That combination gives the community both an accessible point of entry and a path toward more advanced practice. The emphasis is not simply on instruction, but on sustained cultivation: meditation, education, and contemplative development are woven together as parts of the same journey. Leadership reflects long experience in teaching and supporting practice.

Peter, who serves as facility manager, is also a meditation instructor and has taught numerous buddhadharma and Shambhala classes over the years. Alice Dan, Co-Director of Practice and Education, has been teaching meditation for two decades, beginning after her retirement from the University of Illinois Chicago. Having come to meditation and Buddhism in her late fifties, she has worked with the Shambhala Meditation Center of Chicago ever since, including in earlier service as Director of Practice and Education and as a meditation instructor.

Situated in Chicago’s West Loop, Shambhala Chicago brings together public meditation, thoughtful study, and advanced contemplative training in a setting shaped by Buddhist understanding and broad spiritual accessibility. The center’s character is defined by continuity of practice, experienced instruction, and a vision of contemplative life that speaks directly to the present moment.