Translated into English, the Institute stands for Peace, People (Participatory Democracy), and Justice. SPDI was founded in 1986 for secular work although the organization has Buddhist inspiration as well. It can also be said that it is the political wing of SNF, active in many campaigns for democracy and human rights. In the early years, SPDI conducted many training courses for university students who wanted to work in the NGO movement after graduation. Later on this training work was consolidated under SEM. In the past decade, besides being a strong base for Sulak Sivaraksa's campaign and advocacy work for positive change, SPDI has also run two important projects, Alternatives to Consumerism and Alternative Politics for Asia. It has also supported an Anti-Nuclear Research Plant Movement, an ongoing protest against the nuclear research plant in Ongkarak, Nakorn Nayok province, central Siam.