Christian Lütke Wöstmann has been practicing mindfulness and meditation since 2008 and has completed numerous retreats in Germany and internationally. He is a long-time student of the Diamond Approach® by A.H. Almaas. He trained as a mindfulness meditation teacher with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, as part of a certification program in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center (USA). Since 2019 he has been lecturing on mindfulness, resilience, and stress management to university students. He is certified as a mindfulness teacher by the International Mindfulness Teachers Association - Professional Level. In 5-Rhythms-Dance and QiGong, he has been engaged in movement meditation for many years and likes to include the wisdom of the body in his practice and teaching. After his studies and doctorate in economics, he has been working for more than twenty years with development projects in Latin America and the Balkans, among other places. He lives with his wife and two children near Frankfurt/Germany.

Lisa Wickham has practiced nursing for over 30 years including pediatric acute care hospitalization and outpatient allergy and asthma care. Hospitals are stressful environments. Within her nursing career, she came to realize that to be a nurse in a hospital is to be present – with your patient, with the chaos that might ensue around you, with staff, family members, visitors – with whatever is arising in the moment. That deep connection between stress and wellness that Lisa witnessed as a nurse led her to Duke Integrative Medicine and their Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Professionals training, as well as numerous graduate programs and retreats on mindfulness. Lisa now places her focus on teaching the value of mindful self-care, self-compassion, wellness and the power it has to change lives. Learning mindfulness at a deeper level has transformed her own life. Self-acceptance, compassion with healthy boundaries, emotional regulation and the ability to truly understand herself and reactivity has provided her with the awareness and opportunity to live her life with skillful response, kindness for self and others, joy and equanimity. Lisa has two adult children who she describes as being incredibly mindful. The positive impact that her mindfulness teachings have had on them she credits as the best thing that mindfulness has done in her life.

Katrin Buisman is the founder of Create Mind Space, and she is passionate about bringing Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence & holistic health education to people globally. She works to help individuals bring awareness to everything they do, consume, feel, and see around them, and believes this is how we empower ourselves to make our highest choices. She trained as a mindfulness meditation teacher with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, as part of a certification program in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley. Making Mindfulness her approach to life was a game changer for Katrin. It helped her to cope with the fast pace in a competitive corporate environment, to find her True North and to live a more fulfilled and happy life. Her corporate background, with 12+ years' experience, gave her a deep understanding of the demands of the fast and competitive work environment. She considers herself a global citizen and has a strong understanding of cultural differences and an intuitive approach to facilitating her trainings.

Gagan Vasudeva comes with years of practice of meditation, joy and compassion. She started teaching informally over a decade ago, which motivated her to complete her two-year teacher training program for mindful meditation under the esteemed teachers, Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach. She is also trained in Mindfulness based Self-Compassion offered by Kirsten Neff and Chris Germer. In addition to being a mindfulness teacher, Gagan is a clinical social worker in the Toronto area, Canada. She is certified in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for trauma treatment and trained in EMDR. She draws from her trainings and experiences to offer mindfulness programs that help align and nourish body, mind, heart and soul. She lives in the Toronto area with her husband and two boys. She likes to cook and is happy to be a taxi-mom.

Deanna is a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher and Kripalu Yoga Teacher with nationally recognized work in mindfulness-based program development for college students. She has taught mindfulness-based courses to all age levels in her work for the UPMC Center for Integrative Medicine, the University of Pittsburgh Counseling Center and Carnegie Mellon University. In her own life, Deanna attributes mindfulness as helping her become a better friend to herself. This evolving personal investigation keeps her excited about sharing these practices with others. Deanna has a MA in English and a MS in Creative Writing. Her non-fiction poem, "After Breakfast,” is published by The Truth About the Fact: International Journal of Literary Non-fiction at Loyola Marymount University.

Cindy Gittleman, Founder of Sunrise Mindfulness, is a Certified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher in the Greater Boston area. She was trained at the world-renowned Center for Mindfulness at UMass Medical School in Shrewsbury, MA and, after teaching the MBSR program independently for several years, was invited to return there to teach. Cindy also holds certifications in Hatha Yoga and Yin Yoga. She is passionate about helping others live more fully, both personally and professionally, through the use of mindfulness practices. Cindy loves to learn and holds two master's degrees, as well as a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies. Prior to teaching mindfulness, she worked in the field of psychology for 16 years, first as a therapist with underserved patient populations and later in the areas of psychological, psychoeducational, and neuropsychological assessment. In her own life, Cindy feels her mindfulness practice has enabled her to live life more fully and face life's challenges with a greater sense of acceptance and ease. Cindy loves to laugh and to learn new things. Her favorite hobbies include doing all different kinds of puzzles, gardening and scuba diving.

