FOR's Vision:
We envision a world of justice, peace, and freedom. It is a revolutionary vision of a beloved community where differences are respected, conflicts are addressed nonviolently, oppressive structures are dismantled, and where people live in harmony with the earth, nurtured by diverse spiritual traditions that foster compassion, solidarity, and reconciliation.

Kootenay Chapter Mission:
The mission of the Kootenay Lake Chapter of FOR is to commit to actions that replace violence, war, racism, and economic injustice with nonviolence, peace, and justice. We are an organization from a wide variety of experiences committed to active nonviolence as a transforming way of life and as a means of radical change. The Kootenay Chapter will educate, train, participate in coalitions, and engage in nonviolent and compassionate actions locally, nationally, and globally.

Goals (In no order of priority):

1) To gather and distribute information pertaining to non-violence, peace and justice that impacts the lives of those living in the Kootenay Lake region.

2) To analyze, assess, and discuss issues pertaining to non-violence, peace and justice.

3) To engage in processes that lead to self-education, self-awareness and self-actualization.

4) To engage in activist activities that promote non-violence, peace and justice, locally, nationally and globally.

5) To be mutually supportive and caring, modelling non-violent, peace-filled and just actions within our chapter and in our lives.

Objectives (arising out of our discussion on Thursday, February 6th):

1. Work with other groups to plan events in the area; e.g. the January 18th and February 15th events. (Goal 4.)

2. Form into sub-committees, either using the ones established or creating new ones; the ones established are focused around a) peace and justice in the Middle East, which includes Iraq; b) peace and justice in the Americas and African countries, and globalization. (All the goals.)

3. Create a database of area groups and organizations that work for peace and justice. This could be a networking database. (Goals 1 & 4.)

4. Sponsor a refugee family from Iraq or Afghanistan. (Goals 4 & 5.)

5. Hold teach-ins and have speakers provide information regarding relevant issues. (All goals.)

6. Educate ourselves and others. (Goals1,2,3,& 4.)

7. Sponsor a forum of speakers from different organizations regarding their positions with respect to non-violence, peace and justice. (All goals.)

8. Develop creative ways of dispersing information. (Goals 1 & 4.)

9. Garner the attention of different media in creative ways. (Goals 1 & 4.)

10. Engage in specific political actions that promote non-violence, peace and justice; e.g. rice in the mail to Bush and/or Chrétien. (Goal 4.)

11. Meditate together and share in activities that build community and strengthen our inner beings. (Goal 5.)

12. Break bread together. (Goal 5.)

13. Live with personal integrity. (Goals 3 &5.)