WPM: 25 years in service of peace

• 1995: A gathering of 12 committed persons, under the leadership of Sunny Stephen, came together on 09 January 1995, to form “World Peace Mission”. The driving force behind this undertaking was the idea that no matter what your creed, caste, colour or background, you can love, share and respect one another and build up a community for peaceful cooperation.

• 1996: Organized seminars and camps in schools and colleges under the banner of “One Heart, One World”. While adhering to one’s own faith system, one also needs to respect others’ beliefs and practices, thereby shunning religious fanaticism, and creating an atmosphere of religious freedom for all. This idea caught the fancy of young people of college-going age.
• 1997: This year marked the start of Family Mission. Family Mission concentrated its attention on conducting family enrichment programmes, awareness classes for couples, seminars for youngsters to promote goodness and value systems and family counselling.

• 1998: “Music Message” was the musical branch of World Peace Mission that came on scene this year and endeavored to provide educational support to poverty-stricken students. It was an unprecedented project that directly and through newspaper ads roped in 1,820 collaborators from all over Kerala who visited houses, distributing musical albums. It proved doubly beneficial in the sense that it offered a means of livelihood to these persons and at the same time it offered a source of income from the sale of the albums for educational support to poor students. Within the last 15 years, World Peace Mission has extended support to 18,000 students.

• 1999: The highlight of the year was the organisation of life-support programmes in different tribal belts of Kerala and the provision of health-care services.

• 2000: The turn of the millennium witnessed the idea of extending the activities of World Peace Mission to foreign countries with a view to providing services to deserving people everywhere

• 2001: Plans were set rolling for the empowerment of women. To ensure their empowerment on a practical plane, special seminars were organised at the district level to give women specialised vocational training so that they would feel confident to make their presence known in mainstream society and achieve satisfactory growth.

• 2002: “WPM Social Justice” was started to strive for social justice for the socially downtrodden, and to make free legal advice available to such people.

• 2003: The focus this year was the WPM campaign against alcohol by organising awareness classes and distributing leaflets highlighting the evils of alcoholic consumption.

• 2004: East or west, nature is best. This thought informed the volunteers of WPM this year who decided to campaign for the protection and preservation of nature in its pristine purity. The campaign assumed the title of “Green World” which saw a massive effort in this direction 

• 2005: Another area that called for immediate attention from WPM volunteers was the huge incidence of cancer at an unprecedented scale. WPM collected and distributed aid for the treatment of cancer patients 

• 2006: WPM winged its way overseas and set up World Peace Mission Communities in various countries.

2007: “Manna” was the title of the WPM project to provide food for the poor on a large scale, which was renamed later as “Five Loaves of Bread“. Currently, WPM serves the needy and underprivileged under the project ‘”Food and Education Respectfully”.

• 2008: People living in orphanages, girls’ towns and old age homes have to keep their self-image intact. WPM provided financial support to such institutions.

• 2009: This was the year to get to know other people’s cultures and lifestyles by arranging socio- cultural programmes in different countries.

• 2010: Not every student is fit to pursue higher education. Seeing the truth of this fact, WPM selected deserving students, and arranged specialist training and financial support for them.

• 2011: The time had come to promote World Peace Mission programmes in African nations, and therefore, WPM started its ministries among the African people. These included the provision of free food, medical camps, protection of AIDS-affected children, and allied services

• 2012: “Art of Peace” was the banner under which retreats and meditation classes were organised in different countries. The target audience was young people who were given classes through family counselling and orientation programmes to stay rooted in compassion, truth and love and to lead successful lives while at the same time upholding moral values.

• 2013: World Peace Mission started its “Career Care Support” programme to guide youngsters to choose their careers wisely.

• 2014: A nurses’ community, titled ‘Angels of Mercy’ started functioning under WPM auspices.

• 2015: A news portal was started for the benefit of the Indian diaspora. It is named pravasiworld.in

• 2016: World Peace Radio was the name of an offshoot of WPM. It is an online radio programme that makes it possible to share knowledge and experiences among its audiences. The radio helps spread the message of peace, love and mercy in the minds of people who are otherwise pre-occupied with numerous commitments in the journey of life.

• 2017: A prayer line, to promote world peace, and to pray and meditate together, came on stream this
year.

• 2018: The year witnessed several natural disasters which called for immediate relief measures. Drawing inspiration from such emergency situations, WPM volunteered to serve as relief workers under its ‘WPM Disaster Management Ministry’. Its motto is the unquenchable quest for peace that lasts. Peace has to start with individuals, grow in families, work in communities, and stay afloat throughout the world.

• 2019: This year has set in motion the World Peace Academy. The Academy operates in collaboration with the TRADA Institute of Social Sciences which is affiliated to Martin Luther Christian University. This university has the approval of the University Grants Commission. World Peace Academy prepares youngsters for projects that promote the common good in more places through family counselling thatensures social good, as well as through social work, de-addiction therapy and psychology. These prepare students for degree/diploma courses both directly and online. The final aim is the greatest good of the largest number.

• 2020: “One Heart, One World” is the title of short films and documentaries that are prepared in different countries with a view to get young people to compete in such projects. The plan is to offer wider recognition to deserving films, and through social media ensure their wider circulation for social good.
• In celebration of the 25th anniversary of WPM, what is in wraps is the provision of World Peace Mission Awards which will comprise the following divisions: (a) WPM Peace and Harmony Award, (b) WPM Humanitarian Award, (c) WPM Award for Media Excellence (d) WPM Award for Excellence in Social Services (e) WPM Women Empowerment Award (f) WPM Green World Mission Award and (g) WPM Tribal Mission Award.
• In consultation with the UN Peace-Building Commission, we were able to distribute a book titled Great Lessons of Peace, among elders and children in all 195 member countries of the United Nations.

Projects visualised for 2020, Silver Jubilee year

• Confer World Peace Mission Awards on humanitarian workers who crossed the boundaries of the world to render their selfless services.

• Arrange an international film festival comprising classic cinemas from different countries which promote the idea of One Heart One World. Festival Director: John Paul
• Conduct an international short-film competition on the concept of” Love, Peace and Mercy” Share with Your Neighbour”, with the cooperation of international assemblies of young people. Online Short-film competition

Director: Bejoy Cherian

• Start a free legal aid forum for the poor and downtrodden people of the world.
Legal aid forum director:

• A book – “One Heart One World” (a complete tome on life skills) - is getting ready for worldwide distribution. Its avowed aim is to make available education for children everywhere along with firm grounding in moral values.
Concept & Direction: Sunny Stephen

• Start nature Tourism, inter-religious pilgrimage and socio-cultural program in collaboration with International Pilgrimage Revolution (IPR).
• The music album – Music for Meditation – is in the pipeline.
•The dream project, Housing for the Poor, is currently on at various stages of execution.
Project director: Philip Maniyalil