Karuna Center for Peacebuilding

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Karuna Center for Peacebuilding (KCP) is a nonprofit organization based in Western Massachusetts. Founded in 1994, its mission is to help people split by conflict build mutual understanding and lasting peace. The name Karuna comes from a Sanskrit word meaning compassion. KCP runs educational programs in conflict transformation and inter-communal dialogue for communities around the world, with a focus on relational peacebuilding to heal broken ties and test ways for people to live together.

Rather than maintaining permanent overseas offices, KCP supports locally led organizations, networks, and processes so they can continue working independently to reduce violence and foster understanding in their own areas. The center works with in-country partners on peacebuilding projects, including violence prevention training and dialogue workshops.

KCP was founded by Dr. Paula Green, who has a background in intergroup relations, counseling psychology, Buddhist meditation, and nonviolence. She also helped create the Conflict Transformation Across Cultures (CONTACT) program with the SIT Graduate Institute. Since its early years, KCP has worked in many countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. By 2024, its main projects were in Nigeria, Benin, and the United States, with activity spanning West, East, Central Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia, and North America. The organization also collaborates with SIT on the CONTACT program and is a member of the Alliance for Peacebuilding.