newsletters
Seek peace within yourself and others • Reach out in service • Protect the environment • Respect diversity • Be a responsible citizen of the world
May 2025
Thomas Merton: “Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience.”
To raise awareness of the importance of pollinators, the threats they face and their contribution to sustainable development, the UN designated 20 May as World Bee Day.
One of World Citizen Peace’s Five Peace Actions is to protect the environment. The goal is to strengthen measures aimed at protecting bees and other pollinators, which would significantly contribute to solving problems related to the global food supply and eliminate hunger in developing countries.
We all depend on pollinators, and it is crucial to monitor their decline and halt the loss of biodiversity.
This year’s theme, “Bee inspired by nature to nourish us all”, highlights the critical roles bees and other pollinators play in agrifood systems and the health of our planet’s ecosystems. Indeed, pollinators are increasingly threatened by habitat loss, unsustainable agricultural practices, climate change and pollution. Their decline jeopardizes food production, increases costs and exacerbates food insecurity, particularly for rural communities.
Pollination is essential for agrifood systems, supporting the production of more than 75 percent of the world’s crops, including fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. In addition to increasing crop yields, pollinators improve food quality and diversity.
THE POWER OF BRIDGING
Who do we want to be? In what world do we want to live? How do we help create a world where we can all belong? These are some of the crucial questions john a. powell explores in his book The Power of Bridging. Powell’s book echoes the questions asked at World Citizen Peace as we practice our mission to “empower people to create a just and peaceful world.”
What does Powell mean by bridging? Some quotes:
“Bridging is one of the most powerful ways that we can move toward our aspiration of belonging.”
“Bridging invites us to listen for the other person’s story … their aspirations and dreams.”
“Bridging means we recognize that whatever is the key to the tension between us and the other is never the whole story.”
Bridging becomes more likely to occur if we can lean into the many identities we carry … A more complicated person seen in a more complicated story is easier to bridge with. Engaging complexity is not just about finding existing common ground, it is also about creating new possibilities and new common ground.
As World Citizen Peace engages in more conversations with our over 2,600 Peace Ambassadors around the world, we step further into the practice of “bridging.” How can we truly listen to one another, be vulnerable, lean into each other’s stories, learn about one another in all our complexities as we empower one another to create a more just and peaceful world?
VISIT WORLD CITIZEN PEACE ON FACEBOOK
As many of you may know, World Citizen Peace has a social media presence on Facebook!
Thank you to the 361 of you who follow us already. We are so happy you are here.
Another shout out to Mohammed Haroon Khamisani and Gladys Biney who have been actively posting on our page. We see you and appreciate your content contribution!
But do you know that we also have a World Citizen Peace Montessori Network group on Facebook? To the fantastic 129 members currently in the World Citizen Peace Montessori network, thank you! Are you a Montessori educator, administrator or friend and want to join the Montessori Network group? Please do so! We just ask you to please first follow the World Citizen Peace Official page. Once you’ve done that, you can submit a join request to the World Citizen Peace Montessori Network group here.
Follow our World Citizen Peace Official page to stay up-to-date on all happenings at WCP in-between monthly newsletters. We strongly encourage all members of the World Citizen Peace community to share any and all peace-related content with us directly on Facebook rather than via email. We are excited to grow our Facebook content and engagement and want to feature YOU!
DONATE TO WORLD CITIZEN PEACE. MAKE A DIFFERENCE
With over 2,600 peace ambassadors working tirelessly across the globe, World Citizen Peace helps lead grassroots peacebuilding efforts. Our dedicated network of peacemakers is transforming our world through education and community action. Your donation today doesn’t just support an organization; it empowers all of our Peace Ambassadors to create a just and peaceful world.
Every contribution to World Citizen Peace directly enables us to be leaders for peace and peace education. Whether it is peace literacy workshops in the USA or adding peace skills to K-8 curriculum in Nigeria, your generous donation enables our Peace Ambassadors to forge real and lasting changes for peace. Join our world movement by donating today and help us as we build a foundation for lasting peace, one community, one school, one Peace Ambassador, and one peace action at a time.
Please make a difference today and donate here. We all need more peace.
PEACEMAKERS
In this new section, World Citizen Peace features Peace Ambassadors living in areas of turmoil or danger. This month’s essay is written by Lidia from Ukraine.
