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Webb Canyon Chronicle
The Student News Site of The Webb Schools

Webb Canyon Chronicle
The Student News Site of The Webb Schools

Webb Canyon Chronicle
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Students rise to global responsibilities for International Day of Peace

Nichola Monroe, Staff Writer
September 30, 2019
Nichola Monroe (’22)
Ethan Caldecott (‘21) signs his name on the world map, taking the peace pledge.

On Friday, September 20th, students in Fawcett Library swarmed around a small whiteboard, sharpies in hand, ready to sign their names on a world map to accept the responsibility of advocating for worldwide peace. At a nearby table, a small mound of paper cranes began to form as signers combined efforts to enlarge the pile. In the midst of it all, Romana Quick, International Student Program Coordinator, stood handing out pocket-sized peace pledges to remind signers of their commitment.

The International Day of Peace, first hosted in 1981 on September 21st, is the United Nations’ designated day for humanity to commit to peace, accept differences, and contribute to building a culture of harmony and unity.

The International Student Program first hosted International Day of Peace last year, making this event their second year of helping faculty, staff, and students come together as a global community. 

Mrs. Quick said, “The goal [of this event] is to bring awareness as a global society to being inclusive and to promote peace.”

This year’s event was hosted during lunch in Fawcett Library. The ISLs wrote out the United Nations peace pledge on a large world map, where students and faculty could take the pledge and sign their names. They held an origami crane making activity to recreate the story of 1000 cranes having the power to grant one wish. The origami symbolized signers’ active commitment to peace, and their duty as a global citizen to promote it. 

Dillon Anabi (‘22) said, “[International Peace is] showing empathy across the world. It helps me become more obligated to do better things for people which then influences other people to also do peaceful and kind acts.”

Manek Khedia (‘21) said that after taking the pledge, she will try to be more passionate about “loving each other for their differences.”

Orion Lavin-Marz (‘20) said, “International Peace is an international effort to reach agreements without any means of violence. There is only so much each and every one of us can do, except for setting a culture of peace so that it’s conveyed to the world that the United States is a country that promotes international peace.”

The event offered an opportunity for students to reflect on how they can rise to their responsibilities as global citizens. International Day of Peace provided symbolic acts for the Webb community to join together in an effort to make global peace a common standard.

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About the Contributor
Nichola Monroe
Nichola Monroe, Chief Editor of Features
If you’re looking for a Webb big sister, Nichola Monroe (‘22) is the person for you. An experienced co-chair of the VWS dorm prefect council, she is always looking for ways to lend her knowledge to newer students both in the dorm and outside. As a returning member of the Webb Canyon Chronicle and this year’s Chief Editor of Features, she is excited to write engaging articles, share her journalism experiences, and help others thrive. Over this last summer, Nichola fostered her leadership skills at a summer camp in Maine. She lived in a cabin with younger girls and taught them how to make ceramics and jewelry, sewing, and other important life skills. Although Nichola usually resides in Dana Point, she is currently living at Webb and hopes to initiate new dorm activities for other boarders in Jameson to enjoy. Also an activist, Nichola cares deeply about current issues like climate change and sustainability. When she’s not helping other people, you can most likely find her outdoors, whether it's dancing, walking her dog at the beach, knitting under a tree, or simply just doing somersaults in front of her dorm. Favorite song: "Stay for the Summer" by Logan & Isabel