This session will be streamed live on YouTube and other platforms (duration approx. 90 minutes).
Our speakers:
Frank Rogers is the Muriel Bernice Roberts Professor of Spiritual Formation and Narrative Pedagogy and the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Center for Engaged Compassion at the Claremont School of Theology. Also a spiritual director and retreat leader, he is the author of Cradled in the Arms of Compassion: A Spiritual Journey from Trauma to Recovery; Practicing Compassion; and Compassion in Practice: The Way of Jesus.
James R. Doty M.D. is an educator, compassion researcher, neuroscientist, neurosurgeon, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He is an adjunct professor at Stanford University School of Medicine and the founding director of the Stanford Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE). He is the former CEO of Accuray (NASDAQ: ARAY) manufacturer of the CyberKnife.
Presently, his research work centers around the neuroscience of compassion, empathy, and altruism and how these attributes not only positively impact others but have a significant positive impact on one’s health and ultimately their longevity. Through his work at CCARE, Doty has developed educational programs that are now taught around the world and have impacted millions.
As a philanthropist, he has funded health clinics and blood banks around the world through Global Healing, set-up programs for adolescents affected by HIV-AIDS, and funded programs for the disabled. He has also funded research and endowed chairs at Stanford and Tulane Universities.
He is the senior editor of the Oxford Handbook of Compassion Science and is the New York Times and international bestselling author of Into the Magic Shop: A Neurosurgeon’s Quest to Discovery the Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart. He is the founder of Happi AI, a data-driven tech startup that uses artificial intelligence and neuroscience to generate a personalized virtual companion to help people with stress, anxiety & depression. His new book, Mind Magic: The Neuroscience of Manifestation and How It Changes Everything will be published in May, 2024.
Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD is the Executive Director of the Center for Contemplative Science and Compassion-Based Ethics and Professor of Pedagogy in the Department of Religion at Emory University. Developer of CBCT® (Cognitively-Based Compassion Training), Dr. Negi is a long-term contemplative investigator whose research has focused on the relationship between mental / emotional states and physical / social well-being. A former Buddhist monk, Dr. Negi has spearheaded multiple innovative programs including the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative, which teaches modern science to Tibetan monastics, and SEE Learning® (Social, Emotional and Ethical Learning), a K-12 educational framework and curriculum. Dr. Negi received his Geshe Lharampa degree in Tibetan Buddhism in 1994 and a PhD at Emory University in 1999. He is the founder and Spiritual Director of Drepung Loseling Monastery in Atlanta, United States.
Mary Dean Pfahler is a Catholic nun and lead teacher for Boundless Compassion–a compassion cultivation program rooted in Christian spiritual traditions. She belongs to the Sisters of Notre Dame, a global Catholic congregation of women religious. A former educator and pastoral minister in Northwest Ohio and Papua New Guinea, Mary now accompanies individuals and groups in spiritual direction, the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, and Boundless Compassion retreats, helping seekers savor the experience of Gracious Mystery in their lives.
Cynda Rushton is Professor of Clinical Ethics at Johns Hopkins University and teacher of the GRACE model of compassion cultivation from the Upaya Zen Center
Aizaiah G. Yong (he/him) is an ordained Pentecostal Christian minister, award-winning author, public theologian, professor, and psychospiritual practitioner who has served in religious and higher education leadership for over 15 years devoting his energy to change work in solidarity with QTBIPOC communities. He currently serves as Co-Director of the Center for Engaged Compassion at the Claremont School of Theology and is co-founder and CEO of Spirited Renewal. Aizaiah is also the author of Multiracial Cosmotheandrism + The Pulse of Life. He can be found engaging and embracing intercultural and interreligious communities, facilitating spiritual retreats, and or working collaboratively with others at the intersections of spiritual, cultural, and relational transformation.