An invitation from John Clinton Bradley. John lives in western New York and practices Zen in the Plum Village tradition founded by Thích Nhất Hạnh. He regularly participates in the Wednesday BCD session led by Linda.
Many of us have stepped back from mainstream social media—and for good reason. These centralized, commercial platforms harvest and sell our personal data, tolerate hate speech, amplify outrage and division, and enable the rapid spread of misinformation. Their algorithms decide what we see and whom we encounter, not to support human flourishing, but to maximize engagement and advertising revenue.
There is, however, a more ethical and mindful alternative: the Mastodon network.
Created more than a decade ago as a free and open-source project, Mastodon is made up of thousands of independently run servers that are linked together through federation. The platform is decentralized and non-commercial. There are no opaque algorithms shaping your attention. You choose what you see and whom you follow, and your experience is guided by your values rather than corporate profit.
Nearly ten million people around the world now use Mastodon. The Buddhist Coalition for Democracy is among them.
Sangha.Social is a new Mastodon server created especially for Buddhists of all traditions, as well as for those who are exploring the teachings of the Buddha. Membership is free, with basic operating costs supported through dāna. I serve as the administrator, and we are supported by a volunteer moderator based in Cuba.
To join, visit https://sangha.social.
