New York, United States—The International Day of Peace 2015 was celebrated at the United Nations by a coalition of UN NGO committees and NGOs.
The program on September 21 was held under the theme “The Quest for Just and Sustainable Peace.” Various International Day of Peace sponsors presented sacred music, art, reflections and multi-faith prayers throughout the day for one-hour segments.
The NGO Committee on Religious NGOs at the UN and the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values and Global Concerns-New York, chaired by UPF, organized a segment entitled “The Role of Religion and Spirituality in Ensuring Lasting and Sustainable Peace.” Eight speakers representing different faith traditions quoted a passage from their holy scripture and related the passage to the faith-based understanding of a sustainable development goal.
The other sponsors of the program were the Church Center for the United Nations, the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church, the International Day of Peace NGO Committee, the International Day of Yoga Committee at the UN, the Loretto Community, the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace and Security, the Pan-Pacific and South-East Asia Women’s Association-Thailand, the Presbyterian Church, United Methodist Women, Unitarian Universalist-United Nations, the United Religions Initiative (URI) and the World Peace Prayer Society.