I have always loved the greens. I believe my social impact journey began at the age of 14, when my first essay, Global Warming and The Future of Humanity , was published. While preparing for that essay, I remember feeling deeply concerned about the impacts of climate change and rising temperatures. That was also the time I began my interfaith journey in peacebuilding. At first, I thought of climate and peace separately, but over time, I realized they are deeply connected—woven together like threads of the same fabric.
This realization grew stronger during my time in Costa Rica, studying peace at the University for Peace. The campus was surrounded by woods, and every day I traveled through forests alive with birds and wildflowers. Those moments taught me the value of life, the interconnectedness of peace, and the quiet wisdom of nature. Later, during my internship at the Earth Charter, I understood even more clearly how peace and the environment are inseparable; a circle of life, just like our planet, where every principle and every Sustainable Development Goal connects with the next.
As we observed the International Day of Peace on September 21, my heart is heavy with the tensions of our world. There is famine. There is uncertainty, magnified by the increasing climate crisis. Yet, amid this turbulence, I keep finding small ways to stay hopeful. Walking through the greens in my own neighborhood, planting new life, and imagining just transitions within our homes; all these practices remind me that hope is not abstract. It is alive and grows when we nurture it.
Tension does not give us answers. But hope and love do. There are always ways to overcome challenges, if we choose to look for them. Let us work not to build weapons, but to bring back the greens. Let us channel our research and innovation toward agriculture, ecosystem regeneration, and climate resilience, not toward creating nuclear arms.
We cannot be remembered as a silent generation. We must be remembered as a generation that cared, for our loved ones, for our communities, and for our shared future. Let us rebuild peace and greens together. Let us live, and let us live in peace.