The David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace (or simply DLF) is a global charitable foundation with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, and Fairfield, Iowa.Iowa Secretary of State, Business Entities Search, Business Number 314711, "David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace" It was founded by film director and Transcendental Meditation (TM) practitioner David Lynch in 2005 to fund the teaching of TM in schools. Over the years it has expanded its focus to include other "at-risk" populations such as the homeless, U.S. military veterans, African war refugeesDavid Lynch Foundation About Us. Retrieved 22 February 2012. and prison inmates.
The Foundation is reported to have sponsored between 70,000 and 150,000 students in 350 schools throughout the U.S. and South America. The Foundation also sponsors research on the TM program.
Description According to the DLF web site, David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education is a non-profit organization, established to "fund the implementation of scientifically proven stress-reducing modalities" for "at-risk populations", including U.S. veterans and African war refugees with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), inner city students, American Indians, homeless and incarcerated men. The DLF also funds research to "assess the effects of the program on academic performance, ADHD and other learning disorders, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, cardiovascular disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, and diabetes". In 2005, the DLF announced the long-term goal of raising $7 billion in order to establish seven affiliated "Universities of World Peace" in seven different countries, to train students to practice Transcendental Meditation and become "professional peacemakers".Wasserstein, Scoop, "David Lynch meditates on peace", Harvard Crimson (September 30, 2005).Hoover, Eric, "Filmmaker starts foundation to help students chill out with Transcendental Meditation", Chronicle of Higher Education (July 21, 2005). DLF.TV is the Foundation's production wing and online television channel that provides video content and web casts.
The Foundation is governed by a board of directors consisting of: John Hagelin, Jeffrey S. Abramson, Rona Abramson, Ramani Ayer, Robert G. Brown, Joni Steele Kimberlin, Arthur Liebler, and Nancy Liebler. As of 2011, the Foundation's board of advisors included: Russell Simmons, Gary P. Kaplan, William R. Stixrud, Frank Staggers Jr., César Molina, George H. Rutherford, Carmen N’Namdi, Ralph Wolff, Ashley Deans, Linda Handy, and Sarina Grosswald.David Lynch Foundation "Directors and Advisors. Retrieved 3 February 2011. Charity Navigator "Your Guide To Intelligent Giving" evaluated "David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education”.Charity Navigator "Your Guide To Intelligent Giving" evaluated "David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education - Healing traumatic stress and raising performance in at-risk populations" (This rating was published 07/01/2018).
History
Concerned about school violence and increasing stress and problems for students, [Cited and excerpted in: ] David Lynch founded the DLF in July 2005 "to provide the [TM] program to schools". That year, Lynch, DLF president John Hagelin, and Maharishi University of Management researcher Fred Travis went on a lecture tour titled "Consciousness, Creativity, and the Brain". Tour dates included the University of Southern California, UC Berkeley, the University of Oregon in Eugene, the University of Washington, Emerson College, Yale University, and Brown University. In 2005, Lynch offered to fund (for-credit) peace studies courses at several universities with TM instruction being included in each course.
By 2006, six public schools in the U.S. had been awarded $25,000 by the David Lynch Foundation. NEA Today described the DLF as an organization "which provides funding for students in grades 4 to 12 to learn Transcendental Meditation" and reported that DLF had "helped approximately 500 students and 50 teachers learn how to meditate and "about 1,500 more" were scheduled to learn in the fall. In October the Foundation withdrew a $175,000 pledge to a San Rafael, California, high school after the anti-separation Pacific Justice Institute threatened to sue for violating the First Amendment's Establishment Clause. That year Lynch assigned all of his proceeds from the sale of his book Catching the Big Fish to the DLFLynch, David, (2006) The Penguin Group) About the Author (last page of the book). and the Foundation sponsored a presentation on the benefits of TM in education at the Harvard Club of Boston.
Natural Health magazine reported in 2007 that the DLF had given $3 million in sponsorship to 20 U.S. schools located in the city of Washington, D.C., and various states including Arizona, New York, California, Colorado, Connecticut, and Michigan. By 2008, the Foundation had funded TM courses for more than 2,000 students, faculty and parents at 21 universities and schools in the U.S., in addition to substantially higher numbers at schools overseas. That year DLF funded the TM program at two schools in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. A 2010 Wall Street Journal article reported that since 2005, Lynch had personally "donated half a million dollars to help finance scholarships for 150,000 students who are interested in learning transcendental meditation"."Filmmaker David Lynch Introduces Meditation to Veterans" Wall Street Journal, 26 November 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012. The Jerusalem Post reported in 2009 that the DLF had "provided scholarships to more than 60,000 people interested in practicing Transcendental Meditation throughout the United States, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa."
