International journalist to address potential for peace

BOWLING GREEN, O.—Leading geopolitical analyst Gwynne Dyer will give the third annual Nakamoto Peace Lecture at Bowling Green State University. His talk, “The End of War? Nonviolence in the 21st Century,” will begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday (Feb. 2) in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union Theater.

Hosted by the Peace and Conflict Studies Program, the lecture is free and open to the public.

Dyer has worked as a freelance journalist, columnist, broadcaster and lecturer on international affairs for more than 20 years. Trained as a historian, he holds degrees from Canadian, American and British universities, finishing with a Ph.D. in military and Middle Eastern history from the University of London.

He served in three navies and held an academic appointment at Oxford University before launching his twice-weekly column on international affairs, which is published by 175 papers around the world including The (Toledo) Blade.

During his broadcasting career, Dyer produced many series for TV and radio, beginning with the seven-part documentary “War,” which aired in 45 countries in the mid-1980s. He has returned to writing books, including “Climate Wars” (2008), for which he conducted exhaustive research and interviews of leading climate scientists and military strategists, plus a new edition of “War” (2004) and several books on the war in Iraq and the politics of the Middle East, including “Future: Tense” (2004) and “The Mess They Made” (2007).

The lecture series is funded by BGSU alumna Hiroko Nakamoto, who will attend Dyer’s talk. She has been a strong supporter of the Peace and Conflict Studies Program at the University as well as a “Gateway to Peace” memorial project in her hometown of Hiroshima, Japan.

Dyer will also speak to several classes during his campus visit, discussing climate change, nuclear weapons issues, and war coverage by the international media.

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Editor’s Note: Journalists who wish to arrange a time to speak individually with Dyer may call Bonnie Blankinship, 419-372-2618 or email bblanki@bgsu.edu.

(Posted January 30, 2012 )