We are an IRS approved 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization.
Our mission is to lead, serve and promote METHODS, teachers and organizations that support Secular Buddhism and secular Meditation without reference to god(s), gurus or supernatural forces.
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Directors
President and Executive Director: Mark W. Gura, is the president of the Atheist Alliance of America, the host of the Richard Dawkins Award (atheistallianceamerica.org). He is also the president of the nonprofit Association of Mindfulness Meditation and Secular Buddhism (AMMSB.org).
Mark has over 20 years’ experience in practicing mindfulness meditation/Vipassana which he learned from the late S.N. Goenka in India, has written the books, Atheist Meditation Atheist Spirituality and Exploring Your Life, as well as co-founding and hosting the iSecularBuddhist.com podcast.
Mark seeks to eliminate dogma and indoctrination by empowering individuals to learn evidence-based meditation techniques and to encourage science, reason, critical thinking, and humanism. He is inspired by travel and exploration, and throughout his life, he has lived in or explored more than 80 countries: www.MarkWgura.com or www.Facebook.com/MarkWgura
Vice President: CW Brown, is also the executive director/social media director of the Atheist Alliance of America, Director of Atheist Alliance Helping the Homeless, board member of Atheist Alliance International, CEO and Founder of the Philosophical Atheism online community. CW is also the co-host and co-founder of the iSecularBuddhist podcast. He resides in Vermont and has been an atheist, humanist, and freethinking activist for almost four years. Previously, he was a Christian for 17 years and, from his many valuable personal experiences, he brings about these episodes with others in a manner that is helpful in their journey towards reason. He holds an A.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies from Liberty University. He very strongly believes in putting human rights above those of age old mythologies. He enjoys playing music (piano and guitar), reading and writing (music and articles), and building a consistently reformed mind by conforming to the phrase “Question Before You Believe.” You can follow him on Twitter and Pinterest @patheism.
Secretary: Blinn Combs, PhD., is a teacher, researcher, writer, blogger, skeptic, science advocate, and a proponent of virtue ethics. He earned a Ph.D. at the University of Texas as part of the Joint Program in Classics and Philosophy, where he specialized in the Socratic Method as displayed in Plato's shorter ethical dialogues.
Board of Directors: Gustavo Estrada, PhD., is a dedicated student of Eastern philosophy, agnosticism and evolutionary science, has practiced meditation and yoga for more for more than three decades, and has published books on meditation in both English and Spanish. He has written for several Latin American media organizations, including El Tiempo, Colombia’s largest newspaper. He is one of the leading champions of Pragmatic or Secular Buddhism, which leaves aside beliefs and rituals and advocates the practice of mindfulness meditation as a path to eliminate anxiety and stress.
Estrada earned a graduate degree in chemical engineering at the National University of Bogota, Colombia and the Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden and then worked as systems adviser, director of business projects and consultant in information technology.
Board of Directors: Dr. A. Maran, MD., is a hematologist-oncologist, and is currently pursuing health care management at the Harvard School of Public Health. Having been exposed to Eastern philosophy and world religions from an early age, and having practiced meditation for the last several years, he is an advocate of exploring and understanding the human condition and improving health by applying knowledge from multiple disciplines.
Board of Directors: Justin S. Whitaker, PhD., recently completed his Ph.D. in Religious Studies at the University of London, focusing on comparative Buddhist and Kantian ethics. He has a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Montana and an M.A. in Buddhist Studies from Bristol University in England. He has practiced meditation since 2000 and has taught World Religions, Buddhism, and Buddhist Philosophy at universities in the US and India.
Board of Directors: Aaron Williams, graduated from Georgia State University where he studied Psychology and Philosophy and holds a Master's Degree in International Business from Universidad de Gabriela Mistral in Santiago, Chile. His background is in the Theravada tradition, however has practiced different styles of meditation for the last 15 years and currently runs monthly meditation retreats.
Board of Directors: Tina Hamilton, is an atheist and secular Buddhist - she has studied multiple religions throughout her lifetime - starting with various Christian denominations and then spanned outside of Christianity - some of the other religions she studied were Judaism, Paganism, Druidism, Shamanism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Daoism. Throughout her time in studying these religions she realized that she was a skeptic of supernatural, gods, or gurus. Twelve years ago, she realized she was an atheist, but values some of the core aspects in Buddhism, and that being meditation and mindfulness.
Tina is currently awaiting admittance into graduate school for Masters in Clinical Counseling. She plans to provide secular counseling in the areas of stress management, grief counseling, and addictions. Currently, she is involved in several Atheist social media projects, including Atheist Alliance of America (Facebook), Association of Mindfulness Meditation and Secular Buddhism where she works closely with Mark W. Gura. She is also a team member in a support group project for new atheists that Anthony Magnabosco organized. Tina has great interest in learning and applying Street Epistemology, and is a strong advocate for critical thinking and science, as well as Separation of Church and State. Tina has a Bachelor degree in both Nursing, and Psychology.
Treasurer: Steven Kierewicz, is a practitioner of vipassana meditation and a student of secular philosophy, religion, free thought and skepticism. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree in Electronics from ITT Technical Institute at Mt. Prospect, IL.
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Address inquiries to: Mark W. Gura (Executive Director of the Association of Mindfulness Meditation and Secular Buddhism).
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