The Mind & Life International Symposium for Contemplative Research (ISCR) is the flagship conference for interdisciplinary investigations of the mind, meditation, and other contemplative practices. We are teachers, researchers, scientists and scholars. We are activists, politicians and business leaders. We are parents, students, social workers and first responders. We are instructors, writers, filmmakers and philosophers. We are all change-makers.


Program Sessions

THURSDAY

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Keynote Panel “Contemplative Practice Enters the Digital Age”

Moderators: Zindel Segal
Panel: Acacia Parks, Jack Kornfield, Darnell Lamont Walker, Zindel Segal

Topics: Body-based Practices | Compassion & Empathy | Contemplative Wisdom | Education | Interconnection | Mindfulness | Social Change

FRIDAY

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Yoga

Mary Taylor, Richard Freeman

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Contemplative Session: Watching the Breath

Pir Zia Inayat-Khan

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Mindfulness

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Standing Meditation and Qigong

Louis Komjathy

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Mindfulness

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Contemplative Session: Ancient Hebrew Sound Meditation

Zvi Ish-Shalom

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Mindfulness

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Keynote “Toward A Transformed Vision of Contemplative Education Centering Social Justice”

Laura Rendón

Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Education | Social Change

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Master Lectures: Social Justice Panel: “From Awareness to Embodied Change: A Conversation Toward Contemplative Justice”

Moderators: Dominique A. Malebranche
Panel: Helen Weng, Oliver Hill, Rhonda Magee, Dominique A. Malebranche

Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Self & Other | Social Change

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Master Lectures: Contemplative Studies Panel: Contemplating the Future of “Contemplative Studies”

Moderators: Erin McCarthy
Panel: Amishi Jha, Harold Roth, Ed Sarath, Erin McCarthy

Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Contemplative Wisdom | Education | Self & Other

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

The Ceremony of Art: Mindfulness In Indigenous Art and Vision

Gregory Cajete

Topics: Education | Mindfulness | Self & Other

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Dinner & Dialogue hosted by The Fetzer Institute: Consciousness and Contemplative Studies: Worldview Matters

Ed Sarath, Mohammed Hamid Mohammed

Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Interconnection | Self & Other

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Contemplative Arts Evening Performance

Srinivas Reddy, Robert Kaplan, Ed Sarath, Patricia Wallace

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Interconnection

SATURDAY

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Yoga

Mary Taylor, Richard Freeman

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Contemplative Session: Awakening the Presence Body

Zvi Ish-Shalom

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Mindfulness

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Keynote: To Be of Benefit: The Promise of Contemplative Research and Practice

Sona Dimidjian

Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Education | Interconnection | Mental Health | Self & Other | Social Change

Audio AvailableVideo Available

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Contemplative Session: The Four Elements

Pir Zia Inayat-Khan

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Bridging Contemplative Science and Business: An Emerging Global Industry, Innovation Panel co-hosted by The Eagle and The Hawk Foundation and the Aetna Foundation

Moderators:
Panel: Acacia Parks, Cyd Crowse, Charlie Hartwell, Hamet Watt, Mark Bertolini

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Interconnection | Mental Health | Mindfulness

2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research Session

Social Justice Breakout Session

angel Kyodo williams

Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Self & Other | Social Change

SUNDAY

2016 International Symposium for Contemplative Studies Session

Yoga with Mary Taylor and Richard Freeman

Mary Taylor, Richard Freeman

Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom


Keynote Speakers and Panelists

Sona Dimidjian, PhD

Renée Crown Wellness Institute

Board Member

  Sona Dimidjian, PhD is Director of the Renée Crown Wellness Institute and Professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her current research … MORE

Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

University of Massachusetts

Fellow, Founding Steward

Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. is Professor of Medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where he founded the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society (in 1995), … MORE

Jack Kornfield

Spirit Rock Center

Board Member

Jack Kornfield trained as a Buddhist monk in the monasteries of Thailand, India and Burma. He has taught meditation internationally since 1974 and is one of the key teachers to … MORE

Darnell Lamont Walker, PhD

Darnell Lamont Walker, Ph.D., is an award-winning writer and filmmaker, currently traveling and living around the globe collecting stories to share. He is a native of Charlottesville, Virginia, and a … MORE

Acacia Parks

Dr. Parks’ research focuses on self-help methods for increasing well-being via books and digital technology. She is Chief Scientist for tech startup Happify, which brings the cutting edge in research-based … MORE

Laura Rendón, PhD

University of Texas, San Antonio

Fellow, Mentor

Laura I. Rendón, PhD,  is a renowned advocate, scholar, and educator. As a speaker with SpeakOut-The Institute for Democratic Education and Culture, she has addressed audiences worldwide on education and … MORE

Zindel Segal, PhD

University of Toronto-Scarborough

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member

Zindel Segal, Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor of Psychology in Mood Disorders at the University of Toronto Scarborough and a senior scientist in the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at … MORE


Catherine Kerr Lecturers

Norman Farb, PhD

University of Toronto Mississauga

Fellow, Grantee, Reviewer

Norman Farb is an associate professor in psychology at the University of Toronto Mississauga, where he directs the Regulatory and Affective Dynamics laboratory (www.radlab.zone). A Fellow at the Mind & … MORE

Patricia (Tish) Jennings, MEd, PhD

University of Virginia

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee, Reviewer

Prof. Jennings is a Professor of Education at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia. She is an internationally recognized leader in the fields of social and … MORE


Master Lecture Speakers and Panelists

Gregory Cajete

University of New Mexico

Eric Garland, PhD, LCSW

University of Utah

Oliver Hill, PhD

Virginia State University

Amishi Jha, PhD

University of Miami

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee, Planning Committee Member, Steering Council Member

Rhonda Magee, JD

University of San Francisco

Mentor, Steering Council Member

Dominique A. Malebranche, Ph.D.

Pepperdine University

Planning Committee Member, Reviewer

Erin McCarthy, PhD

St. Lawrence University

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member

Harold Roth, PhD

Brown University

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee, Planning Committee Member

Ed Sarath, PhD

University of Michigan

Judith Simmer-Brown, PhD

Naropa University

Convening Faculty

Helen Weng, PhD

University of California, San Francisco

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee, Reviewer

Fadel Zeidan, PhD

University of California San Diego

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Grantee, Planning Committee Member, Reviewer, Steering Council Member


Contemplative Faculty

Cynthia Bourgeault

Center for Action and Contemplation

Robert Kaplan

Arizona State University

Pir Zia Inayat-Khan, Pir of the Inayatiyya

Founder of Sulūk Academy

Convening Faculty, Discussant

Zvi Ish-Shalom, PhD

Kedumah Institute, Naropa University

Jack Kornfield

Spirit Rock Center

Board Member

Louis Komjathy, PhD, CSO

University of San Diego

Srinivas Reddy

IIT Gandhinagar

Convening Faculty

Matthieu Ricard, PhD

Karuna-shechen

Convening Faculty, Fellow


Special Sponsored Events Panelists

Cyd Crowse

InteraXon, Meditation Studio

Charlie Hartwell

Bridge Builders Collaborative

Hamet Watt

Upfront Ventures


Program Planning Committee

Norman Farb, PhD

University of Toronto Mississauga

Fellow, Grantee, Reviewer

Dominique A. Malebranche, Ph.D.

Pepperdine University

Planning Committee Member, Reviewer

Judith Simmer-Brown, PhD

Naropa University

Convening Faculty

Erin McCarthy, PhD

St. Lawrence University

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member

Zindel Segal, PhD

University of Toronto-Scarborough

Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member

Eboni Bugg, LCSW

Mind & Life Institute