Global Peace Volunteers cleaning up communities in Malaysia

Service has been an integral part of all of Dr. Hyun Jin Moon’s peace efforts, from Service for Peace, which he founded in 2002, to the Global Peace Foundation. Dr. Moon has described service as a powerful peacemaking tool that puts the value of living for the sake of others into action, and starts a process of personal transformation and social harmony.

A recent blog post by the Global Peace Foundation referenced an article by Fortune Magazine that wrote, “Service – whether elected, military, faith-based, or in the non-profit sector – brings people from across the country and across the aisle together to see eye to eye and learn from each other as they work for a shared purpose.”

The article pointed to a recent Pew Research report that showed the United States to be the most politically and ideologically divided as it has been in the last two decades. Fortune called on the millennial generation to engaged in more service to heal the rift and re-engage in public leadership. The article also pointed to a study by American University that said one in ten college students would choose to be mayor, even if the pay were the same amount as a business owner, sales person or teacher.

Political divide, inter and intra-religious conflict, ethnic tensions and apathy are international issues. Aisyah Hanah  of Malaysia University of Science and Technology observed, “Youth nowadays are segregate in so many ways, they need to re-learn to have empathy and the deep sense of inter-connectedness.”

Global Peace Foundation combines interfaith cooperation, strengthening the family and service to mitigate extremism, assuage tensions along identity-based fault lines and build moral and innovative leadership. As Dr. Moon has identified, service is a powerful hands-on tool that puts universal values learned in the family and faith communities into action. This process transforms individuals and breaks down barriers.

Participants hiking up to the top to build character through challenging experiences.

The blog on the Global Peace Foundation featured testimonies from a recent Global Peace Volunteer camp that was held in Malaysia. The leadership camps held across Asia Pacific in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia use outdoor challenge programs, leadership skills workshops and service projects to raise young peacemakers.

GPV Camps provide a place for participants to serve together, grow together, and become leaders together. A participant of the Malaysia program reflected, “At this camp you learn to step back and let other people step in. And as a group you collectively achieve better results. And I think that is the start of leadership that I want to pursue.”

Beyond leadership and self-development, the experience of serving together is a real experience of peacebuilding. Nadeyya Rahmat  a participant of a GPV camp in Malaysia reflected, “My perception of other religions is changed. Despite different faith and practices we have a creator. Hence, there shouldn’t be an issue with religion.” Service transcends traditional divides and unites individuals as they serve based on common values and experiences. One begins to realize that everyone in the human family cries and laughs in the same language, and that everyone in the human family is family.

These testimonies demonstrate that every small or large act of service begins a process that builds out into lasting and global peace. And that service should be considered a powerful tool for peacebuilding on all levels, whether in the community, the nation or the world.

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Team Aoki bonded through the trials they faced together in the great outdoor.

According to Kenshu Aoki, President of the Global Peace Youth Corps-USA (GPYC-USA) and adventure workshop team leader, “This 4-Day hike truly brought out the adventure in the adventure program.”

During the debriefing session, one participant confessed that this was the most physically challenging experience of his life. When the question was bounced back to the audience, “How many of you thought this was the most physically challenging experience in your life,” hands shot up.

For four days, the adventurers had to crawl through the mud, sleep in the rain, slip on wet algae covered rocks, get beaten by waves, and swept away by 6 foot tides. “The Pacific Ocean is a monster,” Mr. Aoki commented later.

For many, every day was a question of life or death. Mr. Aoki had several people who came from landlocked and temperate climate nations. The sound of the Pacific Ocean waves crashing against the rocks kept them up at night.

Such challenges push one beyond imagined limits and reveal one’s true strengths.

The jutting coastal line and every-changing tide made the Olympic Coast difficult to navigate without a map.

The Map is Key

The Olympic Coast is covered with rocky terrain, cliffs, and coves. One can’t see what is coming up next. What is more, the rhythm of the tides changes the landscape constantly. Without a map, it is nearly impossible to ascertain what lies ahead.  One misinterpretation of the map could throw the team off for hours, if not put them in peril.

In this case, the map was crucial to show the teams where they were, what lay ahead, and where they needed to go, in some cases through unbroken paths, to reach their destination.

Becoming A Team

But the terrain was not the only thing that needed to be figured out. In Mr. Aoki’s case he was the youngest member of the team, but team leader. He had to figure out how to navigate between differing abilities, ages, and opinions to make his team a cohesive unit that would make it safely back to basecamp.

For that, nature dished out its full course of lessons, and the team responded by galvanizing together. To accommodate the varying abilities, some team members volunteered to carry more load in their backpacks. Those who could not carry as much, worked hard in their own capacities: waking up early to start the coffee, collecting water, and cooking meals. Giving up was not an option for team Aoki.

A bonding experience to be pulled out by team members from thigh deep quick-mud.

While walking over a particularly muddy patch, a team mate from Brazil found himself sinking thigh deep in quick-mud. His team mates responded immediately. Painfully and slowly they pulled him out. Narrowly averting serious injury, the mud-covered hiker was all smiles. He thanked his teammates and said of the moment, “This was the best experience.”

 “By God’s grace, we made it back with no major injuries,” said Mr. Aoki at the close.

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A Global Peace Festival Foundation volunteer connects with young Nepalese orphans at the Peace Children Home through music.

When I think about a mature person, I do not image someone who only knows a lot intellectually. I imagine someone who has deep empathy and a sense of responsibility.

Thus, when I consider education, I believe it has to start from the heart.

When I was in Harvard Business School, I had a professor who was really intelligent. But he  talked over our heads. He kept telling us, “You don’t understand a thing I say.” None of his students really liked him.

Then there was another professor. He wasn’t necessarily as brilliant, but he took the time to make sure we understood what he was teaching. He thought about how to teach the material so we could better grasp it.

In other words, a proficient intellect is not enough. A really smart, rational and logical guy cannot become a leader who moves people if he has not cultivated his heart.

As you pursue your education, or are educating those around you, don’t forget to invest in the many aspects of the human experience that is often overlooked in the pursuit of knowledge.

If we think deeply about what makes a model society, it is clear that invisible components such as our hearts, principles and values and vision, are important.

To build the world we wish to see, we need to consider the education of the heart.

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I know that it takes a transformational experience to own the principle of living for the sake of humanity. Thus, I am always seeking for ways to create opportunities for experiential learning.

We obtain knowledge through experience.

Why does a child touch a burning match even though he is told not to? It is because the truth a parent tells their son doesn’t belong to the child until he experiences it for himself.

Children want to learn everything. They ask, “What is this? What is that?” But it takes experience for them to own knowledge. I once showed my daughter how to draw something; immediately she wanted to do it herself. This is how our children learn. They take ownership through experience.

It is more so with the most important truths. Just because we tell them, children will not understand that that the most meaningful life is a life lived for others. They have to earn their convictions through defining experiences, just like the child who burned his finger.

This is why all my education is experience-based:  whether it is in my family, in leadership training programs, or service projects. I know that it takes a transformational experience to own the principle of living for the sake of humanity. Thus, I am always seeking for ways to create opportunities for experiential learning.

Furthermore, as a parent, I know that my example provides living guidance and nourishment to my children as they venture out to gain the experiences that enable them to own the greatest vision, principles and values. Thus, I too relish each experience as an opportunity to learn and own the principles and values of one family under God.

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