Since 2008, the Sager Science Leadership Institute has trained monks and nuns to be leaders of science education, drive monastic science centers, and be active participants in the monastic community’s rapidly expanding dialogue with science. Annual, and sometimes bi-annual, 2- to 3-week institutes provide a forum for center leaders to share previous work, identify best practices, and generate vision for future work. Western faculty work closely with the monastic leaders to nurture monastic-driven project work, emphasizing pedagogy and hands-on interactive learning.
“A monk who understands ALL the perspectives, both science and Buddhist, and then comes into society and uses it in its service, that is a 21st Century Monk.”
— Science Leader (3rd Cohort)
Leadership Cohorts
Leadership institutes have been organized around batches of cohorts that attend several institutes and take on projects such as making exhibitions, publishing a journal, and developing new programs at their science centers. Cohorts of approximately 30 to 40 monastics consecutively attend 4 or more leadership institutes (10 weeks or 400 hours of training) over 3 to 4 years.
1st Cohort
The first leadership cohort (2008 to 2010)
2nd Cohort
The second leadership cohort (2011 to 2013)
3rd Cohort
The third leadership cohort (2016 to 2019)
4th Cohort
The fourth leadership cohort (2022 & still running..)
Previous Leadership Institutes
1st Cohort
Institute I
June 16th to July 4th, 2008
Hosted by the Institute for Buddhist Dialectics at Sarah
Faculty
Gail Burd, UA Tucson
Chris Impey, UA Tucson
Richard Sterling, UC Berkeley, NWP
Mark St. John, Inverness Research
Karen Falkenberg, Emory University
Institute II
January 20th to January 30th, 2009
Hosted by the Central Institute for Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarnath
Faculty
Mike Petrich, Exploratorium
Karen Wilkinson, Exploratorium
Luigi Anzivino, Exploratorium
Mark St. John, Inverness Research
Institute III
May 3rd to May 15th, 2009
Hosted by the Menri Monastery, Solan
Faculty
Chris Impey, UA Tucson
Richard Sterling, UC Berkeley, NWP
Stephanie Norby, Smithsonian Institution
Institute IV
December 1st to December 12th, 2009
Hosted by Drepung Monastery at Mundgod
Faculty
Richard Sterling, UC Berkeley, NWP
Stephanie Norby, Smithsonian Institution
David Barker, Exploratorium
David Presti, UC Berkeley
Linda Shore, Exploratorium
Institute V
May 3rd to May 14th, 2010
Hosted by Deer Park Institute at Bir
Faculty
Chris Impey, UA Tucson
Lori Lambertson, Exploratorium
Donald Gallehr, George Mason University
Scott Schmidt, Smithsonian Institution
2nd Cohort
Institute VI
May 2nd to May 13th, 2011
Hosted by the Deer Park Institute in Bir
Faculty
Richard Sterling, UC Berkeley, NWP
Eric Chudler, UW Seattle
Modesto Tamez, Exploratorium
Paul Doherty, Exploratorium
Institute VII
January 16th to Feb 3rd, 2012
Hosted by the Dalai Lama College for Higher Education, Bangalore
Faculty
Eric Chudler, UW Seattle
Tory Brady, Exploratorium
Lori Lamberston, Exploratorium
Tracie Spinale, Smithsonian Institution
December 24th, 2012, to January 11th, 2013
Hosted by Drepung Loseling, Mundgod
Faculty
Chris Impey, UA Tucson
Tory Brady, Exploratorium
Julie Yu, Exploratorium
Jess Parker, Smithsonian Institution
Tracie Spinale, Smithsonian Institution
Stephanie Norby, Smithsonian Institution
September 28th, 2013, to September 30th, 2013
Hosted by Songsten Library, Dehradun
Faculty
Linda Shore, Exploratorium
Chris Impey, UA Tucson
Dave Barker, Exploratorium
Modesto Tamez, Exploratorium
Julie Yu, Exploratorium
Tory Brady, Exploratorium
Eric Chudler, Exploratorium
Tracie Spinale, Smithsonian Institution
Scott Schmidt, Smithsonian Institution
3rd Cohort
October 20th to November 5th, 2014
Hosted by Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, Sarah
Faculty
Curt Gabrielson, UNESCO Timor Leste
Tory Brady, Exploratorium
Eric Muller, Exploratorium
Paul Doherty, Exploratorium
Lori Lamberston, Exploratorium
Tenzin Pryiadarshi, MIT
November 24th to December 5th, 2015
Hosted by Sera Jey Science Center
Faculty
Zeke Kosover, Exploratorium
Tammy Cook-Endres, Exploratorium
Scott Stambach, Knowles Science Teaching Foundation
“Before attending the Leadership Institute, I used to think that as a monk I could only do things within a monastery’s confines. Now I believe I can contribute to the world outside the monastery.”
— Science Leader (3rd Cohort)
“The way I looked at myself has changed. I never thought I would be a leader. This program has given me the belief that I can be a leader.”
— Science Leader (3rd Cohort)
November 28th to December 13th, 2016
Hosted by Gaden Jangtse Science Center
Faculty
Richard Sterling, National Writing Project
Christine Cziko, UC Berkeley
Stephen Traphagen, Knowles Science Teaching Foundation
November 6th to 24th, 2017
Hosted by the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Faculty
December 3rd to 20th, 2018
Hosted by the Dzongkar Choede Science Center
Faculty
November 11th to 30th, 2019
Hosted by the Library of Tibetan Works & Archives
Faculty
4th Cohort
Institute XVI
March 17th to March 30th, 2022
Hosted by the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Faculty
Bhuchung D. Sonam, Poet/Author
Sonam Tseten, Filmmaker
Bittu K Rajaraman, Associate Professor, Ashoka University
Institute XVII
January 5th to January 20th, 2023
Hosted by the Sarnath International Nyingma Institute (SINI), Varanasi
Faculty
Dr. Becky Acabchuk, Senior Scientist, RoundGlass
Suchitha Champak, Founder, SciRio
Redo Senge, Writer