In this recording of the Charter for Compassion's Global Read, held on Wednesday, August 5, 2025, two powerful voices in the anti-nuclear movement came together to make the case that nuclear power is not the answer to the climate crisis — and that compassion, justice, and honest science must guide our energy future. The Books Featured: 📗 No to Nuclear — by Linda Pentz Gunter Linda Pentz Gunter, founder and executive director of Beyond Nuclear, made a compelling argument that the nuclear power industry has long relied on richly funded PR campaigns and an army of lobbyists to sway the public, politicians, and media — while the real costs and dangers remained hidden. Her book challenged the narrative that nuclear energy is a safe and green solution, exposing it as too slow, too expensive, too dangerous, and too deeply entangled with the nuclear weapons complex to serve as a rational energy choice. She also brought critical attention to the Indigenous peoples and communities of color who have borne the greatest harm from the nuclear sector, and raised urgent questions about environmental justice and what a truly equitable energy transition must look like. Order "No to Nuclear" here: https://www.plutobooks.com/product/no-to-nuclear/ Linda's work with Beyond Nuclear International (http://www.beyondnuclear.org/) has helped reframe the anti-nuclear message through a more human lens — connecting global climate and anti-nuclear movements through news, essays, and storytelling in multiple languages. 📘 Nuclear is Not the Solution — by M.V. Ramana M.V. Ramana, Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security and Professor at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia, demonstrated why expanding nuclear power is not only naïve but dangerous. His research showed that nuclear energy cannot be scaled fast enough to meaningfully address the climate crisis, and that pursuing it diverts critical resources away from faster and more affordable solutions. He also explored the political economy of nuclear energy — how powerful organizations have socialized the risks and costs onto the public while privatizing profits — and laid out how nuclear expansion deepens the conditions for nuclear annihilation. Order "Nuclear is Not the Solution" here: https://www.versobooks.com/products/3013-nuclear-is-not-the-solution Together, these two authors and their books offered an urgent, evidence-based, and deeply compassionate call to choose safer, faster, and more just pathways out of the climate crisis — without nuclear power. 🌍 About the Charter for Compassion Global Read The Global Read is a recurring series hosted by the Charter for Compassion that brings together authors, activists, and global citizens to explore books at the intersection of compassion, justice, and human flourishing. Learn more and explore past Global Reads at: https://charterforcompassion.org/featured/global-read/ 🕊️ About the Charter for Compassion The Charter for Compassion is a global nonprofit dedicated to building a just and compassionate world across sectors including education, health, the environment, and justice. Sign the Charter at: https://charterforcompassion.org

💫 What does it mean to belong to a land that pushes you away — and still find the strength to survive? In this deeply moving Charter for Compassion Global Read, we sit down with Somia Sadiq — peacebuilder, storyteller, decolonial thinker, and author of the National Amazon Bestseller and 2026 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist, Gajarah. 🌿 ABOUT THE BOOK With stunning lyricism, Gajarah tells the story of Emahn — big-haired, mischievous, and larger-than-life. Born in the Arabian Gulf, she spends her summers on the rooftops of Lahore with her grandparents, aunties, and cousins. But beneath her spirited exterior, Emahn carries the weight of childhood trauma. When she marries and moves to Canada, she learns to navigate multiple realities — compartmentalizing memories of the world she left behind, even as she clings fiercely to its stories. She is resilient. She is driven. She is unbreakable. Almost. When tragedy strikes, Emahn must reach into the deepest wells of her ancestral strength to survive — even if it means revisiting her most gutting memories. Braided with prose, poetry, and mythical parables, Gajarah confronts the raw realities of forgiveness and justice, and asks what it truly means to call a place home. 🙏 ABOUT THE AUTHOR — SOMIA SADIQ Somia Sadiq is a space-maker, boundary-pusher, and visionary leader in peacebuilding and reconciliation across the globe. With ancestral roots in post-colonial Punjab and Kashmir, she brings a fierce drive to decolonize our ways of thinking, knowing, and being — and a profound belief that stories have the power to advance diplomacy, break barriers, and promote healing. She is the founder of: 🔹 Narratives Inc. — an award-winning Planning and Design firm based in Winnipeg, working throughout Turtle Island on Treaty territories, traditional ancestral, and unceded lands. 🔹 Kahanee — a Canadian non-profit dedicated to amplifying stories and promoting peacebuilding through storytelling. 🔹 Ravayat — a welfare organization based in Pakistan, spotlighting ancestral, community-based conflict transformation systems. 🔗 LINKS & RESOURCES 📖 Learn more about Gajarah & Somia Sadiq's creative works: https://www.somiasadiq.com/creative-works 🎧 Listen to the Audiobook: https://www.audiobooks.com/audiobook/969351/ ⭐ Leave a review on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/233118441-gajarah 🕊️ Learn about Kahanee — Peacebuilding Through Storytelling: https://www.kahanee.ca/ 🌍 Learn about Narratives: https://narrativesinc.com/ 🌐 Charter for Compassion: https://charterforcompassion.org 📰 Read our Substack: https://thecharterforcompassion.substack.com 💛 Support our work: https://charterforcompassion.org/how-to-engage/donate 🔔 Subscribe for monthly Global Reads, Democracy Series conversations, and more.

