Come, experience the breathtaking beauty of lanterns floating on the Olympic Plaza pool and vibrant live music commemorating Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Launch your lanterns (rent available for $5 donation) for peace and happiness for your family, our community, and the world. Free event.
DATE: August 3rd, 2019
TIME: 8:00 pm -9:30 pm
WHERE: Olympic Plaza
Light a lantern for peace
Rent a lantern
Lanterns are available to rent for a donation of $5 or more.
Donate $20 through Eventbrite to have a custom lantern with your own special message of peace premade for you.
Event Program
- Calgary musicians on the main stage
- Multicultural children’s and youth choirs
- Youth speaker
- Keynote speech by The Very Reverend Dr. Bill Phipps
- Greetings of peace from the mayors of cities around the world
- Write your message of peace on a lantern, light it and float it on the pool
Mayors' Letters
Message from the Mayor of Hiroshima
The Floating Lantern Tradition
In August of 1945, atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Some 226,00 people were killed in the immediate aftermath.
Floating lantern ceremonies are held every year in Japan and around the world to commemorate those who died and take a stand for peace. Calgary's sixth annual Floating Lantern Ceremony will be held in tandem with events in many of the 7,568 cities in the 163 regions worldwide who have joined Mayors for Peace.
Mayors for Peace is a group of mayors, including Mayor Nenshi and Mayor Bronconnier before him, who are calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons. The group is just one of thousands of citizen groups across the globe opposed to nuclear weapons. Doctors, lawyers, teachers, unions, parliamentarians, women, faith groups, musicians and artists all have groups in many countries speaking out against nuclear weapons. Join us!