Program

Location: San Gaetano Cultural Centre

---

08:00-18:00

Registration/Info Desk Open

---

08:00-18:00

Meditation Room Open

---

08:30-09:00

Practice: Thai Samatha Meditation

Sarah Shaw

---

09:00-10:00

Invited Speaker 1: Rhonda V. Magee, University of San Francisco School of Law – Chaired by Doris F. Chang

Sitting in a house afire? On contemplative pedagogy and science in a time of social unrest

---

10:00-10:30

Morning Break – Sponsored by Mind & Life Institute 

---

10:30-11:45

Session Block 1 – Panels  

Session 1.1: Queering the dharma for the benefit of all: Multidisciplinary views on how queer perspectives intersect with Buddhist meditation and concepts in contemporary societies

• Julieta Galante, University of Melbourne
• Ana Dragojlovic, University of Melbourne
• Oscar Lecuona, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
• Sara De Rivas, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Rey Juan CArlos

Session 1.2: Impact of mindfulness meditation on neurophysiological, cognitive, and behavioural indices of self-related processing

• Ivan Nyklicek, Tilburg University
• David Vago, Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School
• Karin Matko, Chemnitz University of Technology
• Fynn-Mathis Trautwein, University of Freiburg

Session 1.3: The neurophenomenology of Jhana meditation: Neuroscientific, computational, and phenomenological perspectives on meditative absorption

• Mark Miller, Monash University, University of Toronto, Hokkaido University
• Jonas Mago, McGill University
• Matthew Sacchet, Harvard Medical School / Massachusetts General Hospital
• Joshua Brahinsky, McGill University

Session 1.4: Contemplative practices and skills in preservice teacher education: Research from Mexico, Germany, and the United States

• Matthew Hirshberg, University of Wisconsin Madison
• Summer Braun, University of Alabama
• Alison Hooper, University of Alabama
• Tenzin Sonam, Emory University

---

11:45-12:00

Transition

---

12:00-13:15

Session Block 2 – Panels 

Session 2.1: Tibetan contemplative practices: Interdisciplinary frameworks

• Michael Sheehy, University of Virginia

Session 2.2: Health economics research in contemplative studies

• Cate Bailey, University of Melbourne
• Julieta Galante, University of Melbourne
• Anne Speckens, Radboud University Medical Centre
• Jonathan Davies, Contemplative Studies Centre, University of Melbourne

Session 2.3

S2.3.1 (55 min):  Beyond standard mindfulness-based interventions: Investigating the effects of sustained mindfulness practice in patients with persistent depression

• Thorsten Barnhofer, University of Surrey
• Jonathan Hamilton, University of Surrey
• Anne Speckens, Radboud University Medical Centre

S2.3.2 (20 min): TBC  

Session 2.4: Integrating mindfulness and compassion in education: Comparative insights and global perspectives from the Whole School Mindfulness and PRICES frameworks

• Tyralynn Frazier, Emory University
• Sebrina Doyle Fosco, Penn State University

---

13:15-14:30

Lunch

---

14:30-16:00

Session Block 3 – Thematically Organized Individual Talk Sessions

Session 3.1: Exploring Compassion-Related Interventions – Chaired by Alberto Voci

S3.1.1: Cultivating compassion in education across borders: The preliminary impact of implementing a compassion-based prosocial development program in schools in the United States, Colombia, and India

• Tyralynn Frazier, Emory University
  

S3.1.2: Building resilience and social-emotional competencies in elementary school students through a compassion-based SEE searning curriculum

• Hee Jung (Hyeju) Min, Dongguk University
• Sang Hee Park, Daegu Student Suicide Prevention Center, Kyungpook National University Chilgok Hospital
  

S3.1.3: For compassionate living: A scientific approach to developing an ethical socioemotional program in Brazil

• Tatiana Amato, UNIFESP
• Emérita Opaleye, NEPSIS – Núcleo de Pesquisa em Saúde e Uso de Substâncias, Department of Psychobiology, Universidade

S3.1.4: Empathetic dialogue: Lessons from cultivating compassionate communication in clinical interactions with marginalized communities

• Jessica Carrasco, Jennifer Moreno Veterans Affair Hospital
  

Session 3.2: Towards Embodied Wisdom – Chaired by Cheryl Woods-Giscombé

S3.2.1: Cultivating a grammar of non-confrontation in contemplative practice, education, and the world

• Ferdinand Von Muench, Colgate University

S3.2.2: Towards a critical mindfulness pedagogical approach to anti-racist and anti-oppressive education

• Gio Iacono, University of Connecticut
• Spencer Evans, University of Connecticut, University of Connecticut School of Social Work

S3.2.3: Embodied wisdom: Are there common categories of experience that help humans learn and point toward connection and freedom?

