Senko Ikenobo is headmaster designate of Ikenobo, which has a history of over 555 years and takes its origin from of one aspect of Japanese traditional culture: ikebana. She serves as vice head priest of Shiunzan Chohoji (Rokkakudo) temple in Kyoto and as honorary consul of Iceland. Senko Ikenobo’s varied activities focus on life as emphasized through Ikenobo ikebana. In 2013, she conducted an ikebana workshop at Harvard University and performed a floral offering ceremony at United Nations Headquarters. In 2016, her ikebana work was displayed at the Shima Kanko Hotel The Classic to welcome prime ministers on the occasion of the forty-second G7 summit, held in Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Motoko Saito graduated from the medical department of Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University (now known as Toyama University) in 1991. Motoko worked as a gastroenterological surgeon for more than twenty years before shifting to the specialty of preventive medicine and terminal care. Saito has practiced Yoga since 2006. Among her mentors are Shri O. P. Tiwari from Kaivalyadhama Yoga Institute in Lonavla, India, and Paul Dallaghan from Samahita Retreat in Koh Samui, Thailand. She has taught yoga to patients at hospitals as a supportive medicine and founded the yoga studio Chandra in Fukui in 2011.

Dr. Yulia Golland is an Assistant Professor in the Sagol Center for Brain and Mind, at Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, IDC, Herzliya. Her research is broadly focused on the physiological substrates of interpersonal interaction, and combines physiological measures (fMRI, ANS) and real-life social set-ups. In particular, she is interested in the role of the physiological and behavioral interpersonal synchrony in social interactions. Her work has been published in distinguished journals in the field of neuroscience and biological psychology and presented in neuroscience conferences. Past and current research projects in the lab include synchronization of autonomic signals between individuals in social emotional contexts, neural attunement to interpersonal emotional feedback, interpersonal synchrony in autistic individuals, physiological mechanisms of emotional transmissions, the physiological effects of the mere co-presence, and physiological markers of togetherness.

Emiliana Rodríguez  is a co-founder and Research Director at AtentaMente – a Mexican organization dedicated to the development and implementation of contemplative based social and emotional learning curricula for children, adolescents and adults. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Physics and a Master’s in Mind Brain and Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. For more than 12 years she has studied and practiced Buddhism. Her interest in bridging scientific research, contemplative practices and education led her to contribute in research projects at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the University of Wisconsin, and Research Schools at Harvard University.  Her current projects include a longitudinal study to understand the effects of a contemplative based training for adolescents; curriculum development, creation of an app for mobile phones to foster contemplative practice; and a research initiative to understand the learning pathways of compassion in children.

Angelina Polsinelli is a 6th year Clinical Psychology doctoral candidate with a specialization in Neuropsychology at the University of Arizona. She is conducting her dissertation work in the Aging and Cognition laboratory directed by Dr. Elizabeth Glisky with advising and consultation from Drs. Alfred Kaszniak, Matthias Mehl, and Mary-Frances O’Connor. Her research interests encompass a variety of topics in the fields of aging, cognition, mindfulness, and measurement/methods. Broadly, she aims to use behavioral-based measures of everyday functioning to assess factors that contribute to well-being, such as mindfulness, with the goal of using these findings to develop life-style-based interventions for enhancing quality of life in older adults. Projects that she is currently conducting include a validation of the FFMQ in an older adult population, assessment of the cognitive, emotional, and functional associations of trait mindfulness, and the cognitive, emotional, and daily functioning benefits of 6-week mindfulness induction in older adults.

Marcel O. Bonn-Miller is a Research Health Science Specialist at the Center of Excellence in Substance Abuse Treatment and Education, Center for Innovation to Implementation, and National Center for PTSD at VA Palo Alto Health Care System. He is also Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Dr. Bonn-Miller’s research involves the investigation of factors associated with the development and maintenance of PTSD and substance use disorders, including their co-occurrence, for the purpose of developing, refining, and implementing improved treatments for individuals with these common conditions. Dr. Bonn-Miller serves on the editorial board of 3 substance abuse journals, has 9 active grants, and is a mentor on an additional 2 grants, each of which aim to improve care for veterans with PTSD and/or substance use disorders.