Many thousands of people are expected to attend two free events in early June to mark the first visit to Perth in 15 years by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Perth has been chosen as the launching pad for the Dalai Lama's fifth tour of Australia, the last being in 2002.

The theme of the 11 day national tour, perhaps the last to Australia by the 71 year old Nobel Peace Laureate, is Open Arms - Embracing Kindness with a focus on the part we can all play in creating a more compassionate world, and the role for all the world's religions in achieving global peace.

Both free events in Perth will be held at Burswood Dome on Wednesday June 6. The first, from 9.30am till 12 noon, will be a forum on "Spirituality and Sustainability", examining the links between Buddhism, the environment and spirituality. The forum, being held in partnership with the Australian Conservation Foundation, will be hosted by media personality Jamie Drury. Later the same day, His Holiness will conduct his major event while in Perth, a free public talk on "Ethics for the New Millennium". Tickets will be required for entry to the talk from 4- 5.30pm and people are encouraged to book early to ensure a seat. Tickets will be available from Ticketek outlets and call centre (132 849) from May 10. (Tickets will not be available from the Ticketek website.)

His Holiness will also travel to other States and has reserved his teachings for this tour to Melbourne where he will speak on Mind Training and Positive Thought Transformation for three days from June 8-10. The lecture series is based on one of the most important and ancient Tibetan texts, Eight Verses for Training the Mind.

The emphasis of the Melbourne teachings will be directed towards people seeking wisdom and guidance from the philosophy of Buddhism without necessarily seeking to become Buddhist. During his tour, the Dalai Lama is seeking particularly to connect with younger Australians and youth events are planned in both Sydney and Melbourne.

Buddhism is Australia's fastest growing religion and the 14th Dalai Lama is widely revered for his wisdom and graciousness that draws together millions of people from different religions, cultures and age groups.

Some 200,000 people are expected to attend events around Australia. Visit www.dalailama.org.au for more information. Details also available in NOVA Magazine.