Gabriel Dayley co-founded and edits The Arrow Journal, which investigates applications of contemplative wisdom traditions to confronting pressing social, political, and environmental challenges. He also works in local climate action, with a focus on ensuring that strategies for climate mitigation and adaptation are equitable, inclusive, and just. Gabriel received an M.A. in International Peace and Conflict Resolution from American University and a B.A. in International Relations from Pomona College. His graduate research examined how to address ecological harm using methods from conflict analysis, peacebuilding, and mindfulness research. He has designed and led workshops to examine whiteness and racism, to investigate toxic masculinity, and to address our personal and collective ecological footprint. While working on The Arrow, Gabriel enjoys drinking delicious, home-brewed coffee.

shah noor hussein is a writer, visual artist, and scholar focusing on black feminism, art, and teaching. shah is a doctoral student and Cota-Robles Fellow at UC Santa Cruz in the fields of Anthropology, Critical Race Theory & Ethnic Studies. From 2016 – 2017, they was a Writing Fellow at the California Institute of Integral Studies and currently works as an adjunct professor, a freelance writer, and a multimedia artist in Oakland. Their previous experience as an editor includes work for arts organizations, journals, magazines, start-ups, and book publishing companies including Umber Journal and Nothing But The Truth Publishing. shah serves as an Event and Program Coordinator at their spiritual spiritual home, the East Bay Meditation Center located in Oakland, California, which offers radically inclusive dharma practices through Buddhist, multicultural, and secular approaches that focus on social justice. Their current research and career aims to (re)center marginalized voices in dialogues on alternative epistemologies and ontologies through a multimedia ethnographic research, creative writing, educational engagement, and editorial outreach. In their free time, shah walks in nature, talks to their ancestors, meditates, eats good food, and sleeps.

Ashley Wilson earned her PhD in anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis in 2019. Her doctoral dissertation research, funded by Fulbright-Hays and National Geographic, focused on common alternative arrangements to both formal marriage and employment in an urban, Kenyan neighborhood. Her anthropological training continues to be a guiding influence in her roles as writer, editor, mother, and Zen practitioner. In addition to being Associate Editor at The Arrow Journal, Ashley works in educational publishing, teaches yoga, and shares the practice of mindfulness and meditation through personal coaching sessions. She currently lives in central Arkansas with her young son, Sage, and their puppy, Zen.

Alicia W. Brown earned a BFA in Printmaking from Rhode Island School of Design, with a focus in environmental sociology. She practices direct process printmaking methods such as mezzotint and relief, but is also trained in traditional bookbinding, basket making, fiber arts and oil painting. Working out of her studio in Southern Vermont, Alicia seeks to draw parallels between ecology, mindfulness practices and political action through various artistic mediums and is currently working as a freelance artist and designer. She was raised a Shambhala Buddhist in Boulder, Colorado but moved to Vermont to pursue her passions for sustainable agriculture and art all at once.

Laurie Amodeo has been a student and practitioner of Buddhism since 2005, studying in Zen, Shambhala, and Vajrayana traditions. She is co-founder of the BIPOC Meditation Collective, an engaged contemplative community for Black, Indigenous and People of Color. Laurie facilitates embodied practices as a meditation guide and yoga teacher, and is the Senior Marketing & Communications Manager for Tara Mandala, an international Buddhist community and retreat center. She holds an MBA in Marketing Management from Pace University and a BS in Psychology from University of Florida. In her creative practice, Laurie is a vocalist, songwriter, dancer, and student of Sogetsu Ikebana.

Rosalyn Stagg received her bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts and Comparative Religion from the New School University in New York City.  She has a master’s degree in Ecumenical Studies from the University of Bonn in Germany and an MBA in Non-Profit Management. She moved back to the USA in 2016 to work for Shambhala Mountain Center where she was finally able to put all those years of study into practice. Rosalyn served as SMC’s Director of Fund Development until 2019, most notably leading their $2.27 million comprehensive fundraising campaign to build a wastewater collection system.  Rosalyn currently works as a planned giving consultant and lives in the beautiful town of Lake Arrowhead, California.

Martina Bouey (she/her and they/them) has a breadth and depth of experience in operations, communications, financial management, program development and fundraising from her years working on the local, national, and international level to support and provide direct resources and support to communities that have too often been neglected, underserved and undervalued by government and society. She holds a Masters in Public Policy from Tufts University. Martina has practiced meditation for over 20 years and is a practitioner in the Vajrayana Buddhist tradition. In her free time, she enjoys reading, connecting to nature, and watching movies. She lives with her partner and their dog in beautiful downtown Oakland, CA.

Sharon Owyang is a writer and consultant on U.S.-China issues. She was born in Singapore, graduated from Harvard University with a degree in Social Studies, and enjoys trying to understand the world through an interdisciplinary lens.  She served as the Regional Director of Southern California Shambhala from 2017-2020, and has been part of the Los Angeles Shambhala sangha for the past 14 years. She has previously worked as a film producer and run a non-profit dedicated to the civic and political empowerment of Asian Americans. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Tom, and is an avid world traveler.

Sheryl Petty, Founder of Movement Tapestries, has worked in organizational development, systems change, equity, and field building for 25 years. She currently consults with national and international nonprofits, philanthropy, and government agencies on equity transformation processes and field alignment.  Sheryl holds degrees in Mathematics, Theology, and a doctorate in Leadership & Change. She is also ordained and teaches in indigenous African-based (Yoruba/Lucumi) and Tibetan Buddhist (Vajrayana/Nyingma) traditions, which she has practiced for 25 years, and is a certified yoga instructor. Her focus is on supporting the alignment efforts of practitioners, advocates and community members to heal and unleash our most vibrant selves, transform our social systems, and improve our collective life.

Holly Gayley is a scholar and translator of contemporary Buddhist literature in Tibet and Associate Professor of Buddhist Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her research areas include gender and sexuality in Buddhist tantra, ethical reform in contemporary Tibet, and theorizing translation, both literary and cultural, in the transmission of Buddhist teachings to North America. She is author of Love Letters from Golok: A Tantric Couple in Modern Tibet (2016); co-editor of A Gathering of Brilliant Moons: Practice Advice from the Rime Masters of Tibet (2017), translator of Inseparable Across Lifetimes: The Lives and Love Letters of Namtrul Rinpoche and Khandro Tāre Lhamo (2019), and editor of Voices from Larung Gar: Shaping Tibetan Buddhism for the Twenty-First Century (forthcoming).

Michael Gayner, Ph.D., has been the Executive Director of Shambhala Mountain Center since the summer of 2012. Prior to taking on the role of Executive Director, he served here as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Guest Services. Prior to coming to Shambhala Mountain Center, Michael co-owned a benefits management company in Canada, serving not-for-profit organizations across the country.  He worked as a teacher in Canada and Japan, and served as an officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. He earned a PhD in education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto.

David Kahane is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Alberta in Canada. From 2010-2015 he led Alberta Climate Dialogue, an international project that convened citizens to deliberate on climate change and influence climate policy. He teaches and researches democratic theory and practice, especially as these relate to the design of public dialogues and consultations, and to questions of sustainability and systems change. He is a national 3M teaching fellow, a permaculture gardener, and Director of the Edmonton Shambhala Centre.

Dr. Sara Lewis is associate professor and chair of Contemplative Psychotherapy and Buddhist Psychology at Naropa University. Her book, Spacious Minds: Trauma and Resilience in Tibetan Buddhism, published by Cornell University Press, investigates how Buddhist concepts of time and memory shape responses to political violence in the Tibetan Diaspora. Sara is also a psychotherapist in private practice specializing in serious mental illness, mindfulness, and psychedelic medicine.
.

Adam Lobel, M. Div. is a teacher and minister (acharya) in the Shambhala tradition and a scholar of religion and philosophy. He is responsible for curriculum and path development as well as training teachers within Shambhala. He continues doctoral research at Harvard University and is a husband and father of two boys.

Judith Simmer-Brown, Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor of Contemplative and Religious Studies at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, where she has taught since 1978. She is the Dean of the Shambhala International Teachers’ Academy, and teaches internationally for Shambhala as an acharya—a senior teacher. Her teaching specialties are meditation practice, Shambhala teachings, Buddhist philosophy, tantric Buddhism, and contemplative higher education. Her book, Dakini’s Warm Breath (Shambhala 2001), explores the feminine principle as it reveals itself in meditation practice and everyday life for women and men. She has also edited Meditation and the Classroom: Contemplative Pedagogy for Religious Studies (SUNY 2011). She had her husband, Richard, have two adult children and three grandchildren.

Aarti Tejuja is a meditation, contemplative art teacher. She is a group facilitator skilled in holding space using the methods of art of hosting, interplay, and peace circles. Aarti is a community organizer, youth mentor and advocate for those impacted by the current justice system. She graduated from DePaul University with an MS in Technology Project Management. She worked in the IT/Finance Industry for over ten years, including 6 years at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. After completing a one month meditation retreat in 2008 with Shambhala, Aarti left the corporate world and went to work for Shambhala for ten years. During this time, she trained as a mindfulness meditation instructor, interplay instructor, art of hosting facilitator and circle keeper. Aarti co-created three self-care mindfulness conferences with multiple non-profit organizations working to end violence in Chicago. She developed several mindfulness and team building trainings for non-profits and youth in schools throughout Chicagoland. Aarti serves as a youth mentor and advocate for those who are disadvantaged by the current system. Aarti also has experience training organizations to work with racial, gender and age bias.

Gregory Lubkin, Ph.D., was a writer and teacher who served on the Board of Directors and the Editorial Advisory Board of The Arrow Journal. He was an international lawyer and a professor of European history. Dr. Lubkin’s publication credits include the book A Renaissance Court: Milan under Galeazzo Maria Sforza, as well as more than 35 shorter works authored or co-authored in the fields of law and history. He held a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Ph.D. from U.C. Berkeley. Dr. Lubkin taught Buddhism and related topics for 30 years.