World Kindness Day is an international holiday that embraces giving to others without getting anything in return. It is a day that encourages people to look past boundaries such as race and religion to be kind to others. World Kindness Day is celebrated in nations across the world in different ways. The holiday seeks to unify people across the world to embrace kindness and to ignore the reasons that we may ignore those who most need our help.

Here are three fast facts you need to know about the World Kindness Day history and origins:

1. World Kindness Day is almost 20 years old.

The holiday was created in 1988 by the World Kindness Movement as a way to unite the world and to encourage people to be more kind to each other. World Kindness Day meaning is to encourage people to spread love, joy, and peace through small acts of kindness on November 13^th (and every other day of the year). It is celebrated in many nations around the world, although customs differ based on local traditions.

2. Research Demonstrates Happiness is Contagious

Recent studies have actually shown that when one person is kind to another it inspires the kindness to spread. This is why you will hear people talk about long lines of people who pay for each other’s coffee in the morning. When someone is kind to you, you’re more likely to spread the joy around to other people. Holidays such as World Kindness Day promote this type of global giving in an organized way.

3. This Holiday is Celebrated in Many Countries

Random acts of kindness are celebrated in the United States, Canada, Nigeria, and Japan (just to name a few). In Australia, the Governor of New South Wales went as far as to host a World Kindness Day history celebration in 2012. There was also a World Kindness Day meaning flashmob coordinated by people from 15 countries and 33 cities around the world. In the United States, this day is observed by carrying out random acts of kindness for the people they interact with every day.

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