Charter for Compassion Blog

On April 18th, 2023, Sara Jamil was awarded the prestigious Naim Malik Award for promoting Intercultural Friendship at the City of Richmond Hill's bi-annual Volunteer Achievement Awards at the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts. Naim Malik was dedicated to having the many cultural groups in Richmond Hill come together. He worked with the ...

Don't get me wrong. I'm an avid believer, supporter, rememberer, and applier of the Golden Rule (I really try). I've been taught countless lessons, had hundreds of conversations, and shared tears and hugs with strangers when we talked about the Golden Rule and what it means to treat others the same way I want to be treated--you know, about the Gold...

Healing Ourselves, Healing the World: Delving Deeper

Growing up as a gay kid in a conservative community, within the generally very conservative society of Chile during the 90s made me develop thoughts and feelings about myself that I don't really wish on anyone. I felt like I was a mistake, that I needed to be healed somehow from this curse because I was an abomination to the world. I developed...

My dear siblings in compassion, Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Thank you to all who 'virtually' attended the Global Gala 2022: Architects of Justice. We loved listening to powerful music by Yael Deckelbaum and the Mothers, Pato Banton, Nimo Patel and Shivani Ray, Holly Near, Elizaveta Izmalkova, Aliza Hava, Fabrice Nkurunziza, Camerata...

We are excited to announce a new addition to our webinar series: Adrian Dingle of Raising the Roof in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, presenting next Tuesday, August 30th at 8 am Pacific Time.  The fifth installment of "Housing is a Human Right," our newest webinar series, introduced us to Eden Village. Nate Schlueter, gave us a rundown on...

The fourth installment of "Housing is a Human Right," our newest webinar series, introduced us to The Other Side Village in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Tim Stay, CEO, gave us a rundown on how their organization started their project, giving us details on how they function, the way they apply the Golden Rule (Treat others as you want to be treated) t...

The third installment of "Housing is a Human Right," our newest webinar series, introduced us to SquareOne Villages in Eugene, Cottage Grove, and Springfield, Oregon, USA. Dan Bryant and Andrew Heben gave us a run down on how their organization started their project, giving us details on how they function, the models they have studied and use for l...

The second installment of "Housing is a Human Right," our newest webinar series, introduced us to Community First! Village in Austin, Texas, USA. Amber Fogarty gave us a run down on how their organization started their project, giving us details on how they function, the many offerings they have for their residents, and lots of questions answered b...

We hope that the first episode of "Housing is a Human Right," our newest webinar series, provided a clear introduction to the organizations that are taking action to address the homelessness and housing crises in their communities. We had a lively conversation with Amber Fogarty of Community First Village in Austin, Texas; Dan Bryant and Andrew Heb...

About 3 years after I graduated from university as an international student, I was working for an organization that decided to not sponsor my working visa anymore. For those that don't know about immigration law in the USA, once your visa ends, you have 6 months to find a new employer to sponsor a new visa, or you must go back to your country. You ...

What do you feel when you see flags? Is there a sense of pride or belonging? What about fear or anxiety? Certainly, they are symbols that are assimilated differently by different people, nevertheless, they represent something, like nations, countries, groups of people, organizations, etc. Wikipedia describes flags as distinctive pieces of fabric us...

Hello Charter Family!  For those who don't know much about me, my name is Felipe, I'm the marketing director at the Charter. I'm a Millennial, queer, and really happy to identify as one. During this pride month, I've been thinking about what to share with all of you, our readers, to bring more awareness of issues that pertain to the LGBTQ+ com...

The Charter for Compassion (CfC) is expanding its approach to fundraising in a collaborative effort which supports and showcases artists' work globally. CfC is inviting artists to submit pieces to sell online at a 50/50 split, to help support our mission and it allows us to share their work with our audience around the world. We would, of course, b...

The best of life is conversation. –Ralph Waldo Emerson I agree with Mr. Emerson that some of the best moments in life happen while in conversation – with friends and family, neighbors and coworkers, strangers and new acquaintances. I also value the conversations I have with pets and wild animals, flowers, plants and trees, and the many birds who [i...

Gun Violence in the U.S. has become so prevalent that the FBI maintains an Active Shooter Resource website. The shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX on May 25th came just 10 days after a shooting at Tops supermarket in Buffalo, NY. There have been 27 shootings with injuries and deaths in schools alone in 2022. Newscasters have been hold...

Hello Charter Family! I'm excited to let you know of one of the Charter for Compassion's newest initiatives: The Map of Co-Creators. As you might already know, the Charter is an extended network of organizations, institutions, communities, people, and partners worldwide. Our purpose as an organization is to connect like-minded and like-hearted peop...

Hi Everyone! I'm Mérida McCarthy - you may pronounce it as resonates in your heart - and I'm honored and excited to join the Charter for Compassion Team as Program Coordinator! Let me you a bit more about myself and my background, this might help you understand more why I'm here: I was born to British parents in Leeds (UK) and we moved to Zaria (Ni...

