,
Germany The SGI defines itself as a "movement for contributing to peace, culture and education" based on its "interpretation and practical application of the ideas in the
Lotus Sutra." SGI promotes its engagement on issues including human rights, sustainable development and peace building. According to Yoichi Kawada, director of the Tokyo-based Institute of Oriental Philosophy, the SGI defines itself as a "movement for contributing to peace, culture and education" based on its "interpretation and practical application of the ideas in the
Lotus Sutra." SGI engagement as a religious
NGO affiliated with the United Nations in policy discussions on issues including human rights, sustainable development and peace building is similarly described, in the phrasing of its Charter, as contributing to peace, culture and education. This social and cultural projects also appear to be part of a strategy, according to some scholars and critics of Soka Gakkai, which "
uses the image and practice of an NGO (to respond) to its own necessity: the recruitment and maintenance of membership" and "
tries to create the image of an institution engaged in activities to promote peace, culture and education based on Buddhism, clearly following the tendencies of national politics", analyses scholar Suzana Ramos Coutinho Bornholdt in
Japanese Buddhism and Social Action: the case of Soka Gakkai. To further increase public awareness of the
anti-nuclear movement, the SGI also created "The People's Decade" campaign, which since 2007 has developed a global grassroots network of people dedicated to abolishing nuclear weapons. In 2014, an SGI youth delegation met with the
United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) regarding coordination of the SGI's efforts and the
UN efforts to increase grassroots movements for nuclear abolition. In 2008, then-High Representative for Disarmament Affairs
Sergio Duarte characterized SGI's work toward nuclear disarmament as linking
human security with the fundamental goal of eliminating nuclear weapons. According to
Pax Christi International, on March 28, 2017, a joint statement of Faith Communities Concerned about Nuclear Weapons, initiated by the SGI, was delivered by Pax Christi Philippines during the first UN negotiating conference for the
treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons. More than 20 religious leaders affirmed through the joint statement their shared "aspirations for peace and for a world where people live without fear," praising world leaders in attendance for "the courage to begin these negotiations" and calling on States not in attendance to join the June–July session of the conference.
Peace activities The group's peace activities can be traced back to the Toda era – at an athletic meeting in 1957, Toda called for a complete ban on nuclear weapons. A 1975 petition drive against nuclear weapons by the Gakkai's youth division garnered 10 million signatures, and was handed over to the United Nations. AS 6,494 NGOs, SGI has been in consultative status with the
United Nations Economic and Social Council since 1983, one of six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization. The council does not make decisions, but can provide the Economic and Social Council with recommendations.
Support of United Nations As an NGO working with the United Nations, SGI has been active in public education with a focus mainly on peace and nuclear weapons disarmament, human rights and sustainable development. SGI benefits from the roster status, the least close to the decision-making body (UN
Consultative Status, art.24). Each year, Ikeda publishes a peace proposal which examines global challenges in the light of Buddhist teachings. The proposals are specific and wide-ranging, covering topics as constructing a culture of peace, promoting the development of the United Nations, nuclear disarmament, the prohibition of child soldiers, the empowerment of women, the promotion of educational initiatives in schools such as human rights and sustainable development education, and calls to reawaken the human spirit and individual empowerment. The Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy Research has published a compilation of topical excerpts.
