Introducing MOOC Ambassadors

Jan 30, 2018

We are honored to introduce the Course Ambassadors for our forthcoming MOOC on Environmental Security & Sustaining Peace. Course Ambassadors are leading decision-makers and practitioners who are supporting the development and dissemination of this MOOC. Read what our Ambassadors have to say about the value of the environmental peacebuilding MOOC:

"Better management of natural resources can restore peace, rebuild lives, advance prosperity and empower people, including some of the world’s most vulnerable people and most fragile communities. This Massive Open Online Course aims to promote better understanding of the role of the environment in promoting peace and progress for all." - Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations

"This course is the first of its kind, exploring the many environmental risks linked to conflict, peace, and security. It's a fantastic opportunity to learn more about these absolutely critical issues." - Erik Solheim, Executive Director, UN Environment

"I’m delighted to invite participants in this course to deepen their understanding about the linkages between natural resources, the environment, conflict and peace. I hope that participants will come away from the course not only with new knowledge, but also with a global network of fellow practitioners, and with a renewed motivation to join collective efforts across the planet towards building peaceful and just societies. Natural resources should be the drivers of peace, harmony and development, not the source of division and conflict."  - Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme

"Environment and peace are interlinked. Environment can also be a peace-building tool. Environmental protection can prevent conflicts. We need full implementation of Agenda2030 to build sustainable peace."  - Pekka Haavisto, Member of Parliament and Former Minister of Environment & Development Co-operation, Finland

"This excellent on-line course will be of great interest to anyone seeking to understand how wildlife crimes, such as the illicit trafficking in elephant ivory, tropical timbers and other protected wild animals and plants, are used to finance armed conflict around the world, as well as how the legal and sustainable use of wildlife can benefit post-conflict recovery and the livelihoods of poor rural communities." - John E. Scanlon, Secretary-General, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

“It is critically important for today’s students to learn about environmental security in all its dimensions, from the implications of climate change, energy, and water on national and international security, to how environmental peacebuilding can serve as a bridge to broad-based conflict resolution. Educating our next generation of global leaders on environmental security and sustaining peace will be one of the most opportunities for education in this era.”  - Sherri Goodman, Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense (Environmental Security); Senior Fellow, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

“Humans have a responsibility to give our best in moments when humanity and our planet are struggling with a profound crisis of ethical and moral values. As highlighted by this course, confrontations over access to natural resources and land are some of the greatest sources of conflict today, and we need to find new mechanisms to harmonize development processes and guarantee a healthy environment on which the wellbeing and prosperity of our societies depend. In my country, Colombia, we have chosen to leave behind more than five decades of internal armed conflict. While the path of dialogue and political negotiations is difficult, we hope it will translate into a sustained peace where life, economic, and environmental prosperity become reality.” - Juan Mayr, Colombia-ELN Peace Dialogue Negotiator, Former Minister of the Environment, and Former Ambassador to Germany, Colombia

"Supporting Environmental Security and Sustainable Peace is more than just showing support for a good cause. It is investing in our future and protecting our present. After living in Iraq for more than 35 years, where I survived three major wars, I came to understand that the underlining cause for each conflict is the structural scarcity of the environmental resources. Providing access to environmental resources, along with sustaining these resources, became my mission as the first Minister of the Environment in Iraq post Saddam’s regime. Because of my stances, insurgents and terrorists targeted me. Each time, I survived an attack or an assassination, I became more invested in environmental security. I now believe that peace can’t be sustained in any country without effective management of the environmental resources."  - Mishkat Al-Moumin, Former Minister of Environment, Iraq; Consultant, Educator, and Writer

"As the Norwegian Special Envoy to the Colombian Peace Process, I experienced firsthand how essential it is to focus on natural resources in conflict resolution. This UN-backed course on Environmental Security and Sustaining Peace is a timely and welcome initiative to put this issue firmly on the agenda for all practitioners aiming to make a difference."  - Dag Halvor Nylander, Special Envoy to the Colombia Peace Process, Norway

For more information about the people involved in the development, creation, and outreach efforts for this MOOC, please visit our website: https://www.epmooc.org/people/