking a Sustainable Future. Speakers included: Hazel Henderson (Consultant on sustainable development, Board Member of Worldwatch Institute and author of Life Beyond Global Economic Warfare), Joe Firmage (Founder of US Web and ManyOne Networks), and Carol Hansen Grey (Executive Director of Women of Vision and Action), Wes Boyd (Co-founder of MoveOn.org), Leif Utne (Founder of Utne Online and the Utne Café), Jonah Wittkampter (Global Youth Action Network) and many others.
• Visual Voices TV Show Series (WTW Co-Sponsored): A new and unusual look at how voices in media, the arts and beyond are shaping our world.
• Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping Peace Revival
• Nonviolent Peaceforce Meeting: Trained, international, unarmed, civilian peacekeeping force for conflict areas
• Interfaith Center Awards Dinner Honoring Archbishop Desmond Tutu with Harry Belafonte and Ossie Davis
• Global Entertainment And Media Summit (WTW Co-Sponsored)
• Focusing: A Way to Deep Inner Connection

VISUAL VOICES is produced collaboratively by members of the Arts and Media Task Force of the Foundation for Ethics and Meaning (http://www.meaning.org) and Co-Sponsored by We, The World (http://www.WeTheWorld.org).

Starting in June 2003, we have produced 12 shows featuring Michael Moore, Amy Goodman, Reverend Billy, Greg Palast, Wayne Dyer, Cynthia McKinney, Ossie Davis, Gore Vidal, Marshall Rosenberg, Dennis Kucinich, Danny Schechter, Ralph Nader and many others! For more details please see Visual Voices.

The Gandhi-King Season for Nonviolence covers the period between the memorial anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. January 30th through April 4th. It is an international, educational, media and grassroots campaign dedicated to promoting nonviolence as a powerful way to heal, transform and empower our lives and our communities. Launched in 1998, it strives to honor the vision of these great peacemakers through action and education.

On January 30, 2003 over 700 High School children took part in this inspirational event in which young people learned about the connection between nonviolence and health, and about the legacies of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Students were provided opportunities to create or participate in nonviolence programs, workshops, media and arts production and other activities in their schools. The closing event on April 4th was also Co-Sponsored by We, The World.

This benefit raised funds for We, The World as well as helped to begin an association with Jazz For Peace. Their mission to spread peace through the artform of Jazz has inspired them to occasionally do benefit concerts for us!

We, The World is honored to recently receive a second grant from Lifebridge that helped us launch our Student-Un Videoconference Program in July!

Lifebridge says: "We support groups and individuals whose work exemplifies a global vision, demonstrates a spirit of inclusiveness, and fosters transformative action in a changing world."

It could easily be called the Church of Stop Shopping Unconsciously! Reverend Billy uses a unique combination of humor, politics and gospel music to promote awareness about the connections between hyper-consumerism, labor abuses, environmental destruction, political corruption and war. We, The World heavily promoted the Reverend Billy project and thereby helped them to receive a foundation grant.

On September 11, 2002 We, The World co-sponsored a Community Forum at City Hall that was convened by The Foundation for Ethics and Meaning. It was chaired by New York City Council Member Alan Gerson of the City's First Council District (where the World Trade Center site is). The Forum was successful in encouraging community dialogue and connection regarding 9/11 and the local, national and international events that followed.

UN PEACE MESSENGER INITIATIVE: "WE THE PEOPLES"
We, The World has been listed as one of the world's exceptional peace initiatives in the Pathways To Peace 2000 and 2001 Annual "We The Peoples" Reports to Kofi Annan and the United Nations entitled, "Making Peace A Practical Reality in the 21st Century."

TURNING POINT PROJECT
We, The World was a co-sponsor of two of an unprecedented series of 25 full-page New York Times ads from 1999 to 2000 by the Turning Point Project that brought many of the problems associated with corporate globalization to the public's attention.

OCTOBER 8TH 2001 TEACH-IN/SPEAK-OUT:
PEACE IN THE 21ST CENTURY: AN IMPERATIVE FOR SURVIVAL
In response to the September 11th tragedy We, The World sponsored this historic event which featured speakers and views that the major media largely chose not to air. One day after the start of the bombing of Afghanistan participants heard the moving and informative words of Daniel Ellsberg, Jane Goodall, Robert Thurman, Amy Goodman, Richard Falk, Alice Slater, Robert Jay Lifton, Reverend Billy, and many others in an open dialogue about what led to this crisis, alternatives to war and ways forward that emphasize prevention (i.e. ending the conditions that give rise to hatred and terrorism) rather than crisis management (i.e. violent/military actions).

