Tau Te Mauri - Breath of Peace — The image for the resource which was distributed to all secondary schools and is publically available via the Christchurch Public Library. by Rob Clarke

Disarmament and the Breath of Peace

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Learn how New Zealand became a world leader in nuclear disarmament. Discover how our peaceful principles, people power and sheer determination created the most successful anti-nuclear campaign the world has ever seen.

 Your Challenge

Discover the  pioneering  role New Zealanders played in achieving a ban on nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific, and follow the momentous and inspiring journey that led to New Zealand declaring itself a nuclear-free country. Learn about the heroic roles played by the CND, Greenpeace and others in forcing the world to listen to their message of peace. Using this knowledge, decide on a worthy cause of your own and engage your wider community in helping achieve your goals.

Watch  

Watch this DVD from the Christchurch Public Library and see how personal courage and collective commitment to a worthwhile cause can achieve truly great things.

Share this historic moment in your local community to educate others that you can make a difference if you believe, and if you take action!

Follow this Process

Discuss -  ask yourselves, 'what change could take place right now that would make the biggest positive difference in the world?' then ask yourselves 'how could the citizens of New Zealand participate in making it happen?' 

  1. Brainstorm Come up with a list of ideas that you strongly believe would make the world a better place. This could involve banning something, creating something or improving something that already exists, or anything else you can think of.  Decide on a selection process that will allow you to shortlist three ideas to research in more detail. 

  2. Research - Look more closely into the merits of each idea, and create a brief 'case study'  for each one. You can use these case studies to inform the wider community of your ideas, and as part of a questionnaire designed to reveal their preference.  You could use paper, online, audio or video surveys to gather this information. This data must be brought back to class and shared. You may present it any way you wish - even using this website. Your goal is to settle on a single cause that you believe is the most worthy. 

  3. Summarise your results to present back to the class and via this web site. 
  4. Take action - decide your next step.  If you have found what seems a worthwhile cause, do you want to launch a campaign, start a Facebook page or find some other way to generate interest in it? Can you start engaging with other world citizens who share your passion? Don't waste your precious knowledge - decide to make a difference!
  5. Capture and share these outcomes using photo and/or video and post on this site to inspire others. Provide regular updates if this becomes an ongoing project.

Educator Notes:

Links to the New Zealand Curriculum:

Differentiation suggestions:

Useful links:

  •  United Nations Website...this page on current United Nations projects is a useful starting point for discussion on ways to improve people's lives and the health of the planet
  • The story of nuclear-free New Zealand can be found here.  It covers all the important aspects in six manageable segments 
  • Webquest guidance...

References and Acknowledgements: