Born in France, Matthieu Ricard is a Buddhist monk who left a career in cellular genetics to study Buddhism in the Himalayas over 45 years ago.

He is an international best-selling author and a prominent speaker on the world stage, celebrated at the World Economic Forum at Davos, the NGH forums at the United Nations, and at TED where his talks on happiness and altruism have been viewed by over six million people. His latest book, A Plea for Animals, will be released in the fall. As a trained scientist and Buddhist monk, he is uniquely positioned in the dialogue between East and West. He lives in Nepal and devotes all the proceedings of his books and activities to 140 humanitarian projects in Tibet, India, and Nepal.

You can learn more about Dr. Ricard by visiting his website, www.matthieuricard.com. You can learn more about his humanitarian projects at www.karuna-shechen.org.

Sylvia Boorstein has been teaching Dharma and mindfulness meditation since 1985.

She is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center, a psychotherapist, wife, mother of four, and grandmother of seven. She is particularly interested in emphasizing daily life as mindfulness practice and including informed citizenship and social activism as integral to spiritual maturation. Her books include: It’s Easier Than You Think: The Buddhist Way to Happiness; Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There; Pay Attention for Goodness’s Sake: The Buddhist Path of Kindness; and Happiness Is an Inside Job: Practicing for a Joyful Life.

For more information, please visit http://www.sylviaboorstein.com.