Report: 2019 World Business Conference for World PeaceHiroshima for Global Peace

2019 World Business Conference for World PeaceReport: 2019 World Business Conference for World Peace

Hiroshima Prefecture has held 2019 World Business Conference for World Peace, a platform where people gather to discuss in a multifaceted way how we can harmonize business and peace movements and how business, governments, and NGOs can contribute, in collaboration with each other, to bringing peace to the world, while at the same time stressing the importance of invlolving diverse parties in peace building.

Overview

(1) Date: Wednesday, October 23 and Thursday, October 24, 2019

(2) Venue: International Conference Center Hiroshima

(3) Organizer: Hiroshima Peace Contribution Network Council (Hiroshima Prefectural Government, Hiroshima Prefecture Association of City mayors, Hiroshima chamber of Commerce and Industry, Hiroshima University, and 24 other organizations)

(4) Theme: Solving global issues and realizing world peace through a business approach – SDGs as a platform for exchange between peace and business –

(5) Number of Participants: around 360 persons

Keynote Lecture

Mr. Tilman Ruff, Co-Founder of International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)

– I would like to draw attention to the inhumanness of nuclear weapons, the global-scale environmental impact of the use of a nuclear weapon, and the immediate threat of a nuclear war.

– Investment to establish peace, for example by diverting funding for modernizing nuclear weapons to achieve the sustainable development goals, is necessary.

Lecture

Mr. Jacques Attali, President of Positive Planet

– One of the factors greatly affecting the next generation is a considerable change in the environment surrounding security as a result of changes in the alliance relationships formed in the 1950s and the introduction of smaller or unmanned weapons.

– The second factor is climate change.

As indicated by history, there is a correlation between conflicts and climate changes. Shortage of drinkable water and food can trigger wars and violence.

– The third factor is the failure of conventional systems to work as a solution for global problems. Such conventional systems do not address future problems to be caused by a growing gap and societal mobility, but lead to acts of violence.

– I hope that the positive economy forum will take place in Hiroshima on a continuing basis.

Conference Results and Future Initiatives

(1) Even closer tie with the Global Positive Forum

We organized the conference jointly with the Global Positive Forum, with which we had concluded a memorandum last year, leading us to disseminate messages more powerfully to the world and influence the world more greatly. Toward the joint organization of the next year’s conference, we have agreed to proceed with preparations to draw a wider variety of participants and make the event even more fulfilling.

(2) Contribution to the fulfillment of the SDGs

Setting the SDGs, an intersection point of peace and business, as a conference subtheme, we discussed various topics, such as the definition of peace today, the relationship between the SDGs and peace, and new indexes for realizing a sustainable society and handing down an even better world to the next generation. This discussion has enabled us to form the basis on which SDG 16 “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions” is reinterpreted, Hiroshima-style.

(3) Increase in the number of supporters toward realizing peace

We discussed peace with representatives from a wide variety of fields, including not only business, but also from culture, sports, disaster damage reduction, and emergency aid. We gained support from these representatives to make continuous contributions to realizing world peace in their respective positions. This achievement made in 2020 served as the first step toward a dramatic increase in the number of those who would support a wide variety of efforts to accomplish peace.

(4) Dissemination of messages by young people as the next-generation key players

Together with young people, who will underpin the next generation, we discussed what the world should be in 2045, the 100th anniversary of the atomic bombings, and what we can do now. The discussion was followed by their statement on the importance of establishing a peace platform and increasing the number of producers of peace, and their determination toward the next year’s event. This served as the starting point for young people themselves to form a community for engaging in next year’s event.

(5) Promotion of SDGs business

We organized an SDGs business competition and released SDGs Business Select Book to spread the concept of the SDGs among companies in Hiroshima Prefecture. This served as an opportunity to consider establishing a scheme to promote SDGs business through cooperation among NPOs, universities, companies, etc.