Charter for Compassion Annual Report 2016-17 Global Compassion Movement We believe that a compassionate world is a peaceful world. We believe that a compassionate world is possible when every man, woman and child treats others as they wish to be treated-with dignity, equity and respect. We believe that all human beings are born with the capacity for compassion, and that it must be cul<vated for human beings to survive and thrive. !1 Challenge “Our world is dangerously polarized. There is a worrying imbalance of power and wealth which results in the control and dominance of a few over the many. Growing rage, malaise, aliena>on, and humilia>on have erupted in terrorist atroci>es that endanger us all. We are engaged in wars that we seem unable either to end or to win. Disputes that were secular in origin, such as the Arab-Israeli conflict, have been allowed to fester and become “holy,” and once they have been sacralized, posi>ons tend to harden and become resistant to pragma>c solu>ons. Yet we are bound together more closely than ever before through digital media. Suffering and want are no longer confined to distant, disadvantaged parts of the globe. We all face the terrifying possibility of environmental catastrophe. It has become impera>ve to apply the Golden Rule globally, ensuring that all peoples are treated as we would wish to be treated ourselves. If our communi>es, ins>tu>ons, and ethical tradi>ons fail to address this challenge, they will fail the test of our me.” ~Karen Armstrong, Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life !2 tapped, yearning to be released. In the 21st century, scien>fic evidence has mounted for Solution compassion as an essen>al ingredient in maintaining thriving, healthy, resilient, and innova>ve enterprises, ins>tu>ons, and communi>es. The response to the Charter has helped reveal the existence of a subterranean global compassion We started 2016 with 311 compassionate movement. We work to support the emergence ini>a>ves and ended 2017 with 405 cies, in 52 and effec>veness of that movement in countries of the world. We made some communi>es everywhere, enabling thousands of significant headway with lending support to organiza>ons to act in concert to create a world in grassroots teams of organizers who struggled to which dialogue transforms conflict. We inspire address the most grave and pressing problems and sustain cultures of compassion locally and within their communi>es. globally through diverse ini>a>ves in educa>on, ci>es, business, health care, and religious and Every city is different, with a uniQue history, and spiritual communi>es. Through a vibrant Partner a confluence of diverse cultures, languages, and Network and global communica>on plaPorms we habits. So every city has a uniQue path to share informa>on, stories and experiences. becoming a community in which compassion The ci>es that sign on to become Compassionate comes alive. However, what all ci>es have in Ci>es are working to iden>fy the uniQue issues common is that in order for compassion to build, that need to be addressed through compassionate there is a call for ci>zens who have the ac>on in their par>cular place on Earth. Issues imagina>on, energy, and courage to start the range from a lack of social jus>ce for women, for movement. immigrants, for the LGBT community, or for those orphaned by the tragedy of the AIDS epidemic. In We have selected some stories that highlight the some communi>es, it is issues of drugs, or gang excep>onal work that happened within our violence, or the need for eQuitable healthcare or compassionate ci>es in 2016-17. There are confron>ng the effects of environmental racism in hundreds of such stories and while we know marginalized communi>es. Others are working to some, we realize we don’t know them all. A`er provide empowerment to youth and to educate all, this is a grassroots movement in which many people about the need for compassion in of the coordinators and team members of an addressing environmental issues. ini>a>ve have jobs, families and even if they are re>red are working harder than they ever have. The concern of people in all these communi>es is All are challenging themselves and their team driven by the idea that beneath our culture of members to assure that tomorrow will not indifference runs a deep river of compassion, a resemble the past but will bring light to a new vast aquifer of loving kindness wai>ng to be story compassionate care. !3 Karachi, Pakistan Charter for Compassion Pakistan Mumkin was launched in three geographic areas, targe>ng around 25-35 women in each The Compassion team in Pakistan has been working community. Ages are ranging between 19-45 on a significant number of projects since 2011. They years. have become