Organization

The founding of Green Cross International in The Hague (blog 26/06/19)

Green Cross International has been founded by Mikhail Gorbachev, former president of the Soviet Union and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990. During his years in office, Gorbachev spoke repeatedly about the mutual connection between threats to the earth and her inhabitants, shaped by nuclear and chemical armament, non-sustainable development, and human-caused degradation of our ecosystems. On January 19, 1990, during a speech to the World Forum in Moscow, Gorbachev proposed to set up an international Green Cross that would offer aid to states in ecological problems. He pleaded for a worldwide organization that would apply the medical emergency response model of the International Red Cross to ecological issues and would enable solutions for environmental problems which transcend national borders.

On June 6, 1992, the delegates of civil society at the Rio Earth Summit appealed to Mikhail Gorbachev to create Green Cross International (GCI). Simultaneously, parliamentarian Roland Wiederkehr of the Swiss national council founded a ‘World Green Cross’ with the same purpose. The organizations merged in 1993 and formed Green Cross International. The organization was formally launched in Kyoto (Japan) on April 18, 1993. During the spring of 1994, GCI expanded with five country organizations (Russia, United States, Japan, Switzerland, and The Netherlands) in the Peace Palace in The Hague.

The Third Gold Plant

Huub-Gorbatsjov-Derde Gouden Plant

The artist duo Huub & Adelheid Kortekaas offered their beautiful artwork ‘The 3rd Golden Plant of The Acre of Peace 1993: The Unifying Spiritual Field of the World’ for celebration and sealing (see picture above). Have a look at the Unifying Field project of the artists here.

green

The Peace Palace in The Hague filled with prominent people during the founding of GCI.

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