The 30th World Fellowship of Buddhists General Conference was held in Bangkok Thailand from October 18th to 20th, 2022. The agenda of the 3-days conference includes the election of the Steering Committee, Executive Committee, Standing Committee members, Vice Presidents, and Presidency among Most Venerables and renowned scholars throughout the world. The President of The Buddhist Association of Canada, Abbot of Cham Shan Temple, Venerable Dayi Shi is appointed the position of Vice President by the World Fellowship of Buddhists, creating a historical precedent for a Canadian eminent monk holding office with honorary position in an international Buddhist organization.

The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB) is a liaison unit of UNESCO. Since its inauguration in 1950, WFB has a long seventy-two years of history. Some fundamental Buddhist iconic symbols, such as the Buddhist flag, Buddhist emblem, official VESAK date etc. are all initiated by WFB and its regulations. With a long-standing history, WFB has earned its remarkable status and global recognition in Buddhist communities.

Upon his appointment as Vice President of WFB, Venerable Dayi Shi has expressed his gratitude on behalf of The Buddhist Association of Canada (BAC), Cham Shan Temple towards this meaningful mission. This is a formal recognition by WFB to BAC, for our propagation work in North America in the past half a century. The unity and synergy between Buddhist communities are demonstrated on an international level. Together we strive toward peace in the world and purify in our minds. This also is a form of endorsement of our Canadian Buddhist organization by international Buddhist communities.

In the 1960s, our founders late Ven. Lok To, late Ven. Shing Cheung and Elder Ven. Sing Hung have established BAC Cham Shan Temple. Since his appointment as the current Abbot of Cham Shan Temple, Ven. Dayi Shi has worked diligently towards the propagation of Buddhism both locally in Canada and in global Buddhist communities. In 2016, BAC was recognized by WFB as its new Regional Center. In 2018, Elder Ven. Sing Hung and Ven. Dayi Shi have both participated in the 29th WFB General Conference held in Narita, Japan, where Ven. Dayi Shi was appointed as the co-chair for the Dharma Propagation Committee.

The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB) is an international Buddhist organization established since 1950 in Sri Lanka by a famous Sri Lankan Pali scholar, Dr. Gunapala Piyasena Malalasekera. The inauguration of WFB was endorsed by 129 Buddhist delegates from 27 countries. With the headquarter currently located at Bangkok, Thailand, WFB has over 180 regional centers in 50 countries throughout the world. WFB’s missions are propagation of Buddhism, promotion of solidarity and unity among Buddhists in the world towards peace and happiness of mankind. The General Conference is held every two years, where resolutions are established to provide operational guidelines and financial reporting in order to establish the theme and location of the next general conference. After hosting the 29th General Conference in Japan in 2018, the global pandemic has deferred the 30th General Conference until this year of 2022.