David R. Loy

David Robert Loy (born 1947) is an American scholar, author, and Zen teacher in the Sanbo Zen lineage of Japanese Buddhism, known as a leading figure in Engaged Buddhism who addresses social, political, and environmental issues through a Buddhist lens[2][3]. He is a professor of Buddhist and comparative philosophy and has authored influential works including Nonduality: A Study in Comparative Philosophy, The Great Awakening: A Buddhist Social Theory, and Ecodharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis[3][6][7]. Loy received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Carleton College in 2014 but returned it in 2016 to protest the institution's fossil fuel investments[1][7].