Henry Street Students Participate in UN International Peace Day Ceremony
On September 17, a group of students from the Henry Street School for International Studies embarked on their first field trip of the year--a celebration of the International Day of Peace at the United Nations. Two hundred lucky students from various New York schools were connected via videoconference from the UN Headquarters with groups of their peers in Afghanistan, Kosovo, and Sierra Leone. The five freshmen from the Henry Street School joined together with a group of 33 students from the Williamsburg Charter School, another new alternative school which opened in Brooklyn this fall and also emphasizes global affairs in its curriculum.

The day began with remarks from Mrs. Nane Annan, wife of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Mr. Adolf Ogi, former President of Switzerland and current Special Adviser of the Secretary-General for Sport, Development and Peace, then spoke to the students from Athens, Greece via videoconference on the topic of peace through sport, discussing such current events as the recent Olympic Games and an upcoming soccer match between teams of Palestinians and Israelis. Mr. Johann Olav Koss, five-time Olympic medalist in speed skating for Norway and current UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, added that the Youth Olympics held every 4 years, makes it possible for students in over 80 nations to come together through sports. He expressed the need for more nations to be represented, including those that have been affected by war. Ms. Anna Cataldi, journalist, author, and UN Messenger of Peace, urged the students to achieve their dreams through sports. The students were held captive by her story of a young swimmer in Sarajevo who was unable to find a swimming pool to train in and resorted to training by running through areas filled with snipers. Students were then offered the opportunity to ask questions of the panelists and of other students. One young girl in New York asked what sports girls are allowed to play in Afghanistan. The all-male students representing Afghanistan answered that at their school, girls are allowed to play soccer, basketball, volleyball, and judo.

Following the ringing of the peace bell and a moment of silence, each group of students made a short presentation. The delegation in Afghanistan showed a short video on the daily hardships faced by a female judo competitor in Kabul, who represented Afghanistan at the Olympics in 2004. Students in Kosovo showed a video detailing a game between Serbian and Albanian volleyball players. Sierra Leone presented their student athletes, while in New York student athletes involved in the Conflict Resolution Program at the Susan E. Wagner School attested to the benefits that peace and resolution can bring to sports as well as their lives outside of school.

The day ended with a flag-raising ceremony, during which all attending New York City students raised flags from every member nation of the United Nations and paraded them across the front, by global region. By the closing of the ceremony, the assembly hall was filled with the colorful flags of every member nation, waving wildly to chants of, "May Peace Prevail on Earth."

The Henry Street School students enjoyed their first field trip, finding the videos from Kosovo and Afghanistan to be particularly compelling. "Although the quality was not that great, the message was there," said 9th grade student, David Carter. They enthusiastically cheered for the flags of their home countries and excitedly posed for pictures behind the nameplates of their home delegations. The UN Coordinator, Melanie Smolev said, "Our field trip to International Peace Day was a powerful way to begin our International Studies curriculum only three days into the school year. When we participated in the video-conference with students from all around the world in countries still emerging from conflict, we were able to see commonalities between those students and ourselves."

For more information on the International Day of Peace (September 21) go to:

Cyber School Bus | www.un.org/cyberschoolbus

International Day of Peace | www.internationaldayofpeace.org

For more information on The Williamsburg Charter School go to:

The Williamsburg Charter School | www.thewcs.org

For more information on the Susan E. Wagner School go to:

Susan E. Wagner School | www.wagnerhigh.org