Inspiring and Education Students About the Power of Peace

Children & youth

Oct 20

Who: The Nobel Peace Center

What: Inspire students through peace education which uses Nobel laureates as role models.

Where: Oslo

Project period: 2022-2024

Web: The Nobel Peace Center

The Nobel Peace Center inspires students through peace education which uses Nobel laureates as role models. Our programs provide knowledge and build skills, so that students may enact positive and meaningful change.

Building an ideological framework:

Our programs guide students to grapple with big-picture questions: “What is peace?”, “What destroys and what promotes peace?”, and “What does the absence of war require from us?” With a variety of education and games, we address triggers of conflict, contemporary societal issues, and past and current injustices. We spotlight the universality of human rights and the responsibilities which follow with them.

Direct involvement:

We ask students “are you heard when you express your opinions?” From this, it is a small step to talk about Nelson Mandela or Carl von Ozzietsky - and actions they took. These exercises strengthen tolerance, understanding, and empathy.

Encouraging active learning:

When we push students to ask themselves challenging questions in an evidence rich space, we provide a safe arena to test out judgements. Students consider how they can apply laureates’ skills in their own lives, formulate opinions, and solve problems based on deep knowledge.

We are partnering with Grieg Foundation on two of our flagship projects: 1) a Minecraft computer game and accompanying educational and 2) a physical and digital educational resource, training students in dialogue methods.

Minecraft Peace Builders:

A computer game with resources for teachers and students which will bring peace education to a platform with several hundred million players. The game will immerse 8-16 aged young people in perspectives on conflict resolution through the eyes of Nobel Peace Prize laureates. Resources and curricula for students and teachers on the Nobel Peace Center website include lesson plans, design challenges, and teacher discussion guides. The content will be available for free in 29 languages from August 30 for Minecraft Bedrock in the Minecraft Marketplace and all users of Minecraft: Education Edition.

Education resources training students in dialogue methods:

Many of the peace prize laureates achieved impact through good dialogue. We therefore work to engage students in laureates' dialogue methods. In the preparatory phase of this project, we worked with a qualified conflict mediator to research and prepare a book about eight principles for good dialogue as exemplified by Nobel Peace laureates. It contextualizes laureate’s dialogue principles within their histories and offers recommendations for how to use these tools in one’s own life. The book is the springboard for our most popular education module: Tårnby, a conflict resolution roleplay and workshop about dialogue skills. In this project we plan to develop a digital educational resource out of our experience with Tårnby which can capture these tools and teachings and bring dialogue to many more students and teachers.

Grieg Foundation’s support is central to bringing these projects to life. We look forward to developing these educational tools together, and then rolling them out in focused seminars around Norway and through global platforms, so they reach millions of students and teachers around the world.