Jimmy Carter

Former President Jimmy Carter received the first Albert Schweitzer Humanitarian Award from Quinnipiac President John L. Lahey and delivered a lecture marking the 50th anniversary of Albert Schweitzer's call for an end to nuclear weapons Sept. 26.

“It’s an honor for me to be associated in this way with one of my longtime heroes, Dr. Albert Schweitzer,” Carter said before several thousand students and faculty and staff members. The lecture was not open to the public but was streamed live on the University's Web site. (An archived version of the Webcast is available at the bottom of the page.)

Schweitzer was a philosopher and humanitarian who received the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize. Carter received the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize and is a member of the honorary board of Quinnipiac’s Albert Schweitzer Institute, a nonprofit organization conducting domestic and international programs linking education, ethics and voluntarism. Carter received the Nobel Prize for decades of effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, for advancing democracy and human rights, and for promoting economic and social development.

Carter discussed nuclear weapons development and efforts by countries and organizations to eliminate nuclear weapons since the 1970s. “When I became president, I inherited the awesome threat of a nuclear holocaust during the later years of the Cold War when the United States and Soviet Union confronted each other with arsenals of an indescribable power,” Carter said.

Fear of retaliation prevented both countries from launching nuclear weapons. “This mutual threat strengthened our commitment to peace,” Carter said.

Carter criticized the United States and other countries for not doing more to eliminate the approximately 30,000 nuclear weapons worldwide.

“In rejecting or evading almost all nuclear arms control agreements negotiated during the last 50 years, the United States of America has become a prime obstacle to preventing nuclear proliferation,” Carter said.

Carter’s outspoken lecture impressed students. “I thought it was inspiring that as a former president he wasn’t afraid to speak negatively about the current president,” said junior Andrew Fanelli, an accounting major from Malverne, N.Y.

He praised legislation introduced by Sens. Richard Lugar and Sam Nunn in 1991 for the United States and Russia to properly dispose of Russia’s enormous nuclear stockpiles. “This wise and effective program is in danger now because of a lack of adequate financing, because of no real effort in Washington or Moscow to fulfill the promises that were made,” Carter said.

“It’s bold of him to say that, but it’s valid because he leads by such great example and works so hard on international issues,” said senior Jennifer Ellsworth, a social services major form Burlington, Conn. “To see the United States and other nations not follow through is frustrating.”

Carter warned about Iran’s denial of intentions to use enriched uranium for weapons, claiming its nuclear weapons are only for peaceful purposes. Iran signed and swore to abide by the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty of 1970 to end all nuclear weapons. “It’s disturbing to remember that this same explanation has been given in the past by India, Pakistan and North Korea and has led to atomic weapons in every case,” Carter case.

During the question-and-answer session following his lecture, with questions from students presented by David Ives, executive director of the Albert Schweitzer Institute, Carter suggested the United States can persuade Iran to not develop nuclear weapons.

“We don’t know what Iran is going to do,” Carter said. “I think the best approach is for the United States to open full and unrestrained discussions or communications or diplomatic relations with Iran, and to reassure the Iranian people through regular channels of diplomacy that they are not the next target to be attacked after we attacked Iraq,” Carter said to applause.

He also questioned why candidates for president are not talking more about threats from nuclear weapons. “As far as I know, none of these issues I just outlined to you has been mentioned in the ongoing political debates involving the next president of the United States,” Carter said.

His lecture preceded a daylong conference, “Albert Schweitzer’s Legacy: The Dangers of Nuclear Weapons,” on Sept. 27.

President John L. Lahey, left, Jimmy Carter and David Taylor Ives, executive director of the Albert Schweitzer Institute.	Luis Alberto Cordero, left, executive director of the Arias Foundation for Peace and Human Progress, Carter and Ives.
From left: Hirotami Yamada, secretary general of Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Survivors Network; Carter; Kohta Kiya, secretary general of Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Survivors Network; and interpreter Masa Yano.	Jeffrey Meyer, associate law professor, Carter and Linda Meyer, law professor.
Carter greets Terry W. Goodwin '67, chair of Quinnipiac’s board of trustees, while Ives looks on.	From left: Kynia Ortiz, a junior nursing major; Kelsey Ives, a sophomore sociology major; Annmarie Mangano, a senior history major; Carter; Andrew Fanelli, a junior accounting major; Jennifer Ellsworth, a senior social services major; and Zinacay Quinones, a senior health sciences major.
Members from the UN Office of Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) from left to right: Michael Cassandra, chief, monitoring, database and information branch, UNODA; Gabrele Kraatz-Wadsack, chief, weapons of mass destruction branch of UNODA; Carter; Randy Rydell, senior political affairs, Office of the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs; Sergio Duarte, high representative  for disarmament affairs; Ioan Tudor, special assistant to the high representative for disarmament affairs; Tom Markram, senior political affairs, WMD branch of UNODA.	Marcus McCraven, board of trustee member, with Carter