Arlington Cooperation Foundation (ACF) and Imagine Peace Network (IPN) thank everyone who made the College of Running & Peace, Saturday, July 15, and International Peace Half Marathon & 8K on Sunday, July 16, a great success on many levels.

We thank Friends of the World Food Program, Community Coalition for Justice and Peace, Marathon Charity Partners (MCP), Northern Virginia Running Club (NOVA), Potomac Valley Track Club, MetroSports, RacePacket, and Washington Running Report for helping publicize the College of Peace & Running and the races. We thank the 350 runners who signed up for races. We thank the friends and associates of IPN, MCP, and NOVA, who staffed aid stations and the post-race picnic. We thank our sponsors, Versar Inc., Ferris Baker Watts, ICF International, Alamo Flag Company, Ameriprise Financial, United Nations Association of the National Capital Area, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Queen Sheba Restaurant, and Zinjera. We thank everyone who helped us to create new alliances and expand our network of peace builders.

College of Peace & Running Workshops were free and open to the public.

College of Peace presenters included environmental innovator and community activist, Leanne Nurse, whose discussion on the film "A Quiet Revolution" concluded that one person can, indeed make a difference; fighting to accomplish small things in one's community contributes in unseen ways to everyone's happiness.

Dr.Tsehaye Teferra, founder and president of Ethiopian Community Development Council (ECDC) presented on refugee issues and the underlying social problems, chiefly among them armed conflict, that lead to the large numbers of refugees, 40% of whom come from Africa.

Constance Haig, our third presenter, currently works for an aerospace company where she is a Senior Technical Writer/Editor on NASA spacecraft projects. Her workshop evolved from course material she is preparing to teach at Montgomery College and was titled "Creating Value in Everyday Life As a Means To Peace." Drawing on several theories, such as Newton's law of causality, the idea of individuals creating reality with thoughts, words and actions, and interdependent origination, Ms. Haig led us to discover our innate capacity to create value and eliminate violence.

Capturing people's interest with theater to convey socially relevant messages is an art that often works better than speeches and workshops in educating. That was evident from the theater presentation put on by the group Justice in South East Asia (JiSA.) JiSA's performance "The Pit" is based on a story by Indian Punjabi writer Krishnachander. "The Pit" was originally adapted by the highly acclaimed Delhi-based street theater group Nishant Natya Manch in the late 1960s. Since then it has been adapted to raise consciousness about various subjects in several countries and scores of languages. The pit is a symbol of apathy, ignorance, racism, poverty, sexism and all the dehumanizing forces in our world and begs us to ask, "Is there room for actions motivated by humanity, compassion and solidarity in our society?" The audience's answer was a resounding "YES!"

Meanwhile, down the hall, race director Jay Jacob Wind presented a "crash course" for participants in the race; College of Peace & Running dean John Steitz presented the newest knowledge about staying healthy and hydrated during a race, especially in July; Ben Cooke of Georgetown Running Company demonstrated the latest in shoe technology and running attire, and Walt Cline of Velocity Sport Performance helped people analyze and improve their running form.

International Buffet Dinner

Our International Dinner spurred fascinating exchanges among new friends. The vegetarian contributions of Ethiopian dishes from the Queen Sheba Restaurant on 9th Street N.W. and freshly made injera from Zinjera was the perfect complement to spaghetti and fresh melon salad.

Adding to the fun was the Courtyard by Marriott's chef -- a native of Ghana -- smiling with amusement as we learned each other's languages.

International Peace Half-Marathon & 8K

On Sunday the "main attraction" kicked off with a parade of country and state flags. Runners from 14 countries and the U.S. and 27 states plus D.C. participated in the race. The event was a benefit MCP, a co-op of seven charities, each of whom staffed for the spirit stations along the route, hosted the post-race picnic, or presented the awards.

Post-race Cultural Performances

IPN and ACF's post-race performances provided a truly festive display of performing arts from cultures around the world.

Well-known local flautist and craftsman, Jimi Morehouse ( flutewood@yahoo.com ) displayed many of his hand-made Native American flutes. A lovely early-morning summer breeze rolled through the foliage of Belle Haven Park's largest residents, the ancient shade trees that dot the landscape. A statuesque egret basked in the sunlight flicking off the Potomac waters. Returning runners were milling around the breakfast tables, talking to family and friends or just lounging in the grass. Into this atmosphere, the lilting tones of the flute was poured. After his performance, many people spoke with Jimi, asking questions and admiring the carvings that adorn his flutes.

Brazillian percussionist and berimbau player, Thomaz deCastro ( thomazdecastro@yahoo.com.br ) with singer and community activist, Luci Murphy ( justlikeatree@hotmail.com )began their set with an Egyptian folk song. Thomaz played his tabla drum while Luci involved the audience with lively call and response lyrics in Arabic.

Luci and Thomaz were then joined by Gute Brandao and Joe Parks on percussion who served up several Brazilian tunes showcasing Luci's gorgeous, resonant vocal style. Michelle Clark, a local Capoeira practitioner and break-dancer, and Argentine Tango instructor, Natalia Schifini contributed their magic with impromptu samba and salsa alfresco.

The Philippines' national dance, Tinikling is a favorite in the east central island of Leyte. The dance imitates the movement of the long-legged tikling bird as it walks between grass stems, or dodges bamboo traps set by rice farmers. Liza Recto, demonstrated the skill of dancing between the two clacking poles. Many found Liza's invitation, "Common' try it!" irresistible. We then learned the Tinikling is a lot more difficult than it looks!

Finally, the music of Ethiopian singer GiGi inspired Beruk Deberework, and Mekuria Tadesse of Addis Ababa to perform classic Ethopian folk dancing with its rhythmical shoulder gyrations, foot stomping and jumping. Within moments, others joined in, mimicking as best they could, the dancers' fantastic moves. Beruk and Mekuria were the men's 1st and 2nd place winners, running the half-marathon in 1:12:02 and 1:12:03 respectively.

Becoming a Global Citizen

Many of the runners remarked to event organizers that they were surprised by the "value added" attraction, unique to this peace race; excited and proud to feel that they were not only running to benefit the many deserving charities, but also gained so much themselves by learning about other cultures. After the performances, the crowd applauded when the U.N. flag given us by our local United Nations Association board member Emily Carnes was unfurled.

Runners who participated in the College of Running and came to some of the concurrent College of Peace workshops have a new perspective on the slogan of the cooperative movement, out of which, ACF was born: "Think globally, act locally." With the focus on peace-building strategies, participant "take aways" include concrete ways to create value everyday as a means to peace. Race Director, Jay Wind gave the International Peace Half-Marathon & 8K its name which invites us to "Imagine Peace, One Step at a Time."