Nicole Baden Roshi is a Dharma heir of Zentatsu Baker Roshi and has practiced with the Dharma Sangha since 2001. She holds a background in psychology and somatic work, and trained for several years at the Crestone Mountain Zen Center. In 2024, she formally stepped into the role of Abbot and now guides the spiritual direction of Dharma Sangha and the Dharma Academy.

Zentatsu Baker Roshi is a Dharma heir of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi. He founded the Zen centers in Crestone (USA) and the Black Forest (Germany), and has been teaching for over five decades. Today, he continues to guide students both in person and online — most recently through his weekly online format WeeklyZen.

Valerie Brown studied mindfulness in the Plum Village tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and was ordained as a Buddhist Dharma teacher in 2018. She is a Quaker, author, facilitator, and executive coach specializing in leadership development and mindfulness practices with a focus on diversity, social equity, and inclusion. A former lawyer and lobbyist, Valerie transformed her high-pressure, twenty-year career into serving leaders and nonprofits to create trustworthy, authentic, compassionate, and connected workspaces.

Rahshaana Green is a multidisciplinary wellness facilitator who combines her knowledge and experience in science, yoga, meditation and building human connection to help people cultivate resilience and well-being. She is the Director of Equity and Contemplative Psychotherapy at the Nalanda Institute and a Forrest Yoga Guardian (lineage holder). Her teaching centers embodiment practices as a foundation to navigating change and challenge with wisdom and grace.

Joan Halifax Roshi is a Zen teacher, anthropologist, and social activist. She is the founder and Abbot of Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe and a pioneer in contemplative end-of-life care. Known internationally for her work in engaged Buddhism, she leads initiatives in dying, prison outreach, and global health. Her many books explore the meeting point of compassion, courage, and spiritual practice.

Sarabinh Levy-Brightman is a university educator and curriculum developer with a focus on religious literacy and transformative education. Closely affiliated with Harvard Divinity School, she has worked with Harvard’s Religion and Public Life initiative since 2016. Her teaching bridges intellect, imagination, and embodiment — making her work deeply resonant with the Dharma Academy’s vision of learning as shared inquiry.

Ryuten Paul Rosenblum Roshi began practicing with Shunryu Suzuki Roshi in 1968 and is a Dharma heir of Zentatsu Baker Roshi. He serves as Vice Abbot at the Zen Center in the Black Forest and leads seminars in Germany, Austria, and beyond. He lives in California and continues to support the international Sangha with teaching and presence.

Jiryu Rutschman-Byler is a Soto Zen priest in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi and currently serves as Abbot at Green Gulch Farm near San Francisco. He received Dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman and has practiced in Zen temples since 1996, including in Japan. He is the author of Two Shores of Zen and supports sanghas in Colombia and California.

Ravi Welch Sensei is a Lay Dharma Teacher in the Dharma Sangha lineage and has practiced with Zentatsu Baker Roshi since 2003. Originally from India, he holds an M.S. in Psychology from UC Berkeley and has worked for decades as a teaching psychotherapist and supervisor. Based in Germany, he co-directs the Mainz Institute for Psychotherapy and Adult Education and brings a lifelong integration of contemplative and therapeutic approaches to his teaching.

Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a priest lineage holder in the Shunryu Suzuki tradition. With a background as a social worker in the fields of violence against women and children and unhoused seniors, she brings an inclusive, anti-oppression focus to their role as the guiding teacher of Access to Zen sangha and nonprofit in the San Francisco Bay Area. Find out more about Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path.