The idea behind the HKL originates from the global Humility, Kindness, and Love movement which started on Nov. 13, 2024 from Sri Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, Punjab, India. As over 10,000 people from across the world participated in the launch, the initiative set out with the goal for the world to become a much kinder space.
Sidhu shared that the HKL club at UFV is the campus chapter of this global movement.
“There [are] multiple [HKL] clubs [in] different universities all over the world. I believe there’s one at SFU as well right now. There’s some in Toronto, California, they’re starting up everywhere. So that’s why we decided to start one at UFV.”
The club will primarily focus on spreading compassion and including everyone on campus irrespective of their background.
“We just hope to make it an open space for anybody to join. We’re trying to create an environment [where] everyone is welcome and basically just [trying] to spread these values [around] campus.”
The club aims to centre its activities around kindness and inclusivity. For example, HKL recently had a tabling event where they organized small games to foster engagement and handed out kindness cards with positive messages on them. Sidhu shared that the club is planning additional events throughout the semester.
“We have a HKL Games Night on Mar. 24 that’s open to everybody [for free]. We’re [also] going to give out flowers one day to students during finals [to] help everybody out.”
According to Sidhu, accepting differences among people is a key aspect of building an inclusive community. Sidhu encourages people to shift their focus from being judgemental and focus on building self-compassion.
“I feel you just gotta accept the fact that everyone’s different. And I feel a lot of people stereotype or they like to discriminate against people.
“To be kind, first you have to be kind to yourself. And if you’re kind to yourself, then it creates a ripple effect and then you’re able to spread that positively. But if you’re not kind to yourself, you can’t really do anything. So we try to focus on growing ourselves and spread that.”
Sidhu believes that students don’t need to do something extravagant to contribute to a positive campus environment. Instead, she says that small, easy steps can make the biggest difference.
“Honestly, I feel like the simplest thing is just smiling at others when you walk past [them], holding the door open [and] just acknowledging everybody’s presence.”
For students interested in joining the club, Sidhu recommends connecting with HKL’s instagram where all the links to their events and rubric membership can be found.
As HKL at UFV continues alongside the global HKL movement, the message is simple, universal and incredibly valuable: be kind. Through small acts of compassion, the club hopes to build a stronger, kinder and more positive community at UFV.
