Hold Member Elections Now at Dhamma Dena
We are calling for…
We are calling for the board of Dhamma Dena Meditation Center in Joshua Tree, CA to adopt the bylaw amendments and governance policies necessary to implement the following changes:
Hold member elections and expand the board: Mandate that board consists of no fewer than 5 people. Transition from a self-appointed board to a community member–elected board, with a fixed, transparent election cycle.
Create a voting community membership: Establish a clear, accessible community membership with voting rights that is not pay-gated and uses simple, objective participation criteria for eligibility and verification (with good-faith attestation when records are incomplete). Community membership would include those who have attended a retreat, volunteered, or donated to Dhamma Dena.
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color leadership: Commit to governance that reflects and sustains Black, Indigenous, and People of Color leadership aligned with Dhamma Dena’s values, using transparent nomination and outreach practices to recruit and support BIPOC candidates.
Mission and values: Adopt and publish a Mission/Values Charter that centers Black, Indigenous, disabled, trans, feminist, People of Color, and queer communities, and use it as a guide for programming and governance decisions. Include in the Charter a commitment to the preservation of Ruth Denison’s legacy and for the center to remain a Vipassana meditation center.
On-land staff voice: Guarantee meaningful staff participation in governance by creating an on-land staff director/representative role on the board, with voting rights on non-employment matters and clear recusal from employment decisions, and by ensuring all staff can attend most board meetings and submit agenda items.
Transparency: Provide regular, timely updates to community members, including financial snapshots, board decisions/minutes, and documented progress on mission and inclusion commitments.
How can I help?
Sign the petition below to show the board of Dhamma Dena that you, too, support member elections.
Learn more about how we got here.
Read our Frequently Asked Questions.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What challenges arise from the current board structure?
Disempowerment: Dhamma Dena’s community (including staff, volunteers, retreatants and donors) has no formal role in leadership and decision making. Board of director seats are chosen internally by the board itself, who may reelect themselves at-will, indefinitely.
Lack of representation: The board has been as small as three people for two years and there is no formal or public application process to join. Dhamma Dena is a diverse community and our leadership should reflect that.
Lack of transparency and collaboration erodes relationships: The board has exhibited a pattern of not sharing their plans and process, and of not answering questions from the community. Without the ability to inform or shape the future of Dhamma Dena, community members lack the opportunities and the motivation to meaningfully contribute.
How would member elections help?
A member elected board would more closely align with our values of transparency, inclusion, interdependence, and of collective wisdom.
Building trust and support: A member-elected board would mean establishing a process in which all board members — current and future — would have the opportunity to introduce themselves to the wider community and receive a clear mandate to serve. This act of shared discernment would transform the power the board holds into something understood by all as legitimate, respected, and deeply rooted in the will of the sangha.
Shared vision: Voting rights would be granted to all those who have attended a retreat, volunteered, or donated to Dhamma Dena. Involving the entire community in board appointments would ensure greater alignment between leadership and those they serve. This is the foundation for long-term sustainability, and what it truly means to practice together as sangha.
Fiscal responsibility rooted in relationships: Dhamma Dena is facing financial difficulties and our fundraising capacity depends on our ability to cultivate strong and ongoing relationships grounded in integrity — a felt sense of meaningful inclusion and reciprocity in those who find refuge here. Sangha-entrusted leadership is integral to this ecology. We believe that restoring trust and healing the relationship with the sangha through board elections is not only ethically sound, it is the most fiscally responsible decision that can be made at this time.
We are ready
We know that it is we as the Dhamma Dena sangha community who have been actively sustaining the center through years of our practice, volunteer labor, relationships, teaching and donations, and that we have the capacity to continue to sustain this center that we love, a place that was built out of generosity and joy by generations of dedicated teachers and practitioners before us.
We are ready and able to make this center thrive, and we can only do this with leadership that we trust to carry out the mission and values that makes this center so uniquely and deeply cherished.
Learn more about how we got here.