Teachers for Peace are a professional non -profit group working to promote peace and disarmament.
It was formed in 2022 in response to the growing normalisation of war in Australia and beyond.
The organisation’s three key goals are to:
- Identify policies that education departments can adopt to promote peace
- Identify and remove weapons industry influence on school STEM curricula
- Educate students, colleagues, and communities on the costs of war and the benefits of peace and disarmament
The group argues that companies which make lethal armaments are interfering in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education programs across the country, influencing primary, secondary and tertiary students to have a positive attitude toward the arms industry.
For example:
- Lockheed Martin is a major sponsor of STEM education programs, including Code Quest and the National Youth Science Forum
- Raytheon sponsors Maths Alive and the Advanced Technology Industry School Pathways Program
- Northrop Grumman is involved with the Northrup Grumman Foundation Teachers Academy, Space Camp, STEM Camp and Cyber Taipan.
With their partners, including education unions, Teachers for Peace has successfully lobbied the Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria education policies to explicitly identify weapons or armament manufacturers as inappropriate partners for schools.
QPLC encourages Friends to share information about Teachers for Peace, including possible actions, with their networks https://teachersforpeace.com.au/