Oftentimes do we find ourselves entangled in a net of language and speech pivoted upon the foundations of war and violence. The field of education—even when it is striving to encourage peace—follows this trend of emphasizing images and diction of conflict rather than finding alternatives to establishing cooperative initiatives and teaching peace. Fortunately, diverse tongues share aspirations and capacities of how to teach peace, which can offer all a humble posture of learning. As a result, this community has been created to establish a space for individuals interested and committed to finding a common lexicon of peace, where individuals and groups can share and exchange words, ideas, and with meanings that promote peace, cooperation, and social justice from all over the globe.
With over 6,700 languages in the world, it is easy to overlook the commonalities shared between various meanings of words, but in the same instance, we cannot deny that languages share distinct qualities and virtues that are not limited to the differences between syllables and sounds. While the number of languages may be expansive, the notions embodied within them are smaller, proving the existence of overlapping and interlocking relationships between various regions that would otherwise be considered to be remotely apart.
For instance, the philosophy of ubuntu (isiZulu) stands for “humanness” and for dignity and respect. Ubuntu means that the manner in which we treat other human beings is an indication of our own humanity or lack thereof, which is derived from the isiZulu maxim, “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” or “I am because we are.” However, this philosophy is not unique to South Africa, as it may be presented through many different names masking a shared belief.
We invite you to join our efforts by becoming a member of the PTC community, as we partake on an extraordinary journey to learn how we can promote peace in a language we all can understand, challenging the current pedagogical trends. Your participation will offer an opportunity to teach as well as learn about transcending the localization of peace and cooperation and how we can apply that knowledge.
Welcome to the Peace Tree Connexion (PTC), an online community of the Initiative for Education in Peace, Cooperation and Development (IEPCD) housed at the University of Maryland, College Park but open to global participation. PTC was created specifically to allow individuals and groups to share and exchange their knowledge and insight into the various expressions of speech that represent acts relevant to peace, cooperation and development. At the same time, this community grants all an opportunity to discuss and share these concepts as teaching tools. Like a tree, each of us can contribute branches of knowledge that give rise to extended branches and offshoots of additional ideas and suggestions, which may even result in fruitful or budding future projects of how the information collected here can be applied through a more practical approach. Among the first fruits of this tree is our intended global lexicon of peace.