Since the September 11, 2001 attacks and the following war, which was declared as an international confederation's fight against terrorism, the often natural-appearing symbiosis of democracy and capitalism after the end of the East-West-Conflict has become obsolete. This has caused not only political and social questions about democracy, peace, religion, ethics, intercultural comprehension, the suppression of women, the third world, etc; it has also led to new initiatives and an enforced engagement of political, scientific, ecclesiastical and other non-government organisations.
The following links and sources introduce the most important addresses. They offer the initial stages for further investigation. Furthermore, we want to recommend the “philosophers today” list of links dealing with intercultural philosophy.
The New Opposition
1
On October 11, 2003, the “Declaration Of Stuttgart”, which demands that the European Union establish a consultancy for the development of an eco-social global Marshall Plan, was published by 70 leading personalities of each social area. As mentioned at the end of the declaration, the “Global Marshall Plan” protagonists are determined to enforce the initiative until the desired success is brought about.
More information can be found on the website:
http://www.globalmarshallplan.org
Reactions by the press:
http://www.globalmarshallplan.org/press/
and
http://www.initiative-weltfrieden.org/
2
One of the initiators of the “Declaration Of Stuttgart” is Prof. Franz Josef Radermacher, who is one of the founders of the Global Contract Foundation. 22 enterprises, scientists and students in Hamburg established the Foundation in January 2002. It was founded due to the conviction that one major challenge in the 21 st century will be to procure the most possible effect for the economic, ecological, social and cultural dimensions. Therefore, the arrangement of better global frameworks will be needed. That's why the focus of the foundation is the support and the economic analysis of worldwide contracts between the relevant political, economic and social forces to establish a sustainable global governance system.
The Global Contract Foundation operates therefore on three different levels:
• It tries to find new concepts to solve the 21 st century's challenges with regard to sustainability.
• It leads many projects on its own and in cooperation with several partners to bring about a consciousness of the problems in the world and to acquire new strategies to solve these problems.
• It transmits its solution concepts and project results to several target groups and tries to create the necessary consciousness for the changes.
http://www.weltvertrag.org/en.html
On this website, you will also find 20 theses to Mr Radermachers book “Balance or Destruction”, in which he introduces the basics of an eco-social market economy. More information depending this issue as well as the possibility of ordering the books can be found on the website of the “Research Institute for Applied Knowledge Processing” in Ulm. (FAW Ulm)
FAW Ulm
3
Although it is called the “Encyclopaedia of Sustainability”, it is much more:
Encyclopaedia and reference book with definitions, articles, historical facts, institutions and many more.
http://www.nachhaltigkeit.info/ (currently only available in German)
4
One of the best-known critics of globalisation and its consequences is the international ATTAC-movement, founded in Paris in 1998.
http://www.attac.org/indexen/index.html
5
Here you will find the website of the “Club Of Rome”.
http://www.clubofrome.org/
6
The website of the “Club Of Budapest”
http://www.club-of-budapest.com/index.htm
7
The “Global Ethic Foundation for Intercultural and Inter-Religious Science, Education and Meeting”, founded by Hans Küng, at the following address:
http://www.weltethos.org/dat_eng/index_e.htm
8
The address of the “International Green Cross”, whose founder and president is Mikhail Gorbachev, reports on numerous programs, for example the “Rio+10-Initiatives”:
"Green Cross International was founded by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993, building on the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and Agenda 21. Green Cross is a non-governmental, non-profit organization. Our mission is to help create a sustainable future by cultivating harmonious relationships between humans and the environment. Green Cross concentrates its efforts on the following five programs whose common theme is to promote a significant change in human values leading to greater respect and care for Earth's community of life in all its diversity, and to address the environmental causes and consequences of wars and conflict."