Mada worked for years in the field of teaching and translation-interpretation. Attending a mindfulness program 2013 she rekindled an engagement with meditation practice, introduced to her in childhood. She became a certified MTI mindfulness instructor involved in the cultivation of meditation practice and regular attending of silent retreats. In 2015 she became an MTI Senior Mindfulness Instructor and a member of ABRAMIND, the Brazilian Mindfulness Association. She has a certification in MB-EAT from Jean Kristeller and Andrea Lieberstein’s Mindful Eating Professional Training course held in Brazil in 2017. That’s a field of mindfulness she became especially touched by, which led her to begin Jan Chozen Bays and Char Wilkin’s ME-CL - Mindful Eating Conscious Living Teachers Certification Program. She currently lives in Brasília teaching mindfulness based programs and working as an interpreter of International Mindfulness and Mindful Eating Training Courses. She is engaged in Buddhist studies, is the interpreter of Dharma teachers while in Brazil, and works on translations of books and texts relative to Tibetan buddhism.

A native of Tokyo, Hirono has lived in 6 different countries across different continents. She has been immersed in meditation, psychology and yoga for over 25 years. Her mindfulness practice and teaching is focused on kindness. Hirono is a serial entrepreneur, and has established her own successful coaching business in the Netherlands and her own yoga studio in Italy. She holds a MA in Organizational Psychology from New York’s Columbia University, is a Certified Yoga Alliance Teacher, as well as Certified Executive / Life Coach by International Coach Federation (IFC). Hirono has completed the 2-year professional training program for Mindful Meditation by the University of California Berkeley, under the direct guidance of highly respected teachers Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. and Tara Brach, Ph.D. She is accredited as the first Professional Level Certified Mindfulness Teacher (CMT-P) from International Mindfulness Teachers Association (IMTA) in Japan. Hirono is an official translator for Tara Brach's highly acclaimed book "Radical Acceptance" in Japanese. Her current base is in Yokohama, Japan where she spends time with two rambunctious and kind boys.

Elisha Goldstein has been practicing mindfulness for 16 years. He is certified to teach Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and focuses on helping others develop a mindfulness practice to aide in parenting and cope with anxiety. Elisha authored the Mindfulness at Work program for eM Life as well as a six month online coaching program, A Course in Mindful Living. He has written several books including Uncovering Happiness: Overcoming Depression with Mindfulness and Self-Compassion, The Now Effect: How This Moment Can Change the Rest of Your Life, A Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Workbook and MBSR Everyday: Daily Practices from the Heart of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. For the past 15 years, Elisha has also written a blog, Mindfulness and Psychotherapy and as well as hundreds of articles and other publications. Elisha describes mindfulness as having personally saved his life. He feels his practice makes him more present in his work and more at ease with a variety of difficult emotions. Elisha lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife, three boys, two cats and dog.

Residing in Melbourne, Australia, Jordan Whitehead has a 10-year, daily yoga and meditation practice that she dedicates at least 20 hours per week to. She is a registered psychologist, yoga teacher and mindfulness and meditation instructor. Jordan combines her various training in different mindfulness modalities to teach whatever discipline is applicable for her student. To Jordan, the benefits of a mindfulness practice are subtle, sometimes unnoticed to new practitioners. She feels her practice has made her more content and a nicer person. She also feels she is far less reactive under stress. Her best advice about mindfulness is to take your mindfulness practice seriously but don't take yourself seriously! Jordan spent two years living in Monastery's/Ashrams in India, Nepal and Thailand.

After a 20-year career in financial services, a cancer diagnosis led Laurie Weisman to question her life’s meaning and legacy and inspired her to change her career path. As a life-long transcendental meditator and beneficiary of mind-body practices, Laurie joined a local sangha, trained in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and other mind-body techniques and obtained a master’s degree in health and behavior studies. Mindfulness transformed Laurie’s life. She considers herself calmer, more focused, less reactive and more resilient since she began her practice in 2005. It has helped her to have a greater sense of well-being and to “wake up” and became very aware how she reacts in the moment. Laurie’s Mindfulness is the greatest gift of her life and she feels blessed to be able to share it with others. She hopes, little by little, one by one, she can help make the world a kinder more mindful place. Laurie lives in New York City where as a mindfulness-based certified professional coach (CPC) at Even Keel well-being and health educator (CHES)/adviser she helps her clients to thrive and gain a greater sense of well-being. Laurie has worked and traveled internationally, covering six continents, and has been to over 35 countries. During her travels, she managed to climb the highest peaks in Africa and Western Europe.

