Honoring Paula Green
December 16, 1937 – February 21, 2022
Celebration of Paula Green’s Life
Sunday, July 17, 2022
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Montague Retreat Center (Montague, MA, USA)
The Karuna Center community joins friends worldwide in honoring the amazing life and legacy of Dr. Paula Green and sharing the deep sadness of the sudden loss of her presence in our lives. Paula founded Karuna Center for Peacebuilding in the early 1990s, later explaining: “I found myself no longer willing to be a passive witness to the suffering caused by armed conflict and the unbridled misuse of power and privilege.”
Paula was a powerful force for change and will remain a catalyst for peace, having inspired generations of peacebuilders to build bridges across seemingly intractable divides with compassion, bravery, and a profound sense of justice. Her legacy lives on in the many people she worked with and the extensive community she built through her transformative life’s work—which included founding both Karuna Center and Conflict Transformation Across Cultures, and co-organizing Hands Across the Hills.
She will be deeply missed by everyone she touched, but her spirit will live on in all those she inspired as we each carry forward her legacy of unwavering commitment to building peace.
“For our mutual survival, we are summoned to change both our institutions and the worldviews that created them. It is time to let go of the delusion that we are independent individuals and disconnected nations, in order to embrace the global interdependence of persons and systems.
War as a way of problem solving is outdated. Our failing ecosystems require restoration. The prophetic words of Martin Luther King, Jr. that ‘we will either live together as brothers and sisters or die together as fools’ guide the work of Karuna Center as we foster renewal of shattered relations and honor our intertwined humanity.”
– Dr. Paula Green, in Peacebuilding in Divided Communities: Karuna Center’s Approach to Training
Additional links:
- Paula’s CaringBridge webpage (requires free login creation)
- Paula’s website, paulagreen.net
- Paula Green’s Obituary
- Daily Hampshire Gazette article: “Peacebuilder Paula Green, founder of Karuna Center, dies at 84“
- Op-Ed by Richie Davis, Greenfield Recorder: “Peacemaker Paula Green’s passion for uniting helped many find common ground“
Community Comments
12 Comments
A Selection of Paula’s Writings:
This is some of the writing Paula did during her years on staff at Karuna Center. More of Paula’s writing is also available on her website, paulagreen.net.
- Shaping Community Responses to Catastrophe (2013)
- Peacebuilding in Divided Communities: Karuna Center’s Approach to Training (2012)
- The Pivotal Role of Acknowledgement in Social Healing (2009)
- An Infusion of Dialogues: Bosnians In Dialogue Meet Holocaust Descendents (2003)
- Preparing for Peace: Interethnic Dialogue and Communal Healing in Sri Lanka, by Olivia Stokes Dreier and Paula Green (2003)
- For a Future to be Possible: Bosnian Dialogue in the Aftermath of War (2000)
- Shadows and light: Encounters in the Holy Land (2000)
- Dharma on the Front Lines: Finding a Path (1998)
- Women in Bosnia finding strength (1997)
- Teaching Non-Violence in a Violence Addicted World (1997)
Talks:
- Building Peace in a Stormy World (2010)
- Reconciliation and Forgiveness in Divided Societies: A Psychologist’s Reflections from the Field (2008)
- Fostering the Ties that Bind: Practicing Peacebuilding and Development in Conflict Sensitive Environments (2007)
- Reconciliation: A Path of Courage, Commitment and Compassion (2004)
What a wonderful human being – and so dearly missed!
Paula, you have left us too soon, but you leave us greatly enriched by knowing you. All the peace, light, and love created by your work all over the world hovers above a house in Leverett tonight, as we mourn the passing of a great woman.
With love and admiration,
Your friend Ka
No matter how seldom I saw Paula, I got a hug, and I bowed inwardly in respect. Her humility and her brilliant smile lit up our world.
Paula and I worked together to launch the first CONTACT program and continued to collaborate for many years afterwards at SIT on CONTACT and other related initiatives. Recently I was looking forward to collaborating once again on other joint projects as she was the type of person who would never really retire. Her energy and persistence to work towards peace, social justice and a more sustainable world were a constant inspiration to everyone who came to know her.
By departing light
We see acuter, quite,
Than by a wick that stays.
There’s something in the flight
That clarifies the sight
And fills the rays.
– Emily Dickinson c 1865
I have wonderful memories of collaborations with Paula in the 1990s especially, with Buddhist Peace Fellowship and other groups. I’ve witnessed her powerful leadership and offerings to the world through the Karuna Center. A shining being who is still very much with us. I feel sad and shocked at hearing of her passing, but also appreciative and grateful. With blessings, Donald
Paula Green was a force for human dignity around the world. She helped to set me on my path as a peace builder in Tanzania and for the last 10 years in Rwanda- work that continues as I write. For that I am deeply grateful.
Sincere condolences to the family and the entire international community that knew Paula. We lost a wonderful person who had a heart as wide as the sky full of love and understanding to the tiniest grain in the sand of this world. She knew in a magical way to unite us with just one word-peace.
It was a special honor and privilege to meet Paula 2003 at SIT and to be in touch over the years with special admiration for her strength, enthusiasm and commitment to world peace.
When Paula sent the last letter to the CONTACT community, I prayed and wished she could fight again like she did in 2004, but I was afraid this would be an even bigger and scarier battle for her. The next day we received the bad news.
Rest in peace dear Paula, our prayers and hearts all over the world are with you.
This is one of the messages from Paula that I received in 2016 that inspired me a lot then, and today made me very sad:
„I wish each of you continued courage and vision. Perhaps some day a few of us will find ways to teach peacebuilding together, but mostly I know that you will carry on, nurturing peace and justice in your communities. Please stay in touch, and tell us about your lives and your dreams. My heart goes to each of you. “
Paula was inspiration personified; she taught me so much about spirit, passion, perserverance and passion. she had a huge impact on my life. The world is a colder place without her, but her work and presence will continue through the many people she touched.
Little did I know when I met Paula just over a year ago that she would have such a profound impact on me and our global community of MicroSociety schools. The world cries over our loss. May her light linger inside every soul she touched.
Over the years Paula has faciliteted numerous sessions for many different ITD groups with participants from all over the world. Inevitably they were all touched by the experience and obliged to think differently about their own biases and approach to conflict. She was a special person and at ITD we were honored to have her as an office neighbor for so many years.
I had worked with Paula for a few years when I was running INEB as a coordinator/secretary. I well remember her enthusiasm and strength. She has been of great help in her teaching/facilitating. We had both good time and bad time. Her domineering character made me short her down in the meeting from time to time. One time her beloved husband asked me, ” Pracha are you campaign to purse Paula out of your circle?” In retrospective, as a young activist I might had been too aggressive in working with her strong energy. Actually we did had a lot of good time together in all sort of discussions and gossips, especially about Jewish people becoming Buddhists. And we did had some sort of reconciliation after I left INEB. I dedicate the benefits of the good deed I have done to be part of her journey into the next stages.