Who We Are - World BEYOND War

World BEYOND War is a global nonviolent movement to end war and establish a just and sustainable peace.

World BEYOND War was founded on January 1^st, 2014, when co-founders David Hartsough and David Swanson set out to create a global movement to abolish the institution of war itself, not just the “war of the day.” If war is ever to be abolished, then it must be taken off the table as a viable option. Just as there is no such thing as “good” or necessary slavery, there is no such thing as a “good” or necessary war. Both institutions are abhorrent and never acceptable, no matter the circumstances. So, if we can’t use war to resolve international conflicts, what can we do? Finding a way to transition to a global security system that is supported by international law, diplomacy, collaboration, and human rights, and defending those things with nonviolent action rather than the threat of violence, is the heart of WBW. Our work includes education that dispels myths, like “War is natural” or “We have always had war,” and shows people not only that war should be abolished, but also that it actually can be. Our work includes all variety of nonviolent activism that moves the world in the direction of ending all war.

War is inevitable

War is justified

War is necessary

War is beneficial

War is immoral

War endangers us

War erodes liberties

War promotes bigotry

War wastes resources

War threatens our environment

War impoverishes us

Alternatives Exist

Staff

World BEYOND War has a dedicated and growing staff:

Board of Directors

World BEYOND War is run by a volunteer Board of Directors:

Advisory Board

Volunteers

World BEYOND War is run largely by volunteers who devote their time for free. Here are some Volunteer Spotlights.

Activists stand outside MP Terry Dowdall's office holding signs protesting Canada's planned fighter jets purchase

Volunteer Spotlight: Frank & Gillian

The January 2023 Volunteer Spotlight features Frank & Gillian from Pivot2Peace, World BEYOND War’s South Georgian Bay chapter in Canada. #WorldBEYONDWar

Volunteer Spotlight: Mohammed Abunahel

The November 2022 Volunteer Spotlight features Mohammed Abunahel from Palestine, who is currently based in India.

Yiru Chen sits in front of a waterfall holding up a peace sign

Volunteer Spotlight: Yiru Chen

The October 2022 Volunteer Spotlight features Yiru Chen, a student intern in Toronto, Canada.

Volunteer Spotlight: Tim Gros

The September 2022 Volunteer Spotlight features Tim Gros, an intern from Paris, France.

Past Board Presidents

Awards

Coalitions

World BEYOND War is a member of the Coalition Against U.S. Foreign Military Bases; the Divest from the War Machine Coalition; the Global Day Against Military Spending; the International Peace Bureau; the Korea Collaboration Network; the Poor People’s Campaign; United for Peace and Justice; the United National Antiwar Coalition; the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons; the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space; the international network No to war – no to NATO; Overseas Base Realignment and Closure Coalition; People Over Pentagon; Campaign to End the Selective Service System; the Demilitarize U.S. to Palestine Coalition; Just Recovery Canada; No Fighter Jets Coalition; Canada-Wide Peace and Justice Network; Peace Education Network (PEN); Beyond Nuclear; Working Group on Youth, Peace, and Security; Global Alliance for Ministries and Infrastructures for Peace, WE.net, Abolition 2000, War Industry Resisters Network, Groups Against Arms Fairs.

Our liasons to various coalitions are as follows:

NoForeignBases.org: Robert Fantina
United National Antiwar Coalition: John Reuwer
Divest from the War Machine: Greta Zarro
Global Day Against Military Spending: Gar Smith
Korea Collaboration Network: Alice Slater
Abolish Selective Service: David Swanson
GPA: Donnal Walter
Code Pink – China is Not our Enemy: Liz Remmerswaal
Groups Against Arms Fairs: Liz Remmerswaal and Rachel Small
U.S. Peace Coalition: Liz Remmerswaal
Independent and Peaceful Australian Network/Pacific Peace Network: Liz Remmerswaal
New Zealand Peace Foundation International Affairs and Disarmament Committee: Liz Remmerswaal
WE.net: David Swanson
Abolition 2000: David Swanson
War Industry Resisters Network: Greta Zarro.
Canada-Wide Peace and Justice Network: Rachel Small, Maya Garfinkel.
No New Fighter Jets Coalition: Rachel Small, Maya Garfinkel.

“What I appreciate most about World BEYOND War is that it does not ruminate on the pluses and minuses of each military intervention but takes a clear, principled, courageous and unequivocal stand that war is bad, period, and that our job as global citizens is stop all ongoing wars and prevent new ones. This breaks through the fog of ‘humanitarian interventions’ and ‘just wars’ to paint a vision of how we must evolve as a civilization if we are to survive, and that is, precisely, a world beyond war. Bravo!”

“I support this proposal and agree with this great and important initiative to abolish militarism and war. I will continue to speak out for an end to the institution of militarism and war and for institutions built on international law and human rights and nonviolent conflict resolution.”

“I moved from feeling hesitant to invite a World BEYOND War speaker into my classroom into an enthusiastic supporter of inviting World BEYOND War every year into my class. . . . In the end, students could see why war was irrational and even more importantly, their minds were opened to imagine different solutions to real problems. ”

Our Donors

We are largely funded by very small donations. We are extremely grateful to every volunteer and donor, although we don’t have room to thank them all, and many prefer to be anonymous. Here is a page thanking those we can.

More About World BEYOND War

Annual Conferences

Click below for videos, text, powerpoints, photos, and other resources from our past annual conferences.