Lara Sragow has been a wellness speaker onsite, streaming live online, and on live TV, as a Mindfulness Facilitator, Nutritionist and Fitness Professional. She began mindfulness practice in 8th grade, which helped her not only deal with teen angst, but also become top academically in the class that year. Fascinated by the mind-body connection, she went on to study it, along with nutrition and physiology, at Cornell and Columbia universities. Struggling to maintain her own wellness habits, she discovered mindfulness as a missing link to diet and fitness. Landing in NYC and later LA, she started teaching wellness to busy achievers, ranging from Wall Street execs to fashion models to the everyday person. Lara received her certification in mindfulness through the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center.

Mindful living and compassionate service to others has been Bernice Moore's life-long focus. She feels present and sensitive to individuals' needs and potential, trusting the life-force working through her to bring out the highest good in others. She has studied under and practiced with renowned Buddhist masters in Theravada, Tibetan, and Zen traditions. Bernice has a PhD in Organizational Behavior and Systems working globally and locally as a consultant and educator. Bernice started practicing mindfulness in her 20s. She comes from a legacy of military service; her father was an officer in the US Army and was an adviser in Vietnam, she served in the USMC during the war in Vietnam, her brother was a helicopter pilot who was killed in Vietnam and Bernice's brother-in-law was severely wounded, nearly killed in combat. The pain of the Vietnam conflict and the loss of her brother drove Bernice to practice mindfulness to heal from the trauma of the war and from the pain of the loss of her brother. Looking back, Bernice is enormously grateful for her mindfulness practice, because without it, she does not know if she would have come through whole. Now Bernice feels she is enormously blessed by the peace of mind and joy that have become part of who she is through a steadfast and transformative practice of mindfulness. In her spare time, she loves playing the guitar and hanging out with her grandchildren.

After graduating from college in the US, Noriko started practicing yoga and meditation, where she found a true sense of freedom and learned how to connect with herself and the world in a compassionate way. Upon completing Training in Mindfulness Facilitation (TMF) program at UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC) in 2016, she started teaching mindfulness to a variety of people including school teachers, care workers, nursing students, and at-risk youth in juvenile training schools. Noriko is a Certified Mindfulness Teacher - Professional (CMT-P) through the International Mindfulness Teachers Association (IMTA), and has also been a mentor for Inward Bound Mindfulness Education (iBme) teen retreats in Southern California, a teaching assistant for Psychiatry 175: Mindfulness Practice and Theory at UCLA. Currently working as a social worker in child welfare, Noriko uses mindfulness practice as a foundation for serving young children as well as teenagers and young adults. She enjoys hiking, snowboarding, mountain biking, and meditating in Japan’s magnificent nature and also gets inspired by rediscovering the beauty and wisdom in traditional Japanese spiritual practices.

Maria was born in Spain and attended her first meditation retreats in France as a teenager. As life got more challenging as a young adult, she found refuge in the teachings of Zen Masters Willigis Jaeger and Thich Nhat Hanh. She participated in the retreats they offered deepening the art of sitting in silence, breathing with the present moment and watering seeds of gratitude and self-compassion. These precious tools supported her resilience as she lived, studied and worked in various countries and changing circumstances, reliably finding inner peace, clarity and a home in the practice of Mindfulness. In addition to her academic studies, she became a certified MBSR instructor through Brown University and a certified Hatha Yoga teacher. Maria practiced for 20 years as a clinical psychologist in Switzerland integrating Eastern and Western approaches to healing. Currently, as the co-director of the NJ Center for Mindful Awareness, Maria delivers MBSR and yoga classes, presentations, nature workshops and silent retreats with her husband. Since 2016, she has worked as a senior mental health consultant at the United Nations Headquarters facilitating mind-body approaches and delivering trainings on self-care and wellness for UN employees. In her personal life, Maria enjoys spending time with her husband, dogs, cat, chickens and bees in rural New Jersey, savoring deeply all the gifts Nature and life have to offer. She plays the handpan drum and the ukulele and has been an artist for most of her life. Painting is for her another doorway into presence and beauty.

