Our founder, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is a humanitarian, renowned spiritual teacher, and peacemaker. He founded the Art of Living and the International Association for Human Values (our parent organizations!) - two of the largest volunteer-run non-profits in the world - to help relieve stress and trauma and bring a smile on every face.

Gurudev has received 37 governmental awards, including the highest civilian honors from Colombia, Mongolia, Paraguay, Suriname, and Fiji, and has played a pivotal role in resolving some of the world’s toughest conflicts through love and wisdom. These include the centuries old Ram Mandir dispute and a five-decade old conflict between the Colombian government and FARC militants, ultimately leading to the historic 2016 peace accords.

Gurudev also founded the World Culture Festival —a global celebration that has drawn over seven million people across cities like Washington, D.C., New Delhi, Berlin, and Bangalore. During the most recent World Culture Festival, Gurudev led a world peace meditation on the National Mall with over 1.1 million participants. Many of us were in attendance - it was breathtaking!

Gurudev has inspired not only volunteers at SKY Campus Bay Area, but around the world - leading to a worldwide movement for a stress-free, violence-free society. Today, our million strong volunteers have contributed to efforts including:

• Bringing peace and trauma relief to returning veterans and their families

• Reducing violence and infractions in schools

• Supporting student mental health

• Supporting mindful, sustainable recovery from opiate addiction

• Caring for the environment, restoring 70 critical rivers

• Reducing an epidemic of farmer suicides in India

• Caring for refugees in the wake of disaster and war

For details and statistics, please see the publication: A Glimpse into the Service Projects of the Art of Living Worldwide.

These programs have touched the lives of over 800 million people across 180 countries.

If you get a chance to meet Gurudev, it’s an incredible experience - don’t miss it! His tour schedule here - usually there is someone from SKY Campus Bay Area, so let us know and we can help you find housing and transportation!

See Gurudev’s full biography here and follow him on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.