His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, heads the 900-year-old Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. He guides millions of Buddhists around the world. At the age of fourteen, he made a dramatic escape from Tibet to India to be near His Holiness the Dalai Lama and his own lineage teachers. Currently 32 years old, the Karmapa created an eco-monastic movement with over 55 monasteries across the Himalayan region acting as centers of green activism. He spearheaded plans to enable full ordination for women, a step that has changed the future of Tibetan Buddhism. His latest book, Interconnected: Embracing Life in Our Global Society is based on his interactions with American biouniversity students.
Preserving and renewing Tibetan artistic forms, the Karmapa paints, draws calligraphy, writes poetry and plays and composes music. Traveling the world, the Karmapa skillfully teaches traditional Tibetan Buddhist Dharma while also advocating topics such as environmental conservation, feminism, digitization of the Dharma, and much more, bringing the Karmapa lineage’s activities fully into the 21st century.