I would start the Institute for Arts, Communication and Understanding. It would have two main educational themes with a good deal of interaction between them.
On the one side, it would be devoted to the study of human communication, negotiation and problem solving. This would be a degree granting intitution. It would have political figures formerly involved in international negotiations in residencies. It would also have officials who served at all levels—municipal, state, federal and whatever the equivalent jurisdictions are in other countries.
There would be many role playing scenarios that focus on real issues being discussed currently around the world. Students would study the culture and history and politics of the people for perhaps six months, and then they would engage in problem solving exercises for the rest of their year.
On the Arts side, we would offer year long residencies in all the arts. Residents could work on their own work, but every evening they would be required to participate in collaborative efforts, again, organized in many different ways, including experimental ways.
Several of the residents would represent the countries that the “peace” academy is studying that year. I would hope that there would be both artistic “conversations” between the different cultures, as well as diplomatic conversations.
Periodically, the politicians would participate in a series of the artistic collaborations. These efforts would be studied in order to see how they impacted the actual political negotiations and problem solving efforts.
The purpose of much of the collaboration on the artistic side is to develop rituals that help people feel like they belong to the same group. These rituals would be tested on the political people to see how they affect the politicians work.
I suppose I could write more, but that’s where I’d spend my quart billion dollars.