I had the pleasure of hosting one of the most extraordinary guests I’ve ever had on Chatter That Matters during the 80th sessions of the United Nations Assembly happening in New York.

My guest is someone who has made a powerful and positive impact on our universe: Dr. Oscar Arias, a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and two-time President of Costa Rica.  Oscar takes us back to a time when Central America was on fire, civil wars raged, and the United States and the Soviet Union armed opposing sides. 

The region was drowning in ideology, bloodshed, and fear.  

Then came Oscar Arias, the newly elected President of Costa Rica, a nation that had disbanded their military decades before.

While others escalated the violence, Arias chose defiance.

He stared down Ronald Reagan, had U.S.-backed rebels expelled from Costa Rican soil, rejected global pressure, and authored the Arias Peace Plan. This bold diplomatic initiative helped bring five nations to the table and bring an end to years of war.

Oscar Arias didn’t just defy world leaders; he defied the odds and changed the course of history.

In 1987, Arias was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. But he didn’t stop there.

Through the Arias Foundation for Peace & Human Progress, he helped spark the UN Arms Trade Treaty—the first legally binding agreement to regulate the global weapons trade.

And now, in his 80s, Oscar Arias is on another peace mission.

To build a Global Peace Museum in Costa Rica. A place to remind the world that peace isn’t idealistic, it's possible, if given a chance.

 

(And for history buffs, you will be mesmerized by the stories of how Oscar Arias encountered and, over time, built extraordinary relationships with Reagan, Bush, Thatcher, Gorbachev, Castro, Mulroney, the Pope and many more.)