Past themes have included the following:

Theme for 2005: Sometimes it seems as if the world is too full of disaster. It doesn’t matter if it is a natural disaster (such as Hurricane Katrina) or a man-made disaster (politica, social, etc.), violence and social injustices often result. Suggest some ways in which society’s injustices resulting from a devastating disaster could be addressed in a peaceful way.

Theme for 2004: Describe courage in terms of creating a peaceful world. Give examples of how the current world would change and what kind of courage it would take to make those changes.

Theme for 2003: The case of any war can be traced to a difference of beliefs between groups of people. There can be political, economic, geographic, religious, or racial wars, to name a few. If war is justified by one’s beliefs, can there ever be a lasting peace? If so, how?

Theme for 2002: The United States has been called the “great melting pot.” Especially in times of crisis, we are not so tolerant of all our residents. Consider the cases of the Japanese-Americans, German-Americans and African-Americans, all who have suffered extreme prejudice in this country. With recent worldwide terrorist attacks and resulting fears within our country, many people are finding the United States a less tolerant place to live. What do you think would be the most peaceful solution to restore tolerance for all? How?

Theme for 2001: There is a group of children; you are to teach them peace. Some people teach peace by personal examples, others teach peace as if it were something mechanical. Still others suggest they follow in the footsteps of famous people. If you were to teach “Peace” and expect the children to learn something that would permeate their lives, how and what would you teach them?

Theme for 2000: From a newspaper, The Oregonian, comes this story:
“A third-grader, Terra Watts, writes about her dream in a school essay: ‘My dream is for killing to stop….That kids can walk in school and not be afraid that they will win a game and be shot…For someday the world to be peaceful. I wish, I wish." In your essay, envision a way for us to make Terra’s dream for a peaceful world come true.

Theme for 1999: The United States has always been a diverse society. With this diversity has come tension and even violence between various social groups. This tension has made many people feel their schools are unsafe. The president of the country has asked you to serve on a commission to advise and set a course of action that will create a climate of peace where students can feel safe in their schools. What strategies would you recommend?