Soka Students Hope to Redefine the Culture of Peace

June 15, 2022
Students and Faculty pose in front of a projected screen that reads "Student Movement for the Culture of Peace"

The Student Movement for the Culture of Peace club held its third annual symposium on May 15, “Redefining the Culture of Peace, from Our Heart, in Our Community, and to Our World.” The hybrid event, which was attended by 75 people in person and via Zoom, was imbued with the club’s sense of responsibility to create networks of global citizens who strive to actualize the culture of peace in their local communities.

The club was founded by SUA undergraduate students in September 2017, driven by a desire to translate the university’s values of peace, human rights, and the sanctity of life into concrete action. The founding members derived inspiration from SUA founder Daisaku Ikeda’s 2006 peace proposal, in which he called on young people to build “a student-centered network to support the United Nations.”

The club’s first and second symposiums, which focused on youth engagement and nuclear disarmament, were held in 2018 and 2019. In her opening remarks, former club president Subina Thapaliya ’22 acknowledged the two-year gap between symposiums and the deeper understanding of the fragility and interconnectedness of life shared by many after braving the pandemic.

Erica Koyama ’23, who spoke as a student representative, said she believes this school year marked a pivotal moment for SUA with the official opening of Marie and Pierre Curie Hall. She also noted the significance of SUA emerging from the pandemic with a more distinct emphasis on the sciences.

“As we shift to embrace this new concentration,” Koyama said, “we are confronted with a need to widen the scope of how we discuss matters regarding peace. So today, I request all of you, members of the Soka community, to reflect on this question: How can science further the culture of peace?”

One highlight from the symposium was the frank discussion between students and SUA donor and former Soka Bistro chef Kiyoko Trobaugh. Hoping to support SUA with more than merely monetary donations, she attended culinary school to become a chef, earned her certification, and became one of the first chefs to work in the Soka Bistro. She was a caring and loving mother figure for many SUA students during the decade she worked in the cafeteria from 2001 until retiring in 2011.

When asked what hopes she has for current students at SUA, Trobaugh said, “Even if you do not do well sometimes, don’t be afraid and don’t be harsh on yourself. Enjoy being young, enjoy challenging yourself, and appreciate this wonderful community you are part of.”