• Judson Brewer, Brown University
  

S3.2.4: Making sense: A contemplative quest towards an emotive epistemology

• Alberto Pulido, University of San Diego

Session 3.3: TBC – Chaired by Gábor Karsai

S3.2.1 (30 min): TBC

S3.2.2 (60 min): TBC  

Session 3.4: Mindfulness and Resilience – Chaired by Linda E. Carlson

S3.4.1: The effectiveness of a mindfulness-based intervention on the executive functions and mental health in children at a vulnerable school

• Carlos Garcia Rubio, Nirakara Lab – Complutense University of Madrid
• Catherine Andreu, University of Valencia

S3.4.2: Mindfulness and acceptance training to improve student mental health during exam period

• Karoly Schlosser, Goldsmiths, University of Lodnon
• Juanjo Macias, University of Malaga

S3.4.3: Intersubjectivity in clinically distressed families: Mindfulness and its role in connection and relationship

• Katarina Tabi, UBC; Centre for Mindfulness, Reproductive Mental Health Program, CW Hospital, BCCH Centre for Mindfulness, Reproductive Mental Health Program, The University of British Columbia; Centre for Mindfulness

S3.4.4: The effects of mindfulness based cognitive therapy on psychological distress in people with Parkinson’s disease – A randomized controlled trial

• Franziska Goltz, Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Radboudumc
• Anouk Van Der Heide, Radboud university medical centre, Department of Neurology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
  

---

16:00-16:30

Afternoon Break

---

16:30-18:00

Invited Speaker Panel 1: Embodying love – Chaired by Laura Candiotto

Laura Candiotto, University of Pardubice
Anne C. Klein, Rice University
Christian Suhr, Aarhus University
Andreas Weber, Berlin University of the Arts

---

18:00-19:00

Poster Session 1

---

Location: San Gaetano Cultural Centre

---

08:00-18:00   

Registration/Info Desk Open

---

08:00-18:00  

Meditation Room Open

---

08:30-09:00

Practice: Tibetan Buddhist Meditation

Anne C. Klein

---

09:00-10:00

Invited Speaker 2: Bret W. Davis, Loyola University – Chaired by Marcello Ghilardi

Groundless zen: On Nishitani in and beyond the embodied mind

---

10:00-10:30

Morning Break

---

10:30-11:45

Session Block 4 – Panels 

Session 4.1

S4.1.1 (55 min): Feeding your demons: An embodied practice, historical context, and contemporary research on turning towards and transforming difficult emotions

• Eve Ekman, Greater Good Science Center

S4.1.2 (20 min):

Session 4.2: Neural mechanisms of mindfulness-based interventions promoting mental health and resilience

• Guusje Collin, Radboudumc and Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior
• Clemens Bauer, Northeastern University, Department of Psychology; Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Jiahe Zhang, Northeastern University, Department of Psychology
• Ivana Buric, University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychology

Session 4.3

S4.3.1 (55 min): Cultivating humanistic education: Ongoing studies in contemplative pedagogy

• Galia Patt-Shamir, Tel Aviv University, Department of East Asian Studies, Department of Philosophy and School of Cultur
• Raquel Shaoul, TelAviv University
• Naomi Lossin, Tel Aviv University, The Mandel Center for Public Humanities, The Faculty of Humanities

S4.3.2 (20 min): Transforming empathy‐based stress to compassion: Skillful means to preventing teacher burnout

• Helen Min, University of Virginia
• Patricia Jennings, University of Virginia

Session 4.4: Relational awakening: The liberative power of spiritual friendship (kalyana mitta)

• Fabio Giommi, Nous- School of Specialization (PsyD) in Psychotherapy mindfulness-oriented, Milano
• Janet Surrey, Insight Dialogue Community
• Stefano Poletti, Stefano Poletti Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon Bron, Rhone-Alpes FRANCE
• Antonella Commellato, AIM-Associazione Italiana per la Mindfuness; Insight Dialogue Community

