Alex Swain

Alex has been working on the integration of personal and social transformation for almost two decades. With a background in direct action and affinity group work on climate justice, anti-capitalism and queer politics, and from an early commitment to Buddhist practice, they helped to found the Ecodharma Centre in Spain, in around 2009, where they lived in a secluded corner of the pyrenean mountains for 10 years. Over this time they have taught on programmes at Ecodharma and later the Ulex Project, focused on sustainable activism, psycho-social resilience, engaged buddhist training and training for trainers – coordinating international projects to support the propagating of this work throughout Europe. Their Dharma practice has been fundamental in this, feeding into and shaping these programmes, as well as supporting their own development and capacities for meeting the challenges of this kind of work. Not affiliated with a particular Buddhist tradition currently, they continue to practice with the support of a sangha of engaged buddhists connected to Ecodharma, also benefitting from some of the practice frameworks and the Triyāna approach of the Triratna Buddhist Order. They currently live in Scotland with their young family, are in training in Gestalt Psychotherapy at the Metanoia Institute, and continue to work for Ecodharma and Ulex, in a number of capacities.