Global Love Day, held annually each May 1st since 2004, is the universal recognition of our innate oneness through love. It is our vision to unite one and all in a celebration of love and compassion. We honor each May 1st as a symbolic day of unconditional love and call upon all people and all nations to gather together in the wisdom of peace and love. Join people around the world in celebrating and expanding LOVE.
The tenets of Global Love Day best summarize our vision:
We are one humanity on this planet.
All life is interconnected and interdependent.
All share in the Universal bond of love.
Love begins with self-acceptance and forgiveness.
With respect and compassion we embrace diversity.
Together we make a difference through love.
When we come from this limitless love, we naturally and easily embrace ourselves and our fellow humanity. Opening our heart, we allow unconditional love to be our guide and compassion to be our gift to life.
We invite you to celebrate with us by consciously focusing on love and what it means to you throughout this day. We hope that by practicing love in all areas of your life, you will find it easy to love unconditionally all year long. Our main theme explains it best…”Love Begins With Me”
MindfulmediaMom Karen Palmer host of GlobalkindnessTV will interview the founder and hear the back story of how #LoveGlassesRevolution is spreading love and hope all over the world.
Celebrating the completion of 21 days of Peace with founder of Path to Ananadam on GlobalkindnessTV with host Karen Palmer.
Peace Summit everyone is invited to share an evening of peaceful connecting. If you would like to enjoy more peace in your heart, home, and community please join us and invite friends and family.
All are invited who would like to experience more peace in their heart, home, and community.
We are so honored to have been invited to co-produce PEACE IN THE PARK, a free event put on by the Brahma Kumaris in the Music Concourse (bandshell) on 9/23 from 11-6. The event is tied in with U.N. International Day of Peace (which is 9/21, with many events on the same Saturday as ours), and will also participate in the Earthdance Prayer for Peace. I am running the Talk Tent, am curating the speakers, and will emcee throughout the day, and – if I can save myself a time slot – will READ A PASSAGE from my upcoming book The Secret Power of LOVE! And if that weren’t enough, my NEW band S.O.U.L. Twin Messiah will be HEADLINING this event for our DEBUT gig!! We will be playing all new, original songs for YOU! Plus, we will lead a singalong to finish the day, and it will almost-for-sure be Imagine by John Lennon. Our timeslot is 5:30pm in the Bandshell. Wow! What a debut!!
I really hope that YOU can make it to this very special event,
Lily Sanders {Author, Speaker, Radio Personality, Coach} cordially invites you to join us for a discussion and book signing of “Truth To Triumph: A Spiritual Guide to Finding Your Truth”. Get ready to be inspired!
Share and support the Peace Pledge on the International Day of Peace.
What you can do:
One action or many from the suggestions below.
1. Print out the Peace Pledge document and give it to someone (download @ www.peacepledgeproject.org) Available in 11 languages.
2. Post the Peace Pledge document on your Facebook Page (download @ www.peacepledgeproject.org)
3. Sign the Peace Pledge on Change.org ( www.change.org/p/the-peace-pledge-to-live-loving-kindness-compassion )
4. Share the Peace Pledge Petition on your Facebook Page ( www.change.org/p/the-peace-pledge-to-live-loving-kindness-compassion )
5. Share the Peace Pledge document with a school, organization, institution, business etc.
Become More Present
Evoke Love and Compassion
You may contact us Monday–Friday, 8:00 am–5:00 pm Mountain Time.
Socially Conscious Leadership from the Inside Out
Our guest this week has come to believe that “No matter how wonderful a program is, if it is done as a bestowing – a certain group of people making decisions for another group – that is never going to bridge the divide in our city.” Does your work fit within this paradigm of “bestowing,” and how do you plant seeds for a deeper mindset or consciousness shift to address underlying structural issues? Share Your Reflection »
Dallas-based therapist, activist, writer, community leader and speaker Michelle Kinder examines and teaches conscious leadership “from the inside out.” She offers practical, achievable steps for parents, teachers and others to support children’s social-emotional health, and for business and other leaders to drive transformation in their lives and organizations. While exploring the lack of mental health resources in southern Dallas, Kinder got to know the work of the Momentous Institute, a 99-year-old Dallas-based nonprofit organization that has been building and repairing social-emotional health through education and mental health programs. Momentous Institute serves vulnerable children through therapy services, curriculum and teacher training focused on See full.
Five Questions for Michelle
What Makes You Come Alive?
