People Educating with an Active Commitment to Equality (P.E.A.C.E.) began as an organization dedicated to helping people promote change in the global environment by actively voicing their opinions.

“P.E.A.C.E. provides a forum that allows people to express individual interests and recognize commonalities that we have that can be used to move forward,” P.E.A.C.E. coordinator Molly Ramey said.

Ramey and Adrien Lopez serve as coordinators for P.E.A.C.E. There is no president. The group is set up as an open forum with no set agenda. At the start of the meetings, members raise issues to form an agenda. Each topic is then discussed in detail.

“This organization tries to keep everyone in a leadership position,” Ramey said.

The organization hosts many events on campus, such as drum circles in the commons, film presentations and they distribute literature. Recently, the group hosted the Julia Butterfly Hill lecture and Wilmington Wake-Up Week.

Members of the group also attend conferences to voice their issues. The group went to Raleigh April 17 and met with citizens from around N.C. to advocate a moratorium on the death penalty. They are also aiding in the passage of a bill that would repeal the death penalty for the mentally retarded.

The organization also holds monthly “SpeakEasys,” or political rant parties. “We have pulled together a lot of people this way, relaxing in a social atmosphere discussing politics, environmentalism, feminism, racism, etc. with each other,” Ramey said. Lopez said, in order to address a variety of issues, P.E.A.C.E. tries to recruit a diverse group of individuals. The organization focuses on activism, politics, global perspectives and human rights.

“P.E.A.C.E. tackles a lot of issues at once because we see the importance of recognizing the strength in difference,” Lopez said.

The group formed a year ago while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) protest was occurring in Washington, D.C. last April.

“We saw that there were various groups on campus and in the community and all over the globe that were all struggling against an economic system that exploits both humans and the environment,” Ramey said.

The organization uses advertising fliers, The Outrider and their new publication, Progress, to encourage people to come to the meetings. Though P.E.A.C.E. focuses mainly on the community, the group also seeks the involvement of faculty and students.

“This group is community oriented, which is important at UNC Wilmington,” Lopez said. “We need to involve the public in more things on campus.”

P.E.A.C.E. meets every Wednesday at 6 p.m. in room 207 of the University Union.

“Don’t think that you have to be an activist to attend. We’re an umbrella group trying to facilitate collaborative efforts to make positive change in our community, country, and earth,” Ramey said.

For more information about P.E.A.C.E. visit their web site at www.portcitypeace.org.