Follow Our Deeds
The Living Peace Series (presented by the Center for Living Peace and the University of California, Irvine) promotes conversations with international leaders committed to making the world a healthy, sustainable, and compassionate place. The Center for Living Peace also inspires and supports individual and group service projects that come out of these extraordinary conversations.
Later this week track our Working Group projects on Citizen Effect!
In honor of the launch of The Living Peace Speaker Series, the Center for Living Peace is hosting an array of unique events to highlight the work of our first speaker, academy award winning actress Charlize Theron, and her foundation the Africa Outreach Project. Please join us in our celebrations!
To check out all of our amazing classes for Africa Week, click here.
On October 7th we hosted a Read for the Record story time at the Center for Living Peace. Jumpstart’s Read for the Record, presented in partnership with Pearson, is Jumpstart’s world record-breaking campaign that each year brings children and adults together to read the same book, on the same day, in homes and communities all over the world. The campaign also kicks off Jumpstart’s year long program, preparing preschool children in low-income neighborhoods for success in school and life. This year’s book was “The Snowy Day.” To learn more about Read for the Record, please visit: www.readfortherecord.org.
On October 2nd, the Center for Living Peace, in partnership with Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, had a booth at the Irvine Global Village Festival where we helped children make friendship bracelets and cards for children in Africa. Thanks to all that came out and joined us in making good happen! To learn more about CTAOP, please visit www.charlizeafricaoutreach.org.
Sept 21st was International Day of Peace. In honor of the special day, the Center for Living Peace offered a day of free activities and events, including story time for kids, yoga for kids, arts and crafts for kids, and a compassionate communication workshop for adults. In the evening there was a presentation by the University of California’s Olive Tree Initiative students, as well as a showing of the inspiring documentary “The Day After Peace” about the creation of International Day of Peace and what it now means to the world. To learn more about International Day of Peace, please visit www.internationaldayofpeace.org.
On Sept 11th, we were at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa for their annual Festival of Children. The Center for Living Peace booth, in partnership with Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, helped children make friendship bracelets and cards for children in Africa. To learn more about CTAOP, please visit www.charlizeafricaoutreach.org.
On August 8th, 2010, we visited the Orange County Museum of Art during their Second Sunday Art Event and handed out “living peace” activity sheets to children. We are amazed at what these children created as they were led through activities that asked them to think about being kind to both themselves and others.
To learn more about the Orange County Museum of Art, please visit: ocma.net.
At our grand opening in May 2010, we partnered with Team Kids and Second Harvest Food Bank to collect food for the hungry. With the
help of these amazing volunteers, we collected 190lbs of food for Second
Harvest Food Bank and Orange County’s hungry. Thank you to all of those who
donated both their time and food!
Did you know… 1 in 6 Orange County residents are at risk of hunger. Our unemployment rate still lingering above 12% and that does not include the underemployed, those individuals whose unemployment benefits have run out, or those that have been discouraged from job seeking. Due to the high cost of living in Orange County, an income slightly above the federal poverty level would still be insufficient in helping maintain economic stability and food security, which is especially important in old age when medical costs can be overwhelming. More than a third of those at-risk of hunger in Orange County are children. Children account for 35% of the 615,000 individuals in Orange County that have to worry about going to bed hungry.
To learn more about Second Harvest Food Bank, please visit: feedoc.org.
9. Kid Works
On October 30th, 2009 we visited the Santa Ana based non-profit Kid Works. In an effort to better understand what classes and programs to bring to the Center for Living Peace, we asked their youth leadership group what living peace means to them. Here is a sampling of what we of what we heard: “safe streets”, “not fighting with my brothers and sister”, “ clean air and a clean planet”, and “getting a good education so I can help other people”. Thank you Kid Works kids for sharing your voice. We hear you!
To learn more about Kid Works, please visit: kidworksonline.org.
On August 21, 2009 we met with the Team Kids Youth Council. In an effort to understand what resources we could provide for youth at the Center for Living Peace, we asked them what support or facilities they need to live peace in their life. This is what they said: “a place where we can understand more about the root causes of the world’s problems”, “a place where kids are empowered to speak out and make change”, “a place where we can be expressive and make films and music.” Thank you Team Kids – we’re listening!
To learn more about Team Kids, please visit: teamkids.org.