Dr. Mark Pirtle is a pioneer in integral thinking in stress relief and recovery. He is a teacher, speaker, writer, filmmaker, and businessman. He connects the dots between science, wellness, ethical business and spirituality. Pirtle tirelessly updates his understanding of the latest evidence to help others change and heal. Combining the disciplines of integral and living systems theories, neuroscience, positive psychology, and mindfulness meditation, he developed an evidence-based program for people suffering from stress-related conditions he calls SkillfullyAware®. Pirtle teaches attunement skills, through the use of meditation and mindfulness, to empower his clients to work towards healthier relationships with themselves, others, and the world. Pirtle, along with two-time Emmy Award winning director, Frances Causey, produced a full-length documentary filmed titled, Is Your Story Making You Sick? Mark is the acting CEO for Anu Experience Retreat Center, works privately with clients, hosts multi-day retreats, consults with businesses and teaches for the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine Fellowship Program.

Breon Michel teaches Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) in Phoenix, AZ. In her private practice, she facilitates mindfulness and self-compassion classes for mothers and parents to help minimize the stress of modern day parenthood, and raise the tonnage of resilient beings in the world. Breon has a Master's in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, and she curates a popular blog called Mama Well-being. For Breon, her mindfulness practice allows her to be who she is, with less concern for what others think. It has given her a way to see clearly in both good times and in bad. Standing up to say or do something when things do not seem right to her and also deepening her capacity to be present in the midst of joyful things with her family and in the natural world. Breon went to homecoming with Ashton Kutcher her sophomore year of high school.

Kerry Little, MA has 15 years of incorporating mindfulness practice along with her coaching, health promotion background to help individuals improve the quality of their lives. Kerry believes mindfulness allows you to consciously experience the full spectrum of living. Enhancing your ability to engage more deeply with others, heal, develop and live a more meaningful life. Kerry is passionate about partnering with others and using mindfulness to help them reach their full potential. Personally, mindfulness has freed Kerry to experience the full spectrum of living; to experience and be able to sit/ walk with the full range of emotions and conditions without needing to suppress or push them away. She feels she has the ability through her practice to listen, acknowledge, offer compassion to herself and in the unfolding move towards wiser decisions. Mindfulness has supported her in being more conscious in her relationships, work and daily choices. Kerry has bunji jumped in Costa Rica, climbed a tree to get away from buffalo while back packing in Yellowstone and has even been struck by lightning! She describes herself as still being able to "bust a move” on the dance floor, loves to travel, bike ride, laugh and spend time with her family and friends in nature.

Heather Nielsen has her MA in Clinical Psychology, her license as a professional counselor and is a certified Health and Wellness Coach. She currently works as a counselor in private practice alongside her husband, an Internal Medicine MD, in their Functional Medicine team micropractice called Healthy Connections where they teach and practice mindfulness-based health care. For Heather, her mindfulness practice has helped her to navigate two pregnancies with diabetes, be more responsive and less reactive as a parent and to live with two chronic autoimmune conditions which are sensitive to stress and can be painful and unpredictable. Heather also attributes mindfulness to helping her be a more conscious partner to her husband, a friend to her community and to have more empathy and presence for her clients. Heather has two small dogs, two large cats, three daughters, two step daughters and one very patient and mindful husband, who she met when he invited her to speak about diabetes burnout at his diabetes support group. Seven years after that support group speaking invitation, Heather and her husband were married and fellow eM life instructor gave a toast at their wedding.

Jim Austin has been practicing mindfulness since 1975, almost his entire adult life. His practice has aided him in becoming more present and intimate with his own internal experience, which Jim feels has led to him making better life choices…more of the time. He also feels he is able to recover easier from those times when there have been setbacks, job or relationship stresses and personal failures. Jim manages an attention deficit condition, which he attributes to being possibly the main reason he was drawn to mindfulness practice in the first place! Mindfulness has been the most effective strategy for dealing with his attention deficit condition, better than any medication that he has tried. Jim also feels his mindfulness practice keeps things on an even keel and creates a sense of confidence in his ability to deal with and be resilient to the inevitable stresses of life. Jim loves playing all kinds of music with all kinds of people. His favorite instrument of the moment is the fiddle.

