Jordan River Valley

The 2000 Distinguished Peace Leader Award was presented to King Hussein of Jordan and accepted on behalf of her late husband by Queen Noor al Hussein of Jordan at a special dinner in Santa Barbara, California on April 6, 2000.
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Inspired by this progress, Jordan hosted in July 1998, the first Middle East Conference on Landmines Injury & Rehabilitation for which I was proud to announce that Jordan was signing the Ottawa Convention which we subsequently ratified.The conference brought together from throughout the Middle East and North Africa the largest group of landmine casualties ever gathered in one place.

My country was an unfortunately appropriate place to convene, because the Middle East is littered with, by estimates, more than half of the world's deployed landmines.In Jordan, children and adults are routinely injured, and about ten percent of our population lives in areas still dangerous and economically unproductive, because of landmines.Scarce agricultural lands and some of the most beautiful and sacred, historic landscapes in the country, especially in the biblical Jordan River Valley, were scarred and forbidden until recently.

Recent events in the news have re-emphasized both the urgency of the fight against landmines, and the tremendous progress we have made.
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In March 2000, His Holiness Pope John Paul II visited Jordan and made a pilgrimage to Bethany, the baptismal site of Jesus Christ.His visit would have been inconceivable only a few short years ago, for the area was then heavily mined.
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Over the past decades, my work in Jordan and abroad has been predicated on this premise: that true security is not only a matter of protecting borders from military aggression, but of providing a stable environment for all citizens, women and men of all races and creeds, to participate fully in commercial and political life.
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For example, the Internet has opened the global market to underprivileged women in Jordan who have been trained by the Noor Al Hussein Foundation to produce handicrafts and industrial garments to sustain themselves and their families.Their products are globally accessible through the world wide website of the NHF, which receives email orders from the US and other markets.This global connection came at an opportune time as the foundation has been turning over the ownership and management of these income generating projects to the women themselves.Such orders will insure their long-term sustainability.

The self-esteem and confidence that these women have acquired is as valuable to them as the substantial additional income they earn.In the empowerment of women, especially at the grassroots level, our projects have transformed development thinking in Jordan by moving beyond traditional ineffective social welfare schemes to enable women to become genuine economic and political forces in their communities, thereby increasing their status and influence at every level.

As a result we have seen significant progress in every aspect of quality of life from literacy to family income to population control.These women are building stable healthy and prosperous communities which in turn can engage in regional partnerships in the wider pursuit of peace.These programs which combine innovation with respect for local values and traditions have received international recognition as development models for the Middle East and the developing world.Through a network of regional partnerships we are supporting their implementation in other countries.Also, as models for sustainable economic growth and political participation, they have not only reinforced social stability and cohesion in Jordan, they are an essential component of our larger quest for justice, peace and understanding in the region and abroad.
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I have seen this process at work in a number of institutions, in Jordan and around the world.For instance, the Jubilee School in Amman, established as a tribute to King Hussein's Silver Jubilee, was originally conceived in 1977 and has now graduated four years of students.It serves promising scholarship students from throughout the region, with special emphasis on less developed areas of Jordan, promoting community service, creative thinking, information technology, leadership and conflict resolution skills.
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Her Majesty Queen Noor al Hussein of Jordan was born Lisa Najeeb Halaby on August 23, 1952 to a distinguished Arab-American family.
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After receiving a BA in Architecture and Urban Planning from Princeton University in 1974, Queen Noor participated in several international urban planning and design projects in Australia, Iran, the US, and Jordan.She married King Hussein of Jordan on June 15, 1978.They have four children, and their family included children from former marriages of King Hussein.

In 1979 Queen Noor chaired the National Committee for the International Year of the Child; she established the Royal Endowment for Culture and Education which provides scholarships for students, especially outstanding women.In 1984 Queen Noor assumed responsibility for the implementation of an educational project to commemorate His Majesty King Hussein's Silver Jubilee and in 1993 established the Jubilee School, an independent coeducational secondary school.

The 2000 Distinguished Peace Leader Award was presented to King Hussein of Jordan and accepted on behalf of her late husband by Queen Noor al Hussein of Jordan at a special dinner in Santa Barbara, California on April 6, 2000.
...
Inspired by this progress, Jordan hosted in July 1998, the first Middle East Conference on Landmines Injury & Rehabilitation for which I was proud to announce that Jordan was signing the Ottawa Convention which we subsequently ratified.The conference brought together from throughout the Middle East and North Africa the largest group of landmine casualties ever gathered in one place.

My country was an unfortunately appropriate place to convene, because the Middle East is littered with, by estimates, more than half of the world's deployed landmines.In Jordan, children and adults are routinely injured, and about ten percent of our population lives in areas still dangerous and economically unproductive, because of landmines.Scarce agricultural lands and some of the most beautiful and sacred, historic landscapes in the country, especially in the biblical Jordan River Valley, were scarred and forbidden until recently.

Recent events in the news have re-emphasized both the urgency of the fight against landmines, and the tremendous progress we have made.The first of these was the horrific flooding in Mozambique.Not only did it leave nearly one million people homeless, threatened by disease and starvation, but in some areas, the floodwaters uncovered buried mines, and washed them from marked minefields to new areas, previously thought of as safe.In 1998 Nicaragua faced the same threat as a result of hurricanes.In these tragic cases, natural disasters joined with man-made ones, therefore posing new and heightened threats to already suffering peoples.

