Engaged Buddhism offers many opportunities to respond to the world mindfully and compassionately, helping create social, political, environmental and economic justice and peace.

Engaged Buddhism: Taking Right Action

Bring the dharma into your daily life as an engaged Buddhist*. You can work with one of the IMCW-sponsored programs, or join Good Works, partnering with charitable organizations in the D.C. metro area.

* A term coined by Vietnamese Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh.

To Get Involved

Click on the Contact link of the program you're interested in, and email the contact for more information. They'll be delighted to hear from you!

 IMCW-Sponsored Programs

 Good Works: Partnering with Charitable Organizations

IMCW-sponsored Programs

  • Insight on the Inside (Prison Dharma)

    Location:
    River Road Unitarian Church, 6301 River Road, Bethesda, MD (at the corner of Whittier Blvd.)
    Status:
    Active
    Contact:
    Craig Ehrlich
    Description:

    This program provides guided meditations to the incarcerated. Our volunteers lead meditations in a correctional facility.

    Currently all volunteer positions are filled. Please check back periodically for more information.

    Meetings are on the first Thursday of each month.

  • Loving the Earth (Green Sangha)

    Location:
    DC Metro area
    Status:
    Active
    Contact:
    Kristin Barker
    Description:

    The Insight Meditation Community of Washington recognizes our relationship to the web of life.

    We belong to the Earth. We are each profoundly connected with and dependant upon all beings on planet Earth. 

    We are alive at a critical moment in history. Thousands of choices of billions of people add up. The impact of human beings on the earth has reached a critical point so that we, collectively, are changing the Earth’s lands, waters and climate, harming countless beings and threatening the very systems upon which all life depends. 

    Our actions matter. When we believe ourselves to be separate from each other and from all of life, we consume and exploit. Conversely, when we act from our connectedness, we contribute to healing. No matter the size or visibility, each act of love for the Earth affirms our belonging, creating positive change in the web of life and in ourselves. We encourage all members of the IMCW Sangha to take steps and incorporate practices that express our love for the Earth and the truth of our interconnectedness. IMCW’s Green Program supports the sharing of ideas as well as organizing collective initiatives.

    Send your ideas on how we can continue to evolve a green community. Share steps are you and your family taking to reduce waste or heal ecosystems. Send email to green@imcw.org and we’ll post the highlights here.

Current Good Works Programs

  • BuddhaFest 2012

    Location:
    TBD
    Status:
    Inactive
    Contact:
    Eric Forbis
    Description:
    BuddhaFest is a 4-day festival of Buddhist film, teachings and entertainment. The festival engages and inspires non-Buddhists and practitioners alike by presenting films and teachings with a fresh, contemporary approach to the profound principles of Buddhism.
  • Learning Ally

    Location:
    5225 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, #312, Washington DC
    Status:
    Active
    Contact:
    Melissa Meier
    Description:

    Learning Ally, formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic provides audio textbooks, digital playback equipment and training for individuals with visual, learning, or physical disabilities that prevent them from reading print. Nearly 3,500 students in the Washington metropolitan area use RFB&D recorded texts to gain access to education and employment opportunities.

    Learning Ally asks for a commitment of 2 hours per week for one year. Daytime, evening, and Saturday morning hours are available at the DC office in Friendship Heights. Weekday hours are available to NIH employees at the satellite studio on campus. Financial contributions are always appreciated.

  • On Our Own of Fairfax County

    Location:
    8794-S Sacramento Drive, Alexandria, VA 22309
    Status:
    Active
    Contact:
    Diane Engster
    Description:

    On Our Own of Fairfax County is a community drop-in center that assists people who are living with serious mental illnesses. Individuals show mutual care by promoting self-help, peer support, socialization, advocacy, education, spirituality, economic development, personal growth and creativity.

    Volunteers are needed to establish weekly Oasis Mindfulness/Meditation Groups and will commit to attending 2 evening groups per month for a total of 3 hours.

  • Washington Buddhist Peace Fellowship

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    Status:
    Active
    Contact:
    Geoff Maxson
    Description:
    Washington Buddhist Peace Fellowship is an organization that has recently begun a new focus, to bring more awareness to the issue of climate change. Climate change and world peace are two issues that are very intricately linked, since the availability of resources is the cause of so much violence in our world. Food and eating are such large causes of carbon emissions (which lead to climate change) that WBPF has chosen to focus on bringing more mindfulness to food issues.

    You can help us brainstorm ideas on how to bring more mindful consumption techniques to the lives of the IMCW sangha, the general Buddhist community, and the larger community as a whole. Come to our next meeting! We will discuss organizing and actions to take to bring mindful consumption to our communities.