The Russian (formerly International) Association of the Karma Kagyu School Buddhists was founded in 1993 by several Buddhist centers and groups in Russia, Ukraine, and other ex-USSR countries. Its aims are to preserve, develop, and spread Buddhism of the Karma Kagyu School, and help our centers in their work.
The Association has a democratic structure directed by the Conference of centers' representatives and the Council of representatives. Lama Ole Nydahl is a permanent member of the Council. The Association is officially represented by its President. The office of the Association is in Saint Petersburg.
The main functions of the Association are coordination and information, such as organizing teachers' tours, big courses, providing the centers and groups with news and reports about international Kagyu events, publishing books and magazines, and assistance in construction projects.
After Russia adopted its present law about religion (which bans the activity of any religious organization that has existed in a certain area for less than 15 years or is not part of a centralized organization), the Association has another important function. As a centralized all-Russian religious organization, accredited by the state, it has the authority to found new centers and certify that the already existing ones belong to the Karma Kagyu tradition of Buddhism, which allows to register them in line with the law.