040-LB-04
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE

Contact: Lori Brandt
(949) 824-5484
lbrandt@uci.edu

MIKHAIL GORBACHEV TO SPEAK AT UNIVERSITY AND RECEIVE
INAUGURAL UCI CITIZEN PEACEBUILDING AWARD

Nobel Peace Prize Winner and Former Soviet Leader
to Address the Importance of a Sustainable Environment

Irvine, Calif., March 8, 2004 — Mikhail Gorbachev, former leader of the Soviet Union and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, will visit UC Irvine Tuesday, March 23, to accept the inaugural UCI Citizen Peacebuilding Award.
Gorbachev will also speak on “The Road to a Sustainable Environment and a Safer World� at 7 p.m. at the Irvine Barclay Theatre. His visit is hosted by the UCI Citizen Peacebuilding Program in the School of Social Sciences.
“We are honored to have President Mikhail Gorbachev visit our campus,� said Chancellor Ralph J. Cicerone. “UCI is happy to welcome a world leader who is dedicated to the common cause of protecting our global environment. His visionary approach recognizes the importance of environmental issues to the safety and well-being of all humanity.�
From 1985 to1991, Gorbachev served as leader of the Soviet Union, instituting political reforms that would ultimately lead to its dissolution. As president of the Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R., then as president of the U.S.S.R., he oversaw two broad disarmament pacts and the end of Communist rule in Eastern Europe. He was awarded the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize.
Since leaving office, he has founded several organizations concerned with global issues, including Green Cross International. Established shortly after the 1992 Earth Summit, Green Cross International is dedicated to assisting people affected by the environmental consequences of wars and conflicts, preventing and resolving conflicts over natural resources, and cultivating a new sense of global interdependence and shared responsibility in humanity’s relationship with nature. Gorbachev’s visit to the United States is sponsored by Global Green, the U.S. chapter of Green Cross International.
The UCI Citizen Peacebuilding Program engages in research, education and action that support grass-roots efforts to prevent violent conflict and promote reconciliation and sustainable peace. Under the direction of Paula Garb, associate professor of anthropology, the program’s current activities include peace-building efforts in local neighborhoods of Orange County and Los Angeles, as well as communities in Northern Ireland and the former Soviet Union.
The inaugural UCI Citizen Peacebuilding Award will be presented to Gorbachev in recognition of his impact on world peace and his continued dedication to making the world a safer place. Thereafter, it will be named in his honor as the UCI Mikhail Gorbachev Citizen Peacebuilding Award and presented to other committed peace builders. The award, created by sculptor and studio arts professor Gifford Myers, will be made from parts of guns that were confiscated and donated by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
For tickets, call the Irvine Barclay Theatre box office at (949) 854-4646, or visit www.thebarclay.org.


About the University of California, Irvine: The University of California, Irvine is a top-ranked public university dedicated to research, scholarship and community. Founded in 1965, UCI is among the fastest-growing University of California campuses, with more than 23,000 undergraduate and graduate students and about 1,300 faculty members. The third-largest employer in dynamic Orange County, UCI contributes an annual economic impact of $3 billion.
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