Disaster Relief
Attending to the mental, emotional and material needs of those struck by man-made or natural disasters, Sri Sri has designed a three-stage intervention program for disaster relief – Material Relief, Trauma Relief, and long-term Rehabilitation.
Immediate Material Aid and Service: Providing food, clothes, medicine and shelter in the aftermath of a calamity.
Near-Term Trauma Relief: Programs and counseling designed to deal with the emotional and mental trauma victims undergo.
Long-Term Rehabilitation: Building homes, sanitation systems, roads, schools, vocational training centers.
Disaster relief
Sri Sri says, "Unless the trauma is released, food and medicines will not work. People cannot eat or sleep because their mind is full of the terrible tragedy that has befallen them." With a healing touch, support and a vision for the future, disaster victims are able to reclaim their lives.
Partial Listing
Flood relief - Bihar and North East India, 2007
Virginia Tech campus shootings, USA (April 2007)
Vidarbha farmer suicides, India (ongoing since 2007)
Surat floods, India (August 2006)
Lebanon ( Since July 2006)
Mumbai train bomb blasts, India (July 2006)
Kashmir earthquake (October 2005)
Hurricane Katrina, USA (August 2005)
Mumbai floods, India (July 2005)
Gujarat floods, India (June 2005)
Indian Ocean Tsunami (December 2004)
London subway attack, UK (July 2005)
Beslan school hostage crisis , Russia (September 2004)
Madrid train attack, Spain (March 2004)
Iraq trauma relief (Since 2003)
Israel trauma relief (Since 2003)
9/11 terror attack, USA (September 2001)
China Earthquake In response to the earthquake in China, Sri Sri's volunteers have been providing much needed trauma relief to the survivors.15 volunteers from seven countries are conducting the trauma relief workshops in Chengdu, about 100 kilometers from the epicenter. Southeast Asia Tsunami Within hours of the 2004 Tsunami, more than 5000 Art of Living foundation volunteers launched the emergency relief and trauma counseling efforts in affected regions. Within days of the tragedy, Sri Sri traveled to the tsunami-affected areas and met with victims.
Sri Lanka In Sri Lanka, hundreds of trauma-relief programs and counseling sessions were conducted. More than 25,000 people benefited from these programs. The Foundation also initiated long-term rehabilitation measures for the victims. In Nagapattinam (Tamil Nadu, India), the Foundation built 120 houses, set up vocational training centers and free educational facilities for the tsunami-affected children.
“At the time of the tsunami, many NGOs provided food and material needs but very few took care of the mental trauma like the Art of Living. Over 35,000 people have benefited from the trauma-relief programs.”
- Tenkasi S. Jawahar, District Collector, Nagapattinam, India
“They (The Art of Living) have been working with us, focusing on trauma care. They have a full time presence in the area. What I am happy about is that throughout, their volunteers have been working with us in a selfless manner, involving the communities, so that they can be mainstreamed now. The Art of Living services will definitely be remembered in Nagapattinam. I am sure their value-based services will help in improving the quality of life of its affected citizens.”
- Dr. J. Radhakrishnanam, Ex-District Collector, Nagapatitnam