REACH OUT IN SERVICE
Hello! This my essay about activity in Ukraine:
As a peace ambassador for World Citizen Peace, I combine my expertise in veterinary medicine, zoo psychology, and charity work to make the world a better place. War has brought suffering not only to people but also to animals, who have become victims of violence and lost their homes. That is why my mission is to help those who cannot ask for help themselves.
Since early 2022, I have provided hundreds of free consultations for displaced and war-affected animals, as well as actively supported the “Big Heart” shelter. My initiative, “Paws of Hope,” is a unique project where dogs create paintings to raise funds for their treatment and care.
As Ms. Top Ukraine 2024 and Ms. Freedom Ukraine 2025, I use my platform to raise awareness about animal welfare and the importance of compassion. I advocate for animal care, environmental protection, the conservation of natural resources, and the defense of the rights and freedoms of my fellow citizens. This year, I will represent Ukraine at the international beauty pageant Miss Freedom of the World. Currently, I am working on establishing a charitable organization, “Queendom of Goodness,” to expand the scope of aid.
Peace is not just the absence of war but a world where kindness, empathy, and responsibility for those we have tamed prevail. This is my mission.
Thank you for consideration and supporting Ukraine.
Peace Ambassador Julie Wignall – United States
Julie Wignall is a visionary leader whose unconventional career has spanned national politics, international business, the arts, and environmental conservation. She gained international recognition for her groundbreaking work with Mirage Resorts, International, where she partnered with the Chairman and CEO to revolutionize animal welfare, launch award-winning education programs, and drive impactful environmental initiatives.
Julie believes in the power of individuals to create meaningful change. She coined the term Fireflies to describe those who break barriers and illuminate new possibilities. Her multi-award-winning book, The Extraordinary Power of Fireflies, shares inspiring stories of those who dare to make a difference.
Julie is also a Marine Biologist and recently attended the Las Vegas Science Festival sharing information about our environment, our connectedness and our organization.
Today, Julie is a sought-after speaker, coach, consultant, and workshop leader, equipping changemakers with the tools to align with their purpose and amplify their impact. She’s here to share how each of us can harness our light to transform the world.
BECOME A PEACE AMBASSADOR TODAY!
BE LIKE JULIE! Our Peace Ambassadors are making a difference by promoting a more just and peaceful world. Why not join them? Want to join World Citizen Peace community and join with our more than 2,600 Peace Ambassadors in over 90 countries?
It is easy to become a Peace Ambassador and is always free. Go to our website and register today to become a Peace Ambassador.
DID YOU KNOW?
There can be peace even during war. Just after dawn on a cold Christmas day in 1914 one of the most extraordinary events of the Great War took place in Europe. It began with German and British soldiers singing Christmas carols in the trenches. Each side heard the other and eventually soldiers ventured in “no man’s land” to meet one another and exchange cigarettes, liquor, and chocolate along with Christmas greetings.
This famous truce was probably localized to only a couple of battalions on either side and not widespread, unfortunately. As described by Scottish veteran Alfred Anderson, “It was a short peace in a terrible war.” The temporary ceasefire of The Christmas Truce came five months after the outbreak of the war in Europe — and remains an enduring image of the triumph of man’s desire for peace.
WORLD CITIZEN PEACE THROUGH TIME
After a decade of traveling the world with his Declaration of World Citizenship document, Lynn Ellings was struck by an article published in The New York Times (11/7/1982) by Louis Kousin titled “Why Peace Sites?”
Louis Kousin, a retired Social Worker from New Jersey, was concerned for the future of his grandchildren as the threat of a nuclear war was increasing. He posed the issue as “How can one deal with such an awesome problem in a creative, positive way?”
The following insight came to him: “It occurred to me that military sites dot the landscape, not only in our own country, but also in a considerable part of the world. It then occurred to me that a natural antonym for military sites could be peace sites.”
From there, he proceeded to clearly share the how’s and why’s for creating Peace Sites.
After a meeting with Louis Kousin, Lynn and Donna continued their travels as promoting Peace Sites in the US and around the world.
One of the defining ideas that drove Louis Kousin was World Day for International Justice. Both he and Lynn Ellings saw everyone as citizens of the world and therefore connected to this important day and concept. This is an international day celebrated throughout the world on July 17 as part of an effort to recognize the growing system of international law that serves everyone.