The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley, does research on the social and biological roots of positive emotions, with the goal of expanding the social well-being of individuals, relationships and communities. Its faculty includes professors of psychology, business and social welfare.

The Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance, based in Mill Valley, Calif., promotes the healing power of forgiveness worldwide. It established International Forgiveness Day, which is celebrated the first Sunday of August. The executive director is Jacinta Martin.

The Shamatha Project is a research project that is attempting to measure the human potential for happiness by studying the long-term benefits of meditative practice. It is a collaboration between neuroscientists and psychologists at the University of California and B. Alan Wallace, a Tibetan Buddhist monk who is founder and president of the Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness […]

The Institute for Radical Forgiveness was founded by Colin Tipping to “raise the consciousness of the planet to create a world of forgiveness by 2012.” It’s based in Marietta, Ga. Email through the website.

The Forgiveness Project is a nonprofit organization that explores forgiveness, reconciliation and conflict resolution through personal stories with the aim of raising awareness, educating people and inspiring people toward transformation. It is based in London, England.

The International Forgiveness Institute promotes the psychology and education of forgiveness with the goal of “restoring healthy emotions, rebuilding relationships, and establishing more peaceful communities.” It was formed in 1994 as a way to share the research findings of Robert Enright, an educational psychology professor at the University Wisconsin. It is based in Madison.

The Institute for Research on Unlimited Love does research on benevolent love and encourages dialogue in international and spiritual communities as well as among the wider public with the goal of “global human enhancement.” Stephen G. Post is president.

The Altruistic Personality and Prosocial Behavior Institute at Humboldt State University in Arcata, Calif., studies and promotes altruistic and heroic behavior. Samuel P. Oliner, a Holocaust survivor, and his wife, Pearl, are co-founders.

Everett L. Worthington Jr. is a psychology professor at Virginia Commonwealth University. He was the founding executive director of A Campaign for Forgiveness Research for its first seven years, and he is one of the country’s foremost experts on empirical research about forgiveness.  Among his forthcoming books is Just Forgiving, about the relationship between personal forgiveness and social justice.