BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Lama Justin von Bujdoss is an American Vajrayana Buddhist teacher, writer, and the Founder and Spiritual Director of Yangti Yoga Retreat Center. As Spiritual Director, he provides ongoing vision and leadership for the organization's practice programs, lineage relationships, and institutional development.

Lama Justin's dharma teaching focuses on Ati Yoga (Dzogchen) and Yangti Yoga (dark retreat). He is the author of Modern Tantric Buddhism: Authenticity and Embodiment in Dharma Practice (North Atlantic Books), a contributor to Buddhism and Whiteness: Critical Reflections (Lexington Books), and the author of a forthcoming title on dark retreat to be published by Wisdom Publications. He has presented on Buddhist practice at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, the University of Chicago, Wellesley, and Columbia University, and has served as a visiting instructor at Union Theological Seminary.

He was ordained as a repa — a lay tantric yogin in the tradition of Milarepa — by His Eminence Gyaltsab Rinpoche, and is a ngakpa in the Yuthok Nyingthig lineage under Dr. Nida Chenagtsang. Lama Justin brings extensive professional experience in chaplaincy and institutional leadership, having served as Executive Director of Chaplaincy and Staff Wellness for the NYC Department of Correction from 2016 to 2021, and as chaplain for Hart Island, New York City's public cemetery, from 2018 to 2024.

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Jessie began practicing meditation in 2012 during her Peace Corps service in Ethiopia. She completed a 200-hour mindfulness teacher training under the guidance of Ethan Nichtern, Dr. Shanté Paradigm Smalls, and David Perrin. Since 2018, she has co-led Karuna Sangha, an LGBTQIA-affirming meditation community. She is a student of Lama Justin von Bujdoss (Repa Dorje Odzer) and an active practitioner within the Yangti community.

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Professionally, Jessie is a strategist dedicated to public sector systems improvement, with expertise in growth strategy and operations. She holds an MSc. in Urban Policy Analysis and Management from The New School and a BS in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kent State University. She is currently an MBA candidate at Baruch College.

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