19th May, 2025 (Cuernava, Morelos, Mexico) For the ancient Greeks, spring was a season synonymous with peace, fertility, abundance, and the return of order and justice; in other words, spring marked a truce with war.
In Mexico, there is a place in the Morelos region, not far from Acapulco, known as Cuernavaca, also known as “The City of Eternal Spring” that boasts with rich vegetation of low jungle, mountain forests, and a great variety of foreign species, all under a warm and pleasant climate throughout the year. Interestingly, The Mexican City of Eternal Spring was also a vital link in a much larger historical network: the land route that connected to the Manila-Acapulco Galleon.
For over 250 years (1565-1815 AD), this trans-Pacific trade facilitated international commerce, marking the first direct connection between the East and the West. Once the goods were unloaded in Acapulco, they traveled overland through Mexico, where Asian luxury items such as spices, porcelain, and silks reached the rest of America, Europe, and Africa.
The Manila-Acapulco Galleon became an important lifeline for the global economy. It facilitated cultural exchange and contributed to the well-being of future generations worldwide. This legacy is further evidenced by the recent collaboration between Mexico and the Philippines to nominate the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Route to the UNESCO World Heritage List. UNESCO has already declared October 8th as “Galleon Day” to commemorate the first trade route that linked the entire world.
To further understand how these past events affect the contemporary world, International Peace Doctors presented their documentary “Deep Harmony: History of the World and Peace 1521-2021” at the Faculty of Accounting of the Autonomous University of the State of Morelos
(UAEM) on May 19th, 2025.
The documentary offered a contemporary reflection on topics relevant to the Galleon’s legacy, particularly the complex relationship between the balance of power, international relations, trade, and peace. This analysis resonates with, though also contrasts with, Immanuel Kant’s argument in “Perpetual Peace” (1795), where history demonstrates that trade alone is insufficient to guarantee world peace, as armed conflicts continue to be part of our lives.
The documentary, therefore, urges us to recognise a time to create conditions free from harm, where the pursuit of harmony – that tool of wisdom – guides us towards peace, towards an “Eternal Spring,” the true spirit of Cuernavaca, its history and its people.
The vision of creating an “Eternal Spring” aligns with the fundamental principle of Doctors for Peace (International Peace Doctors): “There is no harm in harmony, only wisdom.” After all, harmony, by its very nature, excludes harm and cultivates wisdom.
Finally, International Peace Doctors would like to express their gratitude to the Autonomous University of the State of Morelos (UAEM), Faculty of Accounting, Administration and Informatics (FCAeI)/Academy of Economics/Economics Program, and in particular to Dr. Felipe de Jesús Bonilla Sánchez, Director (FCAeI), to Prof. Miguel Angel García Garnica, Secretary of Teaching (FCAeI), to Dr. Elmer Iván Sánchez Rabadán, Head of the Economics Bachelor’s Program (FCAeI), to MBA Tania Hernández Antonino, and to Prof. Ernesto Takayanagui García for his genuine commitment to teaching and his passion for inspiring future leaders to connect the concepts of peace and economics.
Likewise, International Peace Doctors would like to thank the enthusiasm shown by the economics students who engaged with our concept of harmony as a guide to resolving differences and building positive and supportive connections at the individual, regional, national, and international levels.
