Imagine a community that runs much like a well-oiled neighborhood club, only on a global scale. Funding comes almost entirely from members’ heartfelt, voluntary offerings—called goshinkikin in Japanese—slotted into donation boxes at local meetings or given online. Those small contributions, often the size of a latte or two each month, add up. A steady trickle of income also flows from the sale of study materials, magazines and occasional cultural events, all run at cost or with minimal markup. Transparency is a big deal: annual reports spell out how every yen (or dollar) supports everything from peace initiatives at the United Nations to neighborhood discussion circles.

Organizationally, Soka Gakkai is a grassroots powerhouse. The foundation is the local chapter, where friends and neighbors gather weekly for dialogue, chanting and support. Those chapters feed into district and area centers—think of them as regional hubs. Each layer is led by elected volunteers, ensuring voices from the ground floor shape decisions at every turn. At the top sits the national headquarters in Tokyo, coordinating outreach, education and major events like youth festivals or cultural exhibitions.

Zooming out further, Soka Gakkai International (SGI) unites 192 countries and territories under one umbrella, fostering dialogue across continents. Its peace proposals, delivered annually to the UN, make headlines around International Day of Peace, and the next draft—fresh off the press—will land at the General Assembly this fall. Regional presidents and advisory councils take cues from SGI’s Honorary President, Dr. Daisaku Ikeda, though day-to-day leadership rests with the democratically chosen president and executive committee.

Underneath this all, youth and women’s divisions pulse with energy—driving everything from environmental cleanups (recently spotted at COP28 fringe events) to digital study sessions on Zoom. It’s a living network, where the heartbeat of each small group syncs with a global rhythm. No ivory-tower bureaucracy here—just ordinary people pooling resources, ideas and goodwill to spark personal transformation and, ultimately, ripple peace around the world.