Just last month, the Play for Peace Global Games took place, offering our clubs a unique way to work together to serve our community and the planet, create peace, and celebrate our year. Here's what happened.

As 2019 comes to an end, we look back with pride at Play for Peace’s many accomplishments this year. With the support of our global community, thousands of children and youth are practicing peace every day, becoming more compassionate people, forming friendships across divides and building thriving communities.

We would like to welcome Dr. Karen McKinney to the Play for Peace Board of Directors! We are thrilled she is joining our global community and excited to share a few details about her extraordinary accomplishments, as well as her new role at Play for Peace.

As the world changes, we are constantly evaluating our methodology to ensure that Play for Peace is meeting the needs of communities around the world. Since climate change is a major challenge the world is facing, we are hosting our first-ever Resilience Training to participants dealing with the after effects of unprecedented flooding.

We are always excited when Play for Peace spreads to new communities and new countries where people can greatly benefit from our peace building efforts. Just this past weekend, we hosted a training in El Salvador that was so successful that we are starting the country's first club.

When it comes to partnering, universities are a natural fit for Play for Peace. For this reason, we recently conducted a two-day youth leadership training at SNDT Women’s University in Pune, India, to teach students there about the cooperative play experience and experiential education. 

We are very excited about two new Play for Peace clubs that recently started in Vietnam, the Danang Club and the Quy Nhon club! After forming this past summer, both clubs are working on educational initiatives that will benefit children in their region, and need your help.

On Saturday, September 21, we celebrated World Peace Day with the seventh annual Play for Peace Fall 5K Run/Walk. Despite the rainy forecast, the successful evening drew 300 attendees and raised more than $41,000 to support our peace building efforts around the world.  

While our community in Sri Lanka was greatly affected by the Easter bombings in April 2019, our clubs’ commitment to peace remained strong. Just months after the tragic terrorist attack, we are once again spreading peace to youth in country.

Tomorrow, September 21, is World Peace Day. In honor of this important global celebration, we are excited about the many wonderful efforts happening in the Play for Peace global community—from our clubs’ World Peace Day activities to our annual Fall 5K event. 

It is thanks to the passion and dedication of our community members that Play for Peace continues to spread to new areas around the world. This is especially true of our regional coordinator, Rita Nguyen, who dedicated her summer vacation to creating laughter, compassion, and peace in new communities in Vietnam.

Back in April, the Himalaya Club was formed in Nepal, bringing peace through cooperative play to new communities in the area. For one youth leader, Saugat Singh Saud, being a part of Play for Peace has been a life-changing experience.

Back in July, Play for Peace conducted a youth training at a peace camp in Nampa, Idaho. Not only was it a great success, but it made a lasting impression on participants and inspired the creation of a new club. 

We are excited to be hosting the seventh annual Play for Peace 5K Run/Walk on World Peace Day this year! Learn more about the event and register now!

In March 2019, Play for Peace initiated its first club in Afghanistan. For one child living there, being able to spread joy and hope in her community through cooperative games and activities has been a dream come true.

We’re excited to announce that we're embarking on a new technological venture—a mobile app! Called Play for Peace 2.0, this effort will help our community to better facilitate training sessions and serve as a database for Play for Peace activities and a hub for data collection. Learn more!

After a recent, tragic terrorist attack in Batticaloa, Sri Lanka, certified trainers Swati and Agyat conducted a series of Play for Peace trainings there and have named a new club in the region.

This past April, Play for Peace clubs around the world celebrated Earth Week by taking part in the 2019 Play for Peace Global Games. Working with more than 700 children over the course of the week, our clubs explored what it means to be a leader when you feel connected to the earth.

While Play for Peace was introduced in Kenya in 2013, it wasn't until recently that a club was formed. Thanks to some successful training visits and many passionate community members, we are excited to welcome Play for Peace Kenya!

This special guest blog post by Shiekh Nadiya Habib, a child protection social activist in India, describes how training with Play for Peace has truly inspired and affected her life for the better, and how she hopes to be a certified trainer one day.