In August of 2000, Ilchi Lee stood as a guest speaker in the main hall of the United Nations building in New York City during the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders. He recited the Prayer of Peace he had authored for the occasion, and he promised himself that the prayer would not see its end as mere words. He vowed to someday return to the UN with practical means of achieving world peace. Ilchi Lee made efforts toward a multi-level strategic partnership with the UN. His chief interest was to make contributions to its global peace and humanitarian efforts. In 2001, he hosted the New Millennium World Peace Humanity Conference in Seoul, South Korea, an event that gathered around 12,000 people from around the world to find workable means of fostering a more peaceful, sustainable global culture. Speakers at the event included former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, environmental activist Maurice Strong, and renowned journalist Seymour Topping. In addition, Ilchi Lee continued to have public seminars and academic seminars in Korea at the Korea Institute of Brain Science (KIBS) and the University of Brain Education (UBE). In 2007, KIBS earned consultative NGO status with the UN.

Then in 2008, 8 years after his determination as a guest at the UN, Ilchi Lee stood on the UN grounds not as a guest, but as a host. That June, he held the Fourth International Brain Education Conference there, while at the same time celebrating the inauguration of IBREA. With this event, he created a foundation for Brain Education to be utilized by the UN's international peace activities, educational projects, and welfare promotion efforts. At the International Brain Education Conference, several distinguished neuroscientists such as Dr. Antonio Damasio and Elkhonon Goldberg, Ph.D., as well as several other guests, lectured. In July of 2009, Brain Education was introduced to UN officials at the Annual Ministerial Review in Geneva, Switzerland during a seminar "The Role of Brain Education in Global Mental Health".

Brain Education is receiving public attention as an alternative solution to problems in our public education systems. Schools that introduce the method are experiencing significant improvement in student performance, attendance, and concentration. There have also been improvements in teacher-student relationships and communication, leading to decreased number of misdemeanors and delinquencies. Three hundred seven schools in the United States have adopted Brain Education in their regular curriculum, as well as over a thousand schools in South Korea through the Happy School Campaign, to promote whole-person education and nurture the compassion in each student. Ilchi Lee's efforts recently bore more fruit by receiving approval for and opening a 4-year online university program offered by the Global Cyber University, providing a more solid foundation for BE to achieve its dream.