In the lead up to the 25th anniversary of Rotary International’s Peace Fellowship program in 2027, Rotary Down Under sat down with Peace Centre Director Sebastian Kaempf to talk all things war and peace.

PHOTOS: @rhysmartinphotographer

“I never thought that war and peace would be a subject I would take,” says Associate Professor Sebastian Kaempf, as we stroll through the towering, heritage-listed sandstone arches of the Great Court at The University of Queensland in Brisbane.

“Being German originally, anything to do with conflict in particular was something you would not necessarily get taught at university. It would be more purely on peace studies and conflict resolution. But for me as a student, it became a really fascinating aspect to be forced to look into violence, because I’m a strong believer in us needing to understand what it is that causes people to turn to violence in order to be able to then resolve it.”

Precy Babalola talks confidence, self-determination and lasting change.
The wife of Rotary International President Yinka Babalola, Precy has her own lifelong connection to Rotary. From empowering communities in the Niger Delta to presenting behind podiums across the globe, Precy’s belief in herself has helped her aid and inspire countless others.

Words: Sarah Atkins. No Borders Rotaract.

If you look through Precy Peacockba Babalola’s Instagram page, you will quickly notice that it isn’t the typical social media platform of a public figure. It’s bursting with life, dance, laughter and an effervescent use of colour.

In early July this year, Ian Ballantine and I headed to Western Samoa for a 10 day holiday, in the company of several of my extended family for a casual family reunion. My mother was born in Western Samoa and I have some distant relatives living there (for those wondering, I am ~ 1/8th Samoan and seem to manifest mostly my father’s caucasian genes!) In a twist of fate, last year the Alfred Hospital hosted several clinicians (doctors and nurses) from several pacific nations to undertake an observership and course aiming to develop clinical and leadership capabilities, quality improvement initiatives and foster healthcare collaborations. This was an initiative funded by the Australian Government (DFAT) and run by Alfred Health. Dr Sebastian Paulo is a senior emergency registrar from the hospital in Apia, Western Samoa who attended this workshop. Unfortunately I didn’t meet Dr Paulo during this visit but there is an ongoing connection with one of my Alfred colleagues, Dr Su’e Lagaaia, a Samoan-born Alfred Emergency Physician.

 

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