Thank you for asking. Learning makes me come alive. Learning combined with contribution has long been a winning formula for me feeling most alive. Over the years I developed the habit of checking in with myself every six months or so with the questions “Am I learning? Am I contributing?” There have been interesting seasons on how the two balance each other. There are times that striving to contribute crowded out the kind of white space by brain needs for deep learning and I have had to course correct. And there have been other times that I was learning a lot, but didn’t feel like I was being a good steward in terms of making a difference for other people or for causes I care about. I should also say that because I am currently in a season of more white space and more time for discernment, increasingly, simple pleasures are what make me come alive. Listening to birds, watching our dogs, yoga, running, sunshine, good coffee and the sound of my girls laughing together. Things like that.
Pivotal turning point in your life?
When I was in High School I left my family in Guatemala and came to the states to attend boarding school. It was a transformational experience. The wonderful faculty there saw qualities in me that they nurtured into leadership and I really learned who I was and what I was capable of during those four years. Interestingly, in my previous school, there were teachers who experienced the exact same qualities as problematic, annoying or something to control. Having that experience has made me very interested in how adults show up in the lives of children in a way that respects the enormous privilege and responsibility. I always say there are no neutral interactions when it comes to our relationships with children – all interactions are either positive, negative or missed opportunities.
An Act of Kindness You’ll Never Forget?
When I was in college, my 24-year-old sister died suddenly and it was an enormous challenge to go back to school while navigating the grief process. Several weeks into it, when people had stopped checking in, I found a card tucked into one of my books. It was from a classmate I knew somewhat, but not super well. It said something like, “I know time has passed but your hurt hasn’t.” I still tear up thinking about that act of kindness. It meant so much and it has shaped my desire to show up for others in similar ways.
One Thing On Your Bucket List?
Have the kind of flexibility to visit different places for a month at a time and work remotely while folding into the local scene.
One-line Message for the World?
Regardless of the situation, if you ever aren’t sure how to be most helpful, regulate your own nervous system.
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Awakin Circles: A hub for local meditation circles that started in the Silicon Valley and have now spread to 80+ cities around the globe. The circle start with an hour of silence, followed by a circle of sharing and dinner in silence. A newsletter with a passage selected from various wisdom traditions and an audio reading is sent out to 87,000 subscribers each week. See also Awakin Calls that hosts weekly conversations with wide-ranging thought leaders.
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ServiceSpace is an organization run entirely by volunteers. We leverage technology to encourage everyday people around the world to do small acts of service. Our aim is to ignite the fundamental generosity in ourselves and others, creating both inner and outer transformation.
ServiceSpace was conceived by volunteers, was built by volunteers, and is run by volunteers — all for the benefit of volunteers. Our projects range from a daily positive news service, to an acts-of-kindness portal, to a gift-economy restaurant. Regardless of the endeavor, we act in concert to create service opportunities for each other and to support each other’s service journeys.
In September of 2011, we formally changed our name from CharityFocus to ServiceSpace. Founded in 1999, ServiceSpace was originally started to help non-profits with technical services. Over the past dozen years, the organization has become an umbrella for many generosity-driven projects. Thus we have expanded our services from focusing just on helping charities, to encouraging everyday people to contribute in meaningful ways to the world around them. As the name suggests, our new expanded ServiceSpace platform allows people to stay connected with others interested in service, participate in service opportunities through any of our dozen projects, organize their own local service event using our tools, and stay connected to inspirational content. Above all, we believe in the inherent generosity of others and aim to ignite that spirit of service. Through our small, collective acts, we hope to transform ourselves and the world.
We hold these three principles steadfast within our organization:
Stay fully volunteer-run.
ServiceSpace was founded by volunteers and is run by volunteers. There is no paid staff, no office, and no central facilities. All ServiceSpace programs are conceived, designed, implemented, and administered by people who selflessly give their time so that others can benefit from those services.
Based on twelve years of our experience with a volunteer-run infrastructure, we’ve developed a streamlined process that structures projects in a distributed and decentralized manner. This allows more volunteers to give small chunks of time and still deliver high quality services to the end-receiver.
Being volunteer-run also allows us to organically self-organize. Instead of hierarchies and prefabricated business plans, our volunteer infrastructure is dynamic, low-cost and open to radical change. Everything is based on relationships and presence, and that creates a powerful context to BE the change.
We continue to be amazed at what inspired and dedicated individuals can do. Margaret Mead eloquently said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever does.” We could not agree more.
Serve with whatever we have.
We have chosen a slightly different path than most organizations, and choose not to focus on fundraising, grants, or other sources of revenue – for example, none of our websites contain any advertisement. All services are distributed are gifted without any fees. Thus, we serve with whatever support and resources that come in organically when people are truly moved to give.
