As Buddhists, we should lead by example—our understanding of the teachings should be evident in our actions.  Several great masters emphasize the need for us all to develop a sense of 'universal responsibility', and to act personally to protect the environment for the benefit of all beings and future generations. It is absolutely essential that we integrate these principles here at Lerab Ling, in the way we govern our land and buildings, and in our patterns of consumption and use of resources.

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama:
“In today's highly interdependent world, individuals and nations can no longer resolve many of their problems by themselves. We need one another. We must therefore develop a sense of universal responsibility...It is our collective and individual responsibility to protect and nurture the global family, to support its weaker members, and to preserve and tend to the environment in which we all live.”

His Holiness the 17th Karmapa:
“We humans have already done such immense damage to the environment that it is almost beyond our power to heal it. The challenge is far more complex and extensive than Buddhists can tackle alone. However, we can take a lead, and to do so we must educate and inform ourselves. This is the time when our pure aspirations and our bodhisattva activity must come together. Good wishes alone are not enough to bring about   change. We have to assume active responsibility.”

Sogyal Rinpoche:
“We urgently need the vision and the courage to overcome our narrow, selfish interests. Our old attitudes and shortsighted ways of treating people and the planet have to change: they have brought us suffering, and they lie at the root of both the economic crisis and the destruction of the environment.”

Sogyal Rinpoche joined many other Buddhist teachers in signing the Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change, which was presented at the Copenhagen Climate Conference in December 2009.

Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change

How does Lerab Ling care for the environment?