Peace Train Canada

  From Oct. 21-25, a dozen people were on the Peace Train—they had to fly there this time—to meet with Parliamentarians, attend the award ceremony for disarmament advocate Douglas Roche, attend the annual conference of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW), and have personal meetings with MPs. Here are a few reflections about that experience.   Diane Mayba, Port Alberni, B.C.   My main reasons for coming were to engage with more politicians, foster relationships with more people and groups working for the same or similar goals, increase the visibility   and capacity of the Peace Train to achieve our goals and learn from the amazing line-up of speakers at the conference.   Looking ahead, we should plan earlier for a parliamentary event next year. There is a lot of support and good will for the idea of a Peace Centre, but MPs are incredibly overworked and over taxed with so many pressing needs that they have limited time, energy and abili...

What are some next steps for Peace Train Canada? That’s the question that was posed to Michael Byers, a panelist at the Centre for International Policy Studies conference at the University of Ottawa on Oct. 24.   Theme of the conference was Canadian Security Interests and Trump 2.0.   Byers, a Professor of Global Politics and International Law at the University of British Columbia who spoke on the topic “Arctic Security, NORAD modernization and Golden Dome,” told Peace Trainers he applauded their goal of establishing a peace centre.   "It's a fantastic idea," he said. For Byers, who is also Co-Director of the Outer Space Institute, developing a story or narrative is key to mobilizing the Canadian public against increasing militarism, including the weaponization of space. “You need to find the right hook,” he said, noting other campaigns he was worked on found ways to frame an issue that was easily understood by the Canadian public. “You need to come up with an a...

By Dave Epp No one knows the cost of peace, more than those who are asked t o risk their lives in its pursuit.   Isn’t that an odd thing to say from an MP whose heritage is from  the Anabaptist tradition? Whose faith background is rooted in non-violence?   Yet, as we move into the Remembrance Day season, I often cite these  words as I honour those who chose a different path to pursue peace, than  I have personally chosen.   I recall the words spoken at last year’s Peace Train event with Parliamentarians, by my colleague and friend, Colonel Alex Ruff, who retired from 25 years of active military service, including two peacekeeping missions to Bosnia. Now serving in the House as an MP, his service also included the pursuit of peace. In the last Parliament, I served on the Foreign Affairs and International  Development Committee, and, through testimony with respect to the  situation in Haiti, we learned that Canada could not participate ...

Every year since 2011, the Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament and the Centre for International Policy Studies has given an award for Distinguished Achievement in Nuclear Disarmament. This year’s recipient was special, said presenter Alex Neve, since he was “not only in a world all his own, but a universe all his own.”   That recipient was Douglas Roche, for his “many decades to the vital cause of nuclear disarmament and, ultimately, the global abolition of nuclear weapons.”   Roche, a former Senator, Member of Parliament, Canadian Ambassador for Disarmament, visiting professor at the University of Alberta and author of 25 books, received the recognition on Oct. 23 in Ottawa.   According to Neve, chair of the Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament, Roche is Roche is a most fitting recipient because of his “passionate and irresistible in his mission to eradicate nuclear weapons in our world.”   Roche has, Neve said, showed generations diplomats,...

By Bernadette Wyton A presentation given to the Oct. 22 breakfast with Parliamentarians in Ottawa. Since Peace Train Canada’s visit to Ottawa last year, the political climate has completely changed. President Trump’s rise to power in an aura of dissonance and disrespect helped distill our minds and usher in our current Canadian government. The ongoing erosion of democratic values across the border is a warning call for us to re-examine our own. We stand at the crossroads of our Canadian identity. Will we trade democratic values for militarized security? Will we uphold truth or submit to power? Will we cash in our inheritance of the Golden Rule for the glitter of a Golden Dome? Will we choose to live in the rubble of discontent, distrust, and disinformation or celebrate and uphold the institutions of truth and  freedom that support our own individual freedom and agency? As we teeter on the fulcrum of multiple tipping points, it becomes increasingly clear that peace is a fundam...

  “It’s good to see you here, building on the momentum from last year.” With those words, Gord Johns, NDP Member of Parliament for Courtenay—Alberni, B.C., welcomed a dozen members of Peace Train Canada to a breakfast with parliamentarians at the Senate of Canada building in Ottawa on Oct. 22.   The meeting, which found 10 Members of Parliament and one Senator, or their representatives, at the event, was a follow up to the 2024 Peace Train Canada reception with Parliamentarians, also in Ottawa.   “We are honoured to join you in building peace and understanding,” Johns said, adding the efforts of the Peace Train “is inspiring."   The need for peacekeeping around the world is more necessary than ever, Johns said, noting that over 120 million people have been forced from their homes by conflict.   “These are not just stats, these are people and families,” he said.   “Peace begins with action,” he went on to say, adding he supported the Peace Train’...

Want to take ride on the Peace Train? This short video by Jase Tanner from the 2024 trip from Vancouver to Ottawa will give you an idea of what it was like.   View the video here.

If you are in the Ottawa area, and you want to support the Peace Train and hear some great music—and spend time with others interested in peace—come to Music and Words for World Peace on Friday, October 24 at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, 82 Kent St., Ottawa. 

  Peace Train Canada will be in Ottawa in October 21 to 25 to call on government to establish a Peace Centre.   Foundational to our request is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR); it inspires our goal. With the enactment of the declaration, Canada and other countries committed themselves to build a more secure world for all.   Our request was emphasized and given credence on September 25 in Vancouver when about a dozen Peace Trainers attended the Massey Lecture delivered by international human rights lawyer and Peace Train Canada advisor Alex Neve.   This year’s title was “Universal: Renewing Human Rights in a Fractured World.” In his presentation, Alex delivered a tour de force argument to reinvigorate the understanding and efficacy of human rights.   In his presentation, which will be delivered in five cities across Canada, Alex—who was also a panelist at the November 22, 2024 Peace Train Canada panel discussion in Ottawa titled “Peace an...