WHO WE ARE

The Boston Research Center for the 21st Century (BRC) is an international peace institute founded in 1993 by Daisaku Ikeda, peace activist, educator, and president of Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a Buddhist organization active in 190 countries and territories around the world.   Inspired by the SGI's philosophy of value creation (Soka), the BRC works to build cultures of peace through dialogue and education programs. These programs include public forums and scholarly seminars that are organized collaboratively and offer a diverse range of perspectives. The overarching goal of these gatherings is to contribute to a shift in U.S. culture from isolation, violence, and war to interconnectedness, nonviolence, and peace.

The BRC also works to encourage the peaceful aspirations of young people through multi-author books published by academic presses. Among these, Subverting Hatred (1998), Buddhist Peacework (1999), Subverting Greed (2001), Educating Citizens for Global Awareness (2005), and Ethical Visions of Education (2007) introduce humanistic values and concerns that serve to enrich the "core curriculum." So far, our books have been used as supplemental texts in more than 400 college and university courses in the United States. Other publications include a semi-annual newsletter, the annual Ikeda Forum report, and a resource-packed website on which we post detailed summaries of our events.