At the International Conference Center Hiroshima on 24 August 2025, SGI and the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF) co-organized the event “Choose Hope Symposium in Hiroshima: Renewing Our Commitment for a Future Without Nuclear Weapons.” The event, sponsored by Mayors for Peace, the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and the UNITAR Association, honored the legacies of David Krieger, NAPF Founder and President Emeritus, and Daisaku Ikeda, SGI President. The two coauthored the dialogue Choose Hope: Your Role in Waging Peace in the Nuclear Age, which reminds us that in a world torn by conflict, we must actively plant the seeds of peace and unity. To reinforce their shared vision and hope in society, SGI and NAPF first co-organized the Choose Hope Symposium on 12–13 March 2025, in Santa Barbara, California. The Hiroshima gathering was the second time the symposium was held, with approximately 400 participants in attendance.

To begin, a video titled “Choose Hope—David Krieger and Daisaku Ikeda” was screened, highlighting themes from their dialogue. Tomohiko Aishima, Executive Director of Peace and Global Issues of SGI, and Dr. Ivana Nikolić Hughes, President of NAPF, opened the symposium. Dr. Hughes presented her original poem “Dear Sadako,” dedicated to Sadako Sasaki, who died at the age of twelve from the effects of the atomic bomb, expressing her deep commitment to a world free of nuclear weapons. Aishima shared the story of his late aunt’s experience as a survivor—that she herself had never spoken about—reminding participants of the countless untold experiences of war and the atomic bombing. Both affirmed their determination to carry on the struggles of Daisaku Ikeda and David Krieger, who devoted their lives to abolishing nuclear weapons. The event also featured testimony by a second-generation survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Mariko Higashino, as well as a hibaku piano performance by Kimiko Sakai.

Annie Jacobsen, an investigative journalist and author of Nuclear War: A Scenario, gave the keynote address. She discussed the catastrophic threat of nuclear weapons, emphasizing that deterrence is a flawed concept that could lead to global annihilation. A nuclear exchange, triggered by a single attack, would quickly escalate due to automated launch protocols and result in an unavoidable "nuclear winter" that would kill billions. She concluded by advocating for hope and action from ordinary people to eliminate this threat, referencing the hibakusha and their testimonies as a source of courage and mission.

There were also two panel discussions. The first panel was moderated by Chie Sunada, Director of the SGI Disarmament and Human Rights. Dr. Hughes and Jacobsen served as panelists along with Christian N. Ciobanu, NAPF Director of Policy and Advocacy, and Masako Toki, Senior Education Project Manager and Research Associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute in California, USA. 

The first panel, titled “Confronting the Nuclear Threat: TPNW, Nuclear Justice and a Path to Nuclear Abolition,” opened with moderator Chie Sunada raising the question of how the international community should respond to a world where the "nuclear taboo" is weakening and the threat of nuclear war is growing due to repeated threats.

In response, Dr. Hughes described the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) as a beacon of hope in dark times, like a ray of sunlight piercing the darkness. She emphasized the importance of bringing more countries into the discussion to strengthen the TPNW as an international norm and to apply external pressure on nuclear-armed states. In addition, she highlighted the need for citizens of nuclear-armed states and those under the nuclear umbrella to understand what is at stake and to advocate for alternative approaches to their security, human security and budgetary priorities.

The second panel was moderated by Dr. Luli van der Does, Director of the Center for Peace at Hiroshima University under the theme of “Hope in Action: Carrying the Legacy, Building the Future.” Panelists were Sayaka Morii, Soka Gakkai member from Hiroshima; Hideo Asano, communications and media coordinator at the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons; Kenneth Chiu, NAPF communications and media coordinator; and Valeriya Zherebtsova, NAPF intern. 

Chiu highlighted the nexus between nuclear weapons and the climate crisis, emphasizing that nuclear testing has contaminated land, air and water, causing health damage and displacement for local communities. He further pointed out that those who have suffered from such harm are also vulnerable to the impacts of climate crises, stressing that the same injustice has been repeated through different crises. Meanwhile, Asano addressed the significance and necessity of younger generations engaging in policy discussion for future-oriented visions to promote cooperation and collective actions for disarmament. 

Prior to the Choose Hope Symposium, Soka Gakkai members from Hiroshima and Nagasaki joined representatives of the SGI, NAPF and other organizations for a workshop on 23 August 2025. Participants discussed topics highlighted in the March 2025 Choose Hope Symposium Declaration, including challenges to the security narrative based on nuclear deterrence, and the intersection between the environmental crisis and nuclear activism and the role of youth and art. At the end of each discussion, participants shared points that could contribute to an action plan toward a nuclear-weapon-free world.

Here are some comments from participants on the full-day symposium held on 24 August:

“I felt an even greater sense of urgency upon learning that, if a nuclear war were to break out today, humanity and the Earth could be annihilated within just 72 minutes.”

“I was struck by a speaker’s comment that every individual can become a teacher of peace, and I realized that educational opportunities are indispensable.”

“As hibakusha pass away, I learned for the first time that second-generation survivors are now carrying forward the experiences of their ancestors. As the only nation to have experienced atomic bombings in war, Japan has a great responsibility. I feel strongly that I, too, must share what I learned this time with my friends and those around me.”