Pugwash for Peace
The Pugwash Movement started with the Manifesto issued by Bertrand Russell and Albert Einstein in London, England, in 1955, after the explosion of the first hydrogen bombs by the United States and the Soviet Union.
They called on the scientists of the world to come together and urge governments to renounce war rather than to follow a course that could put an end to the human race.
The first conference was held in the village of Pugwash, Nova Scotia in 1957, at the invitation of Mr. Cyrus Eaton, and brought together scientists from East and West with the aim of preventing nuclear incineration. That conference was attended by 22 scientists from 10 countries.
The Pugwash Movement was born at that first Conference. This was during the dark days of the Cold War when there was very little communication between East and West either on the governmental or non-governmental level.
But the Pugwash scientists decided to meet again and to continue to communicate with each other and with other scientists to exert concerted efforts with a view to help reduce the threat of nuclear war. Since that time the Movement has spread around the world and now encompasses some 2000 scientists including a number of Nobel Laureates in 75 countries.
