Katherine Davies plans to walk over 600 miles from London to Geneva this March to raise awareness about the suffering of the Syrian people.

The founder and CEO of iguacu will be in Chattanooga until Thursday, her goal being to gather messages for peace in Syria that she expects to hand deliver to the special envoy in charge of the Geneva peace talks.

In a phone interview, Ms. Davies said her Messages for Peace campaign aims to illuminate the millions of Syrians – including six million children – desperate for humanitarian assistance.

“I have met many people frustrated about the relentless suffering of the Syrian people, and how the parties to the conflict just keep perpetuating the war,” she said.  

Yet she spoke courageously in her belief that “we do have the potential to put pressure on the parties in conflict to bring (the Syrian Crisis) to an end.”

A portion of her efforts in this matter will be to walk 640 miles from London to Geneva starting March 15 – the fifth anniversary of the Syrian Crisis. On this five-week journey Ms. Davies will collect messages for peace to deliver to Geneva. She anticipates the messages will show “we’ve had enough” and “this war must end.”

According to the statement publicizing Ms. Davies’ campaign, the Syrian civil war has “killed more than a quarter of a million people and led half of the population to flee their homes.”

It was such a crisis as this that inspired Ms. Davies – who has a robust background in charities, politics, and communications – to launch iguacu in 2014. The non-profit is a global platform that provides expert-led advice to the public on how to give effectively overseas. It currently covers eight countries, using a rigorous research service to reveal how to best help in places where help is most needed.

Ms. Davies said before creating iguacu, the Syrian war “moved” and “disturbed” her. It made her wish there was something she could do to help, some sort of effective action she could take. iguacu aspires to be that trusted platform where individuals can act on their compassionate responses to the difficulty of others.  

“There’s a demand for this,” Ms. Davies said. “There’s a need for this.”

For Syria, iguacu’s network recommends supporting the Syrian Arab Red Crescent.  

Ms. Davies said she chose “iguacu” as the company name because it means “big water.” It is also the name for the South American river known for its awe-inspiring waterfall.

“iguacu evokes the power and beauty of thoughtful mass action, likening one person’s intention to a drop of water, and mass action to the great and beautiful Iguaçu,” she said.

Because the company seeks to honor and empower compassionate intention, Ms. Davies has invited the Chattanooga public to write messages for peace in Syria. She will collect the messages in a variety of ways – in person, by mail, or online.

“It is an opportunity to stop and express one’s compassion for the plight of the Syrian people and to urge an end to their suffering,” she said.

As she gears up for her long and arduous walk on which she will raise awareness about a tragic issue, she realizes, “When you do act on compassion, it can bring joy.”

How the public can send their message4peace:

• Post message at www.message4peace.com

• Tweet message with #message4peace

• Post it on Facebook with #message4peace

• Hand it to Ms. Davies, or send it via post to 

            iguacu

            1-45 Durham Street

            London SE11 5JH

            United Kingdom