History for Peace conference

The annual History for Peace conference was held at Shiv Nadar School in Noida on 13 and 14 May 2024. The programme intended to equip educators to address complex and critical problems in the classroom. The conference was attended by our teacher, Ms Aarushi Rawat and our student, Ms Nameata Sabharwal of class XII-D.

Justice is a multifaceted concept that has been debated among philosophers, legal scholars and ordinary people for centuries. Much like a homonym, justice carries different meanings for different individuals. The conference delved into various forms of justice, including social, retributive, restorative, procedural, distributive and divine justice. It examined justice as a necessity for social order and individual happiness, a virtue or moral duty, a means of protecting individual rights and freedoms, a method for achieving social and economic equity, and the capabilities approach based on individual abilities to achieve goals and aspirations. One of the fundamental human ideals, ie., justice, is a topic of constant discussion as many organisations and individuals argue over what it means to be fair and just, in various situations. The conference addressed concerns of environmental injustice as well as racial and economic inequality, emphasising the need for educators to be aware of these problems. It sought to give them the abilities and information required to promote involved and active citizenship.

Renowned orators like Barry van Driel, Bittu Sahgal, Swarna Rajagopalan, and Nivedita Menon spoke their thoughts on justice to students and teachers from different schools, enhancing their learning experiences. Their talks shed light on what constitutes ideal justice and how it may be applied in the modern world.

The workshop served as an essential platform for discussing fundamental human values and exploring how societies perceive justice and injustice. It also provided practical approaches for translating these views into classroom practices, ensuring that educators can effectively engage with such critical issues.