NEWS

Reconsidering Peace in Liberal Arts
～Peace in a Divided World: From Awareness to Action～

Update: August 31, 2026

Reconsidering Peace in Liberal Arts ～Peace in a Divided World: From Awareness to Action～

• Period: Wednesday, August 5, 2026~Saturday, August 8, 2026
• Format: In person on the ICU campus（3 night-stay in on-campus student dormitory)



＊For more information on the program, click here
＊Click here to see comments from participants

　

International Christian University (ICU) hosted a 4-day, 3-night English workshop for high school students titled "Reconsidering Peace in Liberal Arts 2026" on campus. The program was co-organized with Middlebury College, an ICU partner institution that consistently ranks among the top tier of liberal arts colleges in the US. Participants gathered from across Japan and abroad, staying together in ICU student dormitories for an intensive four days exploring the concept of "peace" entirely in English.

Approaching Peace Through Diverse Perspectives

How can a generation with no direct experience of war foster peace for the present and the future? Beyond simply acquiring historical knowledge, this workshop challenged students to deepen their thinking through multifaceted lenses--examining how to confront the past, how to communicate information, and how to practice peace in everyday life. ICU students served as facilitators, providing guidance and supporting discussions. Coming from diverse backgrounds, participants gained fresh insights and perspectives from each other through both interactive lectures and peer dialogue.

Expressing and Delivering the Message

On the final day, participants worked on a final presentation task based on the theme: "How would we communicate peace?" Each team explored creative ways to convey their message from scratch, resulting in highly flexible, imaginative presentations ranging from video projects to interactive quizzes. Though visibly anxious on day one, the participants completed their final presentations with a deep sense of accomplishment after days of trial and error.
We hope this four-day experience of cross-border dialogue serves as a valuable foundation for all participants. It is our sincere wish that students take the insights and reflection gained from this workshop back to their communities and continue to deepen their thoughts.

　

【Comments from participants】(Excerpt)

I learned that everyone has their own ideas and reasons behind their actions and decisions. However, what we believe can sometimes hurt others more than we realize. Every country and its people have their own history, and I think it is important to understand what happened in the past. By understanding history, we can see perspectives that we have never considered before. I also learned that speaking out with courage can help us understand each other and bring us closer to peace and a better future.

I realized that learning from a liberal arts perspective can help people become more open-minded and knowledgeable as we get to hear many different opinions from people of various backgrounds. The program consisted of lecturers and students from many places, so I was able to learn a lot from them.

Before this program, I used to think that peacebuilding was something very complicated and required many people and a lot of work. However, after completing this program, I realized that peacebuilding is something that can start within ourselves and can start with small decisions we make in our daily lives.