There have been more hopeful signs.
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In March 2000, His Holiness Pope John Paul II visited Jordan and made a pilgrimage to Bethany, the baptismal site of Jesus Christ.His visit would have been inconceivable only a few short years ago, for the area was then heavily mined.There was a sad irony that landmines should hold hostage one of the world's most spiritually significant landscapes, revered by Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Since 1993, we have cleared the Jordan Valley of some 300,000 mines, to allow those who had tilled the land many years ago, to cultivate it again, and others to unearth once more our region's precious history.And now, pilgrims who wish to walk in the paths of the prophets, can do so in safety.This ancient and holy land is no longer desecrated by mines.The Prophet Mohammed said, "imatatu al-'atha 'an al-tareeq sadaqah," the removal of harmful objects from the path is a good deed."
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Over the past decades, my work in Jordan and abroad has been predicated on this premise: that true security is not only a matter of protecting borders from military aggression, but of providing a stable environment for all citizens, women and men of all races and creeds, to participate fully in commercial and political life.

Peace is not merely the absence of hostilities, but a positive human security founded in equity.As King Hussein put it, "What is the real purpose of peace?In our view, it is to promote the security and the prosperity of peoples.Without security, there can be no assured prosperity.And without prosperity, there can be no assured security."

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For example, the Internet has opened the global market to underprivileged women in Jordan who have been trained by the Noor Al Hussein Foundation to produce handicrafts and industrial garments to sustain themselves and their families.Their products are globally accessible through the world wide website of the NHF, which receives email orders from the US and other markets.This global connection came at an opportune time as the foundation has been turning over the ownership and management of these income generating projects to the women themselves.Such orders will insure their long-term sustainability.

The self-esteem and confidence that these women have acquired is as valuable to them as the substantial additional income they earn.In the empowerment of women, especially at the grassroots level, our projects have transformed development thinking in Jordan by moving beyond traditional ineffective social welfare schemes to enable women to become genuine economic and political forces in their communities, thereby increasing their status and influence at every level.

As a result we have seen significant progress in every aspect of quality of life from literacy to family income to population control.These women are building stable healthy and prosperous communities which in turn can engage in regional partnerships in the wider pursuit of peace.These programs which combine innovation with respect for local values and traditions have received international recognition as development models for the Middle East and the developing world.Through a network of regional partnerships we are supporting their implementation in other countries.Also, as models for sustainable economic growth and political participation, they have not only reinforced social stability and cohesion in Jordan, they are an essential component of our larger quest for justice, peace and understanding in the region and abroad.

Education, a Tool for Peace Building

World citizens need to be educated, both in the skills required to participate and prosper in the information economy, and, more importantly, in the skills required for getting along with other citizens of the world.We have seen clearly over the past decades that it is not enough simply to sign a peace treaty.We are very conscious of the importance, if we are to overcome the enmity of previous generations, of encouraging the next generation, the future guardians of peace, to understand both their opportunities in a changing world and their duties towards themselves and others.

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I have seen this process at work in a number of institutions, in Jordan and around the world.For instance, the Jubilee School in Amman, established as a tribute to King Hussein's Silver Jubilee, was originally conceived in 1977 and has now graduated four years of students.It serves promising scholarship students from throughout the region, with special emphasis on less developed areas of Jordan, promoting community service, creative thinking, information technology, leadership and conflict resolution skills.Our graduates excel at the best US and other international universities, committed to return home to their local communities and to make an extraordinary difference.

The problems that these future leaders will have to address will go beyond politics, economics or even peace.Being a citizen of the world means realizing that we have a responsibility to the world itself, as well as to its human inhabitants, and to future generations.

As King Hussein said to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, "Our goal is to ensure that environmental protection becomes as deeply embedded in our national psyche and in our human spirit as our existing commitments to balanced development, pluralism, human rights, and regional peace based on justice and international law.
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Her Majesty Queen Noor al Hussein of Jordan was born Lisa Najeeb Halaby on August 23, 1952 to a distinguished Arab-American family.
...
After receiving a BA in Architecture and Urban Planning from Princeton University in 1974, Queen Noor participated in several international urban planning and design projects in Australia, Iran, the US, and Jordan.She married King Hussein of Jordan on June 15, 1978.They have four children, and their family included children from former marriages of King Hussein.

In 1979 Queen Noor chaired the National Committee for the International Year of the Child; she established the Royal Endowment for Culture and Education which provides scholarships for students, especially outstanding women.In 1984 Queen Noor assumed responsibility for the implementation of an educational project to commemorate His Majesty King Hussein's Silver Jubilee and in 1993 established the Jubilee School, an independent coeducational secondary school.

The Noor Al Hussein Foundation was established In 1985 to initiate and support both regional and international projects that promote community, self-reliance, and equal opportunity.In 1999 the King Hussein Foundation was established and chaired by Queen Noor, dedicated to give meaningful expression to the late King's humanitarian vision and legacy with emphasis on democracy and peace, education and leadership, environment and health.

In 1999 Queen Noor became the Patron of the Landmines Survivors Network and a member of the Advisory Board of the International Campaign to Ban Land-Mines.Queen Noor is patron of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and president of United World Colleges.Queen Noor joined the Advisory Council of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation in April 2000.