---

11:45-12:00

Transition

---

12:00-13:15

Session Block 5 – Panels 

Session 5.1: From mindfulness and psychedelics to nature therapy: Exploring the spectrum of integrative and contemplative interventions in oncology

• Linda Carlson, University of Calgary
• Haley Mather, University of Calgary
• Hanna Conradi, University of Calgary
• Jamie Petersson, University of Calgary

Session 5.2: Emptying ourselves, sustaining the planet: How contemplative sciences can help tackling global challenges through deconstructing the self

• Oscar Lecuona, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
• Sara De Rivas, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
• Ausias Cebolla Marti, University of València
• Raquel Rodríguez-Carvajal, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid

Session 5.3: Implementation and impact studies of a college course on human flourishing: Results from three universities across three years

• Blake Colaianne, Penn State University
• Matthew Hirshberg, University of Wisconsin Madison
• Robert Roeser, Pennsylvania State University
• Karen Inkelas, University of Virginia

Session 5.4: Capturing the ineffable: Overcoming barriers of measurement in contemplative sciences

• Oscar Lecuona, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
• Sara De Rivas, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
• Raquel Rodríguez-Carvajal, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
• Nicholas Van Dam, Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne

---

13:15-14:30

Lunch

---

14:30-16:00

Session Block 6 – Thematically Organized Individual Talk Sessions

Session 6.1: Meditation for Teachers – Chaired by Doris F. Chang

S6.1.1: Operationalizing mindful co-regulation to promote social connectedness in secondary schools

• Desiree Murray, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Rachel Mills-Brantley, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

S6.1.2: Teacher mindfulness as a collective “view,” not an individual “do”

• Rebecca Baelen, Center for Reaching and Teaching the Whole Child
• Lindsay Romano, New York University

S6.1.3: Mindfulness-informed practices for digital wellness in open, digital & distance education

• Agnieszka (Aga) Palalas, Athabasca University
• Mae Doran, Athabasca University
  

S6.1.4: Examining teachers’ uptake of mindfulness practices: Insights from CARE implementation during COVID-19

• Helen Min, University of Virginia
• Karime Cameron, University of Virginia
  

Session 6.2: Dealing with Pain – Chaired by Fadel Zeidan

S6.2.1: Neurochemical correlates of psilocybin-based therapy for chronic phantom limb pain

• Jon Dean, University of California, San Diego
• Ethan Hurwitz, UC San Diego, Department of Anesthesiology

S6.2.2: The shape of pain: Microphenomenology interviews reveal varieties of painful experience after mindful interoceptive exposure training for chronic low back pain

• Wolf Mehling, University of California San Francisco
• Rick Hecht, University of California San Francisco
  

S6.2.3: The feasibility and acceptability of integrating an online mindfulness-based stress reduction program for chronic musculoskeletal pain management within pain clinics in Australia

• Anita Barros Carlos De Amorim, The University of Sydney
• Trudy Rebbeck, The University of Sydney

S6.2.4: Novel mechanisms supporting the modulation of pain by mindfulness and placebo

• Fadel Zeidan, UC San Diego
  

Session 6.3: Contemplative Practice and Relationality – Chaired by Bret W. Davis

S6.3.1: The effect of Tibetan monastic debate on emotion regulation

• Marieke Van Vugt, University of Groningen
• Sudhakar Mishra, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur

S6.3.2: Scientist-practitioner collaborations to advance research into religious contemplative practices: The case of Hitbodedut

• Aaron Cherniak, Stockholm University
  

S6.3.3: A modal approach to cultivating intersubjective values

• Theodore Locke, University of Massachusetts Boston
  

S6.3.4: Examining the dyadic impact in daily life of individual participation in a meditation-based or an active-control well-being program

• Christopher May, University of Groningen
• Marieke Van Vugt, University of Groningen
  

Session 6.4: Arts, Embodiment and Contemplative Practice – Chaired by Laura Candiotto

S6.4.1: Contemporary art and contemplative action

• Tim Mchenry, Rubin Museum of Art
  

S6.4.2: Contemplative polyphony – Aesthetic contemplation as a conceptual leitmotiv for musical composition

• Jakob Stillmark, Zurich University of the Arts / University of Music and performing Arts Graz
  

S6.4.3: Coupling philosophical frameworks with embodied practices: Integrating body and mind, me and others, in higher education

