Anahuac University celebrates the International Day of Peace

We promoted a culture of peace through various activities organized by the Education and Culture of Peace Team to raise awareness about the importance of building a culture of unity.

In the context of the International Day of Peace, which is celebrated every year on September 21, Anahuac Mexico University has taken an important step in building a culture that promotes peace and the common good with the creation of the "Education and Culture of Peace" team, which began its activities on September 18, 2024 with the organization of this Day of Peace. 

The purpose of this group, made up of members from different areas of Anahuac Mexico University and led by Dr. Sonia Barnetche Frias, general secretary of the institution, is to promote education for peace among the university community, involving students, professors and administrators in a series of activities designed to raise awareness of the importance of dialogue, reconciliation and cooperation.

The first event was a resounding success. The activities began in the Joseph Ratzinger Auditorium of the Center for Graduate Studies of the North Campus with a panel of experts entitled "Peace Processes: From where can we build paths for peaceful coexistence today?”, with the participation of Jessica Lepe, member of the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (UAEMex) and founder of The Voices of Silence; Dr. Mónica Chávez, Coordinator of the Department of Interdisciplinary Reflection at the Ibero University and President of the Institute of Christian Social Doctrine; Dr. José Sols, PhD in Theology from the University of Paris, undergraduate degree in Contemporary History from the University of Barcelona, and Professor at the Ibero University; and Dr. María Elizabeth de los Rios, Professor and Researcher at the School of Bioethics of Anahuac Mexico University, who offered an analysis of how societies can heal and rebuild themselves after episodes of violence.

After the talk, an activity was carried out in collaboration with the Federation of Student Associations (FESAL), in which participants wrote messages of peace and harmony, which were tied to a white rose that was placed in the fountain garden of the North Campus as a symbol of their wishes. Students Gerardo Guardiola, president of FESAL; Tamara Orihuela, president of International Relations, and Santiago Blanco, president of Law, offered an emotional message in which they emphasized that peace is not a destination, but a path towards the construction of a society that always chooses dialogue.

Afterwards, students, teachers and administrative staff participated in an origami workshop where they learned to make cranes, in keeping with the Japanese tradition that associates them with peace and hope.

One of the highlights of the day was the interfaith prayer for peace, which brought together leaders of different religions, such as Rabbi Marcelo Rittner, writer and prominent religious leader of the Jewish community in Mexico and Latin America; Father Archimandrita Filareto, prominent religious leader of the Orthodox Church in Mexico; and Monsignor Lizardo Estrada Herrera, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cusco and Secretary General of the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (CELAM), who offered words of peace and unity. The activity ended with a message of thanksgiving and hope from Father César Hernández Rendón, L.C., Vice Rector for Integral Formation.

This important day ended with the "Bandanas for Peace" activity, as a symbol of the unity that everyone is trying to promote both within the Anahuac community and in society at large.

This first event marks a great start for the “Education and Culture of Peace” team and reinforces the Anahuac's commitment to the formation of leaders who not only seek academic excellence, but also social welfare and world peace.