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On September 3, the Soka Gakkai donated two million yen (US$13,460) to Peace Winds Japan, contributing to humanitarian assistance for Gaza. Peace Winds Japan CEO Kensuke Onishi received the donation at a meeting with Soka Gakkai Peace Committee Chair Tomohiko Aishima. Peace Winds Japan is collaborating with other groups and local stakeholders to provide food and water to those in need. This builds on donations made by the Soka Gakkai toward humanitarian aid for people in Gaza in December 2023 and January 2025.

On August 29, the SGI (Soka Gakkai International) together with Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Kazakhstan, the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), the Marshallese Educational Initiative (MEI) and the Qazaq Nuclear Frontline Coalition (QNFC) co-organized an event titled “The Role of Youth in Supporting Global Hibakusha.” Held at the United Nations University (UNU) in Tokyo, Japan, the event marked the International Day against Nuclear Tests.

Representatives of SGI youth presented the results of the Youth Peace Awareness Survey on nuclear abolition that was administered in Australia, Japan, Kazakhstan, the Marshall Islands and the United States by the five organizations between January 6 and August 9. The results showed that respondents who had heard testimonies of those affected by the use, production or testing of nuclear weapons were more likely to take action toward nuclear abolition than those who had not.

Anvar Milzatillayev, counselor of the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Tokyo, and Professor Tshilidzi Marwala, UNU rector and under-secretary-general of the United Nations, both spoke at the event, which also included a panel discussion.  

On August 23 and 24, the SGI (Soka Gakkai International) together with the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF) organized the Choose Hope Symposium at the International Conference Center Hiroshima. The symposium was held to honor the legacies of David Krieger, one of the founders of NAPF who also served as its president, and President Daisaku Ikeda. The two coauthored the dialogue Choose Hope: Your Role in Waging Peace in the Nuclear Age.  

On August 23, Soka Gakkai members from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, representatives of the SGI, NAPF and other organizations came together for a workshop. NAPF President Ivana Nikolić Hughes stated in her speech that the symposium was an opportunity to translate the resolve for nuclear abolition into concrete action while “choosing hope no matter how difficult the situation.” Participants discussed topics highlighted in the March 2025 Choose Hope Symposium Declaration including challenging the narrative of security based on deterrence, and the intersection between the environmental crisis and nuclear activism and the role of youth. At the end of each discussion, participants shared points that could contribute to an action plan toward a nuclear-weapon-free world.

The second day of the symposium was a public event titled “Choose Hope in Hiroshima: Renewing Our Commitment for a Future Without Nuclear Weapons.” The event was supported by Mayors for Peace, the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, and the UNITAR Association. A video titled “Choose Hope—David Krieger and Daisaku Ikeda” was screened, highlighting themes from their dialogue. The keynote address was given by Annie Jacobsen, investigative journalist and author of Nuclear War: A Scenario. She stated that the tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are a reality that could still occur anywhere in the world today. She described eliminating the nuclear threat as a common goal and hope for humanity.  

There were also two panel discussions. The first was moderated by Chie Sunada, director of the SGI Disarmament and Human Rights. Dr. Hughes and Ms. Jacobsen served as panelists along with NAPF Director of Policy and Advocacy Christian N. Ciobanu and Masako Toki, senior project manager and research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute in California, USA. They discussed pathways to nuclear abolition. The second panel was on what can be learnt from the past and building the future we want and was moderated by Luli van der Does, director of the Center for Peace at Hiroshima University. Panelists were: Sayaka Morii, Soka Gakkai member from Hiroshima; Hideo Asano, communications and media coordinator at the Japan Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons; Kenneth Chiu, NAPF communications and media coordinator, and NAPF intern, Valeriya Zherebtsova.

The event also featured a testimony by second-generation survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Mariko Higashino.

On August 23, Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada delivered the 34th ISTAC World Professorial Lecture (IWPL) at the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation of the International Islamic University Malaysia (ISTAC-IIUM) in Kuala Lumpur. In his lecture titled “Insights into Human Solidarity: Daisaku Ikeda’s Perspectives on the True Aspect of Life and Humanity,” President Harada explored how President Daisaku Ikeda dedicated himself to fostering global human solidarity based on the Buddhist perspective on the eternity of life and how Islam’s core values resonate with the philosophy of Nichiren Buddhism.   

Associate Professor Dr. Amilah Awang Abdul Rahman from IIUM gave a lecture on the “Islamic Perspective on Human Solidarity.” She described human solidarity as being much more than just standing together and said that it means feeling others’ pain and carrying their burden. IIUM rector, professor emeritus Datuk Dr. Osman Bakar, sent a message expressing his hopes for further collaboration between IIUM and the Soka Gakkai.  

The event was attended by some 250 people, including diplomats, scholars, university students and Soka Gakkai Malaysia members, and some 475 people joined online.

On August 17, Soka Gakkai Zambia held a general meeting at its Grand Culture Centre in the capital Lusaka. During the meeting, new leadership appointments were announced, including Juliet Tembo as headquarters leader and Abbie Mwembela as vice headquarters leader. Three members shared their faith experiences, and Masumi Odari, advisor for East Africa, and Ms. Tembo addressed the meeting.      

On August 9, Singapore held its annual National Day Parade at the Padang, a national recreation field, celebrating the 60th year of the country’s independence. Some 600 Soka Gakkai Singapore (SGS) members performed in the second act titled "Our Future, Our Aspirations." This marked the 40th time that SGS members have participated in the parade since 1981. The event was attended by 27,000 people including President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

On August 26, SGS held a leaders meeting at its headquarters to mark the 30th anniversary of President Daisaku Ikeda’s second visit to Singapore. The meeting was attended by some 1,200 SGS members and leaders from Hong Kong, the Philippines and Taiwan. Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada, SGI Vice President Yoshiki Tanigawa and Ms. Kimiko Nagaishi, women’s division general leader in Japan, also attended the meeting.