Founded in 1981 by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar,The Art of Living Foundation is a not-for-profit, educational and humanitarian NGO (Non-Governmental Organisation) engaged in stress-management and service initiatives. The organisation operates globally in 151 countries.
The organisation's programmes are guided by Sri Sri’s philosophy of peace: “Unless we have a stress-free mind and a violence-free society, we cannot achieve world Peace.” help individuals get rid of stress and experience inner peace, The Art of Living Foundation offers stress-elimination programmes which include breathing techniques,meditation and yoga. These programmes have helped millions around the world to overcome stress, depression and violent tendencies.
The Art of Living Foundation has spread peace across communities through diverse humanitarian projects, including conflict resolution, disaster relief, sustainable rural development, empowerment of women, prisoner rehabilitation, education for all, and environmental sustainability.
Sister Organizations
The Art of Living Foundation has a few sister organisations which are also dedicated to the vision of a stress-free, violence-free world. The International Association for Human Values (IAHV), Ved Vignan Maha Vidya Peeth (VVMVP), Sri Sri RaviShankar Vidya Mandir (SSRVM) and Vyakti Vikas Kendra India (VVKI), among others, formulate and implement humanitarian projects of The Art of Living Foundation globally.
Organizational Structure
The Art of Living Foundation is a multi-faceted organisation with one of the largest volunteer bases in the world. The international headquarters is located in Bangalore, India. Globally, the organisation operates as The Art of Living Foundation formed in 1989 in the United States of America and in Germany. Since then, local centres have been established across the world. In The Art of Living Foundation’s organisational structure, there is a board of trustees with a term of two years.