BUDDHIST LEADER'S ANNUAL PEACE PROPOSAL STRESSES POWER OF YOUTH IN BUILDING GLOBAL SOLIDARITY, CALLS ON CIVIL SOCIETY TO PLAY ACTIVE ROLE IN NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT TALKS

TOKYO, Jan 26 (Bernama) -- 

Daisaku Ikeda, president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) Buddhist association, issued his 35th annual peace proposal titled “The Global Solidarity of Youth: Ushering in a New Era of Hope” on January 26, 2017. While acknowledging numerous global challenges from armed conflict to the refugee crisis, Ikeda rejects pessimism, citing his faith in young people who embody hope and can catalyze chain reactions of positive change in their communities. He states: “Young people and their energetic engagement represent the solution to the global challenges we face.” He also sees youth as the key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations toward 2030. He emphasizes that globally shared action, as seen in recent efforts to fight climate change, is essential in promoting these goals. http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=28348