Events

Friday January 26, 2024. 10:00-12:00  CET
Wohnzimmer, 2nd floor K-Haus, Kasernenstrasse 8, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
A hybrid side event of the Basel Peace Forum 2024

Friday January 26 at 4pm - 5:30pm Central Europe Time / 10am-11:30am Eastern Time
Online - Registration required.

3 prizes of €5000 each. The 9 finalists will present their projects. The audience then votes to determine the winners.

 

Applying human rights law to address existential threats to humanity
In-person event. Thursday July 6. 15:00-16:00
Sidley Austin Law Firm, Rue du Pré-de-la-Bichette 1 Geneva 1202

Registration

 

Nuclear Stories Pre-Premier
Zurich and online
Wednesday April 26, 2023
7pm - 8:30pm Central Europe Time.
Click here to register. No cost to join.
The event is held in conjunction with International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day

Human Rights and the Doomsday Clock
Using international human rights law to address existential threats
posed by nuclear weapons and climate change.

A side event to the UN Human Rights Council 42nd Universal Periodic Review

Wednesday January 25. 1:15 – 2:45pm
Sidley Austin Law Firm, Geneva.

Registration required: RSVP to alyn@pnnd.org or Ph/SMS to +41 788 912 156

 

January 20. 11am – 12:30pm
A side event of the Basel Peace Forum 2023

Online by zoom and in-person at K-Haus, Basel, Switzerland

Registration required.

 

Saturday January 21
4:30pm-6pm Central Europe Time / 10:30am-12noon Eastern Time USA
Online. Click here to register.
3 prizes of €5000 each. The 9 finalists will present their projects. The audience then votes to determine the winners.

Youth initiatives for a sustainable future

Join the 2022 PACEY Award Winners and Youth Fusion, winners of the Gorbachev/Schultz Legacy Youth Award
K-Haus, Kasernenstrasse 8, 4058 Basel
6pm-8pm. Tuesday November 8.
Followed by an apero

[Simultaneous interpretation in English and German]

Register at https://forms.gle/1sH37wqpQbN4vZBb9

 

Using international human rights law to address existential threats.
A side event to the UN Human Rights Council 50th Regular Session.

Friday July 1. 13:15 - 14:45. (In-person event)

Montreux Room, Varembé Conference Center (CCV). 9-11 Rue de Varembé, Geneva

Register for the event

 

The 3rd in a series of webinars on the youth-led campaign to take the issue of climate change to the International Court of Justice (World Court).

Friday March 4, 2022

Session 1: Timed for Asia/Pacific. 8am - 9:30am Central Europe Time. Event in English. Click here to register.

Session 2: Timed for the Americas/Europe/Africa/Middle East. Simulataneous translation in English/French/Spanish. Click here to register.

Friday Jan 21, 2022. 8:30am – 10am CET

Description: Peace, nuclear Abolition and Climate Engage Youth (PACEY) Award event

Two prizes of €5000 Euro each will be awarded to exemplary youth projects or initiatives to advance peace, climate protection and/or disarmament, especially nuclear disarmament.

Registration

Thursday Jan 20, 2022 8:00 pm – 9:30pm CET

Description: From youth vision and enthusiasm to policy change. An intergenerational forum between policymakers (legislators) and youth activists on the Climate / Nuclear Disarmament nexus. The event is held in conjunction with the Basel Peace Forum 2022.

Registration

A public in-person event featuring the two winning projects of the 2021 Basel PACEY (Youth) Awards.

Wednesday November 24, 18:30 – 20:00
Basel University ‘Old’ Campus
Rheinsprung 9, 4051 Basel

Register

Methods and examples of nonviolent actions to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. An online event to commemorate the International Day of Nonviolence and the 152nd anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi.

Saturday October 2. 10am-12 noon Eastern Time USA / 4-6pm Central Europe Time / 7:30-9:30pm Delhi.

Simultaneous translation in English/French

Register for the event at https://bit.ly/nonviolence21century

Toward an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the legal responsibility to ensure a stable climate for future generations

Webinar 2: What question to ask the Court? What sources of law to use?

Tuesday August 24, 2021
8am-10am Pacific Time USA / 11am-1pm Eastern Time USA / 4pm-6pm London / 5pm-7pm Central Europe

Simultaneous translation English/French. Click here to register.

