Joan Halifax

Joan Halifax, PhD, is a Buddhist teacher, Zen priest, anthropologist, and author. She is Founder, Abbot, and Head Teacher of Upaya Zen Center, a Buddhist monastery in Santa Fe, New Mexico and Director of the Upaya Institute. She received her Ph.D in medical anthropology in 1973. Her work for forty years has focused on engaged and applied Buddhism, with an emphasis on end-of-life care and programs for prisoners and the environment. She has served as visiting faculty and lectured on the subject of death and dying at many academic institutions throughout the United States and abroad. She is a Board Member and Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute. The author of many books, including Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death, Dr. Halifax founded the Project on Being with Dying.