[UFPJ] Invitation to World Peace Forum in Vancouver

[Leslie Cagan <lesliecagan at igc.org>]

World Peace Forum 2006
June 23-28, 2006
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
<>www.worldpeaceforum.ca

Cities and Communities: Working together to end war and build a peaceful,
just and sustainable world

When the World Peace Forum is held in Vancouver this June, United for Peace
and Justice will be there. We want to make sure all of our member groups
know about the World Peace Forum, and we encourage you to make plans now to
participate in what promises to be an amazing event.

Thousands of people from all around the world will gather between June 23rd
and June 28th to advance the work of building a culture of peace and
sustainability. This international conference has the support of the City
of Vancouver and the 21 cities of the Greater Vancouver Region, the
International Association of Peace Messenger Cities, Mayors for Peace,
peace and antiwar movements in many countries, women's groups, labor
organizations, faith communities, First Nation organizations and many more.

The Forum will feature over 200 speakers, fora and workshops covering a
wide range of issues, including:

youth against the war
labor organizing
faith and spirituality
anti-racism and anti-castism
women
abolition of nuclear weapons
international law
arts and culture
anti-war strategies
regional discussions (Africa, Asia, Latin American & the Caribbean, the
Middle East)

United for Peace and Justice will be jointly sponsoring two workshops:
- One with Abolition 2000 entitled "Bringing Nuclear Disarmament 'Home' to
the Peace and Justice Movement."  In light of the saber rattling from
Washington toward Iran, this is a particularly timely workshop.

- One with the No Foreign Bases network which will address the global U.S.
military presence and how we link forces to address this problem.

We hope that many member groups of UFPJ will take advantage of the fact
that this international gathering is being held so close to home. It is at
conferences like this that important connections are made with people from
other parts of the world, where our commitment to being part of a truly
international movement comes to life.

Please take a moment to check out the web site for the World Peace Forum
2006 - <>www.worldpeaceforum.ca  And please be sure to discuss the forum in
your group or organization to see if you might be able to send one or more
representatives to Vancouver!