Beatriz Gonzalez-Flecha has a MS in Biochemistry, a PhD in Biophysics and has trained in Vipassana meditation directly with Larry Rosenberg at the Cambridge Insight Meditation Center. She also has her certification as a Mindfulness Yoga teacher. As a long-term mindfulness practitioner and teacher with an interdisciplinary training Beatriz has helped her students, who include children, adults and families, gain awareness of their own experiences and explore ways to live more balanced lives and connect fully with their environments. Beatriz feels her mindfulness practice and meditation changed her life. She was in a fast track, high pressure academic job in a very prestigious institution and left all that behind to deepen her meditation practice and pass the teachings on to others.

Jenny Mills trained under Michael Baime at the Penn Program for Mindfulness where she completed the Practicum in teaching Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). She has completed the Mindful Schools program and formally received the 5 Mindfulness Trainings in the Order of Interbeing. Jenny is the founder of Roots & Wings, LLC whose mission is to make mindfulness accessible to teachers, youth and families. Three years of pilot data collected by Drs. Fegley and Mackenzie from the Graduate School of Education at Penn have shown that Jenny's 8 session course, Everyday Mindfulness for Schools, yields positive results. She also teaches a for-credit course with the Penn Literacy Network called Re-Energizing Our School Communities: Mindfulness-Based Strategies to Support Teaching and Learning. Jenny currently lives in New Jersey with her husband Burton and two young children, Talula Jo and Zachary. She credits mindfulness as giving her an appreciation for life and providing her help in parenting.

Diane Renz, M.A., L.P.C., is a Neuroscience Practical Applications Facilitator, Licensed Psychotherapist, Nationwide Speaker, Writer, Workshop Developer, MBSR Teacher, (2004 trained with Jon Kabat-Zinn Center for Mindfulness, UMASS, Oasis Institute), Behavior Change Facilitator (trained with Judson Brewer, MD, Brown University), and founder of the Center for Healthy Habits, a Consulting, Coaching, Counseling Service, Creating Conducive Environments for Healthy Systems of Individuals and Organizations. As a nationwide speaker, seminar teacher, and writer, Diane translates the current neurobiology science of Attention into user-friendly tools for building best Habits of Brain, Body, Behavior. “Mindfulness entered my life 42 years ago and never left. It continues to shape how I approach pain and joy, both personally and professionally. It is the primary ‘Diversity and Inclusion’ model, teaching me again and again the pain of excluding any part of experience, and the health and well-being felt in the quality of awareness that is Mindfulness: A Relational Quality of Awareness that is Open and Inclusive.”

Ruipeng Li is a therapist and a mindfulness training teacher. She received her Master’s degree from Peking University. Ruipeng has practiced mindfulness meditation, yoga, and Tai chi Boxing (Qigong) for a decade since her school days. She greatly values what mindfulness has done in her life and enjoys sharing that wisdom. She is an IMTA certified Teaching Professional (CMT-P), a USA qualified Mindfulness-based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) teacher, and an Oxford Mindfulness Center trained Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) teacher. In addition, she recently co-translated Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn’s book Falling Awake into Chinese, which is to be published soon. Ruipeng teaches mindfulness in schools, including Peking University and hospitals. She also leads mindfulness meditation practices in nature. She enjoys teaching others how to be more present, to cultivate self-compassion and to always remember what really matters in life. Ruipeng lives in Beijing, China. She often goes hiking and reads poems in her spare time. She is passionate about life and loves smiling.

Ren Xu started practicing Mahayana Buddhist meditation in 2000 and has been learning Vipassana (Insight) and Mindfulness meditation since 2012. In addition to his interest in mindfulness-based and compassion-based interventions, Ren Xu is interested in Buddhist philosophy and psychology, Chan Buddhism, and Spirituality. He is a certified mindfulness teacher and is also trained in MBSR, MBCT, MBCT-L, MSC. Ren Xu has attended various Buddhist Vipassana meditation retreats in Singapore, Myammar, China, and elsewhere. He has also served as a spiritual advisor, dhamma teacher, and meditation teacher at the KMSPKS monastery since 2013.

Melissa is an educator, registered psychotherapist, and mindfulness facilitator with extensive experience in adult learning and workplace training. She began practicing mindfulness 20 years ago in Japan and has continued to deepen her practice through ongoing study and retreats. After 6 years in Asia, she completed a Masters in Adult Education at the University of Toronto, specializing in experiential learning, counseling psychology, and workplace and teacher training. For 22 years she has worked locally and abroad with diverse groups in community development, workplace training, and mental health. Most recently, her work focuses on delivering mindfulness and self-compassion programs in clinical and workplace settings. She is a curriculum developer and certified facilitator, teacher trainer, and mentor in MBSR and MBCT at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies. She also teaches in mindfulness programs at the University of Toronto and University of the Fraser Valley. She currently lives in Toronto with her family and delivers mindfulness-based teacher training, adult learning and psychotherapy programs online.

