Nigerian Takes the Lead as DLF Study Circle Coordinator

National Committee for Canada Launched

Project Update: The Missing Peace

Grants to date for 2005

We've Moved—Please note our new address

Join us in welcoming His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the San Francisco Bay Area November 4-6, 2005. Events at Stanford University include a meditation session the morning of Friday, Nov. 4, a dialog on nonviolence the afternoon of Friday, Nov. 4, and a dialog with neuroscientists on Saturday, Nov. 5.

While the above events are sold out, they will all be webcast live. Details at http://dalailama.stanford.edu/.

Top

Jos, Nigeria — If you had three turns to guess the home country of the DLF’s new Study Circle Coordinator, what would they be? It’s probably unlikely that anyone would call out Nigeria, let alone a city named Jos. Situated along the middle belt of Nigeria on the Delimi River, Jos is Capital of Plateau State, a center for tin, tantalite, and steel mining and home to UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) School for Museum Technicians. Yes, Jos is the place, and Emmanuel Ivorgba—a professor of computer science in Jos—is the man.

Emmanuel attended Nigeria’s University of Benin and earned both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Information Technology. In addition to teaching at Victory International College and Dominion Heritage Academy, he currently serves on the boards of several Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s) including Teachers Without Borders, Project Hope, and Safe Water for Africa Community Initiative.

Emmanuel has been a real force in the expansion of the DLF Study Circle program, starting several groups and implementing Study Circle training sessions for Study Circle facilitators. The DLF recently spoke with Emmanuel from his home in Jos.

DLF: As the new Study Circle Coordinator, can you tell us how you first discovered The Dalai Lama Foundation?

Emmanuel: I first encountered the DLF in January this year. While surfing the Internet and researching international organizations committed to peace, I found the DLF website and discovered the study circle program. I was truly captivated by the philosophy and vision behind the program. I decided to join right away.

DLF: Are Nigerians generally aware of the Dalai Lama, who he is and about his teachings described in Ethics for the New Millennium?

Emmanuel: Sincerely, knowledge of the Dalai Lama and all that he stands for is generally very low in Nigeria. Very few people will admit to having read his works and also a very, very small number will say they have ever heard his name. However, those I have spoken with show a high level of enthusiasm for what he is doing around the world.

DLF: Are there great social and economic disparities in your country, between urban and rural communities?

Emmanuel: This is obvious even to a first time visitor to Nigeria. The disparity that exists between urban and rural communities, in terms of social and cultural systems, is such that those in the rural areas are much poorer. These areas mostly comprise farmers and those who work the land, who do not have access to education. In the cities, you find the so-called elites, the rich, etc., those with access to education and higher paying jobs.

DLF: How does this affect the focus of your Study Circles?

Emmanuel: We meet in the city but would like to also involve rural communities in our study circles. But this is very difficult.

DLF: Is there a particular idea from Ethics for the New Millennium that you believe your study circles find highly relevant to Nigeria as a nation?

Emmanuel: The idea most relevant for Nigeria from Ethics for the New Millennium is the Dalai Lama’s concept of universal responsibility and interdependence. He reminds all Nigerians, and indeed the whole of humankind, that the best life is that lived for the sake of others.

DLF: As Study Circle Coordinator, is there anything you wish to share with others reading this newsletter?

Emmanuel: Study Circles provide an avenue for dialogue, sharing, friendship, and cultural exchange. All in an atmosphere devoid of suspicion and acrimony, where each individual is free to share and express their views on topical issues affecting them and their societies. It’s a wonderful way to share and to understand one another.

No matter what part of the world we come from,
we are the same human beings.
—His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama

Emmanuel can be reached at studycircles@dlfound.org.

Top

Montreal, Canada – The Dalai Lama Foundation National Committee for Canada is now a reality. Led by Thubten Samdup, founder and former president of the Canada Tibet Committee, the DLF National Committee for Canada shares the mission of The Dalai Lama Foundation and supports its core values of peace, respect, and compassion. Though originating in Montreal, the National Committee for Canada will extend to other parts of the country, providing national coordination and cooperation.

Among the planned activities is the establishment of a monthly electronic digest of articles of interest to the wider community of The Dalai Lama Foundation. The production of a Website, the development of Study Circles, and the planning of a peace conference are now in the discussion phase.

