nischal (nisch) is a Program Manager at the Mind & Life Institute. He recently graduated from UMass Amherst with a Master’s in Environmental Conservation during which his research investigated the relationship between Mindfulness and Pro-environmental behaviors. Before that, he worked in outreach, communications, and coordination positions in non-profits in Nepal and the Philippines. nisch is currently deconstructing and (re)establishing his understanding of environmentalism and is passionate about integrating compassion, kindness, and justice into conversations around climate adaptation. He reads fiction, runs a little, and tries to play guitar.

Jacob is Chief of Staff at Mind & Life Institute. Originally from South Freeport, Maine, Jacob is new to the Charlottesville area. He brings a diverse background of experience to Mind & Life, having worked in various roles in the theatre industry for over twenty years. Most recently based in Louisville, Kentucky, he was Chief of Staff at KBD, a digital marketing agency. In his free time, Jacob enjoys hiking, astrology, gardening, finding the best local wine, and antiquing with his husband, Kristopher. 

Dr. Stephen Nachmanovitch performs and teaches internationally as an improvisational violinist, and at the intersections of multimedia, performing arts, humanities, ecology, and philosophy. He is the author of two books on the creative process, The Art of Is (2019) and Free Play (1990).

Ruth King is the Founder of Mindful of Race Institute, LLC, and is a celebrated author, educator, and meditation teacher. Ruth currently teaches the Mindful of Race Training Program to leaders, teams, and organizations, weaving mindfulness-based principles with an exploration of our racial conditioning, its impact, and our potential. She is the author of Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism from the Inside Out.

Robert A. Jonas, MTS, EdD, founded The Empty Bell (emptybell.org) in 1993 as a sanctuary for Buddhist-Christian dialogue. Trained as a psychotherapist, he is now a retreat leader, video artist, musician,
environmental activist, and author (a biographer of Henri Nouwen). A
Christian in the Carmelite tradition, he also received spiritual formation with Buddhist teachers (Insight meditation and Zen). He has been a guiding teacher at the Guild for Spiritual Guidance in Ossining, NY (www.spiritualguidance.org) and a Board member of the Henri Nouwen Society. He is currently Chair of the Board of the Kestrel Land Trust in Amherst, MA (www.kestreltrust.org). He is a student of Sui-Zen, the Japanese bamboo flute (shakuhachi). He has played in many secular and spiritual contexts and has played at three Buddhist-Christian retreats with the Dalai Lama, including a performance under the Bodhi Tree in India. His
CD’s, Blowing Bamboo, New Life from Ruins, and Many Paths, One Joy are available on iTunes.

Yotam Heineberg, PsyD, earned his doctorate at the PGSP-Stanford consortium at Palo Alto University. His research focused on the cycle of
violence, trauma, and aggression, which led him to seek out solutions to address these fundamental human problems through the vehicle of compassion. He went on to pursue post-doctoral training at Stanford’s Center for Compassion and Altruism, Research, and Education (CCARE) where he now serves as a Research Fellow. Yotam trained in Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) with Professor Paul Gilbert, who developed the approach in the UK, and collaborates with the Compassionate Mind Foundation. As clinical faculty at Palo Alto University’s Gronowski Center, he offers supervision, clinical, and didactic trainings in CFT as well as other compassion-focused approaches to health and healing. His other professional interests entail developing relational, compassion-focused online interventions for both clinical and non-clinical populations.

Cade McCall, PhD, is a group leader in the Social Neuroscience Department of the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany. He studies human affect and cognition with a particular focus on social interaction. McCall uses virtual environments, digital motion tracking and autonomic measurement to study psychological processes implicitly and in the midst of immersive experiences.