About the Book In NORAH. From My Grandmother’s Kitchen: Palestinian Recipes and Memories, Rolla Alaydi shares an enchanting memoir that invites readers into the heart of her grandmother's kitchen, nestled within a Gaza refugee camp. With vivid storytelling, she weaves a tapestry of life lessons, passed down through generations, as she reflects on the profound influence of her grandmother's tales and the culinary artistry that nourished her soul. The book paints a nostalgic picture of a young girl, discovering not just the flavors of her grandmother's dishes but also the wisdom hidden in everyday activities – from gathering eggs to slicing eggplants. Through Rolla's words, readers will find themselves transported to their own cherished childhood memories, recalling the fragrant scents, vivid visuals, and the embrace of a loving grandparent. Rolla's grandmother, a resilient and opinionated woman, emerges as a formidable source of guidance and knowledge. The book beautifully captures the reverence that grandchildren often feel for their grandparents, who seem to possess a wealth of wisdom about life's intricacies. This memoir encapsulates a universal truth – that through acts of selflessness and kindness to others, we not only preserve our own humanity but also find salvation for our spirits. "NORAH. From My Grandmother’s Kitchen: Palestinian Recipes and Memories," serves as a poignant reminder of the transformative power of storytelling, the enduring bonds of family, and the healing potential of empathy and compassion. This book is an ode to the wisdom passed down through generations and a celebration of the indomitable spirit that resides in the heart of every grandmother's kitchen. About the Author Dr. Rolla Alaydi is an educator, author, and community advocate based in California. She teaches Arabic language and culture and is dedicated to creating engaging, meaningful learning experiences that connect language with identity, history, and lived experience. Dr. Alaydi is the author of ˆ√, a work that preserves Palestinian culinary heritage through storytelling, memory, and tradition. Through her teaching, writing, and community work, she seeks to amplify voices of resilience and foster compassion, cultural understanding, and human connection. About the Facilitator: Unhae Langis is a former high school and university educator turned organizer and artist. Her publications include a monograph and numerous articles and essays in peer-edited journals, book collections, reviews, and guest commentaries. Her latest collection, with Julia Reinhard Lupton, is Shakespeare and Wisdom: Ecumenical, Ecological and Ethical Horizons (Edinburgh University Press 2024). She revels in quilting as the creative convergence of political expression, poetry, calligraphy, and textile art. Opportunities to cultivate caring ways of being with Earth and each other are her joy.

