Philip M. Hellmich was a thought leader in creating a new narrative of peace, from inner peace to international peacebuilding. As the Director of Peace at The Shift Network, Philip was the chief architect of the Summer of Peace, Yoga Day Summit and World Peace Library - online global forums that seek to inspire, inform and involve people in the many ways that peace is emerging around the world. He also was the co-lead faculty of the Peace Ambassador Training. These peace programs provided skills training, inspirational stories, and powerful solutions from the world’s top peacebuilders, social change leaders, scientists, Indigenous elders and spiritual mentors. Philip and his colleagues designed these peace programs in partnership with a number of organizations while advancing strategic initiatives, including the International Cities of Peace in creating 1,000 Cities of Peace by 2020; Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education in promoting global compassion education; the Alliance for Peacebuilding on countering violent extremism, PeaceJam and 13 Nobel Peace Laureates in promoting global peace education, and Parmarth Niketan Ashram in promoting a deeper understanding of yoga.
Philip dedicated most of his life to global and local peacebuilding initiatives, including 14 years with Search for Common Ground. He also served for four years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Sierra Leone where he lived and worked in small remote bush villages. A published writer, Philip authored God and Conflict: A Search for Peace in a Time of Crisis with a foreword by Lama Surya Das. He also served as adviser to The Global Peace Initiative of Women.
Philip’s passion was exploring peace along the Peace Continuum, from inner to international levels, and his framing purpose coincided with the key questions: How is inner peace a global responsibility; and, how does the world affect inner peace? A long-time meditation practitioner, Philip enjoyed studying and teaching about the parallels between inner and outer peace.
Although Philip transitioned in 2022, we are still fortunate to offer his programs and wisdom.
