Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of the Art of Living Foundation, was awarded the 2025 World Leader for Peace and Security honor by the Boston Global Forum (BGF), at Harvard University, and Michael Dukakis Institute, joining a decade-long lineage of global statesmen and humanitarian leaders recognized for advancing peace in complex times.

The award ceremony on November 3, 2025, in Boston, Massachusetts, opened with a video tracing his decades of service across conflict zones, schools, prisons and disaster-hit communities. It closed with a speech that framed peacebuilding as one of the most urgent global priorities of the 21st century. “Peace cannot come by words; it has to translate into action,” he said as he accepted the award. “A lot is done for security. Very little attention is given to peace.”

The moment marked a significant acknowledgment: his work is no longer seen only as spiritual or humanitarian but as a core contribution to global stability.

Why He Was Honored

According to the Boston Global Forum, the award recognizes:

• Peacebuilding work in conflict regions, including dialogue efforts in Kashmir, mediation in Colombia’s FARC peace process, and trauma-healing programs in Iraq and Sri Lanka.
• Mental-health leadership, bringing stress-relief tools like Sudarshan Kriya to schools, universities, veterans, first responders and prisons worldwide.
• Global humanitarian service, including 1,300 free schools in India, river rejuvenation projects, and large-scale disaster relief mobilization.
• A moral voice in the AI era, offering ethical clarity on technology, loneliness and social cohesion.

With this recognition, Gurudev Ravi Shankar now joins past honorees including Angela Merkel, Ban Ki-moon, Shinzo Abe, Sauli Niinistö, Ursula von der Leyen, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

His Acceptance Speech: Peace as Urgent Public Work

Gurudev Ravi Shankar dedicated the honor “to all the volunteers tirelessly working for peace around the world.”

He argued that peacebuilding must move from an afterthought to an essential public investment:

• Peace education, he said, must address stress—the root of aggression.
• Mediators must approach conflict “free from any agenda, guided only by compassion and clarity.”
• Society needs a “moral and spiritual force” to counter rising mistrust and polarization.

He also warned of a global mental-health emergency, noting that depression, anxiety and suicide are rising not just among youth but across households, campuses, and prisons. “Physical comfort is there,” said Gurudev Ravi Shankar. “But mental-health challenges have skyrocketed.”

A Role in the Future of AI and Humanity

This year’s award also coincides with the launch of BGF’s World Leader Spirit Initiative, an interfaith and ethical-governance dialogue series for the AI age. Gurudev Ravi Shankar will serve as a guiding voice, urging that technology must be anchored in human values. 

During the award ceremony, Gurudev addressed questions around social media, the potential and perils of AI usage, and the role of technology in spiritual growth. “The purpose of technology is to bring comfort. But true comfort must reach the mind and heart,” he said. 

A Lifetime of Service Behind the Honor

The ceremony film highlighted key contributions:

• 1,300 free schools educating 100,000 underserved children in India.
• Stress-relief programs for 350,000 students, 800,000 prisoners, and thousands of veterans.
• Environmental restoration, reviving 70 rivers and water bodies.
• Disaster and trauma relief mobilized globally.
• The World Culture Festival, uniting millions in shared celebration and meditation.

Together, these initiatives express a simple mission: a stress-free, violence-free world.

Closing Vision

Gurudev Ravi Shankar ended his speech with a message that echoed through the hall. He noted “Let us dream of a society where bodies are disease-free, minds are joyful, hearts are compassionate, and creativity brings happiness, not destruction.”

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