Can compassion truly energize you — instead of burning you out? 💛 In this Charter for Compassion Global Read, we explore Engaged Compassion by Dr. Lobsang Tenzin Negi — former Tibetan Buddhist monk, Emory University professor, and the pioneering creator of CBCT® (Cognitively Based Compassion Training), developed at the invitation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In a world where burnout and disconnection have reached epidemic levels, Engaged Compassion offers a revolutionary, evidence-based path to human flourishing — one that doesn't ask you to protect yourself from the world, but to engage with it more skillfully, more deeply, and more sustainably. Through 7 transformative steps rooted in both Buddhist contemplative wisdom and cutting-edge Western psychology, Dr. Negi shows us how genuine compassion, practiced with intention, becomes a source of resilience rather than exhaustion — and a powerful force for meaningful change at both individual and societal levels. 🙏 Facilitated by Gard Jameson, PhD — philosopher, educator, and Charter for Compassion Board Trustee. About Dr. Lobsang Tenzin Negi: Dr. Negi holds both a PhD and a Geshe Lharampa degree — the highest level of Tibetan monastic education. He is Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Emory Center for Contemplative Science and Compassion-Based Ethics and has supervised Emory's academic collaborations with the Dalai Lama since 1998. He is the creator of SEE Learning®, a global Pre-K through Higher Education framework for social, emotional, and ethical learning, and founder of Drepung Loseling Monastery in Atlanta, Georgia. Recent honors include Emory University's Thomas Jefferson Award (2024), a degree honoris causa from Rutgers University (2025), and the Charter for Compassion Karen Armstrong Humanitarian Award (2025). About the Charter for Compassion Global Read: The Global Read is a monthly virtual gathering that brings together participants from around the world to explore books on compassion, justice, mindfulness, and building a better humanity. It is hosted by the Charter for Compassion, a global nonprofit organization inspired by Karen Armstrong's vision of a more compassionate world. 🌍 🔔 Subscribe to stay connected with our Global Read series and future events. 📖 Learn more about Engaged Compassion: https://charterforcompassion.org/featured/global-read/engaged-compassion.html 🌐 Charter for Compassion: https://charterforcompassion.org 💛 Support our work: https://charterforcompassion.org/how-to-engage/donate

🌱 Architects of Abundance | Indigenous Regenerative Food Systems with Dr. Lyla June Johnston What if the solutions to our climate and food crises have existed for thousands of years — hidden in plain sight? Join the Charter for Compassion's Global Read as we explore Dr. Lyla June Johnston's groundbreaking Ph.D. dissertation, Architects of Abundance: Indigenous Regenerative Food and Land Management Systems and the Excavation of Hidden History. Dr. Johnston (Diné/Tsétsêhéstâhese) reveals how Indigenous communities across the Americas have cultivated thriving, self-sustaining ecosystems for millennia — without fertilizers, without irrigation, and driven by deep reverence for the Earth. In this conversation, we explore: 🔥 Indigenous fire ecology & pyrogenic land management 🌊 Ancient aquaculture systems rooted in reciprocity 🌍 Soil regeneration techniques that sustain life across centuries 📜 How these histories were buried — and why reclaiming them matters NOW Co-facilitated by Robin Little Wing Sigo (Suquamish) and Albie Lawrence (Tlingit/Tsimshian). 📅 Part of the Charter for Compassion Global Read Series 🔗 Learn more here: https://charterforcompassion.org/featured/global-read/architects-of-abundance.html #IndigenousKnowledge #RegenerativeAgriculture #FoodSovereignty #ClimateJustice #LylaJune #IndigenousWisdom #Sustainability #EcologicalRestoration #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge #CharterForCompassion #GlobalRead #IndigenousStudies #EnvironmentalJustice #Regenerative #NativeAmerican #LandStewardship #FoodSystems #ClimateResilience #IndigenousRights #AncestralWisdom

