International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War is a nonpartisan federation of national medical organizations in 60 countries dedicated to safeguarding health by preventing nuclear war and abolishing nuclear weapons . Its main aims include campaigning for the abolition of all nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, an end to the arms trade, the redirection of resources from military to civilian needs (especially health care and basic human necessities), and sustainable economic development that will not damage the environment. The organization won the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize for creating an awareness of the catastrophic consequences of nuclear warfare.
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) was founded in 1980 by three doctors from the United States and three from the Soviet Union. The U.S. doctors were Bernard Lown, James Muller, and Eric Chivian. The Soviet doctors were Evgeny Chazov, Leonid Ilyin, and Mikhail Kuzin. IPPNW was founded at a time when a struggle between Communist and non-Communist nations called the Cold War divided the world into two armed camps that threatened each other with nuclear devastation (see Cold War ). The founders disregarded their differences of political belief to warn the world that nuclear war would be the “final epidemic” for which there could be no cure and no meaningful medical response.
IPPNW proved to be one of the fastest-growing private organizations in history. Its first world congress in 1981, held in the United States at Airlie, Virginia, was attended by 80 physicians from 12 countries. In 1991, its 10th anniversary world congress, in Stockholm, Sweden, attracted more than 1,300 delegates from 80 countries. These delegates represented more than 200,000 physicians, health care workers, and other citizens concerned about the threat to health from total war.
From its beginning, IPPNW sought to educate the medical profession, world political leaders, and the general public about the medical and environmental dangers of nuclear warfare. It communicated its message through its world congresses, and also through carefully researched reports and books.
At the end of 1991, the Soviet Union broke apart, and the Cold War was over. After the end of the Cold War, IPPNW broadened its efforts by seeking the abolition of all weapons of mass destruction, including conventional weapons and biological weapons. It became involved in major projects, including the World Court Project, launched in 1992. The aim of the World Court Project is to get the International Court of Justice to outlaw nuclear weapons. The project is a joint effort of the IPPNW; the International Peace Bureau , an organization based in Zurich, Switzerland, that promotes the peaceful resolution of conflicts between nations; and the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms, a group in the Hague, the Netherlands, that opposes nuclear war. In 2001, IPPNW launched its Aiming for Prevention campaign, which seeks to reduce and prevent injuries and death from small arms violence in the developing world. The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), launched by IPPNW in 2007, aims to abolish nuclear weapons through the negotiation of a comprehensive nuclear weapons agreement. In 2017, ICAN was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for this work. IPPNW also works with medical students on projects to promote peace, disarmament, and human rights. IPPNW has headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
