Mind and Life XXVII - Craving, Desire and Addiction: Into the World (Day 5)

It's time for another of the always fabulous Mind and Life Conferences, this one on Craving, Desire, and Addiction.

MIND AND LIFE 2013 – XXVII: CRAVING, DESIRE, AND ADDICTION

with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India – October 28 – November 1, 2013

The conference focuses its attention on craving, desire, and addiction, as these are among the most pressing causes of human suffering. By bringing contemplative practitioners and scholars from Buddhist and Christian traditions together with a broad array of scientific researchers in the fields of desire and addiction, hopefully new understandings will arise that may ultimately lead to improved treatment of the root causes of craving and its many manifestations.

Here are the list and associations of this year's participants:

• TENZIN GYATSO, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• KENT BERRIDGE, PHD, James Olds Collegiate Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan
• SARAH BOWEN, PHD, Acting Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington
• RICHARD J. DAVIDSON, PHD, William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry, Director, Laboratory of Affective Neuroscience University of Wisconsin–Madison
• WENDY FARLEY, PHD, Professor, Department of Religion, Emory University
• VIBEKE ASMUSSEN FRANK, PHD, Deputy Director and Associate Professor, Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research, Aarhus University, Denmark
• ROSHI JOAN HALIFAX, PHD, Founder, Abbot, and Head Teacher, Upaya Zen Center
• THUPTEN JINPA, PHD, Adjunct Professor, McGill University, Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• MARC LEWIS, PHD, Professor, Behavioural Science Institute,Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
• MATTHIEU RICARD, PHD, Buddhist Monk, Shechen Monastery
• NORA VOLKOW, MD, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health
• DIANA CHAPMAN WALSH, PHD, President Emerita, Wellesley College, Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT
• ARTHUR ZAJONC, PHD, Professor Emeritus of Physics, Amherst College, President Mind & Life Institute

Here are the two videos of the morning and afternoon sessions from day 5, focused on "Into the World." These are the final installments of the conference.


Morning Session: Application of Contemplative Practices in Treatment of Addiction


Afternoon Session: Concluding Remarks

Mind and Life XXVII - Craving, Desire and Addiction: Contemplative Perspectives (Day 4)

 

It's time for another of the always fabulous Mind and Life Conferences, this one on Craving, Desire, and Addiction.

MIND AND LIFE 2013 – XXVII: CRAVING, DESIRE, AND ADDICTION

with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India – October 28 – November 1, 2013

The conference focuses its attention on craving, desire, and addiction, as these are among the most pressing causes of human suffering. By bringing contemplative practitioners and scholars from Buddhist and Christian traditions together with a broad array of scientific researchers in the fields of desire and addiction, hopefully new understandings will arise that may ultimately lead to improved treatment of the root causes of craving and its many manifestations.

Here are the list and associations of this year's participants:

• TENZIN GYATSO, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• KENT BERRIDGE, PHD, James Olds Collegiate Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan
• SARAH BOWEN, PHD, Acting Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington
• RICHARD J. DAVIDSON, PHD, William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry, Director, Laboratory of Affective Neuroscience University of Wisconsin–Madison
• WENDY FARLEY, PHD, Professor, Department of Religion, Emory University
• VIBEKE ASMUSSEN FRANK, PHD, Deputy Director and Associate Professor, Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research, Aarhus University, Denmark
• ROSHI JOAN HALIFAX, PHD, Founder, Abbot, and Head Teacher, Upaya Zen Center
• THUPTEN JINPA, PHD, Adjunct Professor, McGill University, Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• MARC LEWIS, PHD, Professor, Behavioural Science Institute,Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
• MATTHIEU RICARD, PHD, Buddhist Monk, Shechen Monastery
• NORA VOLKOW, MD, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health
• DIANA CHAPMAN WALSH, PHD, President Emerita, Wellesley College, Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT
• ARTHUR ZAJONC, PHD, Professor Emeritus of Physics, Amherst College, President Mind & Life Institute

Here are the two videos of the morning and afternoon sessions from day 4, focused on "Contemplative Perspectives."


Morning Session: From Craving to Freedom and Flourishing: Buddhist Perspectives on Desire


Afternoon Session: Contemplative Christianity, Desire, and Addiction

Mind & LIfe XXVII - Craving, Desire and Addiction: Biological and Cultural Views (Day 3)

 

It's time for another of the always fabulous Mind and Life Conferences, this one on Craving, Desire, and Addiction.

