Priscilla Prutzman Addresses Conference in India

Priscilla Prutzman, CRC’s Executive Director, was invited to speak at the International Conference on Peace and Conflict Resolution in a Globalised World, held in Jaipur, India, from Jan. 4, to 6. The conference, took place at and was organized by the S.S. Jain Subodh P.G. College, addressed issues of culturalism from an Indian perspective.

The conference featured several presentations on Gandhi and peace education. Priscilla gave an overview of CRC to over 200 participants present. Following the conference, she had the opportunity to visit significant sites in New Delhi, India’s capital city, honoring or associated with Gandhi such as the Gandhi Memorial Park, where he was cremated, his last residence and the Gandhi National Museum. She also visited the Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi Museums.

Priscilla attended the conference at the invitation of Dr. Naresh Dadhich, whom she met at the Barcelona Culture of World Peace Conference in 2004, and again last summer at the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) Conference in Calgary. Dr. Dadhich served as the chairperson of IPRA’s Peace Education Commission.

Priscilla is pleased to share her thoughts on the trip:

The trip was a life-changing experience for me. I felt humbled by my visits to the places, where the theory of non-violence was born. The Indian people were so warm and welcoming. I found many people feeling positive about India’s future. When it was time to pack up and leave to come home, I really didn’t want to.

After the conference, I returned to Delhi, where I met with the staff of the Indian Institute of Public Administration, a government-training institute founded by Nehru. We discussed exciting possibilities of collaboration between the institute and CRC.

I have been reading more on Gandhi. I really like his quote, “I am an irrepressible optimist. My optimism rests on my belief in the infinite possibilities of the individual to develop nonviolence. The more you develop it in your own being, the more infectious it becomes till it overwhelms your surroundings and by and by oversweep the world.” Harijan, Jan. 29, 1939.

Priscilla Prutzman to Present Workshops in Gettysburg

Priscilla has accepted an invitation by Dr. Rajmohan Ramnatha Pillai, Professor of Peace Studies, Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA, to present an overview workshop to his class on CRC’s themes. The workshop will be held on April 11.

While in Gettysburg, she will also present a bias-awareness workshop to a community group there.