Ringu Tulku Rinpoche is a Tibetan Buddhist Master of the Kagyu Order. He was trained in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism under many great masters such as HH the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa and HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. He took his formal education at Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Gangtok and Sampurnananda Sanskrit University, Varanasi, India and has served as Professor of Tibetology in Sikkim for 17 years. His doctoral thesis was on the Ecumenical Movement in Tibet.

Annie Birkent has been studying and practising under teachers in the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism since 1998 and completed a 3-year retreat in 2009. A native of Canada who grew up in Ireland, she now lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands together with her husband Pieter.

Her deep interest in the Buddhist teachings around death and impermanence led her to follow training in contemplative care with Christine Longaker and Kirsten DeLeo as well as becoming a trainer in Awareness-Centred Deep Listening with Rosamund Oliver. Originally trained as a psychodynamic music therapist, she currently works as a transitions life coach with people confronted with serious illness, loss or end-of-life. She is very passionate about exploring how mindfulness, awareness and compassion can be used to our benefit in everyday life.