Global Hindu-Buddhist Initiative on Conflict Avoidance and Environment

* Global Hindu-Buddhist Initiative on Conflict Avoidance and Environment Consciousness begins today in New Delhi
Thu, Sep 3, 2015,

Sept 03, Colombo: Renowned Buddhist and Hindu Scholars will gather in the New Delhi this week to deliberate upon two key issues confronting the globe - rising conflict and rampant environment degradation - in an attempt to come up with a new framework that will move away from the usual solutions.

The "Global Hindu - Buddhist Initiative on Conflict Avoidance and Environment Consciousness" jointly organized by the Vivekananda International Foundation(VIF) in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation and Tokyo Foundation will take place on 3rd and 4th September in the premises of VIF in Delhi's Chanakyapuri area.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the two-day conclave. Sri Lanka's former President Chandrika Kumaratunga, senior ministers from Japan, Myanmar, Bhutan and Nepal besides Sri Sri Ravishankar and Lama Lobsang, the president of the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) will be in attendance.

India's external Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will be delivering the Valedictory address on 4 September, according to an elaborate programme that has been chalked out, Indian High Commission in Colombo said in a release.

The conference will seek to evolve a new paradigm that speaks about 'conflict avoidance' rather than 'conflict resolution' in finding solutions to the world's problems.

For decades, the world has attempted to find peace by negotiating after conflicts have broken out. The organizers however believe that this approach is increasingly failing to deliver results. Therefore, in consonance with the ancient philosophies practiced by both Hinduism and Buddhism, it is now necessary to try and avoid conflicts rather than resolve them.

At the end of the two-day deliberations the conference is aiming to institute a mechanism to work for transparent philosophic discussions on conflict avoidance and environment protection at the global level and coopt Global Institutions to take up the agenda of the Initiative and carry on dialogue and debate on the themes.

Further the conference expects to take the themes to leading thought institutions, academia of the world.

On Saturday, 5 September, 100-odd delegates are scheduled to travel to Bodh Gaya for a visit to one of the most revered Buddhist pilgrimage centers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to join the delegates for over an hour in Bodh Gaya.