MIND AND LIFE 2013 – XXVII: CRAVING, DESIRE, AND ADDICTION

with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India – October 28 – November 1, 2013

The conference focuses its attention on craving, desire, and addiction, as these are among the most pressing causes of human suffering. By bringing contemplative practitioners and scholars from Buddhist and Christian traditions together with a broad array of scientific researchers in the fields of desire and addiction, hopefully new understandings will arise that may ultimately lead to improved treatment of the root causes of craving and its many manifestations.

Here are the list and associations of this year's participants:

• TENZIN GYATSO, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• KENT BERRIDGE, PHD, James Olds Collegiate Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan
• SARAH BOWEN, PHD, Acting Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington
• RICHARD J. DAVIDSON, PHD, William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry, Director, Laboratory of Affective Neuroscience University of Wisconsin–Madison
• WENDY FARLEY, PHD, Professor, Department of Religion, Emory University
• VIBEKE ASMUSSEN FRANK, PHD, Deputy Director and Associate Professor, Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research, Aarhus University, Denmark
• ROSHI JOAN HALIFAX, PHD, Founder, Abbot, and Head Teacher, Upaya Zen Center
• THUPTEN JINPA, PHD, Adjunct Professor, McGill University, Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• MARC LEWIS, PHD, Professor, Behavioural Science Institute,Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
• MATTHIEU RICARD, PHD, Buddhist Monk, Shechen Monastery
• NORA VOLKOW, MD, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health
• DIANA CHAPMAN WALSH, PHD, President Emerita, Wellesley College, Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT
• ARTHUR ZAJONC, PHD, Professor Emeritus of Physics, Amherst College, President Mind & Life Institute

Here are the two videos of the morning and afternoon sessions from day 3, focused on "Biological and Cultural Views."
Morning Session: The Role of Dopamine in the Addicted Human Brain


Afternoon Session: Beyond the Individual - The Role of Society and Culture in Addiction

Can Meditation Change Compassionate Behavior?

The following is a press release from the Mind and Life Institute (the Dalai Lama's "think tank" for navigating the intersection of Western science and neuroscience with Buddhist psychology and philosophy). In a clever study design, Paul Condon, a graduate student studying social psychology with Dr. David DeSteno at Northeastern University, looked at the impact of meditation and/or compassion training on subjects' willingness to help another person.

Can Meditation Change Compassionate Behavior?
APRIL 5, 2013 

BY Wendy Hasenkamp, PhD

Most of us like to think that we're compassionate people – that, given the opportunity, we'd recognize another’s pain and be moved to help. But in the midst of our daily lives, how compassionate are we, really? And is this something we can change about ourselves?

These questions were at the heart of a recent study led by Paul Condon, a graduate student studying social psychology with Dr. David DeSteno at Northeastern University. The experiment offered participants eight weeks of meditation instruction. Meeting for two hours each week, half of the participants were taught techniques to foster mindfulness, and the other half were trained in compassion. A comparison group of people who were also interested in learning meditation received their training after the study was complete.

After eight weeks of instruction, participants took various cognitive tests, believing that the experiment was measuring the effect of meditation on things like attention and memory. However, the real goal was to understand changes in compassionate helping behavior. This is where the experiment got elegantly clever.

The set-up went as follows. When a participant arrived for their cognitive testing at the end of the study, he or she entered a waiting room to find three chairs, two of which were occupied. Unbeknownst to the participant, the two other people in the waiting room were “confederates” – colleagues who were part of the study, but posing as bystanders. Naturally, the participant took the third seat and waited. After a minute, a third confederate, a woman, appeared around the corner with crutches and a walking boot. She winced in pain as she walked, stopped at the chairs and looked at her cell phone, then audibly sighed in discomfort and leaned back against a wall. The two other confederates continued to wait, seated. This scene was allowed to play out for two more minutes.

The real test was, would the participant feel moved to respond compassionately, and give up his/her chair to the woman on crutches? Condon and his colleagues found there was a clear difference in behavior: those who had undergone meditation training (either in compassion or mindfulness) were five times more likely to give up their seat to the woman on crutches than those who had not practiced meditation. That’s a huge effect.

A small gesture? Maybe so. But some argue that these kinds of behavioral measures might be more meaningful than those derived from an EEG or an MRI machine – they tap into how we respond to our fellow humans.

