SGI and the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF) co-organized the Choose Hope Symposium from 12–13 March 2025 at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA. The event honored the legacies of David Krieger, NAPF Founder and President Emeritus, and Daisaku Ikeda, SGI President, both of whom passed away in late 2023. The symposium’s title derived from the title of the book Choose Hope: Your Role in Waging Peace in the Nuclear Age, which came as a result of the dialogue between Daisaku Ikeda and David Krieger. 

The symposium started with the 20th Frank K. Kelly Lecture on Humanity’s Future on the evening of 12 March and  was delivered by Annie Jacobsen, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of Nuclear War: A Scenario. Jacobsen shared that her motivation for writing the book was to answer the question, ”What happens if nuclear deterrence fails?” By sharing conversations she had with sources who have firsthand knowledge of the decision-making process within the United States leadership and chain of command, Jacobsen concluded that nuclear war will always end in total annihilation, no matter how it begins. 

Jacobsen’s lecture was followed by a video message from Masako Wada of Nihon Hidankyo, who shared her own testimony of surviving the atomic bombing in Nagasaki. She urged the participants to share with others the realities of the devastating consequences of nuclear weapons. 

After the video, a panel of experts, including Professor Emeritus Richard Falk (Princeton University), Dr. Jimmy Hara (Physicians for Social Responsibility–Los Angeles), Professor Peter Kuznick (American University) and Melissa Parke (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons), —explored key challenges in nuclear disarmament and global security. Dr. Ivana Nikolić Hughes, President of NAPF, moderated. The panel praised Jacobsen’s book for offering a unique discourse in emphasizing the dangers of nuclear weapons and for cautioning about today’s geopolitical climate that contributes to the increasing threats of nuclear war. 

On 13 March, an all-day symposium was held at the Music Academy. Dr. Hughes and Tomohiko Aishima of SGI opened the symposium with reflections on its themes of disarmament, peace and global cooperation. Aishima shared how he witnessed the exchanges between Daisaku Ikeda and David Krieger as a former reporter at Seikyo Shimbun. He stated, “Their dialogue did not merely dwell on the ideals of nuclear abolition—what impressed me most was that it was a call to action, rooted in practical solutions.” Perie Longo, NAPF Board Member and Santa Barbara Poet Laureate, read poems by both Ikeda and Krieger. 

The symposium then proceeded to a series of three panel discussions, as well as a conversation with film director Andrew Davis. The events addressed themes such as deterrence, disarmament, the roles of art and media, nuclear justice, youth activism and synergies between nuclear abolition and climate justice. 

While moderating the first panel, titled “From Deterrence to Disarmament: The Path Forward,” Chie Sunada of SGI pointed out the worrying trends among nuclear-weapon and nuclear-dependent states elevating the role of nuclear weapons in their national security strategies. Sunada remarked that, in contrast, countries present at the Third Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), held at the UN Headquarters in NY just the week before, asserted that nuclear deterrence itself threatens the survival of all. 

Ambassador Elayne Whyte, who presided over the UN conference that successfully negotiated and adopted the TPNW as the Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the UN that time, emphasized that if we continue to take action to promote nuclear disarmament, the time will surely come when the results of our efforts will bear fruit. She also stressed the importance of inclusive processes, as well as having sincere dialogue and exchanging opinions, even with those with whom we disagree.

Anna Ikeda of SGI spoke as a panelist on the second panel titled “Legacy of Nuclear Use and Testing: A Call for Justice.” Ikeda shared stories of hibakusha and the challenges they have suffered in terms of their health, discrimination and psychological trauma. She urged the audience to share the stories they hear at the symposium with others and join the hibakusha’s fight for a world free of nuclear weapons. 

“Nuclear justice means establishing a clear public opinion that using, testing or threatening to use nuclear weapons cannot be justified under any circumstances. It means creating a world where people have the imaginative empathy to become concerned about whose security might be sacrificed in the name of national security,” she stated. 

Also among the panelists was Mary Dickson, a downwinder who has written and spoken extensively about the human cost of US nuclear testing. A thyroid cancer survivor herself, Dickson shared her personal accounts that deeply touched the audience. 

“Too many of our friends and neighbors have become ill or died. I counted 54 people in my childhood neighborhood who developed cancers, tumors, autoimmune disorders and other illnesses that ravaged their families, as well as infertility, miscarriages and babies born with birth defects. A great school classmate of mine died when she was 10 of a brain tumor. Four weeks later, her four year old brother died of testicular cancer. Their devastated mother asked their pediatrician if it was a coincidence that 10 other people in the neighborhood had brain tumors as well, and the casualties, I have to tell you, continue to mount. I'm still meeting people from that neighborhood who had cancer, and of all the downwinders I worked most closely with in Utah, I'm the only one still living.”

She noted that the true impact of U.S. nuclear testing is unknown, and most downwinders have no awareness that they have been impacted. 

The last panel “The Intersection of Climate and Nuclear Justice: Empowering Youth for Change,” explored the connections between nuclear disarmament and climate activism, highlighting the vital contributions of young leaders in driving transformative change and building a sustainable future. Panelists provided hopeful insights for advancing the nuclear disarmament movement through securing space for young people to contribute their ideas. 

One of the panelists, Anduin Devos of NuclearBan.US, reflected that her engagement with the movement started with her concerns and anxiety for climate change. She urged that all the resources spent to develop and maintain nuclear weapons could be part of climate solutions, underscoring the interconnections between the two issues.

Miyuki Horiguchi of SGI, who moderated the panel, reminded the audience of a section from Choose Hope:

Krieger: I would like young people to join hands across borders and to insist that their elders do so, too, in order to end our present insanity. In short, I would like young people to choose hope.

Ikeda: The hallmark of youth is optimism and high idealism. The young are constantly challenged to open the door to new eras. Hope is another name for youth.