ServiceSpace projects are built within a gift-economy system, an economic system in which goods and services are given freely, rather than traded. In a traditional market economy, one’s wealth is increased by saving. In a gift economy, giving leads to increase: an increase in connections and relationship strength.
Our services are given freely, without asking for anything in return. Instead of scarcity and fear for an uncertain future, our second principle roots us in abundance and trust. We have realized that over time, if you serve with pure intentions, people’s cups of gratitude overflow. They don’t give to fulfill a need, they give as an expression of their own solidarity and joy. These genuine gifts, no matter how small or large, are what sustains us.
Focus on the small.
Our attempt is to do “small acts with great love”. As our tagline says, “Change Yourself, Change the World.” If we started out by having a goal to change the world, we might have been a little disappointed in our abilities; when we start with ourselves, we notice that the ripples around us continue to get bigger and bigger and as more people try to do small acts, we have every potential to change the world.
Just as every tiny bit of a hologram contains information of the whole, we feel that paying attention to the process, to the present moment, gives us plenty of information to become instruments of a larger, systemic change.
This is how ServiceSpace makes things happen. But essentially the engine that drives the organization is inspiration, pure and simple. We learn from each other, spur each other, help each other, and frequently amaze each other. Sure, we are stirred by the words and lives of great men and women like Gandhi and Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa; but the examples set by our ServiceSpace colleagues–everyday heroes–are the real sustaining forces behind our projects.
Ashland Global Peace Conference
Sat, Sep 21, 2019 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM PDT
David Wick at info@ashlandcpc.org, 541-552-1061
The World Peace Flame in Ashland is firing the imaginations of Peace Leaders from Middle School students, Ashland City Leaders to Oregon Legislators. Ashland is catching the attention of the global community. Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations, and Founder of the Global Movement of the Culture of Peace, is coming to Ashland to learn first-hand how Ashland Culture of Peace Commission partners with the city, local non-profits and others to transform the city with the vision of a Culture of Peace. The Ashland Global Peace Conference will give local residents the opportunity to learn more about why Ashland is deserving of the global community’s attention by highlighting how our state and local leaders are inspired to work hard to create a culture of peace for their constituents. The views of creating a culture of Peace from the global, national, state, city, community, interpersonal and personal levels will be explored.
Come to the conference and be inspired by city and state leaders’ personal commitment to cultivating a culture of peace in Oregon and be empowered with your own commitment to peace.
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Early Bird Pricing ends 8/31
while we are together, and beyond.
Peace is not an idea, it is a practice.
Thank you.
A WORLD THAT WORKS FOR ALL
A community-wide movement dedicated to transforming our attitudes, behaviors and institutions into ones that foster harmonious relationships with each other and the natural world.
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Brings heart and compassion to conversations, decision-making, and systems.
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Recognizes the inherent value of each person, the diversity within community.
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Invites everyone’s participation, relying on the natural gifts of each community member.
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Encourages mutual respect so that all residents and visitors feel safe, heard, and empowered.
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Establishes trust through holding all persons responsible for their actions.
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Employs compassionate listening to air feelings, viewpoints, and concerns.
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Discovers solutions through collaborative exploration.
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Emphasizes the universal values of kindness, generosity, love and beauty, caring and curiosity.
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Seeks larger truths and broader perspectives to better comprehend local and world affairs.
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Values and nurtures all of life, honoring the environment and promoting humanity’s balanced place in the web of existence.
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Builds upon the foundation of existing groups contributing to the wellness of the world.
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Creates an emerging, evolving, living model for thriving together as fellow humans.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER:
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, until recently the Senior Special Advisor to the UN General Assembly President, has devoted many years as an inspirational champion for sustainable peace and development and ardently advancing the cause of the global movement for the culture of peace that has energized civil society all over the world.
As a career diplomat, Permanent Representative to United Nations, President of the UN Security Council, President of UNICEF Board, UN Under-Secretary-General, and recipient of the U Thant Peace Award, UNESCO Gandhi Gold Medal for Culture of Peace, Spirit of the UN Award and University of Massachusetts Boston Chancellor’s Medal for Global Leadership for Peace, Ambassador Chowdhury has a wealth of experience in the critical issues of our time – peace, sustainable development, and human rights.
Ambassador Chowdhury’s legacy and leadership in advancing the best interest of the global community are boldly imprinted in his pioneering initiatives at the United Nations General Assembly in 1999 for adoption of the landmark Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace and in 1998 for the proclamation of the “International Decade for Culture of Peace and Nonviolence for the Children of the World (2001-2010)”.
He served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations in New York from 1996 to 2001 and as the Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations, responsible for the most vulnerable countries of the world from 2002 to 2007.