Portions of this event were broadcast on Radio for Peace International with a global listenership of 800,000 people! Co-sponsoring organizations included: USA, Unitarian Universalist Community Church of New York, The Foundation for Ethics and Meaning, The Earth Charter Summits, Friends of The Institute of Noetic Sciences, New York Women of Vision and Action, Tribal Link, Jews Against Genocide, Global Peoples Assembly, The Global Resources Action Center for The Environment, The Global Youth Action Network, The War Resisters League, NY Law School's Office for Public Interest and Community Service, Pathways to Peace, Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, St. Francis Xavier Church, and The Interfaith Center of New York

Audio recordings of this historic event are available! Contact us for more information.

PLANETARY ETHICS ALLIANCE FOUNDING MEETING IN WASHINGTON DC
WTW was invited to be a Founding Member of the Planetary Ethics Alliance and attend the founding meeting in Washington DC May 22-25, 2002. The Planetary Ethics Alliance began as a project of the Club Of Budapest (founded by Dr. Ervin Laszlo). Members of the Club Of Budapest include: The Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Vaclav Havel, Jane Goodall, Desmond Tutu, Robert Muller, Riane Eisler, Elie Wiesel, Mary Robinson, Peter Gabriel, Peter Ustinov, Arthur C. Clarke, Liv Ullmann, Yehudi Menuhin and many others.

The mission of the P.E.A. is directly aligned with We, The World: "...to facilitate the emergence of planetary consciousness."

We, The World was applauded both collectively and individually for what we're doing. And as a result, 5 distinguished P.E.A. members joined our Advisory Board: Thom Hartmann (Author), Ashok Gangadean (Global Dialogue Institute), Kathia Castro Laszlo (Syntony Quest), Angaangaq Lyberth (Inuit Elder), Dr. Nitamo Montecucco (Villaggio Globale)

WE, THE WORLD HAS HELD WORKSHOPS OR MADE PRESENTATIONS AT MANY CONFERENCES OR OTHER EVENTS INCLUDING:

€ The Parliament of the World's Religions (Capetown South Africa) December 1999
€ Re-Imagining Politics & Society At The Millenium: Creating A Just, Caring, and Sustainable World (Riverside Church, New York City) May 2000
€ UN NGO Millennium Conference/Special UN Session of the Global Peoples Assembly August 2000
€ S8 UN Mobilization/Speakers Roundtable Internet Broadcast (New York City) September 2000
€ Peace In The 21st Century: An Imperative for Survival Teach-in/Speak Out (The Community Church, New York City) October 2001
€ The Fight Against Terrorism is the Struggle for Justice Worldwide Conference (St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Harlem, New York City) October 2001
€ Global Responsibility - A Reason for Hope Conference (Convened by Jane Goodall and Jonathan Granoff, Haverford College, Pennsylvania) February 2002
€ Planetary Ethics Alliance Founding Meeting (Washington DC) May 2002

WE, THE WORLD IS LISTED IN THE PROGRESSIVE DIRECTORY OF DEMOCRACY RISING'S PEOPLE HAVE THE POWER RALLY FEATURING RALPH NADER June 2002

JANE GOODALL AGREES TO HELP BUILD WE, THE WORLD!
In a recent private meeting, Jane Goodall was extremely enthusiastic about our Global Resources Network, immediately seeing how her Roots and Shoots program (which itself has chapters in 67 countries!) could benefit from it. She agreed that a letter could be sent out in her name encouraging support for WTW! We are in the process of working out the details.

JOINT FUNDRAISING EVENT WITH CREATIVITY CAFE
On July 25, 2002 in New York City WTW co-hosted a joint fundraising event as part of Peter Rosen's "Rivers of Love" tour featuring Creativity Cafe, a multimedia, collaboratory and gathering place nurturing to the creative spirit in everyone and healing to hearts and bodies.

Maui techno-shaman Peter Rosen provided educational entertainment at its best. It was a fun and friendly magical evening of interactivities, original music and storytelling; supported by multimedia presentations!
 

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