http://www.greencrossinternational.net/
9
Professor Hans-Peter Dürr founded the worldwide initiative: “Global Challenges Network” (gcn). On this website can be found among other things:
- An exchange of arguments between American and German intellectuals on the topic: “A Just War”
- An initiative on the topic: “Life and Peace”
http://www.gcn.de/ (currently only available in German)
10
The website of the “World Future Council”, which is aimed at becoming the world's conscience voice, is still under construction. Measuring many subjects (i.e. natives and society, economic circulation, biological variety, peace education, democracy, international institutions, culture & media, learning, science, human rights and many more), it seems that a very interesting website can be expected.
http://www.worldfuturecouncil.org/
11
The “Earth Charta”, published on March 24th 2000, represents the respect for nature, general human rights, social and economic justice and a culture of peace at its core. As Klaus Töpfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) mentions in the prelude, this is an inspiring vision of basic ethic principals for a sustainable development and shall be a binding contract for all communities of nations in the entire world.
http://www.earthsite.org/charta.htm
12
The initiative for “Responsibility for Peace and Future Ability” with its some 900 scientists in Dortmund works hard towards establishing ethic, self-responsible action in science and technology with scientific competence and personal engagement.
“Scientific technical inventions in the civil as well as the military sector have far-reaching consequences for all questions of peace and humanity, but also of peace with nature. We're feeling committed to go with our reflections and works beyond the traditional borders of science in research and doctrine and to fulfil our social responsibility as scientists, technicians and citizens.”
http://www.natwiss.de/ (currently only available in German)
13
Similar to that is the initiative of physicians IPPNW with which 60 American intellectuals offer an answer to the manifest “A Just War Against Terrorism” with the title, “A World of Justice and Peace Looks Different”.
The statement can be found at the following address:
http://www.ippnw.de/frieden/terroranschlag/antwort.htm (currently only available in German)
The website itself:
http://www.ippnw.de/ (currently only available in German)
14
The website of the “First Environmental Network for Healthy Living and a Healthy Planet”
http://www.care2.com/
15
The major subject, with which the website zivilisiert.de is dealing, is “level-headedness”. It offers statements, news, appointments, discussion boards and Berlin's appeal: “Fight International Terrorism with Civilized Means”, with statements by Hans Küng, Peter Ehrlich, Eric Hobsbawn, Ulrich Ladurner, Mary Robinson, Jürgen Todenhöfer, Sebastian Pflugbeil among others, as well as an outstanding link collection.
http://zivilisiert.de/ (currently only available in German)
16
A very good source is the Virtual Library – History. With its main emphasis in “contemporary history”, you will find, among others, the main topics of migration, history of nature, peace and conflict research as well as right and left wing extremism.
http://www.vl-zeitgeschichte.de/ (currently only available in German)
17
From a CARE-Package to partnership: Founded in the USA in 1945, CARE falls back upon the present-day experiences and resources of a modern, international relief organisation. Independent of political opinions, religious confessions or ethic background, CARE is committing itself worldwide to suffering and excluded groups of population. On the website: Press reactions, projects, actions and many more.
http://www.care.org/
18
GESIS, the “GESIS - German Social Science Infrastructure Services e.V.”, founded in 1986, offers databases with information dealing with social scientific literature and research activities as well as archiving and supplement of surveys of social research. There are numerous topics listed on the website.
http://www.social-science-gesis.de/en/index.htm
Above all there are several columns about current political issues with backgrounds and links.
http://www.gesis.org/Information/Themen/Fokusplus/index.htm
19
Furthermore, Rudolf Kuhr's website about “humanistic action” with many essays written himself is recommendable.
http://home.t-online.de/home/humanist.aktion/textlist.htm (currently only available in German)
20
In her own way and size with about 50,000 well sorted links in German and English, “Norbert's Bookmarks” is a worldwide leading website dealing with topics such as:
- peace, environment, human rights
- one world, conflict religions, military
- social issues, gender issues
- religion, education
- economy, policy, news
- and many more future-based questions…
Topical, balanced and free, his “better world” links represent a precious resource for lessons, for example in policy, philosophy, historical education, social education, religion, ethics, geography and English.
