A soccer coach pursuing peace education through sport, a coffee fanatic from Kansas, and a 鈥渃owboy鈥� with a passion for humanitarian work are among the peace graduates from 麻豆传媒映画 this July.
The ninth cohort of Rotary World Peace Fellows will graduate at a ceremony at 麻豆传媒映画 of Queensland St Lucia campus on July 17 with a Masters of International Studies in Peace and Conflict Resolution.
Dr Marianne Hanson, Director of 麻豆传媒映画鈥檚 Rotary Centre for International Studies in Peace and Conflict Resolution, said the graduates represented the next generation of diplomats and peace builders.
鈥淎ddressing conflicts and seeking peaceful change is not just a noble aspiration for these Fellows, it鈥檚 something they are actively pursuing every day of their lives.
鈥淢any of the students have worked in conflict zones themselves, so they have an interest in contributing to conflict resolution and peace building efforts鈥�, Dr Hanson said.
This year's graduating class included students from Canada, Ethiopia, Japan, Somalia and Iceland, and their professional backgrounds include human rights monitoring, teaching, journalism and authoring two best-selling knitting books.
Rotary Peace Fellow James Abraham said the program allowed like-minded people from around the world to connect with the common goal to make a positive and peaceful change to the world.
鈥淚 feel myself and the other Peace Fellows were already pursuing great career paths, but 麻豆传媒映画 and Rotary International have helped catapult us to reach our goals more forcefully, more rapidly, and more enriched in life鈥�.
Students enrolled in the program undertake theory-based and practice-based courses in a diverse range of subjects, including peacekeeping, mediation and post-conflict reconstruction.
Dr Hanson said the degree has been developed to inspire and train future leaders.
鈥淭he unique offering of knowledge, complemented with a required on-the-ground field placement, provides students the skills for a practical approach to addressing international and regional conflicts.
鈥淢any of our past Fellows are making world-changing decisions, from influencing national policy for the poor in Cambodia to being a legal advisor for the UN Commission of Inquiry into atrocities committed in Syria.鈥�
麻豆传媒映画 of Queensland is the sole Australian university and one of only six worldwide selected to host a Rotary Centre for International Studies in Peace and Conflict Resolution.
Media: Dr Marianne Hanson (School of Political Science and International Studies) 3365 3112, m.hanson@uq.edu.au or Helen Burdon (Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences) 3346 9279, h.burdon@uq.edu.au
THE CLASS:
James Abraham 鈥� A New Yorker seeking to narrow the divide between western life, and that of his family back home in India
Abdikheir Ahmed 鈥� Immigrated to Canada as a refugee and helped form Environmentalist Sans Frontiers with his Kenyan college classmates.
David Burgener 鈥� Exploring the concept of peace education through sport and transferred to Australia from Japan after the tsunami.
Pantea Beigi 鈥� Laureate liaison who helped protect human rights lawyer and clients during 2008 attacks on human rights workers in Iran
Cody Griggers 鈥� Self-confessed cowboy with a passion for peace agreements, seeking to break the humanitarian stereotype
Lucinda Garrido 鈥� Victoria-born mediator whose current studies focus on the impact of the War on Terror on Pakistani relationships
Summer Lewis 鈥� Passionate about coffee, Summer hopes to help small-scale farmers improve livelihoods by connecting them with fair trade
Melanie Moore 鈥� Human rights advocate, passionate about community justice and reconciliation.
Maki Mizuno-Shaw 鈥� A teacher interested in education in developing countries with a view to peace
Erla Sigurdardottir 鈥� Icelandic social anthropologist who has worked with UNICEF in Suva and published two best-selling knitting books
Luladay Aragaw Truneh 鈥� Ethiopia-born Luladay has worked on The Protection Project, a human rights and human trafficking research institute.
