Compassion Prison Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to transforming prisons and communities through compassionate action.
Using a trauma-informed approach that includes the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) test, compassion exercises, and meditation, CPP works in maximum security prisons like Kern Valley State Prison in California. We feel the first step to healing trauma is to understand the extent that you’re traumatized. This is dramatically revealed through CPP’s “Step Into The Circle” exercise, which reveals each participant’s ACE score in a visual and emotional way.
By taking a step forward for each Adverse Childhood Experience, the 250 men in this video at Lancaster State Prison begin to understand that they are not alone. This powerful exercise is followed up by exploring “Symptoms of Trauma” and doing forgiveness exercises in smaller breakout groups. CPP also has a longer 12-week program to help prisons and communities stabilize in a compassionate approach and launch their own self-guiding compassion groups.
