Founding The Peace Club in Dunedin
Best Apisit Uthakhamkong founded The Peace Club in Dunedin in 2018. It is a registered charitable trust that promotes peace, mindfulness, and compassion among young people in New Zealand. At its peak, the club had 250 student members and 20 executive members across the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic.
The Peace Club started as a small student initiative at Otago Polytechnic. The idea was simple: that peace in the world starts with peace within each person, and that young people are well-placed to carry that message. Over time, the club grew and was formally registered as a charitable trust under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957 (registration number 50104410, NZBN 9429050586431). It operates across both the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic and is affiliated with the Otago University Students Association.
Between 2018 and 2023, The Peace Club ran a wide range of programmes. Otago Peace Day brought 77 students together for a community meditation on the University lawn in February 2021. On the same day, club volunteers ran meditation sessions for 30 children at a kindergarten in South Dunedin. Weekly meditation classes ran through the first semester, with six to ten students attending regularly.
From March to June 2021, club members delivered free online English courses to over 700 students in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar, running every Saturday and Sunday via Zoom. Scholarships worth NZD 3,450 were provided through the Dhammachai Education Foundation and the Dhammachai International Research Institute. The club also produced a short documentary film called Peace is Possible, funded by the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, and organised an Art for Peace competition, volunteer teaching trips to Thailand, and cultural outreach across Dunedin.
The Peace Club received support from a number of organisations, including the University of Otago, Dunedin City Council, Otago Community Trust, the Peace and Disarmament Education Trust, Lottery Community, the Ethnic Communities Development Fund, and Global Youth Mobilization at the United Nations Foundation. For Uthakhamkong, the club was never just a student project. It was a long-term commitment to building something real in the community, and one he is genuinely proud of.
The Peace Club defines peace not just as the absence of conflict, but as the presence of justice, hope, opportunity, and dignity. That definition shaped every programme the club ran. Members came from many different backgrounds, religions, and cultures, and that diversity was a strength. The club welcomed everyone.
Date
Founded 2018, active 2018 to Present
Role
Founder and President
Organisation
The Peace Club (Trust), Dunedin.
Ket funders
Dunedin City Council
Otago Community Trust
Ethnic Communities Development Fund
UN Foundation
Website
thepeace.co.nz