🎙️ Global Read for Kids + Co. | The Little Boy From Jamaica | Charter for Compassion What does it take for a little boy growing up in rural Jamaica — without electricity or running water — to become Canada's first-ever Black Chief of Police? Everything. And this story has it all. In this heartwarming and inspiring Global Read recorded on April 18, 2026, we explore The Little Boy From Jamaica, written by Devon and Pearlene Clunis and illustrated by Emily Campbell — a true story of resilience, hope, hard work, and the power of dreaming big. Join co-author and retired Winnipeg Chief of Police Devon Clunis as he shares his remarkable journey from a humble childhood in Jamaica to making Canadian Black history — and reminds us that the potential for greatness lives in all of us. This session is facilitated by Rachel Luke, Instructional Coordinator for African, Black, and Afro-Caribbean Student Success at the Peel District School Board and recipient of the Prime Minister's National Award for Teaching Excellence. ✨ This read is for children, families, educators, and everyone who believes in the transformative power of representation, compassion, and storytelling. ⏱️ CHAPTERS: 00:00 – Welcome & Introduction 05:00 – About the Book & Authors 10:00 – The Global Read Begins 45:00 – Conversation with Devon Clunis 60:00 – Q&A & Closing Reflections 📚 About the Book: The Little Boy From Jamaica is both a children's book and an invitation — to believe in yourself, lean on others, and dare to dream beyond your circumstances. Devon's story is a shining example of what becomes possible when hope, hard work, and community come together. 🌍 Produced by the Charter for Compassion as part of our Global Read for Kids + Co. series — bringing diverse, compassionate voices and stories to readers around the world. 🔗 Learn more & explore upcoming Global Reads: https://charterforcompassion.org/featured/global-read/the-little-boy-from-jamaica.html #BlackCanadianHistory #CanadianBlackHistory #BlackHistory #BlackExcellence #TheLittleBoyFromJamaica #DevonClunis #BlackChiefOfPolice #BlackHistoryForKids #BlackRepresentation #AfricanCanadian #ChildrensBooks #DiverseBooks #BlackStoriesMatter #GlobalRead #CharterForCompassion #CompassionInAction #BlackLeadership #EquityDiversityInclusion #Resilience #InspirationForKids #JamaicanCanadian #BlackRoleModels #AntiRacismEducation #MulticulturalBooks #kidsreadaloudbook

What If Prayer Was Never About the Right Words? | A New Way of Living Sacredly Recorded live on March 25, 2026 — What if the most profound prayer happens not in a pew, but while washing dishes, kneading bread, or sharing a quiet cup of tea? In this soul-stirring conversation, author Margaret Somerville invites us to reimagine prayer as a way of being — not a formula to perfect. Drawing from her Celtic spiritual roots, decades of pilgrimage to the Isle of Iona, and deep engagement with Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, and Jewish traditions, Margaret reveals how holiness shimmers in the smallest gestures of everyday life. Through six transformative pathways — Sacred Space, Release, Naming, Wilderness, Nourishment, and Peace — she offers gentle practices and stories that move us beyond unanswered petitions into a deeper communion with self, others, and the divine. This conversation was beautifully co-facilitated by Rabbi Shelly Barnathan and Imam Jamal Rahman as part of the Charter for Compassion's Global Read series. ✨ Whether you're weary of rigid religion, longing for spiritual renewal, or simply seeking meaning in the ordinary — this conversation is for you. 📖 Learn more: https://charterforcompassion.org/featured/global-read/when-prayer-doesnt-work.html 💛 Support this work: https://charterforcompassion.org/how-to-engage/donate/ #Prayer #Spirituality #Mindfulness #Interfaith #SacredLiving #Contemplative #Celtic #IsleOfIona #SpiritualGrowth #CharterForCompassion #GlobalRead #InterfaithDialogue #MindfulLiving #SpiritualPractice #InnerPeace

This video was recorded on February, 11, 2026. Although this book is about religion, it is not a book of religious dogma. The intent is to explain the foundation, the evolution and how each of the five major systems of faith is practiced today. It examines the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) and the ancient, yet still practiced by many, religions of Hinduism and Buddhism. The author's desire for those who read the book is that they will have a better understanding and therefore a greater tolerance for those who have religious beliefs different than their own. The conversation was facilitated by Nancy E. Murphy, MA, volunteer of the Charter for Compassion, and part of Compassionate St. Augustine, Florida, USA. If you would like to learn more about this episode, click the following link: https://charterforcompassion.org/news-events/special-events/40-days-of-peace/2026/global-read-with-linda-reynolds-andiric-getting-it-then-getting-along.html Programming like this is possible thanks to contributions from donors around the world. Learn how to become a donor here: https://charterforcompassion.org/how-to-engage/donate/