Braving the Siberian weather, over 50 6th-form students came with their teachers to LD CND’s afternoon workshop on 22 March 2013 to explore and debate the practical and ethical issues raised by drones, particularly drone warfare.
Led by Peace Education Officer Paul Andrews and with guest speaker Dr Tomasz Pierscionek, this was the third annual event of this kind organised by LDCND. The aim of these workshops is to encourage young people to grapple with questions of war (nuclear and non-nuclear) and peace in the modern world.
The afternoon started with an opening quiz (‘How much do you know about drones?’). This was followed by Tomasz Pierscionek’s guest presentation, leading in turn into a lively question and answer session. The workshop culminated in a kinetic ‘Continuum Exercise’ in which participants moved from one side of the room to the other to express agreement or disagreement with a series of statements about drones, and then explained their positions. This proved highly successful in generating discussion and occasionally quite heated argument.
Evaluative feedback from the students after the event was strongly positive, and participating schools are already looking forward to next year’s workshop. It will probably focus on the concept of the ‘just war’.