In my Peace Paradigms graduate class, as well as in Theories of Conflict, Violence and War this semester, I've had the opportunity to read Paul Collier's work on economic theories of conflict, as well as Professor Johan Galtung's important work on structural violence and conflict resolution, particularly in the middle east. Naturally when I found out they'd both be speaking at author events this month, I made plans to attend! I also discovered the U.S. Institute of Peace's free panel events on various international topics, and attended one and registered to attend another. It is an amazing feeling to be a part of an academic community in this city where such revolutionary thinkers and practitioners are readily available to the citizen academic.
On the morning of April 20, my generous boyfriend drove me into the city to attend the United States Institute of Peace's public event about Iraq's new divided elections and what they mean for this country's future and the future politics of the region. It was my first visit to the USIP, and I’m interested in working for the Institute in the future, so it was nice to become familiar with the building and the location (just a few blocks from Farragut North metro, where I headed off to school afterwards) and the way the public events there operate. I had a great experience and I’ve already registered for another of their free events next month on mediation called “The Peace Maker’s Toolkit.”
The USIP is an independent national organization, funded by Congress, with the goal of resolving international conflict. Their programs are worldwide, and involve the training and education of others internationally on strategies for conflict resolution. People at the USIP essentially study peaceful solutions, strategies, and possibilities for the resolution or mediation of specific situations of conflict in the world, and then they generate policy options to share with those in conflict and go out to form workshops and lasting organizations in those locations, teaching what they have learned. They mostly seem to create task forces and partner with other organizations, empowering others with education and training on the peaceful resolution of conflict.
The venue for USIP public lectures and panels is a small room on the second floor of their 17th street office, where the media packs into the back of the room, and the public fill rows of chairs in the center and the panelists and moderator sit at the front behind their table on a small stage. I was initially surprised at the size of the tiny room, the number of people from the public who were interested enough in the topic to pack into the room (a few were standing on the side without chairs), and how much press was there filming! Most people were in suits (probably heading to work afterwards, or there on behalf of their work), but there were several casually dressed citizens like me. I was very impressed that everyone in attendance including private citizens was allowed to pose questions and that they were all taken very seriously and answered thoroughly. One student from Georgetown’s graduate program posed some very critical questions, disagreeing with a few panelists and was received quite well, which definitely made the discussion more interesting than if everyone supported the same view.
I won't bore you with the details, but for those interested in the politics and on our surprisingly neutral stance on the outcomes in Iraq (and Iran's unsurprisingly far from neutral stance), it was quite an interesting and knowledgeable panel. One of the speakers was Rend al-Rahim, who was a former candidate for the Iraq Council of Representatives with the Iraqiya list, another was Marisa Sullivan from the Institute for the Study of War, third was Joost Hiltermann with the International Crisis Group, and last spoke Jeremy Pam who was formerly with the U.S. Treasury attaché in Iraq.Tuesday evening, April 27th, a friend and I attended an author series event at the World Affairs Council at 1800 K St. downtown where Paul Collier discussed his new book, The Plundered Planet. He assesses the global mismanagement of nature, a special topic of interest to me and to my friend who also attended, and proposed a series of international standards and policy changes in an effort to merge the economic and environmentalist views on the use of the environment. Collier is best known for his book, The Bottom Billion, which assesses why the poorest countries are failing and what can be done about it.
As he is an economist first and foremost, my companion and I found him intriguing and engaging, but lacking the full appreciation for the environment we'd hope to see in future policy makers. I thought what he had to say was closer to bridging the gap between preservation and utilitarianism than anyone else I've heard, and so I purchased a signed copy of his book in support of the future success of this exciting merger between idealism and realism, in hopes that the two fields of study will one day meet in the middle to find a solution to the degradation of the environment that is not at the cost of the earth's poorest inhabitants.
