International Peace lecture
For forty years, this renowned series has brought together leading voices to reflect on the challenges and possibilities for global peace.
Its origins lie in the early 1980s, when the placement of US Cruise missiles at RAF Greenham Common prompted several members of The University of Manchester staff to engage in peace-related activities both locally and nationally. At their request, the University established the International Peace Lecture in 1985, with the aim of providing informed analysis of issues relating to war and peace as an educational contribution to world understanding.
The original petition to the University argued:
“In a dangerous world we have no illusions that war and the threat of war can easily be ended; but education is one of the long-term means of creating peace, and a University must be concerned with the future of the society of which it is part. Establishing an annual Peace Lecture is one, modest but continuing way to reaffirm our hope, belief and determination that there shall be a future, while providing an opportunity to explore how we and our children might bring it about.”
Since its inception, the lecture has remained true to this founding purpose, reaffirming hope and determination while offering a platform to explore how peace might be achieved. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Sir Edward Heath, and subsequent speakers have included Sir Shridath Ramphal, Zygmunt Bauman, Joanna Bourke, Paul Rogers, Noam Chomsky, and, more recently, Joseph Nye, Norman Geras, Vivienne Jabri and Serbian non-violent activist Srdja Popovic.
Upcoming events
The Continuous Struggle: Women’s Rights in the Last Four Decades and the Backlash Against Progress
Wednesday, 8 October 2025