Nicole Dunn is the founder and program director of the Be Here Now sangha (spiritual community) in Missoula Montana, the co-founder and program director for Empty Mountain Practice Center, and an ordained member of the Order of Interbeing, based in the Plum Village mindfulness tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. 

Nicole is a published author and has a non-fiction story included in the book Tears Become Rain: Stories of Transformation and Healing Inspired by Thich Nhat Hanh, published in 2023. She has been an active blogger on mindfulness practice since 2012, with over 1,000 posts on her wordpress blog to date. Nicole is also a prolific poet and spoken word artist, with a mad love for putting heartfelt words on the page. She was a writer for the Montana Woman magazine with a column called Mindfulness Matters for 9 years until the mag recently (& sadly) disbanded. 

She is a community organizer that centers her time on gathering folks together in intentional ways on the path of mindfulness and meditation practice, with over 23 years of experience in sangha building. In 2021, Nicole and her husband Mike sold their house of 18 years in Missoula in order to buy land and move into the woods near Superior Montana, where they live off-grid and without running water in a small cabin Mike made from wood on site. It is here they started the small-sprouting outdoor-based mindfulness practice center Empty Mountain, where they organize and lead day events and retreats. 

Nicole's idea of a stellar day would include the following: starting the day slow (she's a joyful early riser); having a solo dance party; writing; spending time outside in the woods; connecting with friends; and going for a ride on her motorcycle.