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“I was impressed by their work in developing Ashland as a City of Peace, thereby evolving and inspiring at the same time a practical and workable model that other cities and civil society entities can learn from. I along with GMCoP encourage and support this brilliant endeavor by ACPC. My co-activists at the United Nations who interacted with ACPC leaders have particularly welcomed it.”
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury,
Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations,
Founder of the Global Movement for The Culture of Peace (GMCoP)
Ashland Global Peace Conference
“You Are The Flame”
Practical Applications of the Culture of Peace
September 21st, 2019 • Ashland Hills Hotel,
Ashland, Oregon
Whereas: On March 17, 2015, the Ashland Mayor and City Council proclaimed support for a Culture of Peace Community.
Whereas: On May 16, 2017, Ashland joined the International Cities of Peace and “…the City Council and Mayor, on behalf of the citizens of Ashland, do proclaim that the City of Ashland, Oregon, is a City of Peace in perpetuity and encourage city and community leaders to work with concerned citizens to develop policies and procedures that promote a culture of peace in our region.”
Whereas: The 20th anniversary of the adoption of the landmark UN “Culture of Peace” Resolution is being observed by the UN on 13 September 2019, at this year’s Eighth annual High-Level Forum on The Culture of Peace at the UN headquarters. On 13 September 1999, the United Nations General Assembly adopted, by consensus and without reservation, its resolution A/RES/53/243 on the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace.
Whereas: This historic norm-setting document is considered as one of the most significant legacies of the United Nations that would endure generations and manifests very significantly that the culture of peace is a process of individual, collective and institutional transformation. ‘Transformation’ is of the most essential relevance in its implementation.
Whereas: Bearing in mind the broader dimension and potential impact of the Culture of Peace, OPGA (President of the United Nations General Assembly) chose this year’s theme to be “The Culture of Peace: Empowering and Transforming Humanity.” Their concept notes states that: “In the light of the importance of the Culture of Peace and its potential for responding to the global challenges facing mankind, the 20th Observance should be central to the pivotal discussions and commitments expected at the General Assembly in September.”
Whereas: To manifest their own commitment to the culture of peace, various activities have been initiated by civil society organizations in different parts of the world. A unique mind-body spirit Culture of Peace event is planned separately as a contribution by Pathways to Peace to the 20th anniversary observance on Saturday, 14 September – titled On, By and For Youth in New York. The Ashland Culture of Peace Commission is co-planning this incredible day-long event that honors, positions, and empowers youth as peacebuilders. Students from Ashland OR will participate.
Whereas: The Ashland Culture of Peace Commission installed the World Peace Flame in Ashland, Oregon and on September 21, 2018 established the World Peace Flame Monument through an international acclaimed lighting ceremony. Students from the Ashland Middle School have embraced the opportunity to be the World Peace Flame, Flame Keepers.
Whereas: Ashland and Southern Oregon are becoming more known nationally and internationally as a hub embracing a Culture of Peace and developing a model which can benefit other communities. This activity will further raise this profile, brand our region, and attract visitors to experience, learn, and enjoy.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Ashland Culture of Peace Commission initiates:
Ashland Global Peace Conference
“You Are The Flame”
Practical Applications of the Culture of Peace
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Ashland is catching the attention of the global community.
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations, and Founder of the Global Movement for the Culture of Peace, is coming to Ashland to learn first-hand how ACPC partners with the city, local nonprofits and others to help transform the city after the March 11, 2019 presentation at the United Nations. The Ashland Global Peace Conference will also allow residents to learn more about why Ashland is deserving of the global community’s attention by highlighting how our state and local leaders are working hard to create a culture of peace for their constituents.
How did this happen?
On March 11, 2019 Irene Kai and David Wick were invited to the United Nations to make a presentation about the progress we have made developing a Culture of Peace in Ashland. We also presented the stunning story about bringing the World Peace Flame from Wales to Ashland which now stands as an iconic monument of peace locally and internationally. We then were invited to a private meeting with Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, the Founder of the Global Movement for The Culture of Peace and Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations. Ambassador Chowdhury was so deeply inspired by what he heard of these activities that he requested to come to Ashland to experience these leading peacebuilding activities himself. We therefore have planned the Ashland Global Peace Conference around his coming to Ashland where he will be our keynote speaker.
Taking active steps to co-create a Culture of Peace is vital within the United States as well as internationally. You are invited to attend and participate in the Ashland Global Peace Conference, September 21, 2019 in Ashland, Oregon. Ashland is the Home of the World Peace Flame and the conference theme is “You Are The Flame”, Practical Applications of the Culture of Peace. This is an exceptional experience of a city co-creating a Culture of Peace.