• Chiara Robbiano, Utrecht University

S6.4.4: Body politic and the art of perception: A case study of contemplative liberal arts pedagogy in a North American public university honors college context

• Kate Mondloch, University of Oregon
  

---

16:00-16:30

Afternoon Break

---

16:30-18:00

Invited Speaker Panel 2: New models for contemplative education – Chaired by Harold D. Roth

Gábor Karsai, Dharma Gate Buddhist College
Chiara Mascarello, University of Padua; Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
Josipa Mihić, University of Zagreb
Harold D. Roth, Brown University

---

18:00-19:00

Poster Session 2

---

20:45-22:00

Concert at San Gaetano Cultural Center (TBC)

---

Location: Beato Pellegrino Complex

---

08:00-18:00

Registration/Info Desk Open

---

08:00-18:30

Meditation Room Open

---

08:30-09:00

Practice: Japanese Rinzai Zen Meditation

Bret W. Davis

---

09:00-10:00

Invited Speaker 3: Franz Vollenweider, University of Zürich – Chaired by Dave R. Vago

Neuroscientific foundations of psychedelic experience: Potential synergies with mindfulness meditation and clinical implications

---

10:00-10:30

Morning Break on your own

---

10:30-12:30

Session Block 7 – Panels   

Session 7.1 (10:30-11:30): A longitudinal study on time, space and the self in a postgraduate program in contemplative studies: Psychological, philosophical and educational insights and implications

• Chiara Mascarello, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
• Elisa Paluan, University of Padova, University of Padua
• Bianca Ventura, University of Ottawa

Session 7.2 (10:30-11:30): Self as process and its effacement: Western and Buddhist psychology views

• Fabio Giommi, Nous- School of Specialization (PsyD) in Psychotherapy mindfulness-oriented, Milano
• Shaun Gallagher, Department of Philosophy, University of Memphis, USA and SOLA, University of Wollongong, Australia
• Aviva Berkovich-Ohana, University of Haifa

Session 7.3 (10:30-11:30): Yoga for improving mental health and functioning: Relevance for contemplative states

• Sat Bir Khalsa, Harvard Medical School

Session 7.4 (10:30-12:30): Meditation and its Impacts – Thematically Organized Individual Talk Sessions – Chaired by Marieke van Vugt

S7.4.1: Floatation therapy as a gateway to improved interoception, mindfulness, and body image in anorexia nervosa

• Sahib Khalsa, Laureate Institute for Brain Research
• Emily Choquette, Laureate Institute for Brain Research

S7.4.2: Longitudinal dose-response effects for meditation on personality change

• Haisu Sun, University of Melbourne
• Nicholas Bowles, University of Melbourne
  

S7.4.3: ENIGMA-meditation: A new world-wide meditation neuroscience consortium

• Anthony King, The Ohio State University
  

S7.4.4: Do contemplative practices make us moral?

• Kevin Berryman, Monash Centre for Consciousness and Contemplative Studies, Monash University
• Jakob Hohwy, Monash Centre for Consciousness & Contemplative StudiesMelbourne, Australia

S7.4.5: Modelling the self in relation to meditation practice: Can different interdisciplinary views ever be reconciled?

• Tim Wood, University of Melbourne
• Julieta Galante, University of Melbourne
  

Session 7.5 (11:30-12:30): Beyond wellbeing: The intersection of art and technology to catalyze contemplative consciousness and deep relating

• Eve Ekman, Greater Good Science Center

Session 7.6 (11:30-12:30): Redefining resilience to end oppression and support intersectional equity and prosociality in contemplative research and praxis

• Sarina Saturn, ADVANCE Journal for Individual and Institutional Transformation for Social Justice
• Kamilah Majied, California State University, Monterey Bay
• Christa Tinari, Garrison Institute

Session 7.7 (11:30-12:30): TBC

---

12:30-14:00 

Lunch on your own

---

14:00-16:00

Session Block 8 – Thematically Organized Individual Talk Sessions

Session 8.1: Innovative Tools for Supporting Meditation – Chaired by Sahib Khalsa

S8.1.1: On becoming aware that one is dreaming: A micro-phenomenological investigation of signal-verified lucid dream experiences

• Ema Demsar, Monash University
• Mahdad Jafarzadeh Esfahani, Donders Institute for Brain, Behaviour, and Cognition, Radboudumc

