Since its beginning, Edy Korthals Altes (1924)  was an active and enthusiastic friend of the SPES-forum and the European SPES Institute. He was the eldest active member of SPES. During the Annual SPES Conference in Ypres, Belgium (April 10-12, 2014) he presented a paper which is representative for his lifelong commitment A Culture of Peace: Common Ground for Joint Action ‘ (published in Business, Ethics and Peace, Emerald, 2015, pp. 75-86).  Until the end of his life he was a fighter for peace. He passed away on the Christian Day of Peace, December 25, 2021 at the age of  98.

His life is a source of inspiration and hope for all of us. He started his career as a Dutch diplomat, with a degree in economics, who served as Deputy Permanent Representative at the EEC in Brussels, and as Ambassador in Warsaw, and finally Madrid. He resigned in 1986, in connection with his public stance on the arms race. Since then, he has been an outspoken proponent of global peace and security, inter-religious cooperation, and spiritual renewal as Vice Chairman of the Dutch chapter of the Pugwash Movement (1987-’95), Chairman of the Section International Affairs of the Netherlands Council of Churches (1990-’96), Co-president of the European Ecumenical Commission on Development, EECOD,1991-’93, and President of the World Conference of Religions for Peace (1994-’99).  He was a fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science and fellow of the European SPES Institute.  His publications include Heart and Soul for Europe: An Essay on Spiritual Renewal  (Van Gorcum Ltd, Assen,1999) and   Spiritual Awakening: The Hidden Key to Peace and Security, Just and Sustainable Economics, Peeters Publishers, Leuven (2008).

Remember him as a man of Hope!

Luk Bouckaert, January 2, 2022