Chris Houston is a co-founded and the Executive Director of the Canadian Peace Museum in Bancroft, Ontario. Chris has worked as an international humanitarian worker for Médecins sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders), the Canadian Red Cross and the United Nations. Chris is part-time faculty at the University of Toronto’s Global Health Education Initiative. Chris explained that his motivation for launching the museum, was his humanitarian work in war zones and his belief that museums represent a reliable way to promote peace.

He discussed the development of a peace museum, which began as an idea three years ago and has since grown to occupy an 8,000 square foot building on 1.4 acres of land, provided without cost by a local grassroots group. The museum is currently operating as a community room, hosting events, with enthusiastic volunteers helping drive the museum forward. Chris conducted a walking tour of the Canadian Peace Museum showcasing the facility’s two floors which include a gallery space, archive area, and community garden designed by Algonquin artist Sherry Crawford. “When we speak about peace, we consider both negative peace: the absence of war, the absence of violence, the absence of fear; and positive peace: all the things that make for a more peaceful society. By that, I mean planetary health, human health, education, democracy, truth and reconciliation, art.

” Visit the Canadian Peace Museum at www.CanadianPeaceMuseum.Ca