HELPING HANDS NEWSLETTER
Tending the Seeds of Compassion: Reflections on the BGR Retreat at Redwood Vihara
In May, nearly 18 years to the day since Buddhist Global Relief was founded, members of the Board of Directors, staff, and volunteer team joined the newly formed Sangha Council for a weekend retreat at Redwood Vihara monastery in Boulder Creek, California. In this essay, Vice-Chair David Braughton shares his reflections on this joyous and fruitful event.
Strengthening Detroit’s Food System from the Ground Up
In Detroit, Michigan, almost 70 percent of households experience food insecurity, and 30,000 residents lack access to full-service supermarkets. Longtime BGR partner Keep Growing Detroit provides not only fresh produce but also education, resources, and connection for urban gardeners and other city residents.
Seeking a Buddhist Public Theology
How should Buddhism engage with the critical issues currently facing this country and our world? Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi proposes the need for a “Buddhist public theology,” an ethical lens through which Buddhist teachers and thinkers can evaluate public issues in light of the Buddha’s teachings.
The Iran War’s Hidden Toll: Crisis-Level Hunger for Millions of People
On February 28 of this year, the U.S. and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury in Iran, beginning a war that cost thousands of lives, including those of an estimated 1,700 Iranian civilians. But the war’s tragic impacts are not limited to those suffered in Iran. Among the most devastating of these is a surge in the number of people facing crisis levels of hunger worldwide. Even if the ceasefire holds, the effects of the three-month closure of the Strait of Hormuz are likely to continue to resonate throughout the coming year.
BGR Community: Education for Girls, Food for Their Families in Cambodia
Chhorn Dim lives with her elderly parents in Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia, where she takes care of her nieces and nephews. Through an innovative BGR project with Lotus Outreach Australia, Chhorn receives not only scholarship funds but rice support for her family.
BGR Board Approves 58 Projects for 2026 at Annual Meeting
BGR’s Board approved 58 projects that will provide food, children’s education, vocational training for women, and sustainable agriculture support for thousands of people in need in 22 countries around the world. Funding to support the upcoming year’s projects exceeded $1.3 million—all made possible by the generosity of our donors.
Walking for Peace, Marching Together from Love
By Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi • Sometimes an event that begins in an inconspicuous way suddenly gains momentum and delivers a colossal impact no one could have foreseen. A random spark spreads through dry brush and sets off a forest fire. A gust of wind on a mountaintop starts an avalanche. Something similar happened in late 2025, when twenty Theravadan Buddhist monks of diverse ethnicities embarked on a long Walk for Peace. Starting in obscurity, by the time they finished they would be known all around the world.
When Aid Narrows and Suffering Widens, Compassion Must Step In
The shuttering of USAID in 2025 is predicted to result in an estimated 8 million to 14 million additional deaths globally by 2030, including more than 4.5 million children under 5. The moral question raised by this defunding is not partisan; it is profoundly human: What happens when hunger programming, agricultural development, and maternal–infant health supports shrink at the precise moment they are needed most?
BGR Crisis Grants Provide Urgently Needed Aid
In February, the Board of Buddhist Global Relief approved crisis grants to UNICEF and the World Food Program USA to provide urgently needed meals, health screenings for children, aid for water and sanitation projects, and support for school nutrition programs in Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, and Sudan.
Training Farmers in Holistic Agricultural Methods in Kenya
A project led by BGR partner Farmers Alliance for Restoration–East Africa is providing local smallholder farmers with knowledge and tools to improve their food security and income through a training program based on the holistic agricultural methodology known as permaculture, which emphasizes the use of renewable natural resources and the enrichment of local ecosystems.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
During the coronavirus crisis, Buddhist Global Relief is continuing to fund projects providing food, education, and other necessary support to the world’s most vulnerable people. Many of the communities we serve worldwide are experiencing immense need as this epidemic spreads among vulnerable and medically underserved populations. If you have the ability to help, please consider donating to BGR. You can contribute by PayPal or credit card here or by check mailed to: Buddhist Global Relief, 2020 Route 301, Carmel, NY 10512, USA.
