Sumeru News — Engaged Buddhism

The health of Tibet's environment is critical to billions of people who live downstream from its watershed in many of Asia's great rivers. While the Tibetan Plateau is suffering from excessive mining, deforestation, river damming, and biodiversity loss, it remains marginalized in most discussions about what to do with our environmental crisis. Out of sight and out of mind, rather like the Great Barrier Reef upon which so much sea life depends. This Fragile Planet: His Holiness the Dalai Lama on Environment, edited by Michael Buckley, makes the case for all of us to take action on behalf of the world's...

Just sent off Cataloguing in Publication applications for two books I'll be publishing in May, and I'm very excited about them. They're both by members of the Dark Mountain writers collective in England. Here's how DM describes itself: In 2009, two English writers published a manifesto. Out of that manifesto grew a cultural movement: a rooted and branching network of creative activity, centred on the Dark Mountain journal, sustained by the work of a growing gang of collaborators and contributors, as well as the support of thousands of readers around the world. Together, we are walking away from the stories...

Buddhism In Prisons (BIP) Initiative - December 2021 ***powered by Toronto Centre for Applied Buddhism www.appliedbuddhism.ca to ensure access to Buddhist spiritual care by inmates in Canadian prisons to offer education and practicum programs for Buddhist chaplains and volunteers to fundraise to create a Buddhism in Prisons Fund to assist Buddhist chaplains and volunteers to deliver spiritual care services in prisons in Canada Buddhism In Prisons (BIP) Fund December 2021 fund-raising campaign to seed the Buddhism In Prisons (BIP) Fund - donations will be matched up to $10,000. To donate, visit: http://www.buddhisminprisons.ca/fundraising.html To join our team, email us at info@BuddhismInPrisons.ca

Moving from good intentions and well-conceived mission statements to an effective organization is not easy. I recently had the opportunity to learn more about one of America’s most successful engaged Buddhist organizations, the Earth Holder Community (EHC), in several conversations to find out how they have thrived in that challenge. I spoke with John Bell, one of the founders. He has over 40 years of experience in the youth field as a teacher, counselor, community organizer, program developer, leadership trainer, director, and parent. He is also an ordained Dharma teacher in the tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Our conversation...

In February 2020, just before the pandemic hit, I presented at the Ho Centre for Buddhist Studies conference at the University of Toronto, New Paths in Teaching Buddhist Studies. You can find a video of my talk here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhCg0IfUC7o I had also prepared a slide deck for my talk, which I ended up not using. Looking at it again recently in the light of current events, it seems still relevant and worth sharing. Here is a link to it: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2503/2728/files/Future_Buddhism_optimized.pdf?v=1636155658 Please share...