Who We Are

Sowing for Peace is a peace centre that strives to cultivate a culture of peace in a multicultural society

Our Mission

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” - Matthew 5:9

Sowing for Peace equips individuals to become everyday peacemakers in a multicultural society.

Our Goal

The primary goal of Sowing for Peace is to create safe spaces for people from diverse backgrounds to learn, reflect, and practice nonviolent lifestyle as active peacemakers.

Strategies

Learning, we learn about the effects of violence, conflict transformation, nonviolent communication, social justice, and peace to cultivate love for ourselves, our neighbors and communities with diverse backgrounds.

Reflecting, we reflect on the root causes of conflict and strong emotions such as anger and fear, our behavior towards others, exploring our needs and expectations in relationships with people, finding the meaning and purpose of our lives, and more.

Practicing, we practice nonviolent communication, being ourselves while respecting others, taking a nonjudgmental approach to people from diverse backgrounds, discovering creative ways to transform conflicts into opportunities to understand each other, and more. 

History

“Sowing for Peace” emerged from conflict transformation classes held at a community center in Toronto in April 2017. Over time, we expanded our reach by organizing workshops in Korean-Canadian communities, as well as other Canadian communities and churches.

A significant milestone in our journey was the ‘chicken soup event’ in January 2020, which marked our first step towards an official launch, aiming to cultivate a culture of peace in Toronto and a multicultural society. With the invaluable support of committee members Tim, Murray, and Wilda, as well as Danforth Mennonite Church, we officially launched ‘Sowing for Peace’ during the Annual General Meeting at Danforth Mennonite Church.

Since our inception, Sowing for Peace has remained committed to cultivating a culture of peace and promoting anti-discrimination, equity, respect, and nonviolence at both individual and societal levels within our multicultural society. We have offered a wide range of workshops on social justice, conflict transformation, spiritual growth, and circle process, along with engaging book clubs for individuals with diverse backgrounds.

Sowing for Peace believes that a culture of peace can be achieved through the efforts of active peacemakers who are willing to learn, reflect, and practice nonviolent behaviors in their daily lives. 

Members

JUNGGYU ANTHONY YANG
Co-Founder

Junggyu was born and raised in South Korea and later pursued a degree in Aerospace Engineering in the United States. During his Ph.D. studies, he underwent a profound transformation after experiencing the love of God, which motivated him to focus on serving marginalized communities. This newfound inspiration led him to leave his previous career in engineering and join the Mennonite community, a peace church, where he received training to become a minister and a peacemaker. Junggyu has been certified as a facilitator of the Alternative to Violence Project (AVP) and had actively engaged in facilitating peace for prisoners and local communities as a staff member of a peace centre in California. Since moving to Toronto in 2016, he has led many workshops and provided coaching for local community members. He is also a prolific writer and shares his thoughts on peacemaking, immigrant life, travel, and book reviews on his personal blog.

HYEJUNG JESSIE YUM
Co-Founder

Hyejung is passionate about facilitating intercultural relationships across differences, including gender, race, abilities, sexuality, and religious tradition. Her doctoral research and teaching at the University of Toronto have focused on violence and peace, decolonization, intersectionality, and religion. Her written works have appeared in multiple journals, magazines, and book chapters. Additionally, she conducted research on decolonizing peace at Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and has been invited as a speaker at Universität Hamburg in Germany, as well as various institutions across North America. Hyejung’s rich background, having been born and raised in Seoul, spending years in Los Angeles, and currently living in Toronto, has ignited her passion to promote equity and understanding across different cultures and walks of life.

Supporters

Murray Lumley
Committee member

I am pleased to support the “Sowing for Peace” mission which I see trying to create the peace of Jesus Christ within all relationships, from personal to community, to corporate, to national and international. 

Wilda Schutz
Committee member

A peaceful path forward is the only alignment with the message of Jesus that makes sense to me. My hope is for a healthy juxtaposition with our humanness and peaceful living. I support Sowing for Peace as it attempts to incorporate a peaceful philosophy for self, others and the wider community.

Danforth Mennonite Church