This result is even more striking considering that the odds were stacked against the participant. “The truly surprising aspect of this finding is that meditation made people willing to act virtuous — to help another who was suffering — even in the face of a norm not to do so,” said DeSteno. “The fact that the other actors were ignoring the pain creates a ‘bystander-effect’ that normally tends to reduce helping.” Perhaps you’ve experienced this effect yourself, feeling less inclined to help someone in need if you are on a street full of other people who are pretending the situation doesn’t exist. That these participants were so willing to help, even in the face of this implicit pressure to remain seated, suggests a powerful effect of meditation on social behavior.

Condon reflects, “We knew that meditation improves a person’s own physical and psychological well-being, but now we have evidence that meditation actually increases compassionate behavior.” Those who are familiar with meditation know that its sometimes easy to feel compassion when sitting peacefully (and alone) on the cushion, but its in our everyday lives and interactions with others where the rubber meets the road.

We at Mind and Life are thrilled to see this kind of research being done on the real-world effects of contemplative practice. Condon’s study was funded by a Mind and Life Francisco J. Varela Research Award, and will be published soon in the journal Psychological Science. Co-author Gaelle Desbordes of Massachusetts General Hospital and Boston University is also a past Varela Award recipient.

Condon was recently granted a Mind and Life 1440 Award to continue this work, which together with the study described above will make up his doctoral dissertation. Considering the role of the Mind & Life Institute in his career development, he remarks, “Mind and Life has been a great resource for me. The community provides me with a strong scientific foundation to study meditation, and an opportunity to interact with experts in neuroscience and contemplative scholarship. Funding from Mind and Life has allowed me to conduct interesting research on the social effects of meditation that I would not have been able to conduct otherwise. Overall, I probably would not have pursued meditation as a research topic without the support of the Mind and Life community and these awards.”

As with any study, this experiment has limitations, and follow-up work needs to be done. One potential caveat is that the comparison group was not exposed to the social interactions and the presence of an engaging teacher that was experienced by the meditation group on a weekly basis. Its possible that the observed increase in helping behavior was not due specifically to meditation, but to these other social influences. Measures indicate that both the meditation and control groups had similar levels of social interaction in their lives during the course of the study, making this possibility unlikely, but future research will need to rule it out conclusively.

We look forward to the results of Paul’s next study, which will extend his work to investigate the effects of meditation on behavioral and physiological responses to anger in real-world settings. Hopefully, studies like this will help us understand how the benefits of meditation transfer “off the cushion,” to alleviate suffering in everyday life.


-Wendy Hasenkamp, PhD

Toward Research on Real-World Effects of Meditation

The Mind and Life Institute has announced its winners for the Mind and Life 1440 Awards supporting research into the "real world" effects of meditation. From my perspective, this looks like a deserving series of proposed studies.

Toward Research on Real-World Effects of Meditation
MARCH 4, 2013

As many of our colleagues are aware, the Mind & Life Institute has been a long-time supporter of research in contemplative science. Since 2004, we have been awarding small grants to advance rigorous research in the field through our Francisco J. Varela Awards program. Over the last decade, we have funded over 120 Varela Awards, and are encouraged to see how much impact these grants have had on both the growth of a new field of scientific study, and also the career development of many young researchers who share an interest and commitment to examining the mind through contemplative practice.

Despite these successes, more can be done to gain a deeper understand of the effects of meditation in our daily lives. To date, research on contemplative practice has focused largely on exploring the effects of meditation on the body and mind in a laboratory setting. Common themes have focused on questions such as: How do contemplative practices affect biological and psychological systems in the practitioner? Are there consistent, measurable changes that lead to positive outcomes (e.g., reduced stress, brain changes, personality changes)? While this stage is a necessary first step to begin to understand the mechanisms underlying meditation, the real work lies in applying this knowledge outside the lab, in everyday life. Thus, the next step is moving toward applied, real-world science: How can contemplative practices be used to increase our awareness of ourselves and others in the midst of our modern world? What practices lead to healthier relationships and more compassionate interactions, and how can we measure this?

Mind and Life recently joined with the 1440 Foundation to design a program in the hopes of advancing contemplative science into this next phase of investigation. Stemming from this collaboration, we were excited to hold the first cycle of the Mind and Life 1440 Awards for Real-world Contemplative Research last fall. These grants of $15,000 – $25,000 are specifically geared towards the investigation of real-world (as opposed to lab-based) outcomes of contemplative practice. Specifically, the 1440 Awards are intended to promote research that evaluates whether and how contemplative practice can promote inner well-being and healthy relationships, as well as the development of new methods to assess these outcomes in everyday life.

