is there a difference between Engaged Buddhism and Applied Buddhism? What is your vision for the institutes of Buddhism?

Engaged Buddhism is the kind of Buddhism that can be practiced all day long and anywhere. Buddhism as a practice in a practice center should be possible also in our daily life. And that is why between Engaged Buddhism and Applied Buddhism there is a very deep connection. They are almost the same thing. Like the practice of mindfulness can be done in the realm of education, the realm of health care, in the realm of politics, and social work. So wherever you are, you can always practice mindful breathing, mindful walking, mindful sitting, releasing the tension in your body, dealing with the feeling of pain, everyone can do that. So when you apply these techniques of meditation, you find out that you don't need to be a Buddhist, to call yourself a Buddhist in order to practice these things.

Everyone needs to go back to his or her own body, to connect with his own body. This is a very important practice. The practice of mindful breathing can bring your mind back to your body right away, to get connected with your body. And suddenly you become established in the here and the now, getting in touch with the refreshing and healing elements of life, your nourishment and healing. You don't need to call yourself a Buddhist to do so. And then anyone can practice breathing in a sitting position or lying position to release the tension in their body, to feel better, whether they are a teacher, or a student, or a politician, or a police officer.

In fact, we have helped organize a number of retreats for police officers and personals of prison administration because these people they suffer a lot of stress and suffering. We learned that a number of policemen in America who took their own lives by their guns is more numerous than the policemen shot by the gangsters. We had a Dharma teacher that had been a police officer for a long time. She organized a retreat for police officers in Madison, Wisconsin. It was very moving to see police officers practicing mindful walking, releasing the tension. That is Applied Buddhism and Engaged Buddhism.

And lately we don't want to use the word Buddhism because the word Buddhism may be an obstacle. So we try to use the word "global ethics", "applied ethics". The French president Sarkozy, he wants very much to bring morality back to school. And the teachers in France, they don't know exactly what to teach in that hour. But monks and nuns in Plum Village, we know what to offer in that. So we have trained many groups of school teachers, a little bit everywhere: in Thailand, in Malaysia, in Vietnam, in India, in France, and so on. We just had a retreat for educators in London ten days ago. And if school teachers know how to apply these techniques, they will suffer less in their life as a teacher. They can become happy teachers. They can help their students to suffer less. There are many children who were unfortunate, who could not learn love and understanding from their family. Their parents did not know how to take care of each others and create a lot of wounds in the child.

So if a happy school teacher knowing the practice, he or she can transform the class into a family and give the child a second chance to learn what is love, what is understanding. And according to this practice, it's possible for teachers and students to sit down and listen to each others. Teachers can tell the students their suffering and difficulties. And the students, if they know about the difficulties and suffering of the teacher, they will not make their life harder. And that is possible. In our retreats, many young people get transformation and healing. And they went home and help and reconcile with their parents. And they even help parents to reconcile. And they bring their parents to the next retreat. That miracle of reconciliation always happens in our retreats. So if we train teachers and if teachers master the practice and then they can very well teach, and make the students suffer less, and improve the quality of teaching and learning.

When we were in California last time, we talked to the governor of California, Jerry Brown. He had practiced meditation before. So he proposed that he help us promote this kind of applied ethics so that schools in the state can enjoy the teaching and the learning of applied ethics. And we can offer the teaching and practice in a form that is not sectarian, religious at all. And when we addressed the House of Lords in London recently, we also discussed about this. Because if there is a law that can help bring that kind of teaching and practice into school, we will change our society. And it is our conviction that happy teachers will change the world.

And in these days, Plum Village, with all Dharma teachers, monastic and lay, we are doing our best to promote that kind of applied ethics. And we have already come up with the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a language that is not Buddhist. And we are working on a non-Buddhist version of the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings because these practice are very concrete expression of mindfulness practice based on the insight of interbeing, non-discrimination. So it should be possible to make it global, global ethics. And each of us, whether we are school teachers or parents, politicians or psychotherapists, can always help to promote that kind of practice and help change the world.