globally known for some of their “firsts”: a Compassion Schools Network, Training in fashion designing and Collabora>ve Library Project, Compassionate Cricket entrepreneurial skills is being provided in Club, Compassionate Community Network, Business collabora>on with Fashion and Business Quo>ent, Ramzaan Challenge among others. An Ins>tutes. The aim is to help women make ongoing commitment is to collect one million compe>>ve Quality products which can signatures among Karachi ci>zens to the Charter for compete with market standards and enable Compassion. par>cipants to sell their products within their own communi>es at affordable prices. In the last two years three new ini>a>ves were started. Educa6on Management Organiza6on (EMO) A`er consistent efforts of the Charter for Compassion (CFC) to make humanity common in all corners of Pakistan; the Charter made another goal to take educa>on to the next level in the country. The EMO project along with the CFC made a Sindh Educa>on Sector Plan which sets its goal to make every child in the province not only educated without financial aid, but also given Quality educa>on compe>ng the private schooling system and Mumkin opportuni>es for deserving youth to earn a living through teaching profession. The project According to famous saying; “If you educate a aims to make educa>on common regardless of woman you educate an en>re genera>on.” Mumkin gender, ethnicity, and class or language is a social learning space for underprivileged women barriers. Opera>ve since 25th Feb 2016, this to come together, socially connect with each other, project has been successful in opening several acQuire useful skills and share their knowledge. The schools and has started educa>ng several project >tle highlights the message that women are millions of pupils in areas like Sukkur and eQual members of society and with the right atude Khairpur, and aims to spread more rapidly and improved skill set; it is possible for them to than before in other areas of Sindh at large. become a thriving asset for a society. !4 Compassionate Pune is dedicated to crea>ng a community with a thriving ecosystem for human evolu>on and well being—a city that is environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling and socially just. Recently a cadre of the team formed a group, I- Catalysts®, who are working directly with other ci>es to share processes that bring about compassionate transforma>on. However, most important to the organizing team (pictured below) is working in the field of educa>on. Since the occurrence of the most devasta>ng heat Principal’s Round Table wave in Karachi in 2015, the city witnessed a deep shock of loosing more than 1200 lives. This Star>ng in 2016 Compassionate Pune created warranted immediate ac>on, leading to the the Principal’s Round Table. The opening event, crea>on of Compassionate Footprint project. The was amended by over one hundred educators CFC Pakistan teams went into an immediate including principals and head administrators, overdrive to spread awareness about the represen>ng schools and ins>tu>ons across the environment. The target audience was schools city and local region. and an awareness campaign was supplemented with a planta>on drive to increase the strength of Nipun Mehta, founder of ServiceSpace, an the immediacy and importance of the message. incubator of gi` economy projects that inspire people to be the change they wish to see, Towards a Smart City of Change Makers: launched this new ini>a>ve. Par>cipants had an Compassionate Pune, India opportunity to share their experiments in compassion and kindness projects. The As the grassroots organizers of Pune say: Poona Principal’s Round Table and another new Pune is the Pune of our deepest dreams: a city project, Educa>on Today Society Tomorrow, which is spiritually fulfilling, economically thriving, con>nue to offer workshops, work in local socially just and environmentally sustainable. It is schools and collaborate on compassionate a Compassionate City where everyone is a Leader curriculum. who ini>ates ac>on on things that they deeply care about in a way that others are inspired to join. It is a city of “Changemakers” (to use the term of Ashoka). Pune, India !5 Charter for Compassion—Yemen Begun in early 2016, Compassionate Yemen was a response to the horrors of war and internal displacement of people within Yemen, and most par>cularly in the city of Sana’a. In their Charter for Compassiona—Sri Lanka sustainable ac>on plan, the team stated that they are working to send a message that they are Begun in June 2016, the Sri Lanka Compassion prepared to work and not fight through adop>ng Ini>a>ve is a project to bring back compassion in projects and Quality programs in several fields.