After a very competitive funding cycle, we are thrilled to announce the first Mind and Life 1440 Awardees:

• Carrie Adair, West Virginia University: Mindfulness in interpersonal judgments and relationships in daily life
• Julie Brefczynski-Lewis, Northeastern University: Short and long-term behavioral, physiological, and brain changes resulting from compassion meditation training as an intervention for stress due to difficult interpersonal relationships
• Paul Condon, Florida State University: Contemplative practice, emotional well-being, and the transformation of hostility in the lab and real world
• Eric Garland and Amber Kelly, Florida State University: Trauma-informed Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction to promote intra- and interpersonal flourishing among survivors of traumatic violence

Congratulations to our winners, and we wish you great success in your studies. By enabling high-level research in the area of social and relational outcomes of contemplative practice, it is our hope that the 1440 Awards will expand the applications and impact of contemplative practices in the world.

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day Six)

In the 26th iteration of the Mind and Life Conference - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science - the Dalai Lama hosts 20 of the world's leaders in philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology, including several leading Buddhist scholars.

It's another great series of discussions over six days - I will present one day at a time over the next few days - this is day six.

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day Six)

 

Twenty of the world’s foremost scientists and philosophers with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other senior Tibetan scholars will address topics over the course of the week that include the historical sweep of science and the revolutions in our understanding of our physical universe and the nature of the mind. Scientific and the classical Buddhist philosophical methods of inquiry will be studied, as well as selected topics in quantum physics, neuroscience, and Buddhist and contemporary Western views of consciousness. In addition, the applications of contemplative practices in clinical and educational settings will be explored.

Morning Session:

Presented by Mind and Life Institute and the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Venue: Drepung Monastery, Mundgod, Karnataka, India
Date: January 17-22, 2013

PARTICIPANTS

• Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• Michel Bitbol, PhD, Directeur de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
• Khen Rinpoche Jangchup Choeden, Abbott, Gaden Shartse Monastery
• Richard Davidson, PhD, Founder and Chair, Center for Investigating Healthy Minds University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Sona Dimidjian, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience University of Colorado at Boulder
• James R. Doty, MD, Director, Center for the Study of Compassion and Altruism Research and Education
• Stanford University
• John Durant, PhD, Adjunct Professor Science,Technology & Society Program Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Anne Harrington, PhD, Professor, Department of the History of Science Harvard University
• Wendy Hasenkamp, PhD, Program and Research Director Mind & Life Institute
• Thupten Jinpa, PhD, Adjunct Professor McGill University Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• Bryce Johnson, PhD, Director Science for Monks Staff Scientist Exploratorium
• Geshe Lhakdor, Director, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
• Rajesh Kasturirangan, PhD, Associate Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore
• Christof Koch, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer Allen Institute for Brain Science
• Geshe Dadul Namgyal, Member and Translator/Interpreter Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, Senior Lecturer Emory University
• Vijayalakshmi Ravindranath, PhD, Professor and Chair Centre for Neuroscience at the Indian Institute of Science
• Matthieu Ricard, PhD, Buddhist Monk Shechen Monastery
• Geshe Ngawang Samten, Vice Chancellor, Central University of Tibetan Studies
• Tania Singer, PhD, Director, Department of Social Neuroscience Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
• Aaron Stern, Founder and President, The Academy for the Love of Learning
• Diana Chapman Walsh, PhD, President Emerita, Wellesley College Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard
• Carol Worthman, PhD, Professor Department of Anthropology Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Arthur Zajonc, PhD, President Mind & Life Institute

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day 5)

In the 26th iteration of the Mind and Life Conference - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science - the Dalai Lama hosts 20 of the world's leaders in philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology, including several leading Buddhist scholars.

It's another great series of discussions over six days - I will present one day at a time over the next few days - this is day five.

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day Five)

 

Twenty of the world’s foremost scientists and philosophers with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other senior Tibetan scholars will address topics over the course of the week that include the historical sweep of science and the revolutions in our understanding of our physical universe and the nature of the mind. Scientific and the classical Buddhist philosophical methods of inquiry will be studied, as well as selected topics in quantum physics, neuroscience, and Buddhist and contemporary Western views of consciousness. In addition, the applications of contemplative practices in clinical and educational settings will be explored.

