Ahead of Raksha Bandhan on August 28, Sister Sabita Geer of the Brahma Kumaris United Nations Office tied rakhis on University for Peace (UPeace) Vice Rector Juan Carlos Sainz-Borgo and Melissa Wild, founding executive director of UPeace New York.
Raksha Bandhan celebrates “loyalty and harmony” and is widely observed across the Indian diaspora, including by organizations such as the Brahma Kumaris.
“In a time when the United Nations is calling us to be Better Together, Raksha Bandhan offers a timeless reminder that lasting collaboration begins with trust, respect, and the power of pure love, and inner transformation becomes the foundation for creating a more peaceful, compassionate, and united world,” the Brahma Kumaris United Nations Office said in a statement.
Sainz-Borgo thanked the Brahma Kumaris for what he described as a vivid manifestation of one of the university’s areas of study, “peace as a practice.”
Advertisement
He also highlighted the university’s longstanding ties with India, one of its founding members. India played an important role in securing recognition from the United Nations General Assembly for the university’s establishment.
A statue of Mahatma Gandhi occupies a prominent place on the university’s grounds in San José, Costa Rica. Indian dignitaries, including the vice president and the minister of state for external affairs, have visited the institution and interacted with students and faculty.
The university’s academic coordinator, Professor Mihir Kanade, is an Indian human rights scholar.
