James Baraz has been teaching meditation for over thirty years He is a co-founder teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California where he regularly teaches, and he leads retreats and workshops around the United States and abroad. He created the Awakening Joy course, which has had over 9,000 participants on-site and online, since 2003. He is on the International Advisory Board of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. He lives with his wife, Jane, in Berkeley, California. He is the co-author with Shoshana Alexander of Awakening Joy: 10 Steps that Will Put You on the Road to Real Happiness. He can be reached at