An Inter-generational Forum followed by the PACEY Plus Youth Award

January 19, 2021. 15:00 – 19:15 Central Europe Time

A forum of youth, experts and policy makers discussing actions and effective policies for peace, disarmament, the climate and public health especially in times of pandemic. The event will be held in three sessions of 1¼  hours each with a short break between each session. 

Click here to register.

Session 1: Timed for Asia and the Pacific.
Thursday December 10. 8am Central Europe Time (10 am Moscow, 1pm Dhaka, 4pm Tokyo/Seoul, 7pm Suva)
Program and other information will be posted on the Session 1 event facebook page. Click here to register.

Session 2: Timed for the Americas, Europe and Africa.
Friday December 11. 11:30 Eastern time USA/Canada. (5:30pm CET)
Program and other information will be posted on the Session 2 event facebook page. Click here to register.

Webinar: Monday November 2, 2020
10am – 11:30am Eastern Time USA. 4pm-5:30pm Central Europe Time
Click here to register. Click here for the event flyer.

TheoSounds Concert to commemorate the International Day for Peace.
Sunday September 20 in Theodorskirche (Theodorskirchpl. 5, 4058 Basel) at 16:00

The concert is Schubert Notturno Op. 148 and Beethoven Piano Trio Op. 1 No. 1.

Performed by the PlayforRights Chamber Trio: Fraynni Rui (violin), Joonas Pitkänen (Violoncello) and Aleck Carratta (piano).
Free entry. We invite you to attend.

September 21- October 2, 2020.

A series of UN and UN-related events and actions running from Sep 21 (International Day for Peace) until October 2 (International Day for Nonviolence)

International webinar. Thursday  July 30, 2020.
9:00 am
- 10:30 am EDT  (15:00-16:30 CET)

Part of the Abolition 2000 webinar series on issues and actions for nuclear abolition
Click here to register. Click here for the event flyer.

Dates:
Thursday, May 14, 2020. Time: 11am EDT, 5pm CET
Tuesday May 19, 2020. Time: 9am CET

Contact: Youth actions webinar

 

International webinar, Tuesday April  21, 2020. Held in conjunction with Earth Day 2020 and the Global Days of Action on Military Spending.

The webinar will address: Cutting nuclear weapons budgets. Ending investments in nuclear weapons & fossil fuels. Reallocating these to public health, climate protection and sustainable development.

January 9, 2020. 1pm – 5:30pm. Basel, Switzerland.

A roundtable meeting of parliamentarians & city leaders with youth campaigners from the European climate, peace and nuclear disarmament movements.

Organised in conjunction with the Basel Peace Forum 2020: Cities in Time of Conflict & Peace, January 9-10, 2020.

Conference languages: English and German. Click here for the conference flyer.

Contact: info@baselpeaceoffice.org

Divestment and other actions by cities, universities and parliaments to reverse the nuclear arms race and protect the climate

Basel, Switzerland. April 12-13, 2019

A European and trans-Atlantic conference organised by Basel Peace Office.
Co-sponsored by IPPNW Switzerland and the Basel-Stadt Kanton, in cooperation with Mayors for Peace (Europe) and Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament.

Political and financial policies to protect future generations from climate change and nuclear weapons.

Monday January 14, 2019. 6pm-7:45pm
Hörsaal (Room) 215, Seminar fur Soziologie,
Basel University, Petersgraben 27, Basel, Switzerland

Click here for the program (pdf).
Contact info@baselpeaceoffice.org

 Thursday December 7.
Basel University, Hörsaal 001
18:00 - 20:00

Premier screening of the award-winning movie 'Where the Wind Blew' about the impact of nuclear tests in Nevada and Kazakhstan. Screenign is followed by discussion with representatives of Kazakhstan.

Basel University, September 14 - September 17

An international conference on the human impact of nuclear weapons and power, legal cases on behalf of victims, and protection of future generations.

Monday Jan 16. 16:30-18:30. Sydney Room, Floor 2, Messe Center, Messeplatz 21, Basel.

Europe could be caught in nuclear cross-fire between Russia and the United States. Join us for a discussion with Swiss and international speakers on new threats from nuclear weapons and what can be done about it.

Kazakh Room (Cinema XIV), Palais des Nations, Geneva.
September 27, 2016. 15:00 - 17:00.