The program planned for this special conference highlights the global, national, state, city/community, personal/interpersonal levels of personal commitment and peacebuilding action each person represents.
This conference is one of a kind and will be promoted in southern Oregon, Oregon, nationally, and internationally. The conference will be live streamed internationally.
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“I would like to encourage you to seriously consider the invitation from the city of Ashland’s Culture of Peace Commission to attend their unique Global Peace Conference in Ashland, Oregon, on September 21. 2019.
The Peace Commission has brought the World Peace Flame from Wales to Ashland where it serves as inspiration to stand for peace in the world and do all we can at the local level to promote world peace. I visited the flame this April and was honored to meet members of the Peace Commission and learn about their valuable efforts.”
US Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon
“I extend my whole-hearted encouragement to ACPC in its efforts in creating this local-to-global and global-to-local pathway for advancing the culture of peace.”
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury
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The full day program includes lunch.
Program
Welcome – John Stromberg, Mayor, City of Ashland
Introduction of the World Peace Flame in Ashland – Irene Kai, Ashland Culture of Peace Commission
Keynote Speaker – Ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury, Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations. Founder of the Global Movement of the Culture of Peace
Dr. David Yang – Vice President, Center for applied Conflict Transformation. United States Institute of Peace
Flame Keeper of the World Peace Flame in Ashland – Finley Taylor, Flame Keeper from the Ashland Middle School
——-Break——-
Oregon State Panel –
Jeff Golden – Oregon State Senator
Pam Marsh – Oregon State Representative
Ashland City Panel –
Rich Rosenthal – Ashland City Councilor
Tighe O’Meara – Ashland Chief of Police
Sandra Slattery – Executive Director, Ashland Chamber of Commerce
Kelly Raymond – Superintendent, Ashland School District
——-Lunch——-
Creating infrastructures for Peace in all nations – Dr. Saul Arbess, Director, Canadian Peace Initiative and Co-Founder and Director, Global Alliance For Ministries and Infrastructure For Peace
Rogue Valley Community Panel –
Sheila Clough – CEO, Asante Ashland Community Hospital
Steven Saslow – CEO and Publisher, Rosebud Media
Linda Schott – President, Southern Oregon University
Dee Anne Everson – Executive Director, United Way of Jackson County
David Zaslow – Rabbi, Interfaith Community
——-Break——-
Be The Flame – Thriving Leadership Academy – Will Wilkinson and Chris Harding – A summary of the key points of the conference, followed by an invitation to participants to apply what they’ve learned, and specific action steps to integrate it all.
Light the World Peace Flame Candle and
Read the invocation inspired by the World Peace Flame
——-Concludes and network——-
Accommodations:
Ashland Hills Hotels and Suites at 2525 Ashland Street, Ashland, OR 97520
(Event name: Ashland Global Peace Conference)
Standard King rooms $149
Queen-Queen rooms $159
Premium King rooms $159
Standard King Suites $169
Double-Double Suites $169
To enjoy discounted guest room rates please contact our conference host hotel – Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites at 541-482-8310 and ask for the Ashland Global Peace Conference group rates.
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Find your adventure…
Surrounded by not only the culturally rich Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ashland also features a variety of natural wonders, including Crater Lake National Park.
——-Theater and Music——-
Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF)
15 South Pioneer St, Ashland, OR 97520
(800) 219-8161
Monday – Friday, 9:30 am – 5:00 pm.
Performance times vary.
Group Sales (866) 545-6337 Monday – Friday, 9:30 am – 5:00 pm.
Oregon Cabaret Theatre
241 Hargadine St, Ashland, OR, 97520
(541) 488-2902
Monday – Wednesday, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Thursday – Saturday, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm, Closed Sunday
Between productions 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Britt Music and Art Festival
PO Box 1124, Medford, OR 97501
(800) 882-7488
——-Family——-
ScienceWorks Hands-on Museum
1500 E Main St, Ashland, OR 97520
(541) 482-6767
Tuesday – Sunday, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Emigrant Lake Water Slide
5505 Highway 66, Ashland , OR 97520
(541) 774-8183
Monday – Friday, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm, closed 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
——-Outdoor Adventures——-
Rafting
Mountain Biking
Cycling
Hiking
Fly Fishing
Golf
Crater Lake
Want to help make this Global Peace Conference possible? Want to provide people the opportunity to be inspired by this personal/local/global event? Want to illuminate the local community as well as communities and people around the world?
Sponsor today!
If you are interested in sponsoring any aspect of the Ashland Global Peace Conference, please contact David Wick at info@ashlandcpc.org, 541-552-1061