Project PeaceAn Australian registered charity
Inner Peace Is the First Line of Defence in a Disrupted World
Project Peace helps prevent anxiety and depression when restructures and redundancies hit.
Free for participants. Every place is funded by donors and sponsors. Register your interest and we’ll contact you when a funded group opens. Want to help? Sponsor a place. Places are prioritised for people without employer support. The program is for adults aged 30 to 67 facing job loss or an unplanned career change.
Free for participantsFunded by donors and sponsorsNot therapy, not job search
34% vs 16%
Unemployed vs employed people with psychological problems, across 237 studies.
Paul & Moser (2009)
WHS hazard
Poor organisational change management is a named psychosocial hazard that employers must manage.
Safe Work Australia
Why prevention matters
From Disruption to Peace: The 6-Step Journey
Why prevention matters now, and how your support helps.
01
The disruption: AI, automation and robotics are changing work.
Reports such as the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report and the OECD Employment Outlook describe significant change to, and displacement of, roles as these technologies are adopted, so more adults are likely to face job loss or an unplanned career change. Losing a role can mean losing more than income: it can shake people’s sense of identity, purpose, daily structure and connection, which is a known risk period for anxiety and depression.
02
The Gap widens, and the risk rises.
Unemployed people are about twice as likely to experience psychological distress as employed people (34% vs 16%, Paul & Moser 2009, 237 studies). A widening Gap is an early warning sign of stress that, left unchecked, can lead to anxiety and depression.
03
Two paths: wait for a crisis, or act early.
Without early support, distress can turn into anxiety and depression, with effects on families, workplaces and communities. Acting early, at the moment of job loss, gives people the best chance to stay well.
04
Project Peace: an evidence-informed prevention program.
An 8-week online program, free for participants and funded by donors and sponsors, for adults facing job loss or an unplanned career change. It uses evidence-informed coping skills, screening and referral. A simple way we explain identity and stress during job loss is through your inner self, your outer self and the Gap between them:
- Empty the Gap: notice early warning signs, manage stress and self-criticism, and know when to seek help.
- Expand the inner self: build calm, values and meaning through uncertainty.
- Value the outer self: value the roles you still hold and reconnect with people, for a fuller life beyond the job, not job search.
Not therapy, and not job search. If you need help now, see your GP, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or call 000 in an emergency.
05
The ripple effect: one person at peace helps many.
When someone stays well through a major change, it shows in their family, their team and their community. That’s our vision: from inner peace to world peace, one person at a time.
06
How you can help.
Sponsor a place — every place is funded by donors and sponsors:
- 1 person$998
- 10 people$9,980
- 100 people$99,800
Project Peace is a registered charity with the ACNC. Donations are not currently tax-deductible.
The program
Eight weeks of practical, evidence-informed skills
Free for participants. Every place is funded by donors and sponsors. Register your interest and we’ll contact you when a funded group opens. Want to help? Sponsor a place. Places are prioritised for people without employer support.
- 8 weekly online sessions of 2 hours, in small groups of 8 to 14 people.
- Two program facilitators in every session, trained in the Project Peace method.
- Skills that protect mental health: CBT skills, self-compassion, mindfulness and acceptance, values and meaning, social connection, preparing for setbacks, and knowing when and where to get help.
- Built for a time of change: for adults whose jobs are changing or ending as AI, automation and robotics are adopted.
Informed by published prevention research, including principles from the University of Michigan JOBS Program. Project Peace does not deliver the JOBS Program. Not therapy, counselling, diagnosis or treatment, and not a job-search service.
Our method
Inner self, outer self and the Gap
A simple way we explain identity and stress during job loss is through your inner self, your outer self and the Gap between them. It sits alongside the program’s screening, coping skills, outcome measures and referral steps.
The inner self
The inner self is who you are underneath: values, calm, and a sense of worth that doesn’t depend on a title.
The outer self
The outer self is the roles you play, like your job title: leader, colleague, parent, friend. Job loss can strip away the work role.
The Gap
The Gap is the distance between them. A widening Gap during job loss is an early warning sign of stress that, left unchecked, can lead to anxiety and depression. That’s the time to act and seek help.
Partner with us
Two ways to make a difference
Whether your organisation is restructuring or you want to reach people with no support, there’s a way to help.
For employers
Run the program for your people
The same 8-week prevention program, delivered online by Project Peace as a private group for staff affected by a restructure or redundancy, paid for by the employer. It is not career coaching or job placement.
$998 per person
Fees are a payment for a service, not a donation, and any surplus goes back into funded places in the community program.
Sponsor places
Help someone with no employer support
Sponsorship funds places in the public program, which is free for participants, for people facing job loss or an unplanned career change. Places are prioritised for people without employer support.
- 1 person$998
- 10 people$9,980
- 100 people$99,800
Project Peace is a registered charity with the ACNC. Donations are not currently tax-deductible.
Who we help
Support at the moment it matters
i
Individuals
Adults aged 30 to 67 who have lost their job, have been told their role will end, or face a major unplanned career change. The program is free for participants and funded by donors and sponsors. Places are prioritised for people without employer support.
ii
Employers
The same 8-week prevention program, as a private group for staff affected by a restructure or redundancy, paid for by the employer at $998 per person. Not career coaching or job placement. For employers
iii
Community
We work with volunteers, community groups and partners to reach people facing job loss early. Get involved
“Be the change you want to see in the world.” Arleen Lorrance and Mahatma Gandhi