Objectives
• To consider what makes and what doesn’t make a peaceful society
• To think about whether our own society is peaceful
What to do
Start by asking everyone to gather round and read the different cards (see attached or write out the below titles on your own paper).
| A strong police force | Freedom to travel wherever you want |
| Population control | A fair distribution of wealth |
| Freedom of speech | Non-interference from other countries |
| Choice of profession or type of work | Powerful partner countries |
| A place to live for everyone | Peace taught in schools |
| Free health care | Free and fair elections |
| A ban on extreme political parties | Capitalism |
| Severe punishment for terrorists | The right to protest |
| Education for all who want it | A stable economy |
| A fair legal system | A popular leader |
| Democracy | Socialism |
Ask everyone to choose the card they think is most important in a peaceful society and place it on the flip chart/large paper.
Get the group to sit in a circle, everyone has up to one minute to explain why their chosen aspect is essential. If you have a big group, just ask some people to explain.
Now tell the group that together they need to take a consensual decision about the ten elements most important to create a peaceful society. They can choose from all 22 cards, or if you want to make it a bit easier, only from the ones that they have already selected.
Moderate the debate, taking care that everyone has the chance to speak. Once it seems the group has decided, check if the decision is really consensual and that everyone agrees with those ten.
Discussion questions
- Does anyone disagree with our decision?
- Which elements of a peaceful society were hardest to let go?
- What does your peaceful society look like?
- What does it mean to have peaceful society?
- Are any of the cards hindering a peaceful society?
- Would there be any conflicts in your peaceful society? Would there be any violence? Is there a difference between conflict and violence?
- How would you prevent violence in your ideal peaceful society?
- Is this utopia possible? Are all the final elements you chose true of the country or society you live in? If not, how might we be able to make these elements a reality?
Tips for facilitators
You can ask some of the discussion questions during the activity itself in order to get the debate moving. Feel free to adapt the activity to suit your age group, for example adding more cards or letting participants write down some of their own ideas. When facilitating the debate, make sure that everybody is respectful and waits for others to finish speaking. You can suggest to participants that they write their ideas down to clarify and remember their thoughts.