http://www.betterworldlinks.org/index.htm
21
Numerous manifold, interesting essays and nearly all relevant links are collected on this website:
http://www.netzwerk-regenbogen.de/Texte.html (currently only available in German)
22
A very detailed link list dealing with human rights can be found on the homepage of the “Philosophical Night-Talks” under the guidance of Munich's department for culture.
http://www.muenchen.de/referat/kultur/institute/reihen/nacht/links.htm
23
In the English speaking section, the right livelihood – website is recommendable, which offers numerous and well-founded “subjects”:
http://www.rightlivelihood.se/links.htm
The “World Republic” website has yet to be constructed. It offers, for example, a portrait of and speech by Otfried Höffe.
http://www.weltrepublik.de/
25
The Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the university of Hamburg (IFSH) was founded in 1971 as an association of civil law. Therewith, the senate of the FHH followed a recommendation science council's advice of 1970 to “support peace-relevant science”. The focus of the foundation within this framework is “to deal with political security problems and to fulfil the criteria of free science and education, sponsorship of scientific offspring and publication of research results”. This website also contains many essays and references to peace research.
http://www.ifsh.de/english.htm
26
The “Foundation for Future Models and System Critique” supports economy and science in the range of future and peace science as well as peace-work. The foundation aims at assisting academic, economic, social and political decision-makers with orientation, decision making and broadcasting future knowledge to the population.
The website contains several recommendable links as well.
http://www.zukunft-gzs.de/ (currently only available in German)
27
The “Institute for Development and Peace” (INEF) is a research institution of the social research faculty of Duisburg's Gerhard-Mercator-University as an academic accompaniment of the Foundation for Development and Peace (SEF). The institute was founded in 1990 on the basis of a cooperation-contract between the Foundation for Development and Peace, founded by Willy Brandt and the University of Duisburg. The institute's and foundation's aims are:
• Analysing the connections between development and peace in the third world
• Clarifying the interdependences of security, economy and environment
• Inspiring national and international dialogue about global interdependences and trends
• Initiating political action due to global responsibilities in North and South, East and West
• Publicly clarifying global connections
The institute's work is based on individual research, the systematic presentation and analysis of available international expertise and resources, and cooperation with domestic and foreign scientific facilities.
http://inef.uni-duisburg.de/page/englisch/start.html
28
The “Peace Cooperative Network” is an informal umbrella organisation for peace- and human rights-groups and, simultaneously, a junction and coordination centre for non-parliamentary actions. The network's major topics are the resistance against war and military, proposals and projects of civil conflict advisory service, solidarity with refugees, human and civil rights as well as information to the regular activities such as the annual Easter Marches, the Hiroshima- and Nagasaki-Days, Anti-War-Day or the Ecumenical Peace Decade.
http://www.friedenskooperative.de/ (currently only available in German)
29
The “Institute for Peace Education Tübingen” is devoted to the theory and practise of peace education. For over 20 years, it has been a partner of NGOs and has facilitated the further education of teachers, ministries, publishing companies and foundations.
http://www.global-lernen.de/engl/index.htm
30
The working committee “Peace Science” at Kassel's comprehensive university offers, in cooperation with the federal board for peace advices, an expert's report about the “Afghanistan War, the German Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) and International Laws” written by Prof. Dr. Norman Paech. Therein, the author arrives at the conclusion that the Federal Government's claim must be rejected due to civil- and constitutional matters.
http://www.uni-kassel.de/fb10/frieden/themen/Voelkerrecht/gutachten.html
(currently only available in German)
31
The following website reports on American peace movements with news, articles and comments on all cases of war throughout the world
http://www.antiwar.com/
Political Addresses and Websites
32
The White House's address including several well-known speeches given by the president can be found here:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/
33
The “United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention”'s website with numerous links to UN- and other organisations can be found at:
http://www.unodc.org/unodc/unlinks.html
34
The “InterAction Council” Tokyo office, an international organisation founded in 1983 by former heads of government, for example Helmut Schmidt, Mikhail Gorbachev and Nelson Mandela among others, including several speeches given by organisation members, has published the following website:
http://www.interactioncouncil.org/
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