David Beatty was born and educated in England. His work as a photographer, traveller and writer has taken him to over forty countries, with a particular interest in social and environmental issues, and includes stories on the threats posed to indigenous communities and fragile ecosystems by large scale development projects. In 1992 The Smithsonian Magazine published his photo-essay on the inhumane displacement of tribals in Central India caused by the socially and ecologically destructive impact of the Sardar Sarowar dams on the Narmada River. His pictures have been published in The Observer, The Geographical Magazine, The Guardian and The Smithsonian Magazine. A long time student of Indian thought and Buddhist philosophy he is passionate about the need to cultivate ecological awareness through an understanding of where Buddhist thought and practice resonates with the science of symbiosis to create a shift in our awareness away from separation and dominance over the earth to embodied participation. He envisages the possibility of a post-capitalist world of socially just, sustainable and caring communities through the creation of new forms of enactive collaboration. In 2012 he founded DEEP, a Centre for Diversity, Ecology, Ethics and Practice. He is qualified in permaculture design and for many years has been a Dhamma Practitioner in the Theravada tradition of insight meditation. He is also trained as a Mindfulness Facilitator in the MBSR Programme in compliance with standards issued by BAMBA in the UK, and holds a Diploma in Relational Mindfulness from the Karuna Institute in Devon, UK. He currently divides his time between UK and Kenya where he has lived for over twenty years, and where he runs courses that combine Eastern Philosophy, Critical Discourse and cognitive science with mindfulness meditation practice and eco-therapy nature retreats.