If this were the consensus of most schools—rather than the preservative-ridden frozen beef patties and vivisection promotion in biology class—we would certainly be raising much more compassionate, aware children.

In India, a program based on kindness toward animals is launching in 25 select city schools. Not only does the program teach about how important it is to be kind toward animals and the benefits of vegetarianism; it also establishes a connection between vegetarianism and the environment, something that is usually not even touched upon in most Western classrooms.

The Winsome Constance Kindness Trust of Australia is behind the program. The Trust’s mission is “To promote kindness towards all other living beings and enshrine it as a recognisable trait in Australian character and culture.” With a logo like that, I am totally in. What could be better than promoting kindness in our world and striving to make it something we humans are simply known for? Wouldn’t it be awesome if, instead of being hailed as greedy tree killers with a hunger for oil we were simply known as “kind?”

The CPR Environmental Education Centre is also in charge of the endeavor in local schools. Lalitha Ramadurai, the centre’s senior programme officer, says, “The focus is on animal suffering, how a vegetarian diet improves human health and well-being, and the links between food choices and environmental impact.” If there is anything that our children need to learn to not only survive in this world but to also help sustain the human race, it’s making healthy food choices and protecting the environment.

Some of the presentations, such as “Prevention and Control of Rabies” and “Nonviolence Towards Nature,” sound like something that not only all children could benefit from, but all adults as well. Could you imagine what the world would look like in just a few decades after these types of classes are implemented into the curriculum? One has to wonder if a cut in the violence we all know and see daily—small or dramatic—would happen.

Washington, please take note of this amazing program and consider how it would effect your own country’s curriculums. Perhaps instead of worshipping football teams, promoting hunting seasons off school, and using violence in the school itself through the above examples and others, we could start a new culture of kindness that would definitely serve us all. Indeed, if we don’t start teaching kindness and respect to children, how do we expect to give and get it as adults?