By far the most exciting author and intellectual I had the good fortune to witness this month, Johan Galtung himself, father of structural violence theory and world renowned mediator of international conflicts, spoke on the American University campus this past wednesday afternoon. I took a break from studying for my Theory of Conflict exam with some of my classmates to sit enraptured by the most intelligent and well-spoken man I've ever had the privilege of listening to, and didn't feel guilty in the least, partly because his work was actually on my exam, and partly because his discussion of conflict resolution was worth more than any class I've taken so far. He described how to get to peace in the middle east over the course of an hour, stressing the importance of finding a compromise between two parties, even at the expense of democracy as the West knows it, in the effort to end violence. He made intriguing points about the changing nature of conflict, the role of the U.S. in the international arena in the area of conflict resolution, and about the demands of the Taliban and how they can be met. I've since purchased two of his books online to add to my list of summer reading material, and needless to say I was completely blown away.
Galtung in particular, but really all of the events I attended this month helped to solidify my commitment to the study of peace and conflict resolution. More and more I can see how what I am studying is what I was meant to study, as indicated by my continually rising level of interest, and my level of respect for the intellectuals and practitioners in the field. I'm grateful to have a background in law and thus to know the ins and outs of some of the most tedious aspects of constitutional law, international law, Islamic law, and environmental law, as they are the causes of some major international conflicts today, but my true calling has turned out to be my masters degree in the specific study of conflict resolution.
So in all the rushing to and from events, studying frantically for exams, and cranking out paper after paper analyzing all I've read and studied this semester, I discovered a few vegan go-to meals. This week, for example, I made my first seitan pot pie! I used store-bought and ready-made seitan (which is a meat substitute made from wheat gluten, essentially), whipped up a cornmeal and whole wheat flour crust which I spread on the bottom of my casserole dish and then over the top at the end before baking, and sauteed a delicious combination of onions, soy sauce and chickpea flour, carrots, potatoes, celery, sweet peas, vegetable broth and spices (thyme, mustard powder, sage, salt and pepper), plus the sauteed seitan for the filling. It was incredibly delicious, and I'm bringing the last tupperware full of it to work for lunch tomorrow (yes, I also got a part time job this month to add to the madness, more on that later...). In other news, I did have my first mishap with a kitchen knife while slicing my potatoes for this pie, but my finger is healing up just fine, crisis safely averted!
The week prior to my (now favorite) pot pie, I cooked tempeh for the first time, using a simple marinade from Veganomicon (in which I found the pot pie recipe as well), my favorite vegan cookbook! All that is required of tempeh is that you slice it, steam it in boiling water for 10 minutes, then marinate it (I did mine in vegetable broth, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke, olive oil, maple syrup and crushed garlic) for an hour, and then pan fry it in olive oil (or coconut oil, which I will write more on the benefits of later)! I ate mine with baked sweet potatoes and pan fried collard greens and it was unbelievable-- 4 meals from one block of the stuff! Who knew such a strange-looking soy product could be so delicious?
To follow along the theme of cooking large dishes that I can eat for a week, I made an incredibly simple (far simpler than pot pie, which while worth every minute of work that went into it, was not quick to make) breakfast porridge: Mediterranean Muesli, which I got from Peta's Vegan College Cookbook. All it consists of is rolled oats, soy yogurt, soy milk, and chopped up dried apricots and dates. Mix it up and put it in the fridge and there is a hearty and healthy breakfast cereal for a week, no cooking or further prep required! I thoroughly enjoyed this easy recipe, so perhaps you might too!
In a nutshell, friends, it was an eventful month, but just another series of days in the life of a law student/masters candidate/vegan cook! I feel exhausted, but strangely animated by the possibility of peace throughout the world and the hope of a brighter future for all the earth's living creatures. If you are interested in getting inspired about peace, watch this short film I had the privilege of seeing in one of my classes this month, and it may make you feel as hopeful as I do: The Imam and the Pastor. May peace and delicious food be with you all!!
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