IPPNW has hosted a number of events since our founding. Please view a few of our international events below.
IPPNW World Congresses
Congresses are important opportunities for health professionals, medical students, and activists to share information and strategies related to the abolition of nuclear weapons and the prevention of armed violence.
Fifth Annual Global Peace and Health Concert
IPPNW and Greater Boston PSR (GBPSR) hosted our fifth annual event on October 1st, 2022 to address the twin existential threats of nuclear war and climate change. Our 2022 Honorees were Professors Alan Robock, Brian Toon, and Lili Xia who pioneered critical research on nuclear winter and the climatic consequences of a limited nuclear conflict.
This event featured performances by Longwood Symphony Orchestra musicians and members from the Silkroad Ensemble, an international musical collaborative that was founded by cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
N-5 Doctors Speak with One Voice
On 8 August, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War hosted an official side meeting to the tenth Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference; “N-5 Doctors Speak with One Voice”.
It is a medical imperative that the five NPT nuclear possessing states, honor their joint statement of January 3, 2022 that “nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought,” and make progress in fulfilling their nuclear disarmament responsibilities according to Article 6 of the NPT.
War in Eastern Europe: On the Brink of a Humanitarian Disaster
The crisis in Eastern Europe has become a humanitarian catastrophe. IPPNW hosted an emergency briefing on 19 February with a distinguished panel of experts to examine the terrible human cost if diplomacy fails. The experts’ remarks cover topics including conventional war, damage to nuclear power reactors, and escalation to nuclear weapons.
IPPNW Students #BikefortheBan
The weekend of 18 February, dozens of medical students in six countries — Germany, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Russia, and Zambia — carried IPPNW’s mission to their local communities via regional bike tours. Despite the physical distance between the chapters, all were brought together with one unifying message: the abolition of nuclear weapons is a public health imperative. Learn more.
2021 Virtual Concert and Presentation
IPPNW and Greater Boston PSR (GBPSR) hosted our fourth annual event on September 25th to address the twin existential threats of nuclear war and climate change. The virtual event honored the work of Dr. Bernard Lown, who, together with Dr. Evgeny Chazov of the Soviet Union, accepted the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize on IPPNW’s behalf.
Eliminating the Existential Threat of Nuclear Weapons
As experts warn that we are closer to nuclear war than we have ever been, UN Under Secretary General Izumi Nakamitsu, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross Peter Maurer, Vice-President of the ICRC Gilles Carbonnier, and President of Rotary International Shekhar Mehta discuss the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and other steps that we can take to eliminate the existential threat posed by nuclear weapons.
IPPNW Student Discussion on “The Vow”
On Monday, August 9, the IPPNW Medical Student Movement hosted a discussion on The Vow from Hiroshima and the importance of medical student activism. The event featured remarks from Hibakusha and activist Setsuko Thurlow, the filmmakers of The Vow Mitchie Takeuchi and Susan Strickler, and five IPPNW medical student leaders; Shoki Hamada (Japan), Ulfat Pardesi (India), Franca Bruggen (Germany), Ekaterina Schelkanovtseva (Russia), and Joe Hodgkin (United States). Watch the full recording now.
Global Health Webinar
On 21 January 2021, IPPNW, the International Committee of the Red Cross, International Council of Nurses, International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations, World Federation of Public Health Associations, and the World Medical Association co-hosted a global health discussion marking the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
In addition to hosting the webinar, the coalition of the world’s largest health federations released a joint statement hailing the Treaty as “an essential step towards preventing the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of nuclear weapons and a big win for planetary health.” The statement is now available in English, Catalan, Dutch, French, German, Greek, and Spanish.
IPPNW Virtual Student Congress
On 30 January and 13 February, the IPPNW Medical Student Movement held the first IPPNW Virtual Student Congress where over 60 students from more than 20 countries discussed nuclear disarmament, medical student activism, and how the country chapters can support each others.
Watch former International Student Representatives (ISRs), Franca Bruggen and Kelvin Kibet’s update on student activities and much more on our website now.
2020 Healing Art of Music Virtual Event
Greater Boston PSR and IPPNW were honored to have again been selected as Community Partners for the 2020 season of the Longwood Symphony Orchestra’s Healing Art of Music™ program. The special event was streamed live on-line with proceeds benefiting our organizations’ efforts to address the twin existential threats of nuclear war and climate change.
Collaboration with the Middle East Treaty Organization (METO)
On the 20th of August, 2020, IPPNW and METO held a joint webinar targeted at stimulating disarmament initiatives from within the Middle East titled, “Building the movement of health workers to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe involving nuclear weapons”. The idea was inspired by the work of the original founders of IPPNW, Soviet and US physicians, who were among the first to recognize the catastrophic consequences of nuclear weapons on human health and the dangers they pose to human civilization and even the very survival of human beings as a species.
Online World Conference 2020: Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Resist and Reverse Climate Change, For Social and Economic Justice
The two hour long event connected the issues of nuclear weapons, the climate crisis, and social and economic justice in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. IPPNW’s very own Dr. Carlos Umaña, Regional Vice President for Latin America, was the first speaker of the event, highlighting the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons and how this crisis connects with COVID-19. Additional speakers ranged from Xiye Bastida (Fridays for Future, Mexico) to United Nations High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu.
World Conference: Youth Assembly
The event was moderated by the co-chairs of the Planning Committee, Molly McGinty, Program Associate at IPPNW and Emily Rubino, Director of Policy and Outreach at Peace Action New York State. Seven main panelists were featured, touching on different aspects of nuclear abolition, climate change, social and racial justice. Among the panelists were Franca Bruggen and Kelvin Kibet, IPPNW Medical Student Representatives, who spoke to the medical aspect of COVID-19 and how that is impacting the world around us, tying this back to the threat of nuclear weapons.