Special event featuring
* Ela Gandhi (grand-daughter of Mahatma Gandhi and Co-President of Religions for Peace);
* Chain Reaction 2016 video, a series of nuclear disarmament actions and events around the world;

* Presentation of the Astana Vision declaration to the United Nations.

Please register at info@unfoldzero.org by September 22

Issues and proposals for taking forward nuclear disarmament
Framwork Forum roundtable for invited governments
April 18, 2016
Hosted by the Permanent Mission of Canada to the UN, Geneva
Co-sponsored by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung

From the NPT to the UN General Assembly: Filling the legal gap to prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons

Geneva, 1 September 2015, 13:15-18:00

Restaurant Layalina 121 rue de Lausanne, and Auditorium Jacques Freymond, rue de Lausanne 132       

Sponsored by Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, Middle Powers Initiative, Basel Peace Office and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Geneva
Supported by the Right Livelihood Award Foundation and World Future Council

Screenings in various locations in Switzerland during the week September 21-26

Directed by Peter Anthony
Featuring: Stanislav Petrov, Kevin Costner, Sergey Shnrynov, Matt Damon, Natalia Vdovina & Robert de Niro

On the night of September 26, 1983, Stanislav Petrov disobeyed military protocol and probably prevented a nuclear holocaust. He says that he is not a hero. 'I was just in the right place at the right time.' You decide!

 

Wave goodbye to nukes! 24 hours of actions in capitals and other cities around the world April 26-27, 2015

Framework Forum roundtable
Monday September 8, 2014, 13:00 – 18:00
Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
Auditoire Jaques Freymond, rue de Lausanne 132 , Geneva

By invitation only
Contact info@baselpeaceoffice.org

Kazakh Room (Cinema Room XIV),
Palais des Nations, United Nations, Geneva
September 25, 16:00 - 17:30
followed by refreshments

Organised by UNFOLD ZERO and the Basel Peace Office
Hosted by the United Nations Office of Disarmament Affairs

A UN pass is required to attend. Contact info@unfoldzero.org

18 August to 15 October 2014
Oberer Rheinweg, Basel, Between Mittlere Brücke (Middle Bridge) and Wettstein Bridge

Late October until early December 2014
Theatrestrasse, Basel. From Elizabethenkirche to Barfusserplatz

www.makingpeace.org

Sunday August 17, 6pm – 9pm
Im Fluss stage on the Rhine
Oberer Rheinweg, Basel

Free

PLAYforRIGHTS presents a Youth Music Performance to commemorate World Humanitarian Day

A range of live music featuring ERROR 404 brass band ensemble from Musik Akademie Basel

July 4 - 5
Basel, Switzerland

Hosted by Guy Morin, President of the Basel-Stadt Canton
Organised by the Basel Peace Office

Mayors, parliamentarians and civil society!
Join us in Basel to share initiatives, network with others and advance the cooperative security framework for peace, prosperity and nuclear disarmament.

Chernobyl exhibition and the Rhine
Kleinbasel, Basel
Sunday April 13, afternoon

With Basel Peace Office and Environmental Award laureates participating in the 3rd International Convention of Environmental Laureates.

13:00: Photo exhibition of Chernobyl nuclear disaster
by Alexander Hofmann
Basel Art Center, Riehentorstrasse 33, Basel
Discounted group rate 15 CHF (normal entry is 22 CHF)

13:50 Lunch
Merian Spitz Cafe, Rheingasse 2

15:30. Rhine Promenade, water-powered ferry, Munster

RSVP to alyn@pnnd.org or +41 788 912 156

International Day of Sport for Peace and Development
Sunday April 6, 2014

Carton Blanc photo event and short peace run/cycle in Basel
Followed by an informal talk on peace and sport – peace bike rides

3pm: Run/cycle along the Rhine from Oberer Rheinweg (under Wettstein Bridge) to the Three Countries Corner
4pm: Carton Blanc photo event at Three Countries Corner, Dreiländereck
5pm: Light meal and talk at Restaurant Schiff

Contact info@baselpeaceoffice.org

Act now to encourage your country to engage in the OEWG. Organize a public event with motive of “opening the door to a nuclear weapons free world”!

