Kindness has become an exception in the age of social media, where it is easier to troll somebody without any real consequences. Kindness means to have warmth, love, compassion and good intentions for someone. In our busy schedules, we sometimes miss out on small acts of kindness that fill our hearts with joy. Globally, World Kindness Day is celebrated on November 13 to promote the importance of being kind to each other. The day also aims at highlighting good deeds in the community. These good deeds can help us spread positivity and the common thread of kindness.

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History

World Kindness Day was first commemorated in the year 1998 by an organization called the World Kindness Movement. In the year 1997, it hosted the first conference in Tokyo, Japan, to bring together like-minded organizations from across the world. Kindness Day UK was declared on November 13, 2010, by Kindness UK, a not-for-profit organization. The UK kindness movement began in 2005 and in 2009 Singapore also joined the initiative. The movement started gaining acceptance across the globe with each passing year. Joined by Australia (2012), France (2015) and USA (2018), by 2019 the World Kindness Movement had reached 27 countries.

Over the years the event grew in popularity with schools, charities, institutions and businesses becoming part of it.

After a long journey for decades, the World Kindness Movement was finally recognized as an official NGO in Switzerland.

The purpose of World Kindness Day as described by the World Kindness Movement is “to highlight good deeds in the community focusing on the positive power and the common thread of kindness which binds us”.

World Kindness Day is observed in many countries, including the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, and the UAE.

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Significance

World Kindness Day allows us to reflect upon the most important and unifying human characteristics. Being kind is an important quality to win in every situation. Small acts of kindness can bring a big difference to people’s lives. With random acts of kindness, we not only make somebody else’s day but also add joy and happiness to our lives. Kindness is the key to bridging the gap of race, religion, gender and region.