PEACE STUDIES: BASICS AND ISSUES

Although questions of peace are diff erent in context, for specific questions today, we need a science of peace in a universal sense. It is true that sometimes talking about peace is too unspecifi ed and therefore too general. The term peace in its common sense has passed its peak. Instead of talking about peace we prefer talking much more concretely and bindingly for example about (racism and) intercultural learning, (violence in family and) nonviolent education, (exploitation and) fair economic structures, (war and) nonviolent confl ict transformation, (patriarchalism and) gender awareness, (ecological destruction and) animal protection. Developments of differentiation are positive. We can meet questions of peace on different levels of living together and in diff erent parts of our life and therefore in a lot of terms describe special problem areas. Anyway we have to reflect on the universal dimensions as well as the principles of peace. Using the term makes sense furthermore