Environmental awareness The SGI also promotes environmental initiatives through educational activities such as exhibitions, lectures and conferences, and more direct activities such as tree planting projects and the SGI's Amazon Ecological Conservation Center, which is administered by SGI-Brazil. The center is engaged in reforestation, the creation of a regional seed bank, and experiments in sustainable agroforestry. at the Ikeda Ecological Park in
Londrina,
Brazil, named in honor of SGI President Daisaku Ikeda One scholar cites
Daisaku Ikeda, SGI's president, describing such initiatives as a Buddhist-based impetus for direct public engagement in parallel with legal efforts to address environmental concerns. In India, the Bharat Soka Gakkai (the SGI of India) debuted the traveling exhibit "Seeds of Hope," a joint initiative of the SGI and
Earth Charter International. At the exhibit's opening in
Panaji, the state capital of
Goa, regional planning head Edgar Ribeiro spoke of lagging efforts to implement environmental laws and stated that "Only a people's movement can take sustainability forward." In Malaysia,
Tunku Abdul Rahman University College President Datuk Dr Tan Chik Heok said that this exhibition helped "to create the awareness of the power of a single individual in bringing about waves of positive change to the environment, as well as the society." In November 2015, the SGI signed on to the Buddhist Climate Change Statement representing "over a billion Buddhists worldwide" in a call to action submitted to world leaders at the
21st session of UN climate change talks held in Paris. The statement affirms that Buddhist spirituality compels environmental protection and expresses solidarity with Catholic and Muslim leaders who have taken a similar stance. Described as "one of the most unified calls by a religion's leadership," the statement draws on the 2009 pan-Buddhist statement, "The Time to Act is Now: A Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change," to which SGI-USA among others became a signatory in early 2015.
Aid work The SGI conducts humanitarian aid projects in disaster-stricken regions. After the
2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, local Soka Gakkai facilities became refugee shelters and distribution centers for relief supplies. Efforts also included worldwide fundraising for the victims, youth groups, and spiritual support. In 2014, SGI-Chile members collected supplies to deliver to emergency services and refugee centers after that country's devastating
Iquique earthquake.
Interfaith dialogue In 2015, SGI-USA was part of the organizing committee that convened a day-long conference in Washington, DC of 125 Buddhist leaders to discuss Buddhism and civic activism in the United States. The conference identified climate change and the environment, education and peace and disarmament as popular priorities.
Cultural activities by the
Brazil SGI team at
Rio de Janeiro, on October 30, 2011. Performance art is one of Soka Gakkai's peace activities. The Soka Gakkai sponsors many cultural activities for its membership as well as the general public.
Cultural institutions The Soka Gakkai's subsidiary organizations also have a social presence. Several educational institutions were either founded by the Soka Gakkai or were inspired by the educational writings of the Soka Gakkai's three presidents. The
Min-On Concert Association is a subsidiary of the Soka Gakkai which Ikeda established in 1963. It claims to sponsor over 1100 concerts each year. The
Min-On Concert Association is a subsidiary of the Soka Gakkai established in 1963. It claims to sponsor over 1100 concerts each year.
Performance art Soka Gakkai considers
dance and other genres of
performance art to be a major aspect of its peace activities. It has a long tradition of "culture festivals", originating in the 1950s, which take the form of group gymnastics, marching bands, traditional ensembles, orchestras, ballet, or choral presentations. The Soka Gakkai perceives these activities as vehicles for its members to experience the skills of cooperating with others, opportunities to engage in the personal discipline that performing arts provide, and occasions to overcome obstacles and to undertake one's own "human revolution". They enhance peer networks and understanding of and commitment to the goals of the organization. In addition, they are viewed as expressions of Buddhist humanism and are aligned to the Soka Gakkai's ideals about creating a peaceful and more humane society. The tradition, which began in Japan, has been copied in other Soka Gakkai organizations in the world. The organization's musical and dance wings are organized into ensembles or groups in the local and national levels and are categorized as: • Women's
Corps of Drums/
Fife and Drum Corps/
Marching Bands (Kotekitai Corps of the SG) •
Marching Bands/
Concert Bands (Taiyo Ongakutai Bands of the SG) •
Drum and Bugle Corps • Symphony
Orchestras • Pop bands • Traditional groups • Male/female/mixed choirs • Youth Dance groups • Adult dance groups/ballet ensembles • Gymnastic formation groups (all-male/mixed)
Educational activities The educational activities of the Soka Gakkai are often subsumed under the title of
Soka education. Several educational institutions were either founded by the Soka Gakkai or were inspired by the educational writings of the Soka Gakkai's three presidents. ==Notable members of the Soka Gakkai International==