In 2011 the press reported that DLF had "raised millions of dollars" to finance the teaching of the TM technique to "150,000 people, mostly students, worldwide",Strauss, Bob (3 June 2011) Children of the Night Daily News. Retrieved 22 February 2012. including a "handful" of San Francisco's public schools while an ABC News article reported the Foundation had sponsored "70,000 students for free in 350 schools around the world; 15 of them are in the United States."James, Susan Donaldson (29 November 2011) Comic Russell Brand does stand up for Transcendental Meditation ABC News. Retrieved 5 December 2011.
In 2012, The New York Times and other press reported that the DLF had expanded its programs to include other at-risk populations such as "veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and their families, homeless people and incarcerated juveniles and adults".Hooper, Joseph (September 2011) Details, Meditation Nation. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
In April 2013, Lynch released the film Meditation, Creativity, Peace which documents his 2007 speaking engagements at European and Middle Eastern film schools in 16 countries. According to Lynch, profits from the distribution of the film would benefit DLF's meditation instruction for students around the world.”Russell Brand and David Lynch Bring Meditation to At-Risk Youth". Look to the Stars/The World of Celebrity Giving. (http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9969-russell-brand-and-david-lynch-bring-meditation-to-at-risk-youth). 4 April 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2013. The film was described by one reviewer as a "fragmented, self-important film noir".
In recent years, the David Lynch Foundation has opened branches in a number of other countries including The UK, France, Georgia and Australia.
In April 2022, Lynch announced an initiative to fund training in transcendental meditation for 30,000 international university students to "become advanced peace-creating meditation experts and build a legacy of lasting global peace." The initiative was created in partnership with the Global Union of Scientists for Peace and Maharishi International University. It will invest approximately $500 million in its first year. It will fund meditation training for 10,000 students at Maharishi International University, 10,000 students at its sister school in India, and 10,000 students at partner universities in 10 locations across the globe.
Fundraising events
2009–2011
With the goal of teaching TM to 1 million high risk youth, the Foundation sponsored the 2009 "Change Begins Within" benefit concert, held at Radio City Music Hall and hosted by Lynch and Laura Dern. Guest speakers and performers included Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Donovan, Moby, Eddie Vedder, Ben Harper, Paul Horn, Jim James, Bettye LaVette, Sheryl Crow, Angelo Badalamenti, Russell Simmons,Donaldson, Susan James, "Stars Mantra: Get 1M Kids to Meditate", ABC News, 4-6-09. Mike Love, Jerry Seinfeld and Howard Stern.The Hollywood Reporter "Change Begins Within at Radio City Music Hall – Concert Review". Retrieved 18 July 2009.
The Foundation held its second "Change Begins Within" benefit event, titled "Operation Warrior Wellness", at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in December 2010. Participants included Lynch, actor Clint Eastwood, designer Donna Karan, comedian Russell Brand and several war veterans. Reproducing sources include: ; . In April 2011, the Foundation launched David Lynch Foundation Music with their "Download for Good" campaign through PledgeMusic. Items available for pledges included collector's items from Shepard Fairey and original vinyl art created by Daniel Edlen which was signed by the donating musicians. The DLF released a compilation titled "Download for Good: Music That Changes The World" in July 2011 via iTunes and then on 21 April 2012 (for Record Store Day) as a box set, featuring 34 artists, including Ben Folds, Donovan, Moby, Iggy Pop, Peter Gabriel, Tom Waits, Maroon 5 and Alanis Morissette, and the box set also includes a bonus track by Sean Lennon and a digital download code for one by Julio Iglesias Jr., as well as a book illustrated by Romio Shrestha and Davel Hamue, and a digital version of the documentary film, Meditation, Creativity, Peace.
2012 and 2013 In June 2012 Jerry Seinfeld hosted a DLF fundraiser called "A Night of Comedy" honoring George Shapiro which was held in Beverly Hills, California, US. Performers and guests included Russell Brand, Sarah Silverman, Garry Shandling, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Chris Rock, and Danny DeVito.
In January 2013 DLF sponsored a benefit jazz concert in New York City. The program featured comments by TV hosts Mehmet Oz and George Stephanopoulos, and actress Liv Tyler. Musical performances included Herbie Hancock, Corrine Bailey Rae and Wynton Marsalis. In February, it sponsored another Operation Warrior Wellness fund raiser at the New York Athletic Club in New York City.
In 2013 the DLF founded a "charity based music label" called Transcendental Music, to raise funds and awareness for its programs. In August, 2013 The Independent announced Russell Brand would raise funds for the David Lynch Foundation while on his "Messiah Complex" tour. In the fall, there were two fundraising events for New York City's first responders with post-traumatic stress disorder that featured celebrities Liv Tyler, Royston Langdon, Sean Lennon, Reproduced in: (with slight modifications) ; and (identical content) . and Hugh Jackman. Later that month, Jack White and Brendan Benson performed a charity concert for DLF at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.
2015