by Nikki Kleiner

We need a culture of love, we need it in big and  in small, at home and international. We need it badly and we need it now. Security, Peace and justice will not come by itself.  Maybe they’ll even leave us more and more if we don’t do anything about it.  The Corona crisis destroyed community activities, economy, children’s souls and jobs also my work, many of my violence prevention projects, social and culture projects for kids. 

What is a Culture of Love, why we need it and how can it be?

Characterized by appreciation, tolerance and fair sharing of resources, we find the path that brings us peace and security. Caring and respecting each other,  the nature and ourselves is the core of a Culture of Love.  The heartbeat of my work is dedicated to this thought, to this goal. Empowering people to discover, unfold their personal powers, create, to lead, to be guided or to finde a way with each other together. Dignified action of People worldwide is based on one’s own experience. Were we respected and valued as children, as human or objectified and humiliated. What experiences have we had besides that and how do we and others deal with us now? How do we behave with others and how with the nature that surrounds and nourishes us.

Today we are at a crucial turning point that requires the joint thinking and dialogue of all scientific disciplines, Leaders and Citizens. Balancing Resilience and Transformation in the right way. When I say that we need a culture of love, I mean a culture of love on all levels: Awareness of  ourselves,  care in our families, kindness to our friends and neighbors, love  within our institutions such as schools and kindergartens and workplaces. Appreciative between father and son, mother and daughter, employer and employee, state and people, black and white, man and woman, client and self-employed, east and west, north and south, rich and poor. At the end of the day we all need something to eat, something to drink, people who are with us., a roof over our heads, recognition for our actions, air to breathe and sleep. At the end of the day we are all human beings with strengths and weaknesses and we all need something and we all have something to give. But unfortunately we are now at the point where more and more people are starving, livelihoods and houses are being destroyed, murder is being waged and war is being waged.

The distrust between the state and the people is growing in many countries, as well as distrust to the point of hatred between different groups, both domestically and internationally. Corona crisis, economic damages, war, natural disasters, destruction, death…. a transformation path to a better world? I don´t know. The current path can be the beginning of even far greater and expanding atrocities.  Likewise, the direction of negativity can change the direction every day. Each new day can be the beginning of peace and a life of dignity for all.  But: The more conflicts escalate, the more difficult it becomes to deescalate. Therefore, my approach is primarily a preventive.  Prevention by already teaching children how much nicer it is to walk together and appreciate each other than to walk against each other. For that there are social skills that kids and adults can learn and there are social experiences that we can create, to learn about human dignity and pass it on.  I have been walking this beautiful path for more than 20 years and now I would like to inspire other teachers, child educator, psychologists and artists to discover this path at the interface of art and social issues. Appreciation, creating save spaces, empower people, giving constructive feedback, learn teamwork, give inspiration, communication, social and creative skills in educational and cultural projects. Together we develop a culture of love that suits us and respects the needs of each individual.