Peace Boat (ピースボート, Pīsu Bōto) is a global non-government organization headquartered in Japan established for the purpose of raising awareness and building connections internationally among groups that work for peace, human rights, environmental protection and sustainable development. "Peace Boat" may also refer to one of the ships embarking on a cruise under the Peace Boat organization. Since its founding in 1983, the Shinjuku, Tokyo based organization has launched more than 100 voyages. These cruises, the main operation of the Peace Boat organization, are on average carried out at least three times a year. Peace Boat, described by the San Francisco Chronicle as a "floating university of sorts", offers educational opportunities aboard, with conferences related to global events. They also provide humanitarian aid at their various stops and visit local organizations. Besides the international voyages, Peace Boat carries out a number of other projects seeking justice in various international realms such as a campaign for the abolition of land mines, the Global Article 9 Conference to Abolish War, the Global Hibakusha Forums, and others onboard and in ports. Peace Boat also acts as the Northeast Asia regional secretariat of the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, and is member of ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons), having played a significant role in negotiations to strengthen the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 2017. Peace Boat is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations and a committed campaigner for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
History
In 1983, Yoshioka Tatsuya and Kiyomi Tsujimoto, then students of Waseda University, initiated Peace Boat in answer to Japanese history textbook controversies. With the assistance of like-minded students, they organized the first voyage. Peace Boat has since visited more than 270 ports with over 70,000 participants. During the first six years after it was founded, Peace Boat ran one- to two-week long cruises to various Asian countries around Japan at the rate of one per year. Time on the boat was used to hold lectures and events with guest speakers invited from the countries to be visited. When at port, international exchange events were carried out with local NGOs and student groups. This became the foundational style for which the rest of the cruises would be based on. In 1990, the 10th Peace Boat cruise marked the beginning of the circumnavigational cruise series. During the cruise, the Gulf War broke out and the ship encountered a US aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. After the success of first round-the-world cruise, Peace Boat continued them on a regular basis.
In 1991, after the fall of the Soviet Union, Peace Boat set out to the Kuril Islands with the notion of a citizen's diplomacy mission, stopping at Iturup, Kunashir, and Shikotan islands. There were homestays and tours. This was the first trip made to these islands without a visa by an NGO from Japan. Over the past 30 years, Peace Boat has organized over 100 voyages, including more than 60 around-the-world voyages, carrying over 70,000 participants to over 270 ports. The participants range from toddlers to people in their 90s, from many different countries and professions. The organization was nominated for the Nobel Prize in 2008.
Ships During its history, Peace Boat has chartered many different vessels.
Current Fleet
Future Fleet
Former Fleet
Ship Description Olvia is operated by Peace Boat, was built in 1976. She was built by Oy Wartsila AB, Turku Shipyard, Finland, initially as a cruise/car ferry. Later, she was operated under various names, including M.S. Leonid Brezhnev and M.S. Kareliya, before being named Olvia. Peace Boat chartered her from K&O Shipping of Ukraine for a period. formerly known as Kareliya & Leonid Brezhnev and she was beached for scrapped in 2022 The Topaz (31,500 GT) was a transatlantic ocean liner built in 1955 as Empress of Britain and operated as Peace Boat between 2000 and 2008. Clipper Pacific (18,416 GT) was built in 1970 for Royal Caribbean and operated for Peace Boat briefly in 2008. However, due to numerous repeated problems with the ship, the charter was cut short, ending in Piraeus, Greece instead of ending in Japan as scheduled. Mona Lisa (28,891 GRT) was built in 1966 by a shipyard in Scotland and chartered to replace the Clipper Pacific; she completed the remainder of the voyage and operated as Peace Boat between 2008 and 2009. Oceanic (38,772 GT) was built in 1965 by an Italian shipyard and operated as Peace Boat between 2009 and 2012. Ocean Dream (32,265 GT) was built in 1981 by a Danish shipyard and operated as Peace Boat between 2012 and 2020. In July 2019 The Zenith (47,413 GT) was announced to leave Pullmantur's fleet in early 2020 to join Peace Boat. The ship was delivered to Peace Boat in February 2020 and renamed The Zenith. Since 2020, Peace Boat is operating the Pacific World. which replaces the Ocean Dream and The Zenith.
Other projects
Landmine Abolition Campaign Since 1998, Peace Boat has continually run a project called P-MAC, or Peace Boat Mine Abolition Campaign, to support organizations carrying out landmine removal in such countries as Cambodia and Afghanistan. In the world there are approximately 110 million landmines in the ground, and even now many continue to be injured or lose their life without a trace. Most of these victims are not combatants but normal civilians. As of 2009, through a number of campaigns, Peace Boat raised money to clear 886,472 sq meters of landmine inundated areas and open five elementary schools. Fund raising campaigns are ongoing.
Peace Ball Project Since 1999, Peace Boat has donated over 12,000 soccer balls to 43 countries. The Peace Ball project delivers soccer balls and other sports equipment to disadvantaged children, and uses the power of the world's most popular sport to build bridges of communication and solidarity.
GET Language Programme Launched in 1999, the onboard GET language programme allows participants to communicate more effectively with the people they meet onboard and in port. The programme focuses on oral communication, viewing languages as global tools for international and intercultural exchange, and combines onboard classroom study with exchange programmes and home-stays in selected ports of call.
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