Compassionate Service Changes You Before It Changes the World
Summer of Peace 2015 > Community Peacebuilding > Compassion in Action
Broadcast on July 08, 2015
With Nipun Mehta
Service is often framed as a way to change the world. Yet, after a lifetime of service, Gandhi’s words of advice weren’t to preach the change or create the change, but rather to “be the change”. If we serve in a way that transforms us, it inevitably leads to external impact – but not the other way around. In this talk, Nipun will share his personal experience with such inside-out service, and what can emerge when such acts get connected into a “gift ecology”.
For more resources on putting compassion into action and a summary of the entire Global Compassion Summit, please visit http://theshiftnetwork.com/page/putting-compassion-action
Nipun Mehta
Founder, ServiceSpace
At the age of 25, Nipun quit his job to become a "full time volunteer." He is the founder of ServiceSpace, an all volunteer-run organization using technology to inspire greater volunteerism. What started as an experiment with friends is now a global ecosystem of over 500,000 members who have not only delivered millions of dollars in service for free but are regenerating a gift culture. Their projects range from DailyGood to KindSpring to KarmaKitchen. Nipun has received the Jefferson Award for Public Service, the President's Volunteer Service Award and Dalia Lama’s Unsung Hero of Compassion award. He is routinely invited to share his message of "giftivism" with a wide range of audiences and his speech at UPenn commencement was read by millions. Nipun's mission statement in life reads: "Bring smiles in the world and stillness in my heart."
