A South Coast based non-profit has been one of the leaders in global nuclear disarmament efforts. The visionary man who co-founded the Santa Barbara based Nuclear Age Peace Foundation David Krieger is retiring this year, and is being honored this weekend.
Krieger says it’s been a roller coaster, with some successes, but also lots of backpedaling, especially by the U.S. government.
Krieger says they wanted the Foundation to be more than a think tank, but an organization taking action to promote nuclear disarmament. The longtime Foundation leader says they started reaching out to other nuclear disarmament groups around the world, creating a global peace coalition. The coalition won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts on a groundbreaking no nukes disarmament treaty.
But, Krieger says a group of major nuclear powers, with the U.S. in front, continues to block disarmament efforts. Krieger says the lack of leadership in disarmament by the big powers has left the door open for smaller countries like India, Pakistan, and Israel to develop their own nuclear weapons.
One of the most frustrating things for the movement is some of the recent backpedaling. For instance, both the U.S. and Russia abandoned the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty this year, a 1980’s agreement which resulted in the removal of thousands of mid-range nuclear missiles. Krieger says the Trump administration is backing away from disarmament efforts.
Krieger written or co-authored more than two dozen books, and is one of the best known, and most respected leaders of the disarmament movement in the world.
He’s the first to admit that there’s a lot of work to be done.
Krieger is going to receive his organization’s highest honor this weekend at a dinner in Montecito. It’s the Distinguished Peace Leadership Award. Past honorees include the Dalai Lama, Queen Noor and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