Marta discovered mindfulness while searching for a way to cope with being a parent to a special needs child. Her son suffered frequent life-threatening seizures and she was overwhelmed with managing his ongoing care. She felt she was living in a continuous state of anxiety and fear and her health and well-being suffered. She attended a mindfulness workshop and was impressed by the empirically supported benefits and simplicity of the practice. As she began practicing mindfulness her stress reactivity decreased. She learned to be with things with more ease, reclaim some happiness, and not worry constantly about what might happen next. This inspired her to want to teach others. Marta received her Mindfulness training from the University of California San Diego’s Center for Mindfulness and is a Certified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Teacher. She currently teaches Mindful Daily Sessions at eMindful, MBSR at the UCSD Center for Mindfulness, and mindfulness workshops in corporate, healthcare, and private settings. She is a Registered Nurse with a background in oncology and research and has worked as a Behavioral Coach with an online provider of lifestyle and behavioral health solutions. She holds professional certifications as a Health and Wellness Coach, Holistic Health Practitioner, Reiki Practitioner, and Registered Yoga Teacher. Marta has a passion for the ocean and loves swimming, scuba diving and underwater photography.

Andrea Lieberstein, MPH, RDN, RYT, is founder of the Mindful Eating Training Institute, and trains health professionals through her evidence-based professional mindful eating and living trainings and retreats. She is the bestselling author of the book, Well-Nourished: Mindful Practices to Heal Your Relationship with Food, Feed your Whole Self and End Overeating”, and additionally offers coaching, programs and retreats for the general public. Andrea was a lead consultant and mindful eating instructor in NIH funded research at UCSF, is a MB-EAT Teacher Trainer, a dedicated mindfulness meditation practitioner, and MBSR instructor for over thirty years. She spearheaded Mind Body programs at various Kaiser Permanente Northern California centers, for twenty years, and has degrees from Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley. In her private practice, Andrea works with individuals to have more peace, balance and joy in their relationship with food, nutrition, body-image, and stress-related issues and health concerns or whom simply want to bring their lives back into balance and vibrancy through mindful eating and living. One of Andrea’s greatest passions and joys is studying and practicing the Dharma and sharing the life transforming practices of mindfulness, compassion, mindful eating, yoga, nature awareness, and healthy lifestyles.

Mike has been deepening his practice and understanding of mindfulness since he was first introduced to it at the age of 16. While at school, his interest in the mind motivated him to study Psychology as well as Philosophy. Afterwards, he spent a year in Nepal researching attention training in Tibetan monastic education. He then spent the next four and a half years in intensive solitary retreat. After finishing his retreat Mike began to teach mindfulness. Mindfulness is an essential part of Mike’s life, and he believes that it’s a basic quality of mind that everyone has the capacity to cultivate. His own practice helps him to relate to his internal and external worlds with greater clarity and compassion. Over time, Mike has learned how to work with his thoughts, emotions, and experiences. After starting his own family, Mike became interested in bringing the benefits of mindfulness to parents, children, and families. He currently lives in Barcelona with his wife and two sons where he spends his time teaching mindfulness, coaching, and working in the field of Tibetan translation.

Originally from South Africa, Susan Peacock is a chartered Psychologist, mindfulness trainer and coach residing in London, Great Britain. She became interested in resilience while she was working in corporate advertising. Her curiosity led her to studying Psychology and working at the Centre for Wellbeing at the University of Surrey. It was at the University of Surrey that she was introduced to mindfulness which immediately made sense to Susan as a way of living a connected and engaged life. Susan has attended a number of different trainings including: TDR – Triginos 2006, Mindfulness in Individual Therapy – Triginos 2009, an eight-week Mindful Practitioner development with Cindy Cooper in London 2011, a Mindfulness Supervision course - Crewe 2013, Mindfulness in Relationships with Cindy Cooper and Becca Crane 2016 and an OMC Masterclass series for the Workplace from 2017-2019. Susan now works with individuals and teams in a wide range of organizations to help them develop and apply their mindfulness practice into their daily lives. She has contributed to a book on Mindfulness in the Workplace as well as Britain's first Parliamentary Enquiry on Mindfulness.

