Real practice.
Real depth.

For most of my life, I’ve been interested in one central question: how can we use this life in the wisest way possible? My own contemplative practice has developed over more than 25 years, including extended periods of silent retreat, time living and practising in monasteries, including as a Buddhist monk in India, and many years of dedicated daily meditation. 
 

Alongside this, I’ve spent over three decades working in education, leadership development in young adults, and social change, including co-developing: The 100 Hours, training South African youth in wise leadership; a changemaker curriculum for the UN’s Global Education First; the Water, Air and Food Awards for sustainable systems; EQ programmes in education. I’ve also coached top management in blue chips internationally. 
 

Earlier in my life, I was a classical musician and operatic baritone, performing Mozart across Europe — an experience that taught me a lot about discipline, presence, and the power of stillness.

I’m a co-founder and Executive Director of Dharma Gates, a US nonprofit organisation dedicated to opening pathways into deep meditation practice for young adults. Over the past several years, we’ve supported more than 1,500 participants through meditation programmes and over 30 multi-day residential retreats, while raising more than $2 million to support the mission.
 

My interest in this work began during a difficult period while I was a student at Wesleyan University, when I encountered meditation at a Zen monastery in the mountains of New York. That experience changed the direction of my life and led me into long-term contemplative practice and retreat training.
 

Since then, I’ve spent several years in residential meditation settings, including extended periods of silent retreat. I believe contemplative practice can offer something deeply needed in today’s world: greater clarity, steadiness, compassion, and wisdom. Supporting younger generations in accessing those qualities is at the heart of my work

I first got interested in meditation and the Dharma during my teens, and enjoy reading books and listening to talks by Ajahn Brahm and Ajahn Anan, among others, as part of my practice. 

 

With a deep interest in social issues, I've campaigned at national and international level since I was eight years old, speaking on the BBC and independent TV and radio, and have been honoured to win multiple awards. Among the campaigns I have worked on are clear food labelling for meat and dairy products to stop factory farming, homelessness, conflict minerals, hunger, and cyberbullying.

I'm also a data scientist with a specialty in online safety, anti-fraud and operations management. As a member of the Diana Award and Royal Foundation’s Cyberbullying Taskforce, I consulted to a large range of tech companies, such as Google, Facebook, TwitterX, and Snapchat. I've also worked at mobile-gaming giant Supercell within the anti-fraud and user safety team.