Peace Literacy 2 – Navigating Non-Physical Needs, Trauma, and the Tech Tsunami is the next step for anyone passionate about teaching peace in today’s complex and tech-saturated world.
Through five weeks of online, trauma-informed instruction, this course expands on the foundational work of Peace Literacy 1 by diving deep into the non-physical needs that shape human behavior—needs often overlooked in traditional peace and education models.
You'll explore how trauma, social media, and emerging technologies intersect with these needs, and what we can do to foster peace, clarity, and resilience—especially for children and youth navigating a digital world.
As smartphones, video games, AI, and social platforms dominate our lives, teaching peace becomes not just relevant, but urgent.
This course is rooted in a trauma-informed framework, empowering educators and community leaders to build safer, more compassionate environments.
Drawing on leadership principles from West Point and the disciplined nonviolence training of Civil Rights leaders, Peace Literacy 2 introduces a powerful new dimension: understanding how unmet non-physical needs and trauma make us—and especially children on social media—more vulnerable to digital manipulation and emotional unrest.
This course equips you to be part of the solution.
Peace Literacy 2 builds on a proven foundation and adds an urgent lens: the rise of digital technologies and how they interact with human psychology and trauma.
Our unique curriculum is guided by three core questions:
By blending peace education with insights about AI, AR, and VR, and using a trauma-informed lens, this course helps participants understand and address the ways in which emerging technologies are becoming new peace issues—particularly in the lives of young people.
This course empowers you with tools, insights, and language for navigating peace-building in a digital, often disconnected world. Whether you’re working in a classroom, community, or counseling setting, you’ll develop skills grounded in nonviolence training and digital awareness.
You will:
By the end of the course, you will have a deeper understanding of the non-physical needs that drive both personal and social behavior, and how these needs shape our responses to conflict, connection, and community.
You will be equipped to use a trauma-informed approach to support healthier human development across diverse environments.
You will explore how children interact with social media in ways that can either intensify unmet needs or offer opportunities for healing—and how adults can help guide those interactions more intentionally.
In addition, you will be able to identify both the risks and potential of emerging technologies like AI, AR, and VR, gaining the insight needed to navigate the digital landscape with awareness and empathy.
Ultimately, you will leave with practical strategies for teaching peace—both online and offline—and applying it in classrooms, communities, and professional spaces where real-world impact matters most.
You will cover these essential questions:
This course is designed for anyone interested in nonviolence training and peace education in the context of today’s digital and psychological realities.
Ideal participants include:
If you’re ready to explore peace as a teachable skill—and understand the role of trauma and tech in shaping today’s conflicts—this course is for you.
Shari Clough, Ph.D., earned a doctorate in the History and Philosophy of Science from Simon Fraser University in B.C., as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies, and an honors B.A. in Social Psychology, both from the University of Calgary in Alberta.
Stephanie Clapes, M.Ed., is a Learning Specialist with expertise in early childhood education and a focus on integrating Peace Literacy into elementary classrooms. She brings a trauma-informed perspective and has co-developed curriculum with Paul K. Chappell to help children connect developmental needs with peace-building skills.
Paul K. Chappell, a West Point graduate, veteran of the war in Iraq, and founder and Executive Director of the Peace Literacy Institute, serves as our course advisor
Peace Literacy 2 – Navigating Non-Physical Needs, Trauma, and the Tech Tsunami is more than just a professional development course. It’s a new way of seeing the world—and the peace-building challenges of tomorrow.
You’ll receive:
Shari Clough, Ph.D., earned a doctorate in the History and Philosophy of Science from Simon Fraser University in B.C., as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies, and an honors B.A. in Social Psychology, both from the University of Calgary in Alberta. She began working at Oregon State University in 2003 and is now a full professor in the School of History, Philosophy, and Religion as well as the Director of Phronesis Lab: Experiments in Engaged Ethics. Clough has co-facilitated workshops with Paul Chappell across the US and Canada, in person, online, and increasingly, in virtual reality. She serves as the Peace Literacy Curriculum Coordinator and as President of the Board of Directors at the Peace Literacy Institute.
Paul K. Chappell serves as our advisor. Chappell is an international peace educator, founder of Peace Literacy, and Executive Director of the Peace Literacy Institute. He graduated from West Point in 2002, was deployed to Iraq, and left active duty as a Captain. Realizing that humanity is facing new challenges that require us to become as well-trained in waging peace as soldiers are in waging war, Chappell created Peace Literacy to help students and adults from all backgrounds work toward their full potential and a more peaceful world.