Victoria: Earth @ Peace Conference

Earth @ Peace realises a Just and Ecologically Sustainable Peace. It is a Landmark Conference held tat the University of Divinity, Melbourne, over 2 days, Tuesday-Wednesday 23-24 April 2019. This conference will feature panel discussions, working groups, a hypothetical, and international networking. It will have a highly interactive format, with both lead-up and follow-up activities. The conference is open to all who care for the Earth and humanity’s future, reflecting deeply on and engaging in the journey to: A Just and Ecologically Sustainable Peace.


Ours is the age of turbulence. Climate change is now an existential threat, and so are nuclear weapons. Then we have the long list of armed conflicts, terrorism and the war on terror, rising inequalities of wealth and income, ethnic cleansing and genocide. massive refugee flows and spiralling environmental crises. Adding insult to injury is the rising tide of mindless nationalism, xenophobia, and populist extremism.

But there are promising signs. A treaty to ban nuclear weapons is in the making. Those working for it won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize. Regardless of government policies, a new ecological consciousness is taking root in most parts of the world, while in virtually every country action on climate change is under way. And on many other fronts we see evidence of greater awareness and a renewed willingness to act.

One of the more inspiring developments over the last 20 years is the fledgling movement calling for a shift from ‘Just War’ to ‘Just Peace’. It is clearly time to question the just war tradition that has informed theology, ethics more generally and international law for the last several centuries.

This project, sponsored by a wide range of organisations and individuals, is part of that movement. It heralds a new approach to peace ― a deeper understanding of safety and security.

To be safe is to be free of injury, to be healthy, to be whole. The absence of war and other physical violence is not enough. Poverty, humiliation, discrimination also injure and maim. And it is not just those who are living now that need protection, but future generations and all living species.

The peace we envision is one that is both just and ecologically sustainable – a peace that responds to the cries of the poor, and the cries of the Earth.

Easier said than done, you may think. Our aim is ambitious yet modest. This project explores new directions, new ways of thinking and acting, by placing the focus on Australia. It seeks to create new opportunities for Australians to engage in an emerging a global conversation. The task is demanding yet doable.

A conversation informed by the notion of just and ecologically sustainable peace can help us rethink:

  • the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians
  • the way we shape our economy and environment
  • our long-standing dependence on imperial power, military alliances, and the use of force
  • our engagement with the peoples of Asia-Pacific and the diverse cultures and faiths that make up contemporary Australia.

How does the project do this? Through a multifaceted program of dialogue, educational and cultural events that will flesh out a new approach to peacemaking and peacebuilding as an alternative to just war thinking.

Download a Pamphlet on A Just and Ecologically Sustainable Peace

The highlight will be the landmark Conference Earth@Peace to be held on 23-24 April 2019

Event Details
A Landmark Conference
Tuesday-Wednesday 23-24 April 2019
9:00am-5:30pm each day
At Pilgrim Theological College
29 College Crescent, Parkville VIC 3052
Bookings: Online at TryBooking
Download a Flyer for this event

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