Director of Secondary School Counseling
USA
"My heart is open to ACT with greater courage to serve. In my humility, I can open the door to hope. In my own embodiment, I can help others reconnect with themselves. In my forgiveness, I can ease suffering for myself. The Capstone Project has magnified my eagerness to listen and share authentically."
Geriatrician, Psychotherapist
Germany
"ACT gave me the necessary structure to discipline myself in spite of my busy lifestyle, and my mentoring group provided exceptionally great theoretical and practical input and motivating feedback for my process."
Educator and Creative Artist
"Not only have I deepened my resolve to continue to cultivate compassion over my lifetime, but I have recommitted to supporting others in tapping into that inner space beyond our differences. To be able to share goals, dreams, and fears, and to receive feedback and support was what I needed to reach new — sometimes surprising — heights with my project."
CEO, The Beneficial Element
USA
"From creating a leadership program for C-suite executives to facilitating webinars for tax professionals, my Capstone let the work flow through me in such a touching way.”
Leadership Coach & Spiritual Care Provider
USA
"What a gift to be on a path of compassionate action and connect with such a diverse and energized group of people doing the same."
Meditation and Compassion Teacher
Turkey
"Being a student of ACT gave me a natural driving force to cherish the presence of all people, reminding me of our interconnectedness and inspiring me to act in humility with every creature."
Founder, Universal Open Wellbeing Foundation
India
"The fact that ACT empowers participants to design their own workshops on compassion has been the most amazing part for me. While working on my Capstone, I was free to contemplate our deepest resources and design ways to cultivate them."
USA
"I have found my people. I took this step with both external and internal support, fostered by compassion practice. I have learned what I already suspected — that I am human, and that despite our individuality, we are all bound by our common desire to be at peace, to feel loved and to be seen."
Grade 1/2 Special Education Teacher
USA
"I guided my students from never hearing the word "compassion" to understanding its meaning and applying skills in their classroom and home community. We shared individual and group learning sessions by reading stories about compassion, writing our own stories and engaging in fun games."
Certified Myofascial Therapist, CYT, Certified Forest Therapy Guide
USA
My Capstone Project provide me with the opportunity to work on my website and rebrand my business while helping others. I condensed many of the ACT core principles of compassion, integrated them with my forest therapy training, and applied them to my somatic work."
Environmental Consultant
USA
"In hopes of engendering compassion, my Capstone Project brought a group of strangers together to bear witness to intimate and personal stories shared by others. The reactions of both speakers and listeners, confirmed our belief that the sharing of stories can spark compassion and focus in on our shared humanity."
Grief Counselor and Wellness Coach
México
"By learning more tools and practices, I was able to facilitate compassionate conversations, where we experienced brave and vulnerable connection and sense of belonging. I really appreciate the knowledge and practices our teachers, mentors, and fellow students shared throughout the ACT program."
Doctor
USA
"I have leaned into the suffering of others for years as a pediatric oncologist & felt a missing piece. The course I developed as my Capstone Project is my way to effect change. I plan to offer this course routinely to my patients, and to expand this into the work place, offering it to my colleagues, the students and residents."
Mental Wellness and Compassion Coach, Netcare Hospital Group
South Africa
"My project required my courage, because some of my colleagues resisted the compassion initiatives. Many others, though, said that my bravery in being different – gentle, honest and vulnerable – gave them permission to show more compassion. I think I made this way of being more “normal” and acceptable across the organization."
Registered Nurse
South Africa
Mindfulness practices and understanding the core principles of compassion provided me with the foundation to facilitate the skills taught at ACT. Leading mindfulness and self-compassion exercises has created opportunities for my team to share experiences in a safe, non-judgmental environment."
South Africa
"As ACT progressed, I realized that I was resistant to the emotional suffering around me and within me. As I practiced calming my mind and noticing my reactions, I could respond in a compassionate manner. In my Capstone Project, I discovered that same anxiety present in so many people and that we can build confidence by sharing the concepts of Applied Compassion."
System VP, Mission Integration
USA
"My Capstone Project grounded me in theory — the why and the how of applying compassion in any situation. Personally, it has definitely modified how I respond in the face of suffering, and the many tools and practices we learned are readily available for use at a moment's notice when the situation arises in one-to-one meetings and larger groups."
Doctor
USA
"The ACT Capstone Project has opened me to the possibility of positive transformation simply by telling a story. The energy transfer in this form of interaction is disarming and therefore, enlightening. Trusting a place of vulnerability, I have become transformed, and thereby, an Ambassador of Applied Compassion."
Speech Pathologist, Kids Mindfulness Facilitator
Brazil
"Fulfilling the potential of my Capstone Project meant practicing qualities within myself so that compassion would truly surface in my interactions with children and their families. My goal was not only to teach them about compassion but also inspire them to act on it. I really loved being encouraged to challenge myself."
Mindful Leader, Educator and Facilitator, MSC
USA
"My project drew inspiration from my own suffering as a parent and my finance career. Conflict around money is one of the top factors that strains families and parent-child connection. I designed parenting workshops around minimizing money mistakes and raising "money-smart" teens, and the parents were truly moved, touched, and inspired by the programs."
Ethics & Professionalism Faculty, Professional Boundaries Education Inc.
USA
"My Capstone Project helped me to coalesce my understanding of compassion into practical tools for busy healthcare professionals who are fulfilling disciplinary steps following a transgression. I have been able to incorporate actionable skills into course materials for clinicians as well staff who enforce learning requirements with clinicians."
Health and Wellness Coach
USA
"My Capstone Project was a deep dive into "fierce" self-compassion, as I facilitated a group of autism "mama bears" through an 8-10 session workshop on compassion. ACT's retreats and resources, as well as my mentoring group, have brought so much insight and incredible wisdom to this journey."
Nursing Manager, Margate Hospital
South Africa
"All that I took for granted in life now has a new perspective. My Capstone Project allowed me to forgive those who have hurt me in the past and to move forward. It gave me the opportunity to develop a better relationship with my staff and myself. ACT truly humbled me in so many ways and it taught me that it's okay to have self love."
Nursing Manager
South Africa
"I previously believed that a leader should not be seen suffering, but through my Capstone Project, I learned the importance of self-care and self-compassion. It helped me realize that denying suffering delays applying compassion. Now, I am able to teach nurses self-compassion, which will also benefit their patients."
South Africa
"I loved meeting new people from all over the world. It never felt like I had been online, it literally felt like I traveled the world for every class and still made it back home in time. I loved the safe space provided by our mentors and each ACT participant. This was more than a community, this is family."