Beirut: Last meetings and city view

GPF Lebanon meeting on 27/28-10.08

Meeting with partner NGO

Trees planting in north of Lebanon with the scouts

GPF Lebanon, meeting the manager of studio vision, main event

GPF Lebanon, meeting in Beirut Sheikh Hani Fahs and some of the GPF Lebanon organizers

GPF Lebanon, nice location for ILC

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GPG Malaysia 19 October 2008, Stadium Putra, Bukit Jalil

The theme song of Global Peace Festival Malaysia 2008, "Where Peace Begins" Sang by Jaclyn Victor and Daniel Lee on 19 October 2008, Stadium Putra, Bukit Jalil on Global Peace Festival Malaysia 2008. For more information about Global Peace Festival Malaysia 2008, please visit gpfmalaysia.org

Global Peace Festival main program in Korce, and full report. Albania 18/10/08

Report on GPF Korça - Albania

Albania was not originally included on the Global Peace Festival schedule for 2008. At an April meeting in Korça of the Presiding Council of UPF-Albania, Ambassadors for Peace made a commitment to hold a Global Peace Festival there in October and invested their whole heart into making it a reality.

Led by the Chairman of the Peace Council and former Mayor of Korça, Mr. Dionis Kotmiko, Ambassadors for Peace started to contact local government authorities, NGO leaders, and other institutions to explain to them the concept of the Global Peace Festival and enlist their cooperation and support.

Korça is a leading cultural center, located in southeast Albania near the border with Greece. The Mayor of Korça, Mr. Niko Peleshi, was already familiar with the work of the Universal Peace Federation in his city, where it is the most active organization. After he learned about the vision of the Global Peace Festival, he offered his full support and cooperation by providing all the facilities of the City Hall for the success of the Global Peace Festival.

A week of events

Life in Korça was very lively from October 11 to 18. People could feel that something very special was going on, and many remarked that the atmosphere of the city had changed completely. The festival week opened October 11 with an event sponsored by UPF in partnership with the Mary Potter Palliative Care Center. October 11 is honored as the International Day of People with Cancer, and volunteers with UPF and the Palliative Care Center raised funds throughout the city to support people in need of such care. The activity was covered by local media and made a very positive impact.

October 13 was the opening of an Exhibition of Figurative Arts promoting talented new artists in the city. The event was organized in partnership with UPF, City Hall, and the Korça Arts Gallery. The exhibition stayed opened from October 13 to 18, and hundreds of people visited it.

The October 15 was a very busy day with GPF activities. In the morning, a Student Convention was held at the University of Korça in partnership with the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles, University of Korça, and the student government of the university. Around 200 students attended the event on the theme “Mankind One Family, the Earth One Home.” Participants were greeted by the Rector of the University, Prof. Dr. Gjergji Mero, along with international Global Peace Festival organizers Mr. Massimo Trombin and Mrs. Tomiko Duggan.

That afternoon, the district director of the Ministry of Education hosted an award ceremony for the winners of the high school essay competition on the theme, "Mankind One Family, the World One Home." Three winners were chosen from the 40 finalists out of about 2,000 student essays that were submitted. This is the second year the event took place in Korça, and it has become a tradition.

On October 17, 1,500 young people and students joined in a social impact project to increase the green areas in the whole city by planting trees and cleaning schoolyards. All of the schools of the city were involved in the project. The Korça City Hall, in cooperation with Regional Education Department of the Ministry of Education and Science and UPF, initiated a project with all the schools in the city called “One Student, One Tree,” which will continue in the months to come.

The same day, a scientific conference on environmental protection entitled “My City, My Home” was held at the university auditorium in partnership with UPF, City Hall, and the University of Korça. Nationally-known scholars spoke at the conference. In addition to the 50 distinguished guests and Ambassadors for Peace, more than 100 students attended the sessions. The conference concluded with an important proposal to open an Environmental Engineering Faculty at Korça University.

The final day of the Albania GPF, October 18, started with a Tree Planting Ceremony to finalize the social impact program of the previous day. Many dignitaries participated in the ceremony, including Former President of Albania H.E. Alfred Moisiu, Korça Mayor Niko Peleshi, the Regional Education Department Director Mr. Andrea Mano, and many Ambassadors for Peace from Albania and other Balkan nations. The media covered all the events.

Around 150 distinguished guests and Ambassadors for Peace from Albania and from other Balkan nations participated in the International Leadership Conference entitled “Toward Leadership and Good Governance for Lasting Peace and Development in Albania and Balkans.” More than 100 of the participants were from Albania, including former President Moisiu, who attended all the events on that day. International participants included Prof. Ivan Kaltchev from Bulgaria, President of South East Europe Philosophers Association, and Mr. Nadim Gemayel, son of a former president of Lebanon. The presentations were much appreciated, and at the end of the conference 60 new Ambassadors for Peace were appointed, including six musicians who sang lat the main event. The conference was organized in partnership with Korça Municipality.

Approximately 2,000 people joined a Peace March from the Theater Square to the Cathedral Square and then to the Sports Hall. The City Band and Ambassadors for Peace led the throng of peace marchers. Many additional people joined in the march as it passed through the city, and it was amazing to see so many people marching for peace. Before the march reached the half-way point, it was learned that the Sports Hall was already half full, and there was concern that there would not be enough space in the hall for all the marchers.

The Main Event started almost an hour and a half late due to the late arrival of the peace marchers. The Sports Hall, with a capacity of 4,000 people, was completely full, and the 1,000 people who were unable to enter remained outside for long time. The master of ceremonies, nationally-known artist and producer Dhimiter Orgocka, moved people’s hearts with his appeals for peace, along with his assistant, Mrs. Melisa Demiri, who had come from Kosovo to support the event. The video message of Global Peace Festival Founder Dr. Hyun Jin Moon was well received by the audience, and Dr. Young-Cheol Song, regional chair of UPF-Europe, spoke next. Many well-known singers and performers from Albania and neighboring countries highlighted the Main Event, culminating with the singer Alban Skenderaj, the leading young singer in Albania at the moment, who came directly from Germany to participate in the program. The program went far longer than planned, but everybody stayed until the end.

The following morning, 150 people gathered to reflect on the events of the week. Former President Moisiu joined in the celebration, during which key organizers were recognized. Ambassadors for Peace from Albania and other Balkan nations shared highlights of their experiences during the many events that took place during the week-long Global Peace Festival.