wfn.org | Augsburg College Hosts 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Forum Feb. 11-12

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

February 2, 2005

Augsburg College Hosts 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Forum Feb. 11-12
05-015-JP*/JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The 17th Annual Nobel Peace Prize Forum, Feb. 11-12
at Augsburg College, Minneapolis, will feature a series of speakers who
will focus on human rights issues named by Shirin Ebadi, 2003 Nobel Peace
Prize recipient.  These issues include loss of dignity, deprivation of
legal rights, starvation, famine, war, illness and humiliation.
     The Forum, "Striving for Peace: Uniting for Justice," recognizes
Ebadi, a human rights activist and one of Iran's first female judges.
     The Nobel Peace Prize Forum is held in cooperation with the Norwegian
Nobel Institute, the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
Norwegian Consulate General and five Midwestern colleges of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: Augsburg College; Augustana
College, Sioux Falls, S.D.; Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn.; Luther
College, Decorah, Iowa; and St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn.
     This year's plenary speakers are Mary Robinson, former president of
Ireland and former U.N. high commissioner for human rights; Davar Ardalan,
National Public Radio reporter and producer, who also lived in Iran under
both the Shah's reign and the reign of the ayatollahs; Dr. Sima Samar,
chair of the Afghanistan Human Rights Commission; and Frances Moore Lappe,
author of "Diet for a Small Planet" and "You Have the Power: Choosing
Courage in a Culture of Fear."
     Representing Norway will be Ole Mjos, chair of the Norwegian Nobel
Committee, and Terje Rod-Larsen, director of the Fafo Institute for
Applied Social Science, Oslo, Norway.
     The opening ceremony on Friday will be a festive event, featuring a
concert by "Yawo," a West African band, and dance, plus an award-winning
theater piece by Zaraawar Mistry, co-founder and the artistic and managing
director, Center for Independent Artists, Minneapolis.
     Saturday sessions will include interactive workshops dealing with a
variety of issues: supporting women in Afghanistan; peace in the Persian
Gulf; building community; human rights issues; women in a time of change;
and forgiveness.
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     Information about the Forum, including registration information, is
at http://www.augsburg.edu/ppf on the Web.

*Judy Petree is news service/media relations manager for Augsburg College,
Minneapolis.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news