Mahatma Gandhi was born in India in 1869. He studied law in England and returned to practice in India, where he was subjected to discrimination. Among other things, this experience resulted in a decision to devote himself to selfless service for the welfare of all, through nonviolent means that can be—and have been—applied across the world.  

Gandhi’s Seven Steps to Global Change: 

• Engage in selfless service, such as unpaid community work providing shelter and emergency meals to the homeless 

• Support right and fair labor efforts, such as the activities of the Jobs with Peace Campaign or the Center for Economic Conversion 

• Practice nonviolence by taking a concrete step to help enhance peace around you daily 

• Engage in conciliation/reconciliation by not depending on the police or judiciary and instead bring together dissenting parties and work toward resolution 

• Get involved in government and support those who believe in nonviolent values 

• Re-educate by fostering alternatives to violence through concrete education of children and all of society 

• Share resources by practicing some form of giving daily, such as training others or providing free meals as an extension of your own joy and gratitude  

Of the above seven steps, are there ones you agree or disagree with? Do you currently practice any of the steps? If not, do you have a desire to, and if so, which one(s)? As always, comments are welcome below.  

Fortunately, I had the opportunity in the fall of 2017 to serve as the New Mexico Peace Ambassador, as a member of the Global Prosperity and Peace Initiative, when I organized an event in Santa Fe. For me and the attendees it was an opportunity to experience these seven steps: it was a free community event; one of the goals of GPPI is to support right and fair labor efforts; they promote peace and condemn violence; GPPI supports settling disagreements outside of judiciary means and they strongly support the education of children and families regarding nonviolent values; they encourage others to contribute their time and efforts to the needy. 

It was an opportunity to experience both re-education and sharing of resources. For those present, it was an opportunity to share resources and practice gratitude as they listened carefully to the speakers and participated in discussions about creating peace on this planet. 

If you are an elder, you may remember when Gandhi, at the age of 79, was assassinated in January 1948. This devastating event was surely a loss for the entire planet. Detailed information about Gandhi can be found in Gandhi’s Seven Steps to Global Change, written by Guy de Mallac.