Johan Galtung to Address USD Students and Community

Over the last 60 years, global approaches to war and peace have changed dramatically with the rise and demise of the Cold War, the expansion of U.N. peacebuilding programs, growing resource scarcity and environmental conflicts, increased scrutiny of media’s influence on conflict/peace, and growing peace education programs. One man, Dr. Johan Galtung of Norway, has been a pioneer in the study of all of these changes. On Dec. 9 at 7 p.m., the eve of International Human Rights Day, Galtung will be the next Distinguished Lecture Series speaker at the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice.

Often called “the father of peace studies,” Galtung has been a visiting professor at 30 schools on five continents. He is the founder of TRANSCEND, a global peace, development and environment network, and TRANSCEND Peace University. He founded the world's first peace research institute in Oslo in 1959 and the Journal of Peace Research in 1964.

Galtung has published over 1,500 articles and more than 140 books, including Human Rights in Another Key and The Fall of the US Empire - And Then What?, with translations into 33 languages. He has also put his research into practice as a consultant to the United Nations and mediator in over 100 international conflicts zones, including the Middle East, Afghanistan and the Korean Peninsula. His dedication to peace has been recognized with 10 honorary doctorates and the Right Livelihood Award, Norwegian Literary Prize and other awards.

WHO: Dr. Johan Galtung, of Norway, founder of TRANSCEND

WHAT: “Breaking the Cycle of Violent Conflict”
 Joan B. Kroc Distinguished Lecture Series

WHERE: Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice
University of San Diego
5998 Alcalá Park
San Diego, CA 92110

WHEN: Thursday, December 9, 2010, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

This event is open to the public and to the press. Please RSVP at http://peace.kintera.org/dls.

The Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice at the University of San Diego is celebrating 10 years of fostering peace, cultivating justice and creating a safer world.

About the University of San Diego

The University of San Diego sets the standard for an engaged, contemporary Catholic university where innovative Changemakers confront humanity’s urgent challenges. With more than 9,000 students from 69 countries and 50 states, USD is the youngest independent institution on the U.S. News & World Report list of top 100 universities in the United States. The university's eight academic divisions include the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Business, the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, the School of Law, the School of Leadership and Education Sciences, the Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, and the Division of Professional and Continuing Education. USD's Envisioning 2024 strategic plan capitalizes on the university’s recent progress and aligns new strategic goals with current strengths to help shape a vision for the future as the university looks ahead to its 75th anniversary in the year 2024.