Vy began her career in management consulting after receiving her degree in Mathematics with a specialization in Computing & Business Administration from UCLA. After completing her MBA studies from USC, she worked in the biopharmaceutical field in business development for many years. Over 11 years ago, Vy began diving into mindfulness and compassion practices after the passing of a loved one, and found herself drawn to share these transformative practices with others. She then received her training in mindfulness facilitation through the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center. She is a Certified Mindfulness Teacher - Professional through the International Mindfulness Teachers Association (IMTA). Furthermore, she believes in the growth of the mindfulness space and is a Program Manager for the IMTA, which is dedicated to the professionalization and standardization of the mindfulness field. She has shared mindfulness and compassion practices to all age groups from teens and young adults, professionals, healthcare providers, to retirees. Vy is a certified coach through the International Coach Federation and is also trained in the practice of Focusing by Gene Gendlin, a somatic process to help one deeply listen to the wisdom of the body. Vy credits mindfulness with a sense of aliveness, to not only live from the neck up, but to embody her life fully.

Elmo has more than 40 years of teaching/facilitation experience, including Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness-Based Leadership in both corporate and higher educational settings. He facilitated Leadership Development & Executive Leadership Coaching for Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee from 2012-2021, as well as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction at Vanderbilt Center for Integrative Health from 2010-2016. In addition, he served as the Leadership Development Coach for Bridgestone America’s Communication Division from 2014-2020. Elmo received his formal mindfulness training from the Center for Mindfulness at UMass Medical Center, Vanderbilt Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Duke Center for Integrative Medicine, Google’s Search Inside Yourself Leadership Development Program, and is a graduate at the Institute of Mindful Leadership. He is accredited as a Certified Mindfulness Teacher - Professional through the International Mindfulness Teachers Association (IMTA). He currently volunteers his spare time with Meals on Wheels in Washougal, WA. Elmo is the author of several books on poetry and writes to support his coffee consumption during the rainy season in the Pacific Northwest.

Elaine Smookler is a mindfulness teacher, writer and performer who began exploring mindfulness after a successful show she was in led to an episode of depression. Since training in Mindfulness, Elaine has learned how to anchor her attention, stay engaged, open and calm. She feels she is much kinder to herself and better able to notice habits that she feels disrupt her life. In her twenty-plus years of Mindfulness practice, Elaine has trained in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) with its co-creator Zindel Segal, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and is now a Registered Psychotherapist in private practice in Toronto, Canada. Elaine is on the faculty at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies, is a facilitator of "The Mindfulness Project” at SickKids hospital in Toronto and is the developer of The Mindful Way Through the Creative Process workshops. Elaine is also the Inner Wisdom columnist, and feature writer for Mindful Magazine and the singing host of Mindful Martinis -a mindfulness class/cabaret which invites people to be mindful about everything they enjoy. Elaine was once on the set of a commercial and discovered she was to play a woman who loved dogs more than people, but Elaine was terrified of dogs. When they piled 6 dogs on Elaine, she used her Mindfulness practice to help be totally present with the dogs, and not her fear. Afterwards the producer told Elaine it was so obvious that she really loved dogs!

During her training, Janet left her 20 year career promoting iconic celebrities and classic television shows for ABC and CBS Television Networks, and started a non-profit to help high-risk families learn about mindfulness practice. Her memoir "A Cry for Light: A Journey Into Love," about how mindfulness helped her find inner peace and healing for her special needs son, won the USA Book News award for Christian Inspiration. Janet is co-owner of Sporting the Right Attitude, a motivational company, and facilitates Mindfulness presentations to companies and college students with her husband, Walter Jackson, Msc.D. Janet is a certified coach for Heartmath, and a Reiki Master. Janet spent four years in the ministry. She received the Three Jewels and Five Mindfulness Trainings Certification from world-renowned Mindfulness teacher and Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Mr. Nhat Hanh, who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Dr. Martin Luther King. Thich Nhat Hanh also wrote an intro to Janet's memoir, "A Cry for Light: A Journey Into Love." The memoir, which won the USA Book News award, chronicles Janet's journey into the Mindfulness practice, as it helped her raise her emotionally disturbed adopted son. Her is Dharma name "Compassionate Healer of the Heart." Janet’s training also includes Foundations of Unified Mindfulness for Teachers. She is also a licensed Heartmath coach, Reiki Master and certified in the Law of Attraction and Mindfulness. Janet is certified by the International Mindfulness Teachers Association as a Certified Mindfulness Teacher, Professional Level.