Morning Session:


Afternoon Session:

Presented by Mind and Life Institute and the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Venue: Drepung Monastery, Mundgod, Karnataka, India
Date: January 17-22, 2013

PARTICIPANTS

• Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• Michel Bitbol, PhD, Directeur de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
• Khen Rinpoche Jangchup Choeden, Abbott, Gaden Shartse Monastery
• Richard Davidson, PhD, Founder and Chair, Center for Investigating Healthy Minds University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Sona Dimidjian, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience University of Colorado at Boulder
• James R. Doty, MD, Director, Center for the Study of Compassion and Altruism Research and Education
• Stanford University
• John Durant, PhD, Adjunct Professor Science,Technology & Society Program Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Anne Harrington, PhD, Professor, Department of the History of Science Harvard University
• Wendy Hasenkamp, PhD, Program and Research Director Mind & Life Institute
• Thupten Jinpa, PhD, Adjunct Professor McGill University Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• Bryce Johnson, PhD, Director Science for Monks Staff Scientist Exploratorium
• Geshe Lhakdor, Director, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
• Rajesh Kasturirangan, PhD, Associate Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore
• Christof Koch, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer Allen Institute for Brain Science
• Geshe Dadul Namgyal, Member and Translator/Interpreter Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, Senior Lecturer Emory University
• Vijayalakshmi Ravindranath, PhD, Professor and Chair Centre for Neuroscience at the Indian Institute of Science
• Matthieu Ricard, PhD, Buddhist Monk Shechen Monastery
• Geshe Ngawang Samten, Vice Chancellor, Central University of Tibetan Studies
• Tania Singer, PhD, Director, Department of Social Neuroscience Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
• Aaron Stern, Founder and President, The Academy for the Love of Learning
• Diana Chapman Walsh, PhD, President Emerita, Wellesley College Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard
• Carol Worthman, PhD, Professor Department of Anthropology Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Arthur Zajonc, PhD, President Mind & Life Institute

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day Four)

In the 26th iteration of the Mind and Life Conference - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science - the Dalai Lama hosts 20 of the world's leaders in philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology, including several leading Buddhist scholars.

It's another great series of discussions over six days - I will present one day at a time over the next few days - this is day four.

Mind and Life XXVI: Mind, Brain and Matter - Critical Conversations Between Buddhist Thought and Science (Day Three)

 

Twenty of the world’s foremost scientists and philosophers with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other senior Tibetan scholars will address topics over the course of the week that include the historical sweep of science and the revolutions in our understanding of our physical universe and the nature of the mind. Scientific and the classical Buddhist philosophical methods of inquiry will be studied, as well as selected topics in quantum physics, neuroscience, and Buddhist and contemporary Western views of consciousness. In addition, the applications of contemplative practices in clinical and educational settings will be explored.

Morning Session:

Afternoon Session:

Presented by Mind and Life Institute and the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Venue: Drepung Monastery, Mundgod, Karnataka, India
Date: January 17-22, 2013

PARTICIPANTS

• Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• Michel Bitbol, PhD, Directeur de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
• Khen Rinpoche Jangchup Choeden, Abbott, Gaden Shartse Monastery
• Richard Davidson, PhD, Founder and Chair, Center for Investigating Healthy Minds University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Sona Dimidjian, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience University of Colorado at Boulder
• James R. Doty, MD, Director, Center for the Study of Compassion and Altruism Research and Education
• Stanford University
• John Durant, PhD, Adjunct Professor Science,Technology & Society Program Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Anne Harrington, PhD, Professor, Department of the History of Science Harvard University
• Wendy Hasenkamp, PhD, Program and Research Director Mind & Life Institute
• Thupten Jinpa, PhD, Adjunct Professor McGill University Chairman Mind & Life Institute
• Bryce Johnson, PhD, Director Science for Monks Staff Scientist Exploratorium
• Geshe Lhakdor, Director, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
• Rajesh Kasturirangan, PhD, Associate Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore
• Christof Koch, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer Allen Institute for Brain Science
• Geshe Dadul Namgyal, Member and Translator/Interpreter Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, Senior Lecturer Emory University
• Vijayalakshmi Ravindranath, PhD, Professor and Chair Centre for Neuroscience at the Indian Institute of Science
• Matthieu Ricard, PhD, Buddhist Monk Shechen Monastery
• Geshe Ngawang Samten, Vice Chancellor, Central University of Tibetan Studies
• Tania Singer, PhD, Director, Department of Social Neuroscience Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
• Aaron Stern, Founder and President, The Academy for the Love of Learning
• Diana Chapman Walsh, PhD, President Emerita, Wellesley College Governing Board Member, The Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard
• Carol Worthman, PhD, Professor Department of Anthropology Emory-Tibet Science Initiative Emory University
• Arthur Zajonc, PhD, President Mind & Life Institute