S8.1.2: Lucid dreaming VR: Exploring the potential of virtual reality in fostering lucid dreaming according to Tibetan dream yoga

• Francesco Tormen, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
  

S8.1.3: Modulation of neural responses to heartbeats during a novel meditation practice targeting manipulation of bodily-self consciousness

• Hang Yang, Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuro-X Institute and Brain-Mind Institute, EPFL
• Chuong Ngo, All Here SA
  

S8.1.4: Breathing bio-feedback during meditation in virtual reality enhances meditation experience and bodily-self effects

• Monika Stasytyte, All Here SA
• Hang Yang, Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuro-X Institute and Brain-Mind Institute, EPFL
  

S8.1.5: Cultivating mental stillness: EEG-based neurofeedback training for upregulating non-harmonic alpha-theta cross-frequency interactions during focused attention meditation

• Hendrik-Jan De Vuyst, KU Leuven
• Angeliki-Ilektra Karaiskou, KU Leuven
  

Session 8.2: Pathways and Obstacles: Navigating the Path – Chaired by Chiara Mascarello

S8.2.1: How do meditators find meaning in meditation-related adverse experiences?

• Merle Kock, KU Leuven
• Tim Wood, University of Melbourne

S8.2.2: Nonlinear path or pathology? A culturally sensitive complex systems approach to meditation-related difficulties in Abrahamic traditions

• Nathan Fisher, Brown University
  

S8.2.3: A qualitative study examining the lived experiences of stress among female sexual assault survivors in an 8-week trauma-sensitive yoga intervention

• Nicole Nicotera, University of Denver
• Megan Connolly, University of Denver
  

S8.2.4: Progress in meditation practice: A Delphi consultation study with Buddhist and secular meditation teachers

• Lillian Ward, University of Melbourne
• Tim Wood, University of Melbourne
  

S8.2.5: Ananda & Sukha: Indian model of happiness & its mental health implications

• Jyotsna Agrawal, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS)
  

Session 8.3: Contemplative Pedagogies in Higher Education – Chaired by Harold D. Roth

S8.3.1: William & Mary interdisciplinary contemplative research & education – An overview

• Mark Mclaughlin, College of William and Mary
• Anne Ryan Gareis, William & Mary
  

S8.3.2: The uneven terrain of sociology’s articulations with contemplative practice, yoga and martial arts, with a proposal for a Field’s consolidation

• Michael Kennedy, Brown University
  

S8.3.3: Cultivating attention through literary engagement: Developing a mindful reading curriculum which encourages intersections between literature and contemplative practice

• Anton Krueger, Rhodes University

S8.3.4: Contemplative pedagogy, student learning and wellness, and contemporary social issues

• Judson Murray, Capital University

S8.3.5: Embodied pedagogy for emerging contemplative researchers

• Jenna Faith Mcclear, Duke University
• Shumo Wang, Duke University
  

Session 8.4: Exploring Meditation’s Impact on Brain and Cognition – Chaired by Dave R. Vago

S8.4.1: Proactive control enhances reappraisal efficacy, especially among low mindfulness individuals

• Bruna Martins-Klein, University of Southern California
• Ziyuan Chen, University of Southern California
  

S8.4.2: Mindfulness and metacognitive monitoring accuracy in young meditators compared to non-meditators

• Regula Neuenschwander, University of Bern
• Janina Eberhart, University of Tübingen
  

S8.4.3: Neural signatures of mindfulness: Decoding the transient and enduring effects of an intensive meditation retreat on brain connectivity

• Sébastien Czajko, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, INSERM, Lyon
• Arnaud Poublan-Couzardot, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, INSERM, Lyon
  

S8.4.4: Meditation engages imaging biomarkers of the neurofluid circuit (i.e., glymphatic pathways) similar to sleep and potentially different from paced breathing

• David Vago, Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School
• Manus Donahue, Vanderbilt University Medical School

S8.4.5: Evaluating the protective effects of a brief mindfulness instruction towards food cravings triggered by food Advertising

• Constanza Baquedano, Universidad Adolfo Ibañez
• Antonia Zepeda, Universidad Adolfo ibanez

---

16:00-16:30

Afternoon Break on your own

---

16:30-18:00

Invited Speaker Panel 3: Microphenomenology, contemplative practice and intersubjectivity – Chaired by Marