This
section is an overview of some of the many 'Big-Picture'
movements
working to create a 'paradigm shift' towards a more
peaceful, just and sustainable world.
BETTER
WORLD MOVEMENT Many
people wish for a better world and try
to do little and big things to make our
families, our communities and our world
better. And yet, most aren't sure if their
efforts to help are really making a difference.
They don't see signs that the world is
getting better. Books like The Better
World Handbook, by Ellis Jones, et
al, and The People For Peace Project's
The Better World Book, point out
that there is so much going on to help
make the world a better place that we
never hear about. Millions of people volunteer
their money, time and energy to causes
they're passionate about. Hundreds of
thousands of organizations are working
to address local, national and international
problems and injustices. As these authors
show, behind the scenes, many diverse
movements for change have been converging
into a more holistic, global movement
for a better world. This emerging movement
is helping to connect local acts of compassion
to a global movement for change. These
books and others show how we can help
this movement grow and make a difference
that will help create a better world.
THE
BETTER WORLD BOOK The
Better World Book is a free online
resource for the emerging Better World
Movement from The EMILY Fund and The People
For Peace Project. The book presents the
case that a vast, global movement for
a better world is emerging as many diverse
movements for change converge and focus
on a more holistic paradigm shift, and
provides hands-on ways to help grow this
emerging movement. The book advocates
the formation of local Better World Clubs
as a way to bring about change locally
and connect to the global movement. It
features a calendar of 'action dates'
throughout the year - specific days that
individuals, groups and governments already
utilize to mobilize around specific 'better
world issues' such as Peace Day, World
Food Day, Human Rights Day and World Volunteer
Day.
THE
BETTER WORLD HANDBOOK The
Better World Handbook is a comprehensive,
in-depth, how-to manual for building a
better world. It convincingly illustrates
how small every day changes can make a
big difference, because all around the
world millions of others are also doing
things to make the world a better place.
The Better World Handbook suggests
that a more coordinated 'Better World
Movement' is arising as people become
more aware of their impact and of the
widespread efforts of many others who
share their vision of a more peaceful,
just and sustainable world.
7
FOUNDATIONS OF A BETTER WORLD The
cornerstone of The Better World Handbook,
the comprehensive guide for the emerging
Better World Movement, is THE SEVEN FOUNDATIONS
OF A BETTER WORLD: - Economic Fairness
- Comprehensive Peace - Ecological Sustainability
- Deep Democracy - Social Justice - Simple
Living - Revitalized Community. The
Better World Handbook addresses each
of these areas and provides a global vision
of a better world that is worth fighting
for. The book summarizes the main challenges
that humanity faces in the 21st century,
provides viable alternative solutions
that we can implement, and shares examples
of what thousands of people around the
globe are already doing along each of
the seven foundations.
BIONEERS "Bioneers
is inspiring a shift to live on Earth
in ways that honor the web of life, each
other and future generations."
In
1990, Nina Simons and her husband Kenny
Ausubel founded Bioneers, a nonprofit
organization that promotes and connects
innovative and practical solutions to
our most critical global environmental
and social issues. In addition to an annual
conference that brings together leading
scientific and social innovators, Bioneers
inspires millions with an award-winning
radio and book series and interactive
website. Bioneers believe in and cultivates
"the value and wisdom of the natural
world." Their two-pronged approach
to creating a fundamental global paradigm
shift is to:
"* Connect people with solutions
by popularizing breakthrough ideas and
practices.
* Grow social capital by catalyzing, connecting
and strengthening strategic networks,
including bioregional and community-based
alliances."
CITIES
OF PEACE Creating a peaceful world begins with
our deciding to live peaceful lives. It
grows when families intentionally try
to nurture each other and work together
to make their communities more peaceful,
just and sustainable. When towns and cities
declare their intention to define themselves
as 'cities of peace' and strive toward
ensuring the prosperity, safety and highest
quality of life for ALL of their citizens,
we take a tremendous leap forward in helping
to create a culture of peace. International
Cities of Peace is an association of cities
that 'by history, resolution or proclamation'
have declared themselves as Cities of
Peace. Find out how you can help your
city become a City of Peace.
In
our hectic, fast-paced, consumer-driven
society, it's common to feel overwhelmed,
isolated and alone. Many are re-discovering
the healing and empowering role that community
can bring to our lives. The sense of belonging
we feel when we make the time to take
an active role in our communities can
give us a deeper sense of meaning and
purpose. Getting
involved in local government, or volunteering
for the school board, local emergency
services, or a local nonprofit providing
services to the underprivileged in your
community are all powerful ways to begin
to feel a greater sense of connection
to your local community.
Community
building activists believe that community
building is an effective way to improve
social justice, reduce crime, and promote
individual as well as community well-being.
Community building events range from simple
cooperation and collaboration activities
like potluck meals and book clubs to organizing
a community watch group, volunteer drives
or festivals around a shared interest.
It can also include even larger projects
like engaging local participants to plant
a community peace pole, create a community
garden, or work together to build or refurbish
a community center, park, playground or
other shared community resource. Building
community
is an opportunity to help bring your neighborhood
together and celebrate both your diversity
and your common bond of shared community.
As we build local communities, we are
working together to help create a more
peaceful, just and sustainable global
community.
CONSCIOUS
EVOLUTION
CONSCIOUS
EVOLUTION
Barbara
Marx Hubbard’s 1998 book, Conscious
Evolution: Awakening the Power of Our
Social Potential, helped to
present the ideas of the conscious evolution
movement, which asserts that we now
have the ability and the technological,
medical, psychological and spiritual
tools to consciously choose which direction
humanity’s future will take and how
we will evolve as a species. This movement
asserts that we have the choice to move
forward through cooperation and co-creation
or to move toward self-destruction by
choosing a path of separation and competition.
As humanity consciously evolves, we
help guide the evolution of the universe
as well. Other visionaries who write
about conscious evolution include: Deepak
Chopra, Andrew
Cohen, Duane
Elgin, Jean
Houston, Barbara
Marx Hubbard, Ervin
Laszlo, ElisabetSahtouris
and Marianne
Williamson.
EVOLUTIONARY LEADERS In 2008, a group of ‘evolutionary
leaders’ came together at the Chopra
Center in Carlsbad California to discuss
how to help encourage, support and create
synergistic opportunities for ‘evolutionary
leaders’ who are working to help create
“a movement for the conscious evolution
of humanity.” The ongoing Evolutionary
Leaders Circle that came out of this
meeting is united in the mission of
working to “collectively inspire, support
and serve conscious evolution.” The
group includes 57 notable visionary
leaders including Deepak
Chopra, Andrew
Cohen, Duane
Elgin, Jean
Houston, Barbara
Marx Hubbard, Ervin
Laszlo, ElisabetSahtouris
and Marianne
Williamson.
A
group of notable visionary leaders who
formed the Evolutionary Leaders Circle,
created “A Call to Conscious Evolution”
which allows anyone interested in cooperating
and collaborating in the movement for
conscious evolution to participate by
adding their voice on the Evolutionary
Leaders website. This ‘Call’ asserts:
Together,
we can co-create a new narrative of
conscious evolution by:
-
Building a global community and creating
a culture of peace.
-
Restoring ecological balance to nourish
all life, and mitigate the effects of
climate change.
-
Engaging in social and political transformation
by calling for a more conscious democracy.
-
Promoting health and healing by acknowledging
the profound mind-body-spirit connection.
-
Supporting research and education that
optimize human capacities.
-
Encouraging integrity in business and
conscious media.
THE
SHIFT NETWORK Writer
and social entrepreneur, Stephen Dinan
is the founder of The Shift Network,
an association of more than 200,000
members around the world who are dedicated
to creating a paradigm shift in consciousness
and society to a more peaceful, just,
sustainable, healthy and prosperous
future.
THE SOURCE OF SYNERGY FOUNDATION "The
Source of Synergy Foundation is a 501c3
not-for-profit educational organization
whose purpose is to synergize individuals,
organizations and efforts by tapping
into the infinite source of collective
consciousness, creativity and potential
for the common good. Our intention is
to support the release of synergistic
energy that will exponentially expand
and create a global ripple effect in
planetary consciousness. We all recognize
that when individuals, organizations,
communities and nations unite in a shared
sense of responsibility for the common
good their collective efforts have a
far greater effect on the whole. Recently,
we have seen an extraordinary number
of networks, alliances and coalitions
of individuals and organizations uniting
in a shared sense of responsibility
to help solve some of the world’s most
pressing problems -- climate change,
hunger, human rights violations, and
conflicts. There is a great shift accelerating
across the planet where the power of
the collective spirit is activated.
The Source of Synergy Foundation is
dedicated to creating opportunities
for synergy that support a conscious
evolutionary movement for global transformation."
[ From Source
of Synergy Foundation website ]
A
Culture of Peace is a paradigm shift
in which the idea of working towards
creating a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world becomes the central focus of our
society - of our institutions, our industries,
our relationships, our entertainment,
and every other aspect of our our culture.
Our current culture is driven by the
global economy, and it affects our every
day lives, and our outlook about the
world and our future.
David
Adams, one of the key architects
and chroniclers of the global Culture
of Peace movement, takes his definition
of a 'culture of peace' from two resolutions
adopted by the United Nations: the 1998
UN resolution on the culture of peace
and the 1999 Programme of Action on
a Culture of Peace:
"a
culture of peace is an integral approach
to preventing violence and violent conflicts,
and an alternative to the culture of
war and violence based on education
for peace, the promotion of sustainable
economic and social development, respect
for human rights, equality between women
and men, democratic participation, tolerance,
the free flow of information and disarmament."
The
Global Movement For
a Culture of Peace arose out of the
UNESCO Culture of Peace Programme,
designed for UNESCO by consultant David
Adams who has continued to chronicle
the growth of the movement. The Programme
was adopted by UNESCO in 1992, and sought
to create national culture of peace
programs that could be implemented in
UN member countries. In 1999, the United
Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution,
entitled the Declaration and Programme
of Action on a Culture of Peace that
called for a global movement for the
culture of peace, inviting member states,
civil society organizations and individuals
in all walks of life to join in partnership
with the United Nations. To help spread
the ideas in the plan of action for
a culture of peace, the General Assembly
declared the year 2000 as the International
Year for a Culture of Peace, and the
first decade of the new millennium as
the International Decade for a Culture
of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children
of the World. The Programme
of Action addressed eight areas crucial
to creating a culture of peace:
The World Report on the Culture of
Peace documented the participation of
more than 1000 organizations worldwide
during the Decade for a Culture of Peace
and Nonviolence for the Children of
the World.
The
World Report on the Culture of Peace
documented the participation of more
than 1000 organizations worldwide during
the Decade for a Culture of Peace and
Nonviolence for the Children of the
World.
Originally
called the "We The
Peoples Initiative", a UN-designated
“Peace Messenger Initiative”, The Culture
of Peace Initiative seeks to unite “the
strengths of organizations, projects
and peoples in order to make Peace a
practical reality for the children of
this and future generations.” The highlight
of the Initiative is the International
Day of Peace, also known as Peace Day,
celebrated on September 21. This day
serves as an opportunity to celebrate
the achievements that have been made
for a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world and to inspire and empower hope
and action for working together to create
a culture of peace.
Pierre
Marchand, founder of the French humanitarian
organization Partage which helps children
in places of war, set out on a mission
in 1997 to convince all of the Nobel
Peace Prize laureates to join together
to appeal to the world's governments
to make peace and nonviolence for the
children of the world a priority. He
traveled around the world and secured
the participation of all 27 Nobel Peace
Prize winners alive at the time. Their
appeal stressed the need to help educate
young people with tools for peace and
nonviolence. Then UNESCO and the Appeal
of the Nobel Laureates worked to gather
100 million signatures to present at
a special Millennium Assembly in the
Year 2000. With UNESCO's support, this
initiative helped convince the United
Nations to declare the Year 2000 as
the International Year for a Culture
of Peace, and the first decade of the
new Millennium as The International
Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence
for the Children of the World. During
the Decade, thousands of organizations
participated in events and activities
to raise awareness about the growing
culture of peace movement and the importance
of peace and nonviolence education.
The Peace Kids story, Peace
Kids Pledge tells the story of the
Appeal of the Nobel Laureates and offers
a Peace
Pledge based on the Appeal that
young people can use to pledge their
support to live more peaceful lives.
Peacetopia
is a term coined by utopian writer,
Robert
Alan Silverstein in numerous nonfiction
and fictional works for children and
adults as an attempt to more clearly
describe ‘utopian ideals.’ While Thomas
More’s
1516 phrase “Utopia” helped inspire
an entire genre of literature and social
theory, it literally means ‘no place’
and so does not accurately describe
the goal it helped inspire. Peacetopia
is a more apt description of the intent
of transforming the current paradigm
to a global community united in the
common goal of striving to create a
more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. Although Peacetopia (peace on earth) might not ever totally be achieved,
to create a culture of peace where society’s
primary goal is to strive to achieve
this ideal state, societal and individual
attitudes will shift from a competitive
mentality to a cooperative one; arts
and entertainment will gravitate towards
inspiring and empowering hope for a
better world; and educational, economic,
political and scientific institutions
will be transformed to foster the maintenance,
nurturing and expansion of society’s
aspirations towards a more peacetopian
world.
In
their 2001 book, Cultural Creatives:
How 50 Million People Are Changing the
World, sociologist Paul Ray and
his wife Sherry Ruth Anderson, called
upon 25 years of research to conclude
that there is an army of 50 million
'cultural creatives' in the United States,
people "whose values embrace a curiosity
and concern for the world, its ecosystem,
and its peoples; an awareness of and
activism for peace and social justice;
and an openness to self-actualization
through spirituality, psychotherapy,
and holistic practices." They suggest
that Cultural Creatives could have a
tremendous impact on creating a new
paradigm shift, creating an "Emerging
Planetary Wisdom Culture" if only
they recognized how many others shared
their values and began working more
closely together.
Throughout
history there have been a number of
"Peace Days" that have been promoted,
including the International Day of
Peace, established by the United Nations
in 1981. The idea of striving to create
a day of peace can be a powerful tool
to create a global transformation
from our culture of violence to a
culture of peace. Although some may
see it as a simplistic idea, there
has never been a single day of peace
on earth, and in order to achieve
even one day of world peace, a paradigm
shift must take place. The process
of working for this tangible and measurable
goal can cause this shift by bringing
people together, and inspiring and
empowering us individually and as
a society to make creating a more
peaceful, just and sustainable future
a priority for our local and global
communities.
ONE DAY IN PEACE, JANUARY 1
In the 1990s, a number of individuals
and organizations had the idea of
beginning the approaching New Millennium
with a worldwide day of peace. Just
as we are inspired to make resolutions
for New Year's each year, they saw
this as a unique opportunity for a
New Beginning for humanity, a chance
to convince the world to CHOOSE the
ultimate shared resolution of striving
towards peace on earth on this monumental
New Year's day. Many of the efforts
joined together to synergistically
create humanity's very first shared
day of peace. One of the efforts was
launched with the 1996 picture book,
One Day In Peace, January 1, 2000,
written by Steve Diamond and Robert
Alan Silverstein. The book called
for a worldwide day of peace and global
ceasefire on January 1, 2000 and was
translated into 21 languages. A copy
was sent to every world leader and
it inspired the formation of the One
Day In Peace Network, an association
of more than 1000 organizations in
140 countries, which secured a pledge
of support from 100 Heads of State;
25 US Governors and hundreds of Mayors
around the world declared Proclamations;
and the US Congress and the United
Nations declared January 1 as a day
of peace. After January 1, 2000, the
campaign continued under the leadership
of Global Family Day which secured
ongoing international support of January
1 as a Global Day of Peace and Sharing.
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE, SEPTEMBER
21 The
International Day of Peace was established
by the United Nations in 1981 as
a worldwide day of peace, and since
its inception it has inspired millions
to find ways to promote hope for
a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. In 2001, a new UN Resolution
changed the date for the observance
of the International Day of Peace
to September 21. Until then, it
had been tied to the opening of
the General Assembly of the United
Nations. This was the day when the
governments of the world began their
work together for the new year,
and starting with a day dedicated
to peace was a powerful symbol of
shared intention. But some felt
that since the General Assembly
did not begin on a fixed date each
year, it made it difficult for it
to become a mainstreamed day of
celebration around the world. The
New Resolution also included stronger
language calling upon nations, organizations
and individuals to observe the day
as a global ceasefire in addition
to celebrating it as a day of peace.
The
global economy, which sees people as
nothing more than consumers, is a runaway
train that is causing more and more
suffering in the world. The current
'profit before people' system is causing
the gap between the very rich and the
very poor to grow larger each year.
But money,
when used for good, can help change
the world for the better. In order to
transform the global economy into a
true global community, we need to create
a Peace Economy - an economic system
that gives value to other commodities
besides money. Then we can create more
sustainable local, national and global
communities. One way to do this is to
support companies and products that
respect worker's rights, don't harm
the earth, and contribute to creating
a more just social and economic system.
This will reward businesses that are
doing good and provide monetary incentive
for others to change their ways and
adopt more socially responsible policies.
The
BetterWorld Shopping Guide (BetterWorldShopper.org)
grades products and services in 75 categories
based on environmental and social responsibility.
This pocket-sized book is a valuable
tool for helping to make every dollar
count for a better world. (Also Check
out Co-Op America's GreenPages.org
for lots of "green businesses.")
Put
your resources to work for a better
world -- Be conscious of the way you
spend your money. Purchase Fair Trade
products - products that are supplied
by workers and growers who are paid
fair wages, and work in safe conditions.
Support socially responsible businesses
by purchasing their products and investing
in them. Demand corporate responsibility
-- with our purchasing power, we can
force corporations to manufacture and
distribute their goods in ways that
respect workers and protect our planet.
Take a bite out of corporate control
by getting money out of politics. Support
local currencies and cooperatives. These
are all tangible ways that we can use
our economic resources to "buy a better
world" and transform the global economy.
‘Resource-based economy’ is a phrase introduced by futurist Jacques
Fresco in his work with The Venus Project
to describe a theoretical economy in
which goods, information, and services
are free for everyone.
The
Venus Project was started in 1975 by
futurist Jacques Fresco to promote his
vision of creating a better world through
a new technological, sustainable design
he calls a ‘resource-based economy’
in which goods, services and information
are free for everyone. This design
system calls for a new social system
based on global cooperation to fairly
and efficiently manage natural resources,
and utilizes technology to design interconnected
energy-efficient, fully automated and
sustainable cities. Jacques Fresco
and Roxanne Meadows operate the project
out of a 21.5 acre research and educational
center in central Florida. The Venus
Project was featured prominently in
the 2008 film Zeitgeist: Addendum
and the 2011 film Zeitgeist: Moving
Forward.
The Zeitgeist Movement
advocates for a new global paradigm
in which money and private property
would be abolished, and the current
global economy would be replaced by
a new planet-wide socioeconomic system
where all of earth’s resources would
be shared with all of earth’s inhabitants.
The movement believes that technology
is essential in creating a better world.
Computers can help monitor the availability,
need and allocation of resources, and
almost all manual labor can be fully
automated, allowing all people the opportunity
to pursue happiness and lives of real
meaning and purpose. The Movement was
inspired by Peter Joseph’s Zeitgeist
films: Zeitgeist: Addendum (2008)
and Zeitgeist: Moving Forward
(2011). Originally, The Zeitgeist Movement
was an extension of the nonprofit organization
The Venus Project, started by futurist
and social engineer Jacques Fresco,
but in 2011 it became an independent
nonprofit.
Because
we live in a culture of violence,
it is hard to learn how to live in
peace. Peace education is desperately
needed to help teach us how to live
peacefully. Many peacebuilders are
helping to bring the need for peace
education to light and there are many
resources available. Whether or not
we have our own children, we can help
educate the next generation for peace.
In our families, we can help raise
peacebuilders, by sharing our peace
values and by setting a peaceful example.
We can help promote peace education
and conflict resolution in our schools
and advocate for legislation that
promotes these tools. Peace education
isn't just for the young. Adults need
to learn about peace, too. Young people
that learn peacebuilding skills in
school can help adults learn how to
be better peacebuilders and peaceworkers,
too.
WORLD
FEDERALIST MOVEMENT
"Mankind's
desire for peace can be realized only
by the creation of a world government.
With all my heart I believe that the
world's present system of sovereign
nations can only lead to barbarism,
war and inhumanity, and that only
world law can assure progress towards
a civilized peaceful community."
-- Albert Einstein
The United Nations provides a forum for nearly all countries of the world to
address their grievances with other
countries, and to work together on
global issues that affect the planet
and all of its people. International
laws help provide a legal framework
for nations to work out their differences
in a fair, just and equitable way.
But the United Nations serves mostly
in an advisory capacity, and often
does not have the authority to enforce
many international laws and treaties.
The UN Security Council does have
authority to enforce many breaches
of international law, but its decisions
are not democratic as they are made
by the governments of only a small
number of members of the United Nations.
Because of these limitations, and
the fact that the world is so interconnected,
and there are so many problems and
concerns that affect not just one
or a few nations, but all of humanity,
some have advocated for a more formalized
form of democratic global governance.
The idea of "world federalists" arose after World War I and the formation of
the League of Nations. World federalists
argued for the creation of a democratically
elected world government with the
authority to make and enforce international
laws. Before the outbreak of World
War II, as tensions mounted in Europe,
interest in the idea of a world federation
grew and many groups in Europe and
the United States were formed, including
The Campaign for World Government
in 1937, the Federal Union in the
UK in 1938, and the US Federal Union
in 1939. After the formation of the
United Nations in 1945, the idea of
a world federation gained greater
support, and in August 1947, 51 organizations
from 24 countries came together in
Switzerland for the Conference of
the World Movement for World Federal
Government. By the next year's congress
there were more than 150,000 members
in the movement. Much of the work
of the world federalist movement was
directed at trying to move the United
Nations closer to a world federal
system. At first it was hoped that
the UN Charter would be reviewed in
1955 and changes would be made to
the Charter. When this didn't happen,
efforts were directed at trying to
advocate for amendments to the Charter
to reform the UN's institutions and
branches, such as creating a World
Court with real authority, a more
democratic Security Council and a
democratically elected General Assembly
or World Parliament. Today the World
Federalist Movement continues to represent
member and associate organizations
around the world. The international
secretariat is headquartered in New
York City across the street from the
United Nations, and a congress of
representatives is convened every
four years.
The
Earth Federation Movement (EFM) is
similar to the World Federation Movement
(WFM) with some significant differences.
The WFM is actively engaged with the
United Nations and seeks to reform
it so that it becomes more democratic
and more effective, while the EFM
believes that the UN Charter is innately
undemocratic, unjust and unfair, and
should be completely replaced by an
enforceable democratic world government
constitution. The EFM, in fact, promotes
an Earth Constitution that thousands
of global citizens helped create over
33 years of consultations (1958-1991)
under the leadership of the World
Constitution and Parliament Association.
This Earth Constitution would establish
a democratic non-military global government
with enforceable environmental and
human rights laws.
Since it was established by the
United Nations in 1981, The International
Day of Peace has inspired millions
to find ways to promote hope for
a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. In 2001, a new UN Peace Day
Resolution included stronger language,
calling upon the world to observe
the day as a global ceasefire in
addition to celebrating it as a
day of peace and nonviolence. The
idea of a "global ceasefire"
was previously introduced in Steve
Diamond and Robert Alan Silverstein's
1996 picture book, One Day In
Peace, January 1 and subsequent
title, Peace Day, September 21,
both of which posed the question,
"What if for one day no gun
was fired?" The Global Ceasefire
presents an opportunity to unite
the world around a shared, tangible
and measurable goal. It has already
been the occasion for a number of
truces and ceasefires, and as the
campaign gains awareness and strength,
it is providing hope for a world
without war; a world at peace.
"The World Social Forum (WSF)
is an bi-annual meeting of civil
society organizations, first held
in Brazil, which offers a self-conscious
effort to develop an alternative
future through the championing
of counter-hegemonic globalization.
Some[who?] consider the World
Social Forum to be a physical
manifestation of global civil
society, as it brings together
non governmental organizations,
advocacy campaigns as well as
formal and informal social movements
seeking international solidarity.
The World Social Forum prefers
to define itself as "an opened
space – plural, diverse, non-governmental
and non-partisan – that stimulates
the decentralized debate, reflection,
proposals building, experiences
exchange and alliances among movements
and organizations engaged in concrete
actions towards a more solidarity,
democratic and fair world....a
permanent space and process to
build alternatives to neoliberalism."[1]
It is held by members of the alter-globalization
movement (also referred to as
the global justice movement) who
come together to coordinate global
campaigns, share and refine organizing
strategies, and inform each other
about movements from around the
world and their particular issues.
The World Social Forum is explicit
about not being a representative
of all of those who attend and
thus does not publish any formal
statements on behalf of participants.[2]
It tends to meet in January at
the same time as its "great capitalist
rival", the World Economic Forum's
Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
This date is consciously picked
to promote their alternative answers
to world economic problems in
opposition to the World Economic
Forum." [wikipedia]
COMPASSION, KINDNESS, EMPATHY &
LOVE All
of the movements discussed here aspire
to create a "paradigm shift" or global
transformation that will create a
more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. A number of movements aim to
create this transformation through
compassion, empathy and kindness.
They believe that by practicing and
spreading the Golden Rule -- Doing
unto others as you would have them
do unto you -- we can create this
better world.
compassion:
deep awareness of the suffering of
another coupled with the wish to relieve
it.
empathy: identification with
and understanding of another's situation,
feelings, and motives.
kindness: the quality or state
of being charitable, considerate,
generous, helpful, sympathetic or
understanding.
love:
a feeling of warm personal attachment
or deep affection
GOLDEN
RULE:
Compassion
COMPASSIONATE ACTION NETWORK The
nonprofit, Compassionate Action Network
International was inspired by Karen
Armstrong's book, 12 Steps to a
Compassionate Life. Its goal is
to connect communities and organizations
to grow a global movement of compassionate
action. You can help grow the movement
by: * Starting a Compassionate Action
Group * Signing the Charter for Compassion
online at: www.CharterForCompassion.org
Social
entrepreneur and film documentarian,
Edwin Rutsch, created the Center for
Building a Culture of Empathy based
on the idea that empathy "forms the
foundation of caring, community, compassion,
love and all the values that hold
society together and make life worth
living." As one way to raise awareness
about the power of empathy and compassion
to transform lives, he has created
more than 1800 videos featuring conversations
and insights from "empathy experts"
in many different fields and from
every walk of life. The Center's goal
is to build a global movement for
a culture of empathy and compassion.
One of the primary ways they help
build the movement is by promoting
and facilitating Empathy Circles,
small groups that meet weekly on Google
hangouts.
The
best-selling book, Random Acts
of Kindness, helped to start a
movement that has spread around the
world. The book, and the many books
on kindness that followed, helped
to highlight the transformative power
that each of has to change the world
with kindness, one person at a time.
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation
helps to promote "kindness" by providing
inspiration, information, and resources
to celebrate kindness throughout the
year as well as a special World Kindness
Day on November 13, World Kindness
Week in November, and a Random Acts
of Kindness Week in February. Others
celebrate the first of every month
as Kindness Day. In this way we begin
each month by rededicating ourselves
to change the world, one act of kindness
at a time. Together we are creating
a more peaceful, just and sustainable
world through kindness.
The
Great Kindness Challenge, launched
in 2008 by Kids For Peace, is a global
annual event that takes place on the
second Saturday in August. Young people
of all ages are urged to perform as
many acts of kindness as possible
and to spread the message of the campaign
to as many friends as possible: "The
more people we involve, the faster
we move towards creating a world filled
with love and peace." .
Kindness
conversations is a series of interviews
about the power of kindness to create
a better world. The project was created
by social entrepreneur, Noelani Musicaro.
Share your story of kindness and help
inspire hope for a better world.
The
Love Foundation is a nonprofit organization
working to inspire people to love
unconditionally. Their vision is to
help create a paradigm shift by raising
awareness about the power of unconditional
love to transform individuals and
society as a whole.
On
May 1, 2004, The Love Foundation launched
the first Global Love Day to promote
the idea of unconditional love, tolerance
and unity. Since then Global Love
Day has been observed in over 90 countries!
The theme of Global Love Day is "Love
Begins With Me" -- a simple but powerful
message reminding us that love is
the bond that joins us all, and we
can help change the world by reaching
within and without in love. The Love
Foundation's Global Love Day flyer
carries a simple and empowering message
and is available on their website
in 19 languages:
We
are one humanity on this planet.
All life is interconnected and interdependent.
All share in the Universal bond of
love.
Love begins with self acceptance and
forgiveness.
With tolerance and compassion we embrace
diversity.
Together we make a difference through
love.
BE A PART OF IT. SPREAD THE WORD.
"Standing
on the Side of Love is an interfaith
public advocacy campaign, promoting
respect for the inherent worth and
dignity of every person. Standing
on the Side of Love confronts issues
of exclusion, oppression and violence
based on identity. Based in the aspiration
to create beloved community, the campaign
pursues social change through advocacy,
public witness, and speaking out in
solidarity with those whose lives
are publicly demeaned. Our core issues
of focus include, but are not limited
to: LGBT equality, immigrant justice,
civil political discourse, and religious
freedom & diversity. The campaign
is sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist
Association. All people, not just
Unitarian Universalists, are invited
to stand, speak, worship, march, roll,
and live on the side of the love."
[ from http://facebook.com/SideOfLove
]
PROJECT HEAVEN ON
EARTH
Martin Rutte, an international speaker
and consultant in the field of spirituality
in the workplace, started Project
Heaven On Earth to bring together those
who share the vision of creating a more
peaceful, just and sustainable world
-- heaven on earth. Working together,
we can help inspire and empower humanity
to realize our highest shared purpose
-- to create Heaven on Earth.
INTERFAITH
MOVEMENT Some
of the wars and conflicts of the past
and present were fought over land and
resources, but many have been over religious
differences. In this past century, a
global interfaith movement has been
growing, helping to raise consciousness
about the need for tolerance and understanding
between different cultures and religions.
This movement has helped highlight the
common goals that most religions share,
such as the Golden Rule, which is at
the heart of nearly all religious traditions.
At the same time, many throughout the
world are discovering that 'spirituality'
-- a deep connection to a greater purpose
for humanity -- is an important driving
force in their lives, even if they aren't
religious.
UNIVERSAL MESSAGE OF PEACE
"May Peace Prevail On Earth"
Since
1955, The World Peace Prayer Society
has been spreading the universal message,
"May Peace Prevail On Earth" as a wish
and prayer to inspire hope for a more
peaceful world. This peace message can
be found on nearly 200,000 peace poles
in 180 countries. On each pole the phrase
is displayed in several different languages,
and peace poles around the world carry
the message in nearly every language.
Peace poles are a powerful tool to help
create a paradigm shift from our culture
of violence to a culture of peace. Communities
come together for a dedication ceremony
and unite in this shared wish for a
better world. Long afterwards, the peace
poles remain as a constant reminder
and inspiration for all who see them.
Many find that saying "May Peace Prevail
On Earth" is also useful in helping
to refocus and remember their higher
purpose when they are feeling overwhelmed
or their thoughts and emotions are taking
them somewhere they don't want to go.
Simply stopping for a moment and taking
a deep breath and slowly whispering
this universal wish a few times is sometimes
all that we need to pull us out of a
situation so that we can pause, and
refocus and restore the balance of purpose
and direction. It also reminds us that
we are never alone in our wish for a
better world. At any moment, many others
are sharing this universal wish all
across the globe.
THE
NEW MODEL "You
never change things by fighting the
existing reality. To change something,
build a new model that makes
the existing model obsolete." -- Buckminster
Fuller
In
his book, The New Model, author
and filmmaker Malachi Roth presents
a compelling argument that a new paradigm,
"new model" global community is emerging.
"It seems that
the majority of people are finally starting
to recognize what it is that we are
collectively "against" namely highly
concentrated wealth and the marriage
of corporations to the state that results.
The next step is to figure out exactly
what it is we are collectively "for"
before the disproportionately powerful
few determine it for us. Fortunately
an activated synchronistic global community
appears to be incrementally forging
a peaceful and just "new model" of international
standards that is quickly rendering
the old model obsolete."
OCCUPY
OCCUPY
MOVEMENT "The
Occupy movement is an international
protest movement against social and
economic inequality, its primary goal
being to make the economic and political
relations in all societies less vertically
hierarchical and more flatly distributed.
Local groups often have different foci,
but among the movement's prime concerns
is the claim that large corporations
and the global financial system control
the world in a way that disproportionately
benefits a minority, undermines democracy
and is unstable." [wikipedia]
OCCUPY WALL STREET
"Occupy Wall Street (OWS) is the
name given to a protest movement that
began on September 17, 2011, in Zuccotti
Park, located in New York City's Wall
Street financial district. The Canadian
group and magazine Adbusters initiated
the call for protest with assistance
from the Manhattan-based public relations
firm Workhorse, who was well known for
its successful work on client brands
including Mercedes and Saks Fifth Avenue.
The ensuing series of events helped
lead to media awareness that inspired
Occupy protests and movements around
the world. In awarding Workhorse its
Platinum Award, industry publication
PRNews noted "The results, obviously,
have been spectacular. There’s hardly
a newspaper, Internet or broadcast media
outlet that hasn’t covered OWS."[7]
The main issues raised by Occupy Wall
Street are social and economic inequality,
greed, corruption and the perceived
undue influence of corporations on government—particularly
from the financial services sector.
The OWS slogan, We are the 99%, refers
to income inequality and wealth distribution
in the U.S. between the wealthiest 1%
and the rest of the population. To achieve
their goals, protesters act on consensus-based
decisions made in general assemblies
which emphasize direct action over petitioning
authorities for redress" [wikipedia]
OCCUPY LOVE
Occupy Love is a "moving, transformative,
heartfelt film" from acclaimed
filmmaker Velcrow Ripper about "the
global revolution of the heart that
is erupting around the planet... From
the Arab Spring to the European Summer,
from the Occupy Movement to the global
climate justice movement, a profound
shift is taking place: humanity is waking
up to the fact that the dominant system
of power is failing to provide us with
health, happiness or meaning. The old
paradigm that concentrates wealth, founded
on the greed of the few, is collapsing.
Endless growth on a finite planet cannot
be sustained. The resulting crisis has
become the catalyst for a profound transformation:
millions of people are deciding that
enough is enough – the time has come
to create a new world, a world that
works for all life. Woven throughout
the moving, action oriented backbone
of the story, is a deep exploration
of the heart of the movement, the meaning
of love, and concrete examples of just
what “another world” could look like,
featuring some of the world’s key visionaries
on alternative systems of economics,
sustainability, and empathy."
PEACE
DEPARTMENT "Citizens
across the United States are now uniting
in a great cause to establish a Department
of Peace, seeking nothing less than
the transformation of our society, to
make non-violence an organizing principle,
to make war archaic through creating
a paradigm shift in our culture for
human development, for economic and
political justice and for violence control."
-- Dennis Kucinich
In order to bring about a paradigm shift,
we must create new economic, political
and social institutions focused on the
goal of creating peace, justice and
sustainability, and transform current
ones to provide an infrastructure that
will make striving for a better world
easier for individuals, nations and
our global community. One idea in the
political realm to help shift our priorities
to focus on this goal, is to create
a cabinet-level national Department
of Peace in the United States and Ministries
of Peace in other nations. In the US,
a grassroots campaign is spreading in
support of a Congressional Bill to establish
a cabinet-level Department of Peace,
and the Global Alliance for Ministries
& Infrastructures for Peace spearheads
the initiative to nations throughout
the world. Several nations have already
created national Peace Departments or
Ministries! This idea is not a new one.
In 1793, Dr. Benjamin Rush, one of the
signers of the Declaration of Independence,
proposed the creation of a Department
of Peace to help establish perpetual
peace in the new nation. Although his
suggestion was not adopted, the movement
to create a department with a Secretary
of Peace continued throughout US history.
In 1935 Senator Matthew Neely from West
Virginia introduced the first bill in
Congress calling for the establishment
of a Department of Peace, and since
then similar bills have been introduced
in the House and the Senate nearly 100
times!
When
Bernie Sanders decided to run for President
in the 2016 election, many who wished
for a better world were filled with
hope. Bernie Sanders' longstanding reputation
of fighting for progressive values drew
together many diverse grassroots movements
to rally around his campaign. They recognized
the opportunity to bring mainstream
attention to a holistic progressive
agenda of social issues. Foremost on
the list was tackling economic inequality
by getting money out of politics through
ending Citizens United and publicly
financing elections, breaking up the
big banks and reining in Wall Street,
providing free higher education and
universal health care for all, and guaranteeing
a living wage for every worker. Sanders
called for curtailing military spending
and seeking peaceful solutions to international
conflicts; getting serious about global
climate change, and a whole host of
other issues necessary to create a more
peaceful, just and sustainable future.
Political groups planned to spend billions
of dollars crafting campaign messages
leading up to the 2016 election, and
many recognized that this could be the
next Big Moment for a better world,
as the Bernie Sanders campaign promised
to keep these crucial issues at the
forefront of public attention.
NETWORK OF SPIRITUAL PROGRESSIVES The Network of Spiritual Progressives is an international 'spiritually-based'
social justice and political movement
that was founded by Rabbi Michael Lerner
and more than 1200 activists who met
in Berkeley, California in 2005. Inspired
by the misuse and co-opting of faith
by political conservatives, NSP brought
together people of all religious faiths,
as well as those who consider themselves
spiritual-but-not-religious, secular
humanists and atheists, to advocate
for more progressive and humane spiritual
values in the political realm. NSP's
goal is to help create a new paradigm
"in which all of life is shaped by peace,
fairness, environmental sanity, love,
care for one another, care for the Earth,
generosity, compassion, respect for
diversity and differences..." The key
to transforming the current paradigm
is to seek a "New Bottom Line." Today
nearly everything, including our institutions,
corporations, governmental policies,
educational, legal and medical systems,
and our own individual actions and goals
are judged by how productive and efficiently
they can maximize money and power. Instead,
the New Bottom Line would judge by how
well an action, policy or institution
maximizes "love, caring, kindness, generosity,
ethical and ecologically sensitive behavior…"
Pledge to Build
a Better World - A Spiritual Covenant
(from The Network of Spiritual Progressives)
1. Through my life, my relationships
and my political advocacy, I will
create a society that promotes loving
and caring relationships and families.
2.
I will take personal responsibility
to live and interact in ways that
build a world of love, kindness, amazement,
generosity and peace.
3.
I will work to develop and support
social structures and organizations
that build a caring society by cultivating
and rewarding love, kindness, wonder,
generosity and peace.
4.
I will work to see that our education
system teaches the values of love,
caring, generosity, intellectual curiosity,
tolerance, gratitude, awe and wonder
at the universe, democratic participation
and environmental responsibility.
5.
I will support and advocate for health
care for all through a single payer
national health program as an expression
of my commitment to care for the health
of my neighbors and fellow human beings.
6.
I will champion voluntary simplicity
and ethical consumption, while working
to change the global economy so that
it is ordered in rational, caring
and sustainable ways.
7.
I will stand up for a strategy of
homeland security, immigration and
foreign policy that is based on nonviolence
and generosity and that works to eliminate
poverty in the US and every other
country.
8.
I will protect our society from fundamentalist
attempts to impose a particular religion
on everyone. At the same time, I will
also honor religion's vital voice
in the public sphere.
PEACE
ON EARTH MOVEMENT In
his 1996 book, The Peace On Earth
Millennium and 2003 follow-up, We
Want Peace On Earth!, utopian author
Robert Alan Silverstein makes the case
that many diverse movements for a more
peaceful, just and sustainable world
have been evolving and converging into
an emerging, as yet unnamed holistic
movement. He called it the Peace On
Earth Movement, because although it
can be traced back through many different
social-movement paths, the goal of each
shares a vision of a world at peace,
balance and harmony that can best be
described as peace on earth. Once we
recognize that so many things are already
being done by so many people to help
create this shared vision, we will be
inspired and empowered to make striving
towards peace on earth our personal
and societal goal.
THE
ARTS
The
creative spirit is one of the most powerful
driving forces in human history. Creativity
in the arts can inspire new insights
and understanding for generations. Inventive
creativity has helped transform our
society time and time again, helping
to make life better for countless lives.
Creativity helps bring meaning to one's
life through unique self-expression.
When focused on uplifting humanity,
the arts expressed through images, books,
music and film, can help to create a
more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. The term 'artivism' is
used to describe the use of artistic
creativity to bring about social, political
or environmental change.
ARTISTS
FOR A BETTER WORLD
"Founded
in 1997, Artists For A Better World
International (AFABW) is a network of
worldwide artists uniting to make a
difference in society...AFABW creates
music CDs, poetry anthologies, short
story books, visual art calendars and
other collaborative creative projects
that include artists from around the
globe."
The
Artivist Film Festival & Awards is an
international film festival and awards
ceremony dedicated to recognizing filmmakers
who create works that deal with social
issues like animal rights, child advocacy,
environmental protection and human rights.
"The
Global Peace Film Festival was established
to utilize the power of the motion picture
to further the goal of peace on earth.
With a mission to expand the definition
of peace beyond anti-war, ideology,
activism or specific causes, the Global
Peace Film Festival films and events
suggest a more personal message as reflected
in the daily lives of individuals and
communities the world over."
The
Peacetopian Community is a diverse group
of dreamers, artists, writers, musicians
and filmmakers, who come from many different
traditions with many different beliefs;
but they share a common vision of a
more peaceful, just and sustainable
future and a mission to work together
to create and promote works that manifest
that vision.
"I
do not think of political power as
an end. Neither do I think of economic
power as an end. They are ingredients
in the objective that we seek in life.
And I think that end of that objective
is a truly brotherly society, the
creation of the beloved community"
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
While
utopian ideals have and continue to
inspire many, some have argued that
envisioning a more practical reality
creates a tangible and achievable goal
that will make it easier to inspire
people to action to create that reality.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had this
in mind when he promoted the ideal but
very real goal of creating 'the beloved
community.' Dr. King envisioned the
Beloved Community as a global community
of brotherhood and sisterhood, where
all are included and treat each other
without bigotry, discrimination or racism.
All people will be seen as equals, and
will share in the abundance of the earth,
so that there will be no hunger, poverty
or homelessness. Everyone will be educated
with the tools and resources to work
out personal conflicts through peaceful
conflict resolution, and nations will
resolve international disputes through
the same nonviolent means, instead of
engaging in military conflicts. Dr.
King believed that all conflicts can
be resolved without violence, and that
through reconciliation, adversaries
can learn to cooperate together in a
spirit of friendship and goodwill.
Dr.
King began promoting the concept of
'the beloved community' in 1956, but
the term was first coined in the early
1900s by Joisiah Royce, a philosopher
and theologian who founded the Fellowship
of Reconciliation. Dr. King, also a
member of this organization, popularized
the phrase and developed it more fully,
so that today it is embraced at the
very heart of many organizations, including
The King Center, as well as by many
diverse faith-based groups and churches.
"We irrevocably
proclaim ourselves to be an independent
world of free people; an interconnected
human family-state of universal citizens,
called the human nation, existing within
all nations as a united world family,
bound together by love." -- Bryant McGill
The 17th century's Age of Reason brought humanity a quantum leap
forward in enlightenment, leading to
such revolutionary milestones of social
justice and human rights as the American
Declaration of Independence and the
Bill of Rights; Bryant McGill's 2012
book, The Voice of Reason gives
us a fresh clarion call for a revolution
of the mind and spirit to create a better
world in this time of crisis and uncertainty.
The book shows us what brought us to
where we are and what the human family
can become, and rallies forth a revolutionary
call for us to declare our independence
from our culture of violence and materialistic
greed.
Some
people are fortunate enough to earn
their livelihoods in jobs that directly
help to create a more peaceful, just
and sustainable world. But much of the
efforts to make life better for our
communities and our world are done by
volunteers -- people who work for a
better world without pay.
Around
the world, hundreds of millions of people
volunteer - nearly 65 million volunteer
in America! American volunteers do the
equivalent work of over 9 million full-time
employees!
Recognizing
the importance of volunteers, the United
Nations Volunteers programme (UNV) works
with a network of over 20,000 organizations
to use International Volunteer Day on
December 5 as an opportunity to celebrate
the important contribution volunteers
make, and as a launching point to inspire
year-round volunteer involvement.
Many
countries have national networks of
volunteer organizations. In the US these
include Youth Service America; the Points
of Light Foundation which helps connect
more than 2.5 million volunteers who
provide services for 170 million people;
and Action Without Borders (idealist.org),
which links volunteers to 50,000 organizations
in 165 countries.
US
Government agencies that promote volunteering
include AmeriCorps, which provides money
for college tuition for youth volunteers;
SeniorCorps which connects those over
55 to volunteer opportunities, and the
Peace Corps for helping in other countries.
Volunteers
ARE creating a better world, one person
and one act of kindness at a time.
"Wayseers are the change agents
of society. Wayseers are the ones who
know first, who sense earliest the disturbances
in the fabric of human affairs – the
trends, the patterns, the fashions,
the coming groundswells, the revolutions
that are afoot."
In 2011, author and social entrepreneur Garret
John LoPorto's youtube video, The
Wayseer Manifesto went viral;
now translated into several languages,
more than 6 million have seen it. The video is based on the ideas in his book, The Wayseers,
which calls upon free-spirits, visionaries
and nonconformists to join the revolution
to change the establishment and create
a new paradigm.
Youth
- young people aged 15 to 24 -- make
up nearly one-third of the world's population.
Youth are directly affected by social,
economic and political developments
around the world, but in many countries,
they are not allowed to be involved
in the decisions that shape their societies.
And yet, young people possess the energy,
enthusiasm and unique perspective greatly
needed to address the problems of our
time. A number of organizations and
networks have arisen to give voice to
young people's concerns and to inspire
and empower them to become involved
in helping to bring about the changes
needed in their communities. Many of
these efforts help connect local activities
to global networks and movements, providing
greater strength and proving that together,
young people ARE making a difference
in creating a more peaceful, just and
sustainable world.
GLOBAL YOUTH ACTION NETWORK
Global
Youth Action Network is one of the largest
networks of youth organizations. It
works to "facilitate youth participation and intergenerational partnership
in global decision-making; support collaboration
among diverse youth organizations; and
to provide tools, resources, and recognition
for positive youth action."
"GENERATION WAKING UP is a global
campaign to ignite a generation of young
people to bring forth a thriving, just,
sustainable world. We strive to: - Awaken
in young people a clear sense of who
we are as a generation, an understanding
of the urgent global challenges and
opportunities we face, and a calling
to take action. - Empower young people
with the training, mentoring, and support
needed to thrive as global citizens,
leaders, and change agents in the 21st
century. - Mobilize young people locally
and globally across issues, geography,
and all lines of difference, unleashing
the collaborative power of our generation." [ From the Generation
Waking Up website ]
BIONEERS
CITIES
OF PEACE
COMMUNITY
Because
we live in a culture of violence,
it is hard to learn how to live in
peace. Peace education is desperately
needed to help teach us how to live
peacefully. Many peacebuilders are
helping to bring the need for peace
education to light and there are many
resources available. Whether or not
we have our own children, we can help
educate the next generation for peace.
In our families, we can help raise
peacebuilders, by sharing our peace
values and by setting a peaceful example.
We can help promote peace education
and conflict resolution in our schools
and advocate for legislation that
promotes these tools. Peace education
isn't just for the young. Adults need
to learn about peace, too. Young people
that learn peacebuilding skills in
school can help adults learn how to
be better peacebuilders and peaceworkers,
too. 
WORLD
FEDERALIST MOVEMENT
THE
NEW MODEL
OCCUPY
MOVEMENT 
PEACE
ON EARTH MOVEMENT
The
creative spirit is one of the most powerful
driving forces in human history. Creativity
in the arts can inspire new insights
and understanding for generations. Inventive
creativity has helped transform our
society time and time again, helping
to make life better for countless lives.
Creativity helps bring meaning to one's
life through unique self-expression.
When focused on uplifting humanity,
the arts expressed through images, books,
music and film, can help to create a
more peaceful, just and sustainable
world. The term 'artivism' is
used to describe the use of artistic
creativity to bring about social, political
or environmental change. 
ARTIVIST
FILM FESTIVAL & AWARDS
GLOBAL
PEACE FILM FESTIVAL
Youth
- young people aged 15 to 24 -- make
up nearly one-third of the world's population.
Youth are directly affected by social,
economic and political developments
around the world, but in many countries,
they are not allowed to be involved
in the decisions that shape their societies.
And yet, young people possess the energy,
enthusiasm and unique perspective greatly
needed to address the problems of our
time. A number of organizations and
networks have arisen to give voice to
young people's concerns and to inspire
and empower them to become involved
in helping to bring about the changes
needed in their communities. Many of
these efforts help connect local activities
to global networks and movements, providing
greater strength and proving that together,
young people ARE making a difference
in creating a more peaceful, just and
sustainable world.
