The First Planetary Crisis Summit

By Freddie Jenkins

This month Jamyang is hosting our FPMT family to come together and engage in dialog about how best to address the challenges posed by the climate emergency, entrenched inequality, and  growing mental  health crises; in short, the suffering of our times.  

The Planetary Crisis Summit is a space for FPMT board members, centre directors, and teachers to have a deep conversation to explore what it means to be an FPMT centre and Dharma practitioner in this time of environmental and social collapse.   

This two-day hands-on workshop is being facilitated by climate expert and author Rob Hopkins with contributions from other climate experts as well as esteemed FPMT teachers.  

We will jointly explore topics such as:   

• Climate Emergency and Mental Health  
• Activism and Buddhist ethics   
• How we mobilize ourselves and our communities  
• How might our dharma study and practice focus clearly and directly on mitigating the suffering of our times?  

This is an initiative that has been in the hearts of many of us for a long time. The Jamyang team is honoured to be hosting what we sincerely hope will be the first of many such conversations, that these conversations lead to compassionate action, fulfil the wishes of our precious gurus, and bring succour to countless sentient beings.  

We have received heartfelt messages of support from His Holiness the Dalai Lama and His Eminence Ling Rinpoche. Their messages have inspired us as we move towards meaningful discussions and action, and we’re eager to delve into collective conversations together next month. 

We are delighted to announce that the following centers and projects have already committed to being represented at the Summit. These include Aryatara Institut, FDCW, FPMT, Jamyang London, Jamyang Leeds, Land of Joy, Nalanda Monastery, Maitreya Instituut Amsterdam & Loenen, Muni Gyana Center, Sarasvati Group; Togme Sangpo Buddhist Group, Vajrayogini Institut, and Yeshin Norbu. 

A heartfelt thank you goes out to the following centers and individuals who have sponsored so far: Geshe Graham, Jamyang London, Land of Joy, Maitreya Instituut, Rhona Sawyer, Sue Bacchus, and Togme Sangpo Buddhist Group – please consider sponsoring and supporting The Planetary Crisis Summit and we look forward to sharing the outcomes and commitments from the event.