This weekend is an important one for all those who support the cause of peace, both internationally and here in Calgary. Monday September 21st is the UN-designated International Day of Peace (also called Peace Day), a day of worldwide recognition and celebration of efforts to end conflict and promote lasting peace. The UN predicts that millions of people will attend Peace Day events, which include a global telecast, coordinated worldwide ceremonies, and initiatives to broker one-day truces in war zones such as Afghanistan (many such truces were successfully held on September 21st 2008).

Meanwhile this Sunday Calgary will be celebrating the unveiling of the Calgary Community Peace Pole, an exciting monument near the riverbank downtown.  Calgary’s peace pole joins more than 250,000 such poles around the world, most of them simple structures with the motto (or prayer) “May Peace Prevail on Earth” inscribed in various languages on the sides.  The common purpose of all peace poles is to promote lasting peace internationally, and to foster a “culture of peace” generally. The phrase “culture of peace” implies an absence of violence or violent intentions at all levels of society – in the home, the schoolyard and the local community, as well as in our minds and on the wider world stage. The pole informs and reflects our hopes for the predominance of such a culture.

This initiative has its origins in meetings that took place early in 2007. From the start the objective was both to structure the monument around a common vision for peace, and to gain support and funding from as many local organizations as possible. Marc Boutin Architectural Collective then volunteered to design the Pole and its accompanying plaza on a pro bono basis, and the City of Calgary generously offered a site near the riverbank and the LRT bridge in Eau Claire West. Aside from the various organizations that have pledged financial and volunteer support, firms involved in construction have also offered much assistance through donation of materials and/or labour.

The site in Eau Claire West is very significant. The park near the riverbank in which the peace pole stands was designated as a Peace Park by the City in 1992. Aside from the Calgary Community Peace Pole, it already holds three other peace-related monuments, including the fine “Peace Grove.” In addition, the southern end of the much-anticipated Peace Bridge will be adjacent to the Peace Park at its eastern end. This small park will be something of a haven for peace in a city in which, as mentioned in the Calgary Cowbell article “Peace Bridge Represents War,” there are already too many memorials honoring wars and their participants (Memorial Drive, Memorial Park…).  

A key feature of the Calgary pole is its inclusion of numerous languages. The motto “May Peace Prevail on Earth” is boldly inscribed on the pole in English, French, Blackfoot and Cree. In addition the word “Peace,” translated into the eighty languages most commonly used by Calgarians, is engraved nearby.  Maybe this is the world’s most multilingual peace pole!

The Calgary Community Peace Pole is truly a grassroots effort.  To date it has received support from many individuals and groups, 4 foundations, 16  Non-Governmental Organizations, 15 faith-based groups and denominations, 15 cultural groups and 6 peace groups. Each group has signed the Peace Pole Charter, which is based on the UNESCO Manifesto 2000 Culture of Peace Pledge.

The Unveiling Ceremony for the peace pole will take place this Sunday with a gathering near the site at 8th Street SW and the River Park from 2 to 4 pm. A number of dignitaries and politicians will be attending, including MLAs David Swann, Kent Hehr, Wayne Cao and Harry Chase, and Aldermen Druh Farrell, Joe Ceci, Ric McIver and Brian Pincott. Aside from the formal unveiling, this will be a celebration, of hopes realized and hopes to come. For those who come down to the riverbank there will be music, dancing and other entertainment, children’s activities and a free barbecue. The event will be preceded by a Musical Peace Walk (with singalong) from Prince’s Island to the site (1.30 pm), and followed by a vigil for human rights at 4 pm.

We believe that the wider significance of the efforts of the Calgary Community Peace Pole committee is that they offer a model for other such collective, grassroots initiatives in the future. By bringing together such a wide range of supporting groups the Committee has succeeded in funding the total costs of the monument, estimated at approximately $100,000, with little or no financial contribution from taxpayers. But more than this, the committee structure has brought these groups together in such a way as to provide a working basis for future cooperation and action. Edmonton contacts told us recently that their peace pole, located in the grounds of the Provincial Museum, “feels lonely.” We suggest that Calgary’s pole will be different - and not simply because there will be hundreds of walkers, joggers and cyclists, and even interested tourists, passing by the pole site every day.  The many groups supporting the pole will also be working together in future to promote activities and events at or near the peace pole site at various times of year.

Calgary’s Peace Pole will never be lonely! 

L.R. Kennard and Diane Janzen are members of the Calgary Community Peace Pole Committee