News Headlines

News Highlights from Seikyo Shimbun
(the Soka Gakkai's daily newspaper)

Online Forum Explores Climate Change, Women and Faith Global Meryne Warah, a WFCN Steering Group member and the global program director of GreenFaith, delivering her speech; and Miyuki Hashiguchi (top right), chair of Soka Gakkai Women’s Peace Committee Online Forum Explores Climate Change, Women and Faith Global:
On October 8, the Women, Faith, and Climate Network (WFCN) and the Soka Gakkai Women’s Peace Committee (WPC) cohosted an online forum titled “Kitchen Talk: The nexus of climate and conflict,” attended by some 500 people. Following opening remarks by WPC Chair Miyuki Hashiguchi, two Soka Gakkai members reported on their local initiatives. One had created a version of Farm to School, connecting local farmers with schools in Iwaki City. Today, five of the seven school lunch centers there receive locally grown produce. The other member runs an eco-friendly coffee shop. In her presentation, Meryne Warah, a WFCN Steering Group member and the Global Program Director of GreenFaith, shared how Christian and Muslim women in Ghana had joined with traditional women’s leaders to raise issues affecting their communities and bring change, illustrating that women of faith are uniquely positioned to work for climate solutions in their local communities.
SGI Cohosts Interfaith Webinar on Nuclear Abolition Global SGI Cohosts Interfaith Webinar on Nuclear Abolition Global:
On September 30, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the SGI (Soka Gakkai International) and six other organizations cohosted an interfaith webinar. Titled “Choose Life: Why Faith Communities Must Join—and Lead—the Movement for a World without Nuclear Weapons,” the event brought together religious leaders, scholars and youth advocates.

Speakers representing different faith traditions emphasized their shared belief in the inherent dignity of human life and the moral responsibility to protect it. Emi Kuroda of the SGI stressed the need to challenge the thinking that justifies nuclear weapons, referencing second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda’s September 8, 1957, Declaration Calling for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons.
Southeast Asia General Meeting Held Malaysia Clockwise from top left: The Young Lion Martial Arts Group performing an acrobatic lion dance; SGM youth group gymnastic performance; Tan Boon See from Malaysia giving her faith experience; musicians accompanying the lion dance; and Just Mark Figuracion from the Philippines sharing his faith experience [© Seikyo Shimbun] Southeast Asia General Meeting Held Malaysia:
On September 20, the Southeast Asia General Meeting was held at the Soka Gakkai Malaysia (SGM) Culture Centre in Kuala Lumpur. Participants traveled from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand for the event. Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada, SGI General Director Yoshiki Tanigawa and SGI Vice General Director Kimiko Nagaishi also attended the meeting.

The meeting featured cultural and musical performances, and members from Malaysia and the Philippines gave their faith experiences, sharing how Buddhist practice had positively impacted their lives.
SGIA Holds Events Marking Anniversary of Toda’s Call for Abolition of Nuclear Weapons Australia At the SGI-Australia center in Queensland SGIA Holds Events Marking Anniversary of Toda’s Call for Abolition of Nuclear Weapons Australia:
In September, SGI-Australia (SGIA) held events commemorating second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda’s September 8, 1957, Declaration Calling for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons. On September 6, the first event was held at the Australia Culture Centre in Sydney, featuring a variety of cultural performances. On September 20, SGIA welcomed representatives of the Norwegian peace organization Bikes for Peace to its center in Queensland for an exchange meeting. At the meeting, second generation hibakusha James McHenry shared the testimony of his mother Taeko, who survived atomic bombing of Hiroshima.