What is Aiki Peace Week ?
As you may know, September 21 is the United Nations’ ‘International Day of Peace’. Every year, hundreds of organizations and citizen groups worldwide honor that day with thousands of ‘Peace Day’ events. Since 2010 aikido practitioners from hundreds of dojos in many countries around the world, inspired by the unique embodied peacemaking legacy of O-Sensei MoriheiUeshiba, have participated in the newly created International Aiki Peace Week (IAPW). We invite you to join us this year by offering a special event to share the fact that aikido can make a unique contribution to peace.
IAPW provides an opportunity to increase public awareness of aikido as a joyful practice of reconciliation, compassion, and nonviolence. This celebration transcends the divisions of different schools, styles, and organizations, and our collective action gives each of our efforts far more impact than they would have in isolation.
All you have to do to participate is sign up at at this website and list the specific events you want to organise. This can be anything from teaching peace-focused aikido classes for your students to events in or out of the dojo involving other clubs or the general public that show the value of aiki principles as a way of managing conflicts and preventing violence.
Your dojo will be listed with your event on a world map of all participating dojos on this website. This will help anyone looking to find a dojo sharing Aikido’s peacemaking message. It will also foster contact and cooperation of like-minded dojos.
The website also features downloadable press kits with ideas for generating coverage from local TV and newspapers, as well as a collection of ideas and video clips for aiki-peacemaking lessons provided by teachers engaged in IAPW. You are invited to send us your material for publication.
Aiki Peace Week is organized by an international committee of aikido senseis from different styles and federations and is an independent project, originally initiated by Aiki Extensions and now managed by the non-profit dojo, Aikido in Fredericksburg.