Welcome to the Exploring Buddhism Inclusivity Ambassadors 2021!
Early this Autumn we opened enrolment for a brand-new programme at Jamyang London Buddhist Centre called Exploring Buddhism, a three-year course in Buddhist philosophy and practice, taught and co-designed by Geshe Tenzin Namdak. Through monthly teaching weekends which are offered both online and in-person, this in-depth course integrates study and practice, offering students a learning ecosystem that incorporates teachings, discussion groups, review sessions with teaching assistants, and guided meditations. The syllabus has been designed to give the student a holistic view of the Buddhist worldview, its historical development, and the intellectual methods used to establish its philosophy.
As we are excited to welcome a new cohort of students to our community, we also continue our commitment to creating a more diverse and inclusive Sangha. Therefore, we have developed the Inclusivity Ambassador Scholarship for a number of students from under-represented backgrounds to take part in the Exploring Buddhism Programme. The Inclusivity Ambassador Scholarship encourages students to partake in a facilitator mentorship scheme while serving as an ambassador for their community and supporting Jamyang London Buddhist Centre in our ongoing inclusivity work. A key element of that aspiration is the nurturing of a new and diverse generation of course facilitators and meditation leaders. We actively sought applicants from the Global Majority, BPOC (Black or Person of Colour), LGBTQ+, and differently-abled communities, as well as those who are 25 years old or under.
We were overjoyed to receive so many high calibre applicants, and after a rigorous interview and selection process were able to offer eight outstanding students an Inclusivity Ambassador Scholarship. Each ambassador has unique personal, professional, and cultural experiences in areas ranging from roles in human rights and climate justice work, to disability/differently-abled experience, combating social stigmas in community building, LGBTQIA+ issues, and gender identity-based discrimination and violence. We are very excited to welcome the 2021 Exploring Buddhism Inclusivity Ambassadors to the Jamyang community and look forward to the work we will accomplish together.
