Why compassion training?
Reimagining institutional and sectoral systems for radical compassion
Compassion isn't heroic. It's human and rooted in science.
It is an innate quality that offers the possibility of responding to suffering with understanding, patience and kindness rather than fear, anger, and repulsion.
While compassion is an inherent quality we all possess, psychology, neuroscience and clinical medicine show that it is an orientation and skill that can be cultivated and strengthened to increase the well-being of individuals, communities, and society.
Compassion training is a solution that can transform lives.
Compelling evidence shows compassion training helps individuals in lasting and beneficial ways. Participants experience how the value of compassion and compassionate behaviors lead to a greater sense of purpose, more resilience and ease, and improved health outcomes.
Increasing
- Happiness and calmness
- Resilience
- Job satisfaction
- Self-caring behavior
- Compassion for self & others
Decreasing
- Worry and anxiety
- Anger
- Mind wandering
- Emotional suppression
- Reports of chronic pain severity
Scientific appreciation of our social nature has expanded and deepened, shedding light on the intimate connection between compassion and our health, mental well-being, longevity, sense of purpose, and the ability to maintain perspective in the face of stress and life challenges.
Only when we make compassion a guiding principle and active force throughout society – focused on alleviating suffering on an individual and collective level – will we be able to create a more caring and humane world.