A Program of Peace Education
Fortunately, CMS has not been called upon to intervene in a similar crisis since 1992, but it continues to stamp its influence on the community with its educational program, based on the four building blocks of its curriculum: universal values, global understanding, excellence in all things, and service to humanity. Furthermore it organizes or participates in literally dozens of peace-focused or peace-related events for its students, the surrounding community, and young people much further afield.
Examples of Peacebuilding
Just a few examples exemplifying CMS's involvement in peacebuilding follow.
CMS is a member of the U.K.-based Children's International Summer Village (CISV) Society.
CISV organizes four-week-long camps where children from participating countries live together and learn valuable lessons in coexistence by personally experiencing cross-cultural interaction. Since 1993, CMS has been hosting a CISV camp in Lucknow every year; on average, delegations from about a dozen countries participate at the camp. Likewise, CMS delegations participate at CISV camps held abroad every year.
CMS is also a member of the International School-to-School Experience (ISSE).
CMS facilitates exchange visits between schools from different cultures via ISSE, a sister concern of CISV. The ISSE exchange also enables the children to learn about each other's culture as well as the learning-teaching methods practiced in different schools. CMS has ISSE exchanges with schools in Mexico, Australia, Malaysia, Japan, and Iceland.
CMS organizes simulated "world parliament" sessions.
Children posing as leaders of various countries of the world form a "world government" and discuss serious issues threatening the very survival of life on our planet. Issues discussed include the growing threat posed by ever greater quantities of armaments, environmental issues, and increasing violence and social tensions. Participants deliberate on ways and means to ameliorate these problems. The central theme of all discussions is again to find ways to ensure lasting world peace. Growing out of these sessions, and the realization that issues such as the increasing nuclear stockpile, terrorism, and the breakdown of social, economic, and political order cannot be tackled by any one country or group of like-minded countries, CMS is committed to work for the establishment of a world government.
CMS launched the Indo-Pak Children's Penfriends' Club.
Aao Dosti Karein ("Come, let's be friends") was launched by CMS in 2002. With this program, CMS has arranged for the exchange of thousands of letters between Indian and Pakistani schoolchildren with the aim of eliminating mutual misunderstanding by facilitating one-to-one contact between schoolchildren that eventually percolates down to the masses of both countries. The premise of this program is that the seeds of peace sown today will grow into a tree bearing the fruits of unity tomorrow. The ultimate objective of the exercise is to mobilize public opinion in both countries and compel their respective governments to adopt conciliatory rather than aggressive approaches to their mutual relations.
Chief Justices of the World
In December 2004, City Montessori School hosted the Fifth International Conference of Chief Justices of the World under Article 51 of the constitution of India. This provision of the constitution specifically pledges the Indian state to pursue peace, encourage the peaceful resolution of international disputes, and to foster respect for international law. The primary focus of the conference was on the need to establish a world parliament with sufficient authority to enact a body of international law that can be equally applicable on all the peoples and countries of the world.
