About Us
True Peace Toronto practices meditation and mindfulness in the tradition of Buddhist Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village spiritual community which he leads.
We practice engaged Buddhism, which seeks to apply Buddhist ethics and insights gained from mindfulness practice to our daily life as well as to issues of social, political and environmental suffering and injustice.
Our main activities are the conduct of mindfulness practice sessions, courses on Buddhist teachings, days of mindfulness, and retreats.
Our practice extends into our daily lives through daily sitting meditation, walking meditation, mindfulness in all activities, and the practice of the Five Mindfulness Trainings.
Student Executives
Our inclusive team encompasses a student club at the University of Toronto, where we seek to support the wellbeing and belonging of U of T students and faculty. Members are involved in event planning, group facilitation, and student engagement. The student executive team includes graduate and undergraduate students seeking to build a supportive community for mindfulness practice.
Kaden McKeen (he/him)
Kaden is a PhD candidate researching artificial intelligence for medical applications. He finds joy in philosophical discussion, working out, being in nature, and artistic expression through poetry and dance. Initially drawn to meditation as part of a healing journey, Kaden discovered the profound impact of the practice and the significance of mindful living. He advocates for looking deeply into our condition as a means to cultivate happiness and alleviate suffering.
Alex Shenouda (he/him)
Alex is currently a fourth-year Psychology student at UofT. He has been meditating on and off for 12 years or so, but gaining more consistency by joining True Peace. He enjoys finding new hobbies every year for fun. This year, he is looking into bookbinding lessons as well as learning how to do magic tricks with cards. He is also interested in supporting other students on campus in finding this quiet space to relax and decompress after all the hard work that they put in.
Roilui Sin (she/her)
Roilui is in her final year as a PhD candidate in Educational Leadership and Policy at OISE. She is currently moving more slowly and her research involves mental health and educational policy. She is also a full-time special education teacher at the Toronto District School Board, for children in treatment programs within the city. She is passionate about teaching, engaging learners, and bringing communities together on educational issues in the context of the Land shared by humanity. She is committed to living more mindfully and helping others to do the same. Contributing to Sangha communities helps her to love herself and others more radically, and fuels her with some ease and peace to breathe, speak and sleep more peacefully! ❤️
Zian (Kelly) Zhang (she, her)
Kelly is a Full-time Ph.D. Candidate in the curriculum and pedagogy program at OISE. Kelly’s research interests focus on education policy and leadership. She is a Research Assistant for the SSHRC Creating Equitable Structures in Early Secondary School Mathematics project. She serves as Co-President at the Canadian Committee of Graduate Students in Education (CCGSE), which is the graduate student caucus within Canada’s national network of educational researchers, the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE). Kelly is committed to advancing the field of education research. Her decision to join True Peace Toronto grew out of her profound admiration for Thich Nhan Hanh's educational philosophy, specifically his advocacy for mindfulness in education. She aspires to introduce mindfulness practices into education, encouraging greater student participation and fostering holistic development of the mind, body, and spirit.
Jake Lance (he/him)
Jake is a fourth-year student at the University of Toronto double majoring in mathematics and cognitive science and minoring in computer science. His curiosity for meditation began in high school during an exchange to Japan, but his appreciation for the practice has since deepened after becoming a member of True Peace. At UofT, Jake has served as a volunteer research assistant with the Wisdom & Identity Lab and has recently joined the Consciousness & Wisdom Studies Lab. Jake is also a passionate musician. He is a classically trained percussionist and has performed alongside the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at Roy Thomson Hall.
Facilitators
All of our facilitators have taken the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, which represent a commitment to living in mindfulness and bringing the values of compassion and understanding into their daily lives. We hope you will come and join us, so you can experience the peace and joy of practicing mindfulness together!
Ann Dugan (she, her)
Ann began sitting with True Peace over ten years ago. She came to mindfulness via yoga, which she has practiced regularly for more than 30 years. Ann started a personal meditation practice but after moving to Toronto in 2009, she discovered True Peace and the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh. She connected immediately with the depth and lightness of the practice and the combination of solemnity and joy that marked every session. The sangha has been like a second home ever since. Ann started facilitating mindfulness practice sessions at the University of Toronto in 2017. She enjoys practicing yoga, gardening, and cooking.
Yishin Khoo (she, her)
Yishin has been practicing with True Peace Sangha since 2008 when she was studying at the University of Toronto as an undergraduate. She currently facilitates True Peace online mindfulness sessions and works with other facilitators to provide opportunities for young people and adults to practice mindfulness in nature, as a way of living. Outside of True Peace, Yishin teaches part-time and helps supervise graduate students at Trent University and the University of Windsor. She received her Ph.D. degree in Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto, her Master’s degree in International Educational Development from Teachers College, Columbia University, and an Honours Bachelor’s degree in International Development Studies and Anthropology from the University of Toronto at Scarborough. Yishin enjoys building intercultural bridges and regenerative communities and practicing qigong, mindful gardening, and mindful cooking.
Alana Rodger Jacobson (she, her)
Alana is a nature lover at heart and a landscape designer by trade. She first found herself in Thich Nhat Hanh’s (Thay’s) presence while still in the womb and again on retreat when she was 12. In 2016, she found her Sangha, True Peace Toronto, and she felt at home immediately. Under the mentorship of Ghan Chee, the founder of True Peace, she began facilitating in 2019 and received the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings in 2024. One of her favorite mindfulness practices is walking meditation. She connects deeply with the engaged aspect of Thay’s teaching and finds cultivating mindfulness in motion a powerful practice. When not meditating or gardening, Alana finds connection with herself and others through music and movement.
David Frank (he, him)
David has been practicing mindfulness with True Peace Sangha at the University of Toronto since its inception in 2002. Along with his Buddhist studies, he enjoys learning about regenerative gardening, non-violent communication, and mindful music. David appreciates the sangha as a place where life's essential questions can be explored and where the art of mindful living can be practiced as a community.
Kobi Rivlin (he, him)
Kobi loves practicing with True Peace sangha and caring for it. He also loves playing music – mainly sax and flute – and you may occasionally hear him playing music in sangha sessions and retreats. Kobi feels music can be a powerful tool, bypassing our intellect; healing and connecting us with one another in joy and compassion.
He enjoys exploring how to bring engaged mindfulness practices to every aspect of life, and he practices with a variety of communities around the world.
What he loves most about True Peace is the emphasis on kindness, tenderness, and ease in every practice, and the invitation to listen and be compassionate to our body, mind, and feelings, and make ourselves and those around us feel loved, seen, heard, included and accepted.