Thubten represented the DLF Canada by participating in the International Day of Peace on September 21, 2005 at the City Hall of Montreal. He accompanied Montreal Mayor Gerard Tremblay, Quebec National Assembly Member Daniel Turp, and the leader of the Block Party, Mr. Gilles Duceppe.

You may contact The Dalai Lama Foundation National Committee for Canada at dlfcanada@tibet.ca.

Top

The Missing Peace: The Dalai Lama Portrait Project will hold a benefit event on October 28, 2005 at 8 p.m. in Palo Alto, California.

The Missing Peace is an international multimedia art exhibition showcasing 75 contemporary artists from 25 countries who express the many facets of the human longing for peace. Laurie Anderson, Richard Avedon, Christo, Anish Kapoor, Jenny Holzer, Mike and Doug Starn, and Bill Viola are some of the featured artists.

A preview of the show opens later this fall at the Stanford Cantor Arts Center. The full exhibition opens June 11, 2006 at UCLA’s Fowler Museum of Cultural History, and several international venues will host the exhibit over a five-year period.

The benefit is $35 per entrant and includes presentations on the goal of the project plus a short film, The Laughing Club, introducing the practice of Laughter Yoga, based on the therapeutic effects of laughter on the mind and body. The benefit will be held at 654 High Street, Palo Alto.

More at www.dlportrait.org.

Top

While the Dalai Lama Foundation is not primarily a grant-making organization, we do make a small number of modest grants each year. Grants to date for 2005 are listed below.

Ahimsa Center / Summer Institute on Nonviolence and Social Change. This institute is designed for K-12 educators and administrators who are keen to take a leadership role in addressing growing violence in schools through education about nonviolence and social change. The program includes professional development and lesson plan development. The institute was held July 18-31 at California State University, Pomona.

DLF Russian Chapter / Ethics in Russia Project. Andrey Tarentyev, head of the St. Petersburg, Russia, chapter of the DLF, is leading an initiative to mail free copies of the Russian translation of the Ethics for the New Millennium to community, secondary school, college, and prison libraries across Russia, for the purpose of promoting the general ethical development of civil society. In addition, the project will distribute Russian-language copies of the DLF’s Study Guide to organizations and individuals with an interest in forming Study Circles for in-depth study of the book. Andrey and his team have located a database of approximately 30,000 libraries, and also 10,000 school libraries, in Russia, and they expect that number to double. The seed grant from the DLF has enabled the project to get off to a real start with 2,500 copies.

Mechak Center for Contemporary Tibetan Art. Mechak is Tibetan for an iron edged tool used for creating sparks. It is the mission of Mechak Center to promote and cultivate contemporary Tibetan art that has the potential to ignite a renewal of Tibetan culture. Mechak is a non-profit group whose vision is to create a community of Tibetan artists from what is right now individuals making art in different parts of the world, isolated from each other and largely unaware of each other’s work. The logical extension of this work will be the building of artistic and cultural bridges to artists working inside Tibet.

H. Pointner Tibetan Medical Centre at Sera Mey Monastic University. The H. Pointner Medical Centre is located at Sera Mey Monastery next to Tsawa Khangtsen. It is staffed by Drs. Daniel and Kris Rikleen and other medical professionals as available. It provides health care for the monks of Sera Mey and Sera Je monasteries and for the local Tibetan community in Bylakuppe.

Committee of 100 for Tibet / The Missing Peace Project. This project is bringing together over 70 artists to create an exhibition which will open up new ways of seeing our common humanity for adults and children around the world when it begins touring in 2006. See the update on this wonderful project below.

Committee of 100 for Tibet / Tibetan Prisoner’s Fund. The Committee of 100 for Tibet and several other Tibetan organizations have recently established a fund for the support of former prisoners who have gained their freedom.

Sarvodaya / Tsunami Relief. Sarvodaya is Sri Lanka’s largest and most broadly embedded people’s organization, with a network covering 15,000 villages, 34 district offices, over 100,000 youth, and the country’s largest micro-credit organization with a cumulative loan portfolio of over one billion Sri Lankan Rupees. It has been operational for almost 50 years.

American Red Cross / Katrina Relief. The American Red Cross is among the agencies with the proven experience and competence to provide disaster relief.

See details online at our grants page.

Top

The Dalai Lama Foundation
235 Alma Street
Palo Alto, CA 94301 USA

Our phone number remains the same at +1 (650) 354-0733

Top

This email was sent to you at . You can reach us by email at info@dlfound.org .