From Hate to Hope
One Humanity Institute in Oswiecim-Auschwitz, Poland
A City of Hope

As we recognize the Divine Spark within each and every one of us, we recognize that each human being has a personal expression and something of value to offer the world. This spark is where interconnectedness and interdependence unite with the source of all. This spark carries within itself a sense of selfness that can only be described by the individual and known through self-exploration. It is when a person traverses from the past horrors and moves across the road into the place called a “City of Hope,” that one deeply realizes his or her personal intent.

Our new project―One Humanity Institute―is being developed to offer the opportunity to the individual to realign to that personal intent and work from the promise of “Never Again” to recognize we are a family of humankind. The purpose of this project is to stop the endless cycle of violence and move into an age of mutual caring.

HISTORY

World War II illustrates a major horror in our history and similar horrors continue to this day throughout the world. One million people were murdered in Auschwitz, which has been maintained exactly as it was used to remind people NEVER AGAIN. Two million visitors come annually to visit this chilling historic site. They enter the Camp and tour the site, leaving deeply impressed with a hanging sense of despair — and then most often, leave the town as fast as possible. It has not been a place to stay for an extended visit.

Yet Auschwitz, housed in the town of Oswiecim in Poland, served one of the world’s most compelling pressure points for the formulation of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Oswiecim has also been officially appointed a United Nations Peace Messenger City of Peace. Now in Oswiecim, a town of 41,000 inhabitants, there is a desire to work to build something positive — a hopeful vision arising out of the ashes of the past. And knowing the present need of the World globally and locally, we plan to establish a place in Oswiecim a City of Hope for a better future — One Humanity Institute.

THE VISION
“Many Voices, One Heart, One Humanity . . . One Peace.”

With the support of an international team of leaders, practitioners, community builders and visionaries, the One Humanity Institute will be a collaborative enterprise developed to attract, educate, and inspire people of all ages and cultures to translate universal values into actions that generate global harmony and prosperity for sustainable peace. The Institute will cultivate a vision of One Humanity joining together to embrace our deep spiritual connection. Programs and educational content will provide the tools and support to manifest peace in tangible ways at the micro and macro levels of individuals, organizations, communities, societies and the world.

The Institute emerges from the well-documented, urgent need to redirect focus away from the violence of the past and toward a culture of peace emphasizing forgiveness and trust. To that end, the Institute will foster a deep structural shift in the basic premises of thoughts, feelings and actions. Our purpose is to direct away from modes of disaffection and estrangement, which can lead to discord and violence and away from a culture of competition and domination to transform into one of partnership and solidarity.

The Institute will embrace peace that goes beyond the mere absence of conflict and war, to bring about a change of heart that embraces our common humanity. Thus, peace in this sense is a dynamic concept that facilitates the full development of the human potential. This peace implies learning practices of solidarity, justice and cooperation in our own communities, linking each community with active participation in the interconnected world in which we all live. The aim is to experience unitive synergy: Oneness of the authentic self, the Divine Spark, co-aligned with the unity of all selves as a coherent whole. Sustainable PEACE is possible with the consciousness of ONE HUMANITY.

INSTITUTE OVERVIEW
Location and Facilities

After many visits since 2014 to the town of Oswiecim and meetings with the town governor, mayor of the city, and also the representatives of local NGOs and educational institutions, we have discussed and identified a lot with 11buildings to house our programs which is just adjacent to the Auschwitz Museum,

Institute Components

The plan is for the facilities to house a public conference center, a building for higher education with official ties to Jagiellonian University in Krakow and other renown universities around the world, a global exchange student training center, a library with research center, a hands-on experiential museum, housing facilities on the campus and nature retreat villa, and a collaborative of offices for like-minded world organizations that are committed to the ideals of a better global future, as aligned and reflected in the Institute’s vision. Overall, the Institute supports, with tangible resources, education and collaborative thought, the creation of a new world paradigm for peace. 

Programs

The Institute will offer structured learning opportunities for young people and adults through formal and non-formal education. Such opportunities will focus on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the U.N., inter- and intra-faith studies, inter-cultural understanding and cooperation, conflict resolution and trans-rational problem solving, reconciliation, entrepreneurial social impact projects and leadership skills for the rising potential of the empowered voice of individuals.

CONCLUSION

“One Humanity” is a term many of the world’s peoples hear commonly now as we focus on our global awareness and interdependence. The mission of the Institute is to support the universal values of peace, tolerance, dignity, freedom, equality and solidarity for all life through innovative programs and experiences. The Institute’s programs and experiences can inspire HOPE and encourage those who come to envision innovative solutions to overcome obstacles to PEACE. By learning to recognize the inner DIVINE SPARK in every person, we will be able to fully understand that, whatever our differences, we are ONE HUMANITY. We believe that today all is possible and with this we dedicate ourselves to building a better world.

Would you like to get involved or learn more?

www.onehumanity.institute – Dr. Nina Meyerhof and Domen Kocevar