UNESCO MGIEP organised the first-ever World Youth Conference on Kindness at New Delhi from August 20-23, 2019. Themed 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: Gandhi for the Contemporary World – Celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’, the Conference brought global youth leaders, policy makers and Nobel laureates, among others, under one umbrella.

What we've been upto at UNESCO MGIEP

For the 17 SDGs, UNESCO MGIEP has selected 17 most inspiring stories from amongst thousands that we have received to be featured in this issue of the Blue Dot.

Grammy Award-winning musician and UNESCO MGIEP Kindness Ambassador Ricky Kej led an ensemble of stellar musicians at the #Kindness Concert, where the musicians also launched the #KindnessAnthem.

In this article, the authors review the scientific evidence that supports the pursuit of ‘acts of kindness’ and present supporting arguments to posit that the explicit cultivation of intentional acts of kindness may also be fundamental for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and for building peaceful and sustainable societies.

RICKY KEJ, Grammy® Award Winner, US Billboard #1 Artist, UNESCO MGIEP’s ‘Global Ambassador for Kindness’ is an internationally renowned Indian Music Composer, and Environmentalist who has dedicated his life and Music to creating awareness on the environment, and positive social impact.

“I want all of you to be brave in practicing ‘small kindness,’ thereby creating a wave of kindness that will someday wash over all of Japanese society.” These words were spoken in March 1963 by Seiji Kaya, then President of the University of Tokyo, in his farewell address to students on graduation day. His speech, reported in newspapers and on TV, marked the start of the Small Kindness Movement.

In this article, the author shares how kindness is defined by students and teachers, provides illustrations of “pedagogical kindness,” and showcases how students are kind within the context of school.

Schools try many approaches to encourage students to be kind and helpful—from rewarding them for good behaviour, to implementing service-learning programmes, to directly teaching them social and emotional skills.

Kindness is a quality that seems inherent in human beings. Like most vital things, however, it is at once very simple and very complex, with multiple layers that can be explored extensively.

At a basic level, cultivating kindness toward ourselves and others allows us to find commonality with all life. It 'opens our hearts' and helps us to accept the basic existential predicament of our lives that we are all beings facing death.

Foreword by Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank', Hon'ble Minister of HRD.

Message by Prof. Anantha Duraiappah, Director of UNESCO MGIEP