New NWDA home page.
(Web Design: Schildbach Design, Web Development: Schildbach Design & Mark Danielson)

Have you checked out the new Northwest Dharma Association website? Just click on the NWDA homepage button, over there on the top right-hand side of the page.

As you can see, the new homepage is really different. In the left-hand column is an ever-changing selection of articles from Northwest Dharma News. Just to the right of that, events featured from the calendar of events scroll across the page. Below that, a random selection of member groups and events on the calendar display, every time your browser is refreshed.

There are advantages to the new site for both users and member groups.

For users, it is very much easier to navigate. You can click to expand any listing without leaving the page, and click to close the listing. You can move from one part of the site to another at the click of a button. You can search with the usual universal search tools you are used to. Most importantly of course, you can easily see all the member groups, and their activities in the region, in Google maps. You can jump back and forth from the News easily.

For member groups, the new site is designed for you to enter all your own data without Northwest Dharma Association’s involvement. You have your own account on the site. You can make changes at will in your Directory or Calendar listings. The site has been redesigned to feature the member groups. NWDA exists as a link among regional groups.

So, whether you are an individual user, a member of a sangha, a teacher, or the representative of a member group, the new website provides a great way to enhance your connection to your fellow dharma practitioners, and to the wider Pacific Northwest dharma community.

Northwest Dharma Association’s purpose is to create a network of support for Buddhist activities in our region. We have three tools to accomplish this: the Northwest Dharma News; sponsored gatherings and conferences throughout the region; and the website.

The website provides a link between individuals and member groups. The Group Directory lets people know what sanghas, temples, meditation groups, etc. are in their vicinity, and describes   groups in terms of their lineage and practices. The Calendar of Events presents the range of offerings of special teachings, retreats, presentations, and ceremonies in the Pacific Northwest.

All kinds of people visit our website. The range is vast: from the person who has stumbled upon the site as a first introduction to Buddhism, to long-term ordained Buddhist teachers. The website is a comprehensive resource that describes the breadth of our regional mahasangha – the community of those united in living according to the teachings of the Buddha.

So, please check out the site and send your feedback to us at info@northwestdharma.org.

About the author: Timothy O’Brien  (Dh. Amara), is administrator of Northwest Dharma Association.