I love the Golden Rule. "Treat Others as You want to be treated", or even more so, the Platinum Rule: Treat Others as They want to be treated. There is also the action-packed wording from GoldenRuleism: "Do for all others, both directly and indirectly, what you would want done for you. Don't do to any others, either directly or indirectly, what you...

Dear Charter Family, It's my pleasure to announce that we are ready to celebrate Golden Rule Day 2022 on April 5. We have a pre-recorded celebration to be showcased via Zoom at 12AM, 8AM, 12PM, and 4PM PDT, in between the broadcasts we offer live panels and conversations hosted on our social media channels with focuses on Youth, Environment, L...

Today we offer 2 messages from members of the Women and Girls Sub-Sector on this special day of the 22 days of Compassion Campaign: Women Can Change The World. Crowds of Sheroesand the songs that they sing One of Charter's 22 Days of Compassion is focused on the concept that "Women Can Change the World". In an earlier blog, I mention...

Last Week:"Mama! They don't have enough volunteers." Maha's daughter called her after finishing a shift at the train station in Berlin, helping the people responsible for receiving the daily arrival of thousands of refugees from Ukraine.Her desperate call reminded Maha of a conversation with a friend, Husham, who wanted Maha to join him at the trai...

"Changing Our Story, Changing Our Lives" is an online course that Charter for Compassion Women and Girls is incorporating into their sector. In 2021, we focused on "PSSN: A Partnership for a Safe and Sacred Now" and dived into practical skills for cultivating and facilitating safety and sacredness in our bodies, minds, and communities. As we enter ...

Have ever gotten upset at a family member or a friend that knows you well for not doing something you expected? Had you previously communicated with that person about your feelings or thoughts, or even what you would expect out of your relationship? I think most of us have experienced sadness, disappointment, or feelings of loneliness when people h...

Mammals are viviparous animals, meaning they are capable of live births. Oviparous animals lay and hatch eggs to procreate and have their young. Scientists find that 99% of animals hatch out of eggs; that number includes insects. One percent of animals, then, are part of the viviparous family and humans are among these. Half of that one percent are...

The Charter for Compassion wants to recognize the innumerable contributions of women to our world. Please join us in celebrating International Women's Day on March 8, 2022: Break the Bias. We have created a short list of things we can all do to lift up women and break the bias that still impacts all of our lives. Start today by finding ways to brea...

Hello friends and future friends of the Charter! The Charter for Compassion works continually to increase compassion globally. To make that work more sustainable we are considering innovative ways to do just that. 2022 is starting with the Charter dipping its big toe into NFT waters. NFT (Non-Fungible-Tokens) are a unique digital ass...

This blog entry by Barbara Kaufmann, Lead of the Arts Sector at the Charter for Compassion, is a reply to Marilyn Turkovich's "Recalling History" post about Archbishop Desmond Tutu featured in our 01/09/22 (Last week's) newsletter. You can read it here.  Marilyn Turkovich, Executive Director for the Charter for Compassion tells the s...

All of the bishops of the Anglican Communion gather every ten years at the University of Canterbury, England. At the 1988 meeting, the officials of the event wanted to make sure that all bishops were accounted for. So in a large group, we were supposed to shout out our last name and the number of the place we were residing. When it came to Desmond,...

We hope this short list of ideas inspires you to think of the many other ways you can "green" your holidays… No matter how or where you celebrate during this time, we can always make little changes to our behavior in order to become more compassionate to the Environment and our Earth, which translates to Compassion for all living beings, including ...

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US AT THE PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS Journey with the Charter for Compassion at the virtual 8th Parliament of the World's Religions (PoWR) October 16 – 18. Beginning October 10, follow these simple virtual steps to join us for this exciting weekend: 1. Go to the Landing Page at https://parliamentofreligions.org/parl...

Hello dear friends, Felipe here, bringing you the 🔥hottest🔥newest ways to support the Charter for Compassion. The Charter is a non-profit organization that is funded by grants and donations from people all around the world. We are very grateful to our sustaining donors and all those who have made one-time donations to the Charter for Compassion. If...

The Charter for Compassion and Compassionate California lost a caring soul of compassion. Joan Marie passed June 22, 2021. She was beloved by countless groups, individuals, and organizations around the world. She leaves a legacy of peacebuilding, beloved community, and compassionate activism. Joan was dedicated to alleviating the suffering of other...

If you lived on planet Earth this past year, your life probably was affected by COVID-19. Am I right? We, at the Charter for Compassion were not exempt from this of course and thus, had to adapt. How could we share the Charter's mission and its many programs while not going to conferences, meetings with cities, governments and partners, as physical...

June is PRIDE month, and it is a reminder that it as a compassionate people we give our voices to stop the global violence and expressions of inequality, torture and even executions towards people because of who they love, how they look, or who they are. Today's message is written by Felipe Zurita reminding us that stories are the best lessons for ...

Why do some families have conversations with each other that really matter, while other families have trouble talking without fighting, arguing, or experiencing distance?  Why do some families meet together and feel close, supported, and accepted unconditionally, while other families struggle to find the time, or they feel like they have to fa...