Minutes – Council meeting November 2019

Minutes of Emergency Council Meeting
London Shambhala Meditation Centre
Present: Jane Hope, Adam Hart, Peter Burke, Frances Holliss, Micheala Kirchem
Date:    25 th November 2019

The meeting considered the proposal for a Health Conference in mid-January 2020 at
LSMC.

Council delegates had sought and received feedback regarding the proposed event from
many team members. Serious concerns emerged regarding both the content of the
event and the way it was included in the LSMC calendar.

Approval was not given for the programme by LSMC teams, nor by the previous or
current Council.

The budget was sent to the Finance team, but approval was not given and yet the event
was  listed on the Centre website regardless.

The event was developed without liaison or co-ordination with the Health, Wellbeing,
Safety and Protection team, despite multiple opportunities.

It  was accepted that the topic is important but there was a wide range of views amongst
members, across all teams, as to whether it was appropriate to run this particular
programme in the current situation. Most respondents voiced concerns.

The Council considered  the timeframe too short to be able to find broad consensus on
how such a conference might reflect the needs of the London Shambhala community,
with regards to topics, speakers etc.

The council was aware that preparations for the event were already fairly advanced, but
it was the view of the vast majority of those involved in the decision making process that
– for the reasons stated above – the event could not go ahead at the London Shambhala
Centre in January 2020 as planned.

It was made it clear that LSMC teams would be happy to collaborate on future
programmes.