Roger Nolan has been engaging in the introspective practices of meditation and yoga since 1973. He has been practicing mindfulness since 1997 and has taught mindfulness since 2002. Currently, Roger has a Doctor of Psychology degree from California Southern University (Summa Cum Laude), MA in Counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. He is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Certified Mindfulness Teacher – Professional Level, International Mindfulness Teachers Association. Certified in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) through the UCSD Mindfulness Professional Training Institute. Professor at Antioch University Los Angeles in the Master of Arts Psychology Department. Roger is a mindfulness-based psychotherapist in private practice, specializing in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for emotional issues, such as depression and anxiety. He helped to develop Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) for addictive behaviors. Roger lives in the Southern California area, and is a member of the adjunct faculty at Antioch University, Los Angeles where he teaches the adaptation of mindfulness in clinical practice in the Master of Arts Psychology program. As a lifelong anxiety sufferer, Roger describes his mindfulness practice as having helped him to unplug from catastrophic thoughts about the future and to return to the reality of the present moment. Despite still getting anxious, Roger now feels he has the ability to neutralize anxiety almost instantly. During the years he has taught these mindfulness practices to his students and therapy clients, he has personally witnessed countless individuals cultivate these same coping skills. Roger describes himself as an accomplished ukulele player.

Kelly Barron has been practicing mindfulness for more than 20 years. As a former staff writer for Forbes magazine, Kelly came to understand the value of mindfulness as a deadline driven reporter. She still loves journalism but is not so fond of chronic stress. Through her practice, she's not only become more stress resilient but has found more clarity, joy and ease in her life. She's now passionate about sharing what she's learned with others. Kelly has a B.A. in philosophy and a M.A. in Journalism. She's certified to facilitate mindfulness through the UCLA's Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Behavior and is an instructor for UCLA's Mindful Awareness Research Center. Kelly has developed mindfulness programs for law firms such as Orrick and Milbank as well as other corporations. She is also an Inner Kids trained instructor and teaches mindfulness to teachers and students in schools throughout Los Angeles. Additionally, Kelly has been certified through the University of Toronto's School of continuing Studies in Applied Mindfulness-based Chronic Pain Management. Kelly is a lifelong athlete and a former collegiate tennis player. She has a training certification from the American Council on Exercise and enjoys all kinds of physical pursuits from paddle boarding to Ping Pong. Kelly also loves to cook and hang out with her family.

Alisha has been a practitioner of meditation and yoga for over 20 years, exploring several different traditions and practices over the years. She also had a successful career as a Business Operations professional in the IT industry for over 15 years living and working in India, Dubai, Australia and the US since 2008. Due to a health crisis in 2009 that could not be resolved through conventional medicine, Alisha quit her career and rediscovered Mindfulness as a path towards recovery of her physical and emotional health. Inspired and motivated by her first-hand experience in the healing power of Mindfulness practices, particularly for PTSD and chronic pain, she pursued further training at the Center for Mindfulness, UMass Medical School by completing 2 levels of practicum and the Teachers Development Intensive in teaching Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Programs. Taking a 360-degree approach to her own health and wellness, Alisha is also certified in Plant Based Nutrition from eCornell and is a Certified Qi Gong Community Practice Leader.

Ninette (LSW, LMSW) has over 10 years of training in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and other mind/body interventions for high-stress environments, nervous system regulation and behavioral development. Over the past eight years, both online and in-person, she has shared stress management tools and mindfulness-based interventions in a variety of roles and contexts —corporations, healthcare, academia, retreats, group and individual work. The substance and depth of supporting others in this manner resonates with her both personally and professionally. She brings a passion for making a difference and a playful, compassionate spirit to her work. Ninette's prior years of experience in management consulting and leadership development, in combination with her graduate study of group and organizational development and clinical social work provides a uniquely comprehensive background for her work in mindfulness, wellbeing and stress management. In her own life, Mindfulness has had a tremendous impact on the way Ninette relates to herself, to others, to work and to stress. She has found that mindfulness has been a wonderful way to appreciate the choices available in each moment. She feels better able to compassionately find humor even in some challenging situations and appreciates the opportunity to further develop this lifelong practice. Ninette loves her husband, animals and nature, and going on vacations to places that are undisturbed.