TED Community » Joanne Tawfilis
About Me
Joanne Tawfilis is the co-founder of the Art Miles Mural Project. Together with her husband, Fouad and based on Joanne’s experiences working with the Widows of Srebrenica, they began facilitating the creation of murals because they both understood the power of art to move and educate people. The first mural, painted on a bullet riddled sheet in Bosnia was a life changing career and personal passion for both and since 1997, the couple have now seen the completion of more than 4,000 murals by ½ million people from over 125 countries.
Joanne Tawfilis is a retired UN diplomatic level executive and has been recognized for her exemplary work with the United Nations Environment Program and the International Atomic Energy Agencies. She has many awards and recognitions; including a Mayors Proclamation for a “Joanne Tawfilis Day” in the City of Vista, California, most recently honored by the My Hero Project at the USC film festival, the International Committee of Artists for Peace, the Bob Marley Peace Award, an Earth Trustee Award from the Earth Society Foundation, and as one of Oprah Winfrey/White House Project “Women Rule”, as one of America’s most notable women leaders and featured in the 2008 November issue of “O” Magazine.
- Location:
- United States, Oceanside, CA
- Current organization:
- Art Miles Mural Project
- Current role:
- Executive Director
- Gender:
- Female
- Areas of expertise:
- Management of People
More About Me
I'm passionate about
Pioneering a sustainable Universal Educational System through the Arts and technology to build classrooms without walls or barriers that is accessible by all
An idea worth spreading
Finding ways to get adults to not only listen to youth, but hear them, continue to paint murals with people from all over the world to give them a visual voice, having children and youth compose music inspired by mural art and creating a virutal international orchestra, and painting mini murals on shoes with personal messages attached to the shoes that are sent to disarmed child soldiers, those in need and letting them know that there is another individual who cares, teaching a culture of peace versus a culture of war through the arts, teaching youth how to produce multi media tools using solar power to share all these cultural experiences and traditions they paint, and finally downsizing bureaucracies and their huge overhead staffs and providing funds to those who produce results
Talk to me about
teaching a culture of peace versus a culture of war
People don't know that I'm good at
writing, painting and photography, public speaking
My TED Story
coming soon
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