(MINNEAPOLIS) – The 27^th annual Nobel Peace Prize Forum will explore the world’s most pressing peacemaking issues faced by people across the globe. The March 6-8 event, at the Radisson Blu Downtown, will explore different aspects of peace building including human rights and democracy, disarmament, sustainability and inclusivity. Speaker highlights include:

• March 6 – Human Rights and Democracy
  • Honored Laureate��in a moderated discussion, “Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power.”
  • , Deputy Chair of The Elders and Former Prime Minister of Norway, will discuss human rights and democracy.
  • , former Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and signatory to the Good Friday Agreement.

• March 7 – Disarmament and Sustainability
  • Honored Laureate the represented by Director-General Ahmet Üzümcü will discuss disarmament and peace.
  • Adama Dieng, the United Nation’s special adviser on prevention of genocide, will discuss the murder, torture, looting, and destruction of property that likely is a war crime and ethnic cleansing.
  • of Kaduna, Nigeria, work to resolve conflicts between warring religious youth militias, but a decade ago the two men were mortal enemies.
  • , author of The Better Angels of our Nature, will talk about four human motivations that can turn us away from violence and toward cooperation and altruism.

• March 8 – Inclusivity in Peace Building
  • , cofounder of the International Civil Society Action Network, will address the issue of women and extremism.
  • , who grew up indoctrinated in Adolf Hitler’s Germany, will discuss her experience and that of ordinary German citizens.
  • Roxanne Mankin Cason, of the Cason Family Foundation; and Ingrid Stange, the founder of Partnership for Change; will discuss how women business leaders are promoting peace and empowering girls and women.

Purchase tickets, review the full schedule, and learn about lodging accommodations at

Under the auspices of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, the Nobel Peace Prize Forum inspires peacemaking by focusing on the work of Nobel Peace Prize laureates and important international peacemakers and peace builders. For more than 27 years, the Forum has been one of only three programs officially associated with the Norwegian Nobel Institute.

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MINNEAPOLIS – An international peace-building expert with extensive experience in United Nations security-related initiatives and policy development in gender issues, mediation and cease-fires will lead the Nobel Peace Prize Forum beginning Oct. 1. Augsburg College, with its academic partners the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs and the School of Public Health, today announced the appointment of Gina Torry as executive director of the NPPF.

“Gina’s experience, combined with her strong passion for peacemaking, will allow her to build on the Nobel Peace Prize Forum’s national and international programming and relationships,” said Augsburg College President Paul Pribbenow. “Together, we will strive to realize the Forum’s mission to inspire peacemaking by exploring the life and work of Nobel Peace Prize laureates and its long-term goals to foster international dialogue on peace and engage students and the wider community in the process of peace building with national and global leaders.”

Torry has worked closely with the UN, its member states, regional organizations, women’s civil society groups, and networks worldwide. She most recently served as executive director of the Peace Research Endowment, the North American presence of the Peace Research Institute Oslo. Prior to that, Torry worked for several years with the UN Department of Political Affairs Policy and Mediation Division.

Torry, in collaboration with international mediators and mediation experts, finalized the UN DPA “Guidance for Mediators: Addressing Conflict-Related Sexual Violence in Cease-Fire and Peace Agreements.”

“Gina’s work as a leader and guiding voice in the protection of civilians in cease-fire and peace agreements is significant for individuals, families and communities around the world,” Pribbenow said. “It is this work of hers that is shaping – and will continue to shape – how our world sees and deals with crimes related to conflict-related sexual violence and other methods and tactics of conflict being waged against the civilian population in warfare.

“The term ‘sexual violence’ was almost entirely absent from cease-fire and peace agreements prior to Gina’s work with the UN. In fact, the term showed up only three times in the history of these agreements. But because of her leadership and work, the term has been included in the last three cease-fire agreements brokered by the UN. We couldn’t be more pleased to have her join our community.”

Torry is former coordinator of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security (2005-2008), and has authored several publications including, “Financing Inclusive Peace and Security for Women in Nepal: From the Comprehensive Peace Agreement to the Nepal Peace Trust Fund” (2010, EC/UN). In 2007, Torry was invited, as coordinator of the NGO Working Group, to address the UN Security Council in an Open Debate on women, peace and security. Torry holds a Bachelor of Arts in comparative literature and political science from the American University of Paris and Master of Science in gender studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

About the Forum: The NPPF is a premier international event designed to inspire peacemaking. Now in its 27th year, the Forum studies the work of Peace Prize Laureates, and deeply explores questions of peace and conflict. The program is housed at and coordinated by Augsburg College in partnership with the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs and the School of Public Health. It was founded in 1989 as a unique partnership between the Norwegian Nobel Institute and five Norwegian-American colleges – Augsburg (Minneapolis), Augustana (Sioux Falls, S.D.), Concordia (Moorhead, Minn.), Luther (Decorah, Iowa) and St. Olaf (Northfield, Minn.)

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