Tuesday 21 May, 2013
13:15 – 14:45
Room XI, Building A, UN Geneva

Side-event of Open Ended Working
Group on Nuclear Disarmament

Launch of the 2nd edition of the Nuclear Abolition Forum
Tuesday, 9 April 2013
12:30 – 14:00
Geneva Centre for Security Policy
WMO/OMM Building Avenue de la Paix 7bis, Geneva

Featuring:
Ambassador Urs Schmid (Switzerland)
Ambassador Nobuyasu Abe (Japan)
Jean-Marie Collin (PNND, France)
Marc Finaud (Program Adviser, GCSP)
Alyn Ware (Founder, Nuclear Abolition Forum, New Zealand)
Teresa Bergman (Researcher, Basel Peace Office)

6pm, Friday May 24
University of Basel, Lecture Hall 001
Petersgraben, Basel

Featuring:
Wilson Kipketer, runner. Current world record holder for the 800 and 1000 meters (indoors).
Spokesperson for L’organisation pour la Paix par le Sport (Peace and Sport)
Paol Hansen, Special Adviser UN Office on Sport for Development and Peace
Carola Szemerey, Youth Future Project
Henk Van Nieuwenhove, Flanders Peace Field project  (the 1914 Soccer Truce)

 

Top peace and security award announced at U.S. Senate reception

PNND Co-Presidents Senator Ed Markey and Uta Zapf to receive the prestigious Senator Alan Cranston Award. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden sends letter of commendation.

Jonathan Granoff, President of the Global Security Institute, announced the 2014 recipients of the prestiguous Senator Alan Cranston Award at a high-level, cross-party reception at the historic Kennedy Caucus Room of the U.S. Senate on February 27. The reception, held on the eve of Nuclear Remembrance Day, was organised as part of the annual assembly of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament (PNND). The award will be formally presented to the recipients at a special event in June.


Jonathan Granoff congratulating Senator Markey at the reception

The Award was established by the Global Security Institute in memory of Senator Alan Cranston, a long-time peace, disarmament and civil rights advocate who is remembered for, among other things, fighting a law suit against Hitler in 1939, serving as President of the World Federalist Association, serving in the senate for 24 years – including 14 years as the Democratic Party Whip, and setting a world record for the senior 100-yard dash at 55 years old.


Alan Cranston - Fastest Man in the Senate

Previous recipients of the award have been Jayanatha Dhanapala, 2002 (Award presented to him by Jane Goodall at the United Nations in New York), Nancy Pelosi, 2003 (Award presented to her by Pierce Brosnan at a high-level event in San Francisco) and Ted Turner, 2005  (Award presented to him by Mikhael Gorbachev at the United Nations in New York).

In announcing the 2014 Award Mr Granoff noted that Uta Zapf and Senator Markey were shining examples of the value of good leadership in key legislatures - Zapf in Germany and Markey in the United States.


Uta Zapf speaking at the Inter Parliamentary Union Assembly in Geneva

"As Chair of the Bundestag Subcommittee on Disarmament and Arms Control from 1998 until her retirement in 2013, under both Conservative and Social Democrat governments, Uta Zapf facilitated active cross-party debate in the German parliament on core security issues, helping to shape and shift German policy towards disarmament and multi-lateralism," said Mr Granoff.  "She has also advanced nuclear disarmament initiatives in regional bodies, with leadership positions in the Parliamentary Assemblies of NATO and the OSCE, as well as participating in international forums such as the United Nations General Assembly and Non-Proliferation Treaty meetings."

Despite retiring from parliament at the 2013 German elections, Zapf continues to be active in the issue taking on the new position of PNND Adviser on Inter-parliamentary organisations. Later this month she will be the keynote speaker at a PNND panel held at the 130th Assembly of the Inter Parliamentary Union. Nearly 800 parliamentarians from the 160 member parliaments will attend the Assembly in Geneva March 16-20, where they will be considering a draft resolution submitted by PNND members on Toward a Nuclear Weapon Free World: The Contribution of Parliaments


Senator Markey speaking at the PNND reception

In commending Senator Markey, Granoff noted that: “Since he was first elected to the US Congress in 1976, and subsequently to the US Senate in 2013, Edward Markey has worked to end the proliferation of nuclear weapons and to build a sustainable world.  He championed the movement to freeze nuclear weapons, to improve nuclear power plant security, and to address climate change,’ said Granoff.  ‘And in 2012 he introduced into the House of Representatives the Smarter Approach to Nuclear Expenditures (SANE) Act that would reduce our nuclear armament and cut the deficit by $100 billion over the next ten years.’

