Sumeru News — Engaged Buddhism

Introduction to Buddhist Counselling (on-line) Instructed by Linda Hochstetler, MSW, RSW / TA Charles Chiarelli, OCT, BA, BEd 13 Saturdays, September 18 – December 11, 2021, EST 4-6 pm (7 classes) & 4-5 pm (6 tutorials) - 20 hours This module is designed to provide basic Buddhist counselling skills to individuals with little or no clinical experience or training. It is intended to prepare participants to volunteer with Sangha members, friends, and family. No previous training is required. Students will learn the following skills: attending, rapport building, use of silence, paraphrasing, reflecting, showing empathy, focusing the conversation, clarifying, appropriate questioning,...

My most recent column for Buddhistdoor Global is called "The Good Ancestor" and it is about our role in the future. It begins with a reflection on the tragic fate of Canada's Indigenous Peoples at the hands of settler colonials, and then turns to our unhealthy relationship with Planet Earth in the Anthropocene, concluding with some hints about regenerative design for a sustainable future, being modelled by a variety of European communities. https://www.buddhistdoor.net/features/the-good-ancestor

The editor and designer of our new book, This Fragile Planet: His Holiness the Dalai Lama on Environment got their proofs today, where they live in Asia. Here's the picture they sent me. I love it!

Coming soon! 11 x 8.5, 120 pages, full colour throughout. An ethical approach to dealing with the urgent issues of climate change and taking care of our delicate ecosystems. This Fragile Planet features 80 inspiring quotations from His Holiness the Dalai Lama on environment, matched with 120 eye-catching photos and visuals from a dozen professional photographers — all carefully curated and edited by Tibet expert Michael Buckley. The book lays out the vision of His Holiness concerning secular ethics and environmental protection, great respect for all living beings, the importance of interdependence, and the concept of universal responsibility for protecting...

My latest column for Buddhistdoor Global: A meditation on user experience design, running a hospital, chaplaincy, and community development in Buddhist centres. https://www.buddhistdoor.net/features/ux-for-buddhists