Last week, John Marks ’61, P ’95, made a meaningful return to Andover, to share insights from his illustrious career, inspiring students and campus adults to think about peace and conflict resolution in new ways. Marks, along with his wife, Susan Collin Marks, was the founder of Search for Common Ground, a peacebuilding organization that was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018. Marks’s new memoir From Vision to Action: Remaking the World Through Social Entrepreneurship depicts his journey from adversarial advocate to global peacemaker.
Hosted by the Office of Alumni Engagement and the Tang Institute, Marks’ visit signaled an ongoing exploration of productive discourse on campus. His visit began with a community dinner on Wednesday evening, setting the tone for the next day’s events. On Thursday, Marks met with members of Andover’s Leadership Development Program, joined a Philosophy 501 class, and connected with Academy chaplains.
The day culminated in an engaging conversation with Amy Kellogg ’83, a former senior foreign affairs correspondent for Fox News. Their discussion about conflict resolution and social change offered invaluable insights from Marks’s decades of transformative work. As students, staff, and faculty listened intently, Marks shared stories of his work fostering dialogue in conflict zones around the world, from the Middle East to Africa. His reflections highlighted not only his successes but also the ongoing challenges in peace-building.
When Kellogg asked how he deals with having to put aside key issues that are important to him, like human rights, in order to be able to make big compromises, Marks said, “It’s not that you put them aside, you just don’t talk about them. If you can’t do that, you probably should go into another field.” His candid response offered profound insight into the difficult but necessary pragmatism required in peace-building, showing that progress often demands restraint and strategic silence on deeply held beliefs.
Marks’s optimism was palpable, despite the complex global landscape. “You don’t found an organization called Search for Common Ground if you’re not an optimist,” he said. His words resonated deeply with Andover students, who asked thoughtful questions about the current conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. In a time when division feels overwhelming, Marks’s emphasis on finding “areas of agreement” in even the most polarized situations was refreshing and inspiring.
