The Youth in Buddhism

Here's an excerpt from a BuddhaDharma article about how Buddhism has changed demographically, esepcially in regards to the youth. For the article, Diana Winston, the Director of Mindfulness Education for the UCLA's Mindful Awareness Research Center, interviews four particpants, Sumi Loundon Kim, Rod Meade Sperry, Iris Brilliant And Zoketsu Norman Fischer, as part of a panel discussion.

"Nevertheless, there has been a small but important demographic shift. There are more young people at dharma centers than in the late eighties and nineties. Teen and young people retreats have contributed to broadening the dharma, as have a series of books, websites, and communities targeting young people. There is now a teacher-training program at Spirit Rock where many of the trainees are under forty. Young people are practicing, undeniably, but as Sumi Loundon Kim points out in the panel, they still account for a small percentage of the total population of practitioners."

"Twenty years after my first retreat, I can say that the dharma is absolutely relevant to young people, as this panel shows us. And the inclusion of youth in the future of the dharma will only create a vital, exciting new form of Buddhism(s). The dharma is far from dying out, but its future expressions may take us by surprise. I can’t wait to see what it looks like!"