Celebrating the International Day of Peace, Sydney Rotary's lunchtime speaker on 22nd September will be Ramesh Thakur, Emeritus Professor at Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University.

He will discuss How to balance realism and idealism in today’s United Nations: What is a principled pragmatist to do?

Ramesh Thakur was educated in India and Canada, and has held full time academic positions at universities in Australia, Canada, Fiji and New Zealand. He is a former United Nations Assistant Secretary-General, principal writer of Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s 2002 UN reform report, a Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Commissioner and, with ANU Chancellor Professor Gareth Evans, author of its 2002 report on R2P. He is presently a professor at Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University and Editor-in-Chief of Global Governance.

Also on the program:

**UNAA / Rotary Club of Sydney Peacebuilding Group – Peace Perspectives video project**

The United Nations Association of Australia (NSW branch) has been working for months with the Rotary Club of Sydney Peacebuilding Group on a video project entitled Peace Perspectives to celebrate UN International Peace Day. The result is three short videos in which some 25 people from diverse backgrounds and interests share their perspectives on peace and peacebuilding in Australia and beyond.

These three short videos will be viewed at the club meeting,

Community Peace Award – Play for Lives

The recipient of the 2020 Rotary Club of Sydney Community Peace Award will be the Play for Lives campaign. Play for Lives has been mobilising our professional athletes off the bench and into the thousands of essential volunteer positions left vacant in the wake of the coronavirus.

Former Socceroo and now community cohesion activist Craig Foster will accept the award on behalf of Play for Lives. More info - www.playforlives.org.

You are invited to support Rotary's Centennial Project - Give Every Child a Future.