Senator Markey spoke passionately about the risks of nuclear weapons in the 21st Century and their irrelevance to meeting genuine security concerns. He received a rousing response when he announced that the following day he would introduce the SANE Act into the U.S. Senate, with a similar bill being introduced into the US House of Representatives by Congressman Earl Blumenauer.

“America faces a real choice: spend billions on nuclear weapons we no longer need or fund programs that educate our children and help find cures to deadly diseases. The security of our nation’s future will be ensured by investing in education not nuclear annihilation,” said Senator Markey. “We need to stop pouring billions into the nuclear weapons programs of the past and instead prioritize our nation’s pressing needs. The SANE Act will cut spending on outdated, wasteful nuclear weapons and related programs over the next ten years and will strengthen our long-term economic and national security.”


US Rep Mark Meadows (Republican, North Carolina), Senator Aitimova (Kazakhstan) and Tonis Koiv MP (Estonia) at the PNND reception

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden sent a letter, which was read at the event by Jonathan Granoff, commending the legislators, legislative aides, disarmament experts and others attending the PNND Assembly. Granoff quoted it saying  ‘Your dedication to strengthening diplomatic ties around the world on this important issue is remarkable.’

Biden also congratulated the recipients of the Alan Cranston Award in the letter, making special mention of Markey: ‘Senator Markey – you should be proud. Your leadership demonstrates the altruistic dedication that makes the Global Security Institute what it is today.’ Biden also commended the Global Security Institute, of which PNND is a program, saying that ‘The efforts of the men and women of the Global Security Institute have made the world a safer place for everyone.’


PNND Global Coordinator Alyn Ware speaking at the reception

PNND Global Coordinator Alyn Ware, speaking after Senator Markey, praised U.S. President Obama for putting forward the vision for a nuclear weapon free world in his Prague speech of 2009, but lamented that not enough had been done to implement this vision.

‘Parliamentarians from around the world, many of them gathered here today, are thus taking action to implement the Prague Agenda,’ said Mr Ware. ‘They are doing this in their national parliaments, through joint action such as the NATO Parliamentarians’ Letter to President Obama, through regional cooperation by establishing nuclear-weapon-free zones, and in inter-parliamentary bodies like the Inter Parliamentary Union meeting next month in Geneva.’

‘Last year PNND held its assembly in Kazakhstan to highlight the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons,’ said Mr Ware. ‘This year we are in Washington D.C. to bring this message to the U.S. Congress. Next year we will be hosted by the Czech Senate to again highlight the Prague Agenda and build global support for its implementation.’


Karipbek Kuyukov, Kazakhstan Ambassador Umarov and Vikto Rogalev P (Kazakhstan) at the PNND reception

Karipbek Kuyukov, honorary ambassador of The ATOM Project, speaking after Mr Ware, spoke about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons use, as experienced by the people of Kazakhstan from the Soviet nuclear tests in their country.

Kuyukov, a second generation victim of nuclear testing, told the crowd at the PNND reception that ‘doctors were so horrified at the sight of me at birth that they suggested to my parents that I be given a lethal injection to end my life.’

Kuyukov also told of the premature deaths of his siblings and of the suffering of others as a result of nuclear weapons testing. ‘I have travelled to the United States in the hope that his story will lead to me being the last person to suffer as a result of nuclear weapons testing.’

Kuyukov, who was born armless, has become a renowned painter using his feet and mouth. Some of his evocative art was on display at the PNND reception.


Art from Karipbek Kuyukov exhibited at the PNND reception

The reception also included a powerful short film from The Atom Project on the effects of nuclear tests and on international initiatives and campaigns for a nuclear-weapon-free world.

For further information and photos about the PNND Assembly and the reception see:
   *   The ATOM Project, PNND Participate in Anti-Nuclear Weapons Event at U.S. Senate;
   *   Nuclear Fallout Colors Pro-Test Ban Artist’s Memories, Roll Call, Feb 27. Distributed to every U.S. Congress office;
   *   PNND Assembly: Climbing the Mountain;
   *   Parliamentarians call on Nuclear Security Summit process for nuclear abolition;
   *   Photos of the PNND reception at the Kennedy Caucus Room of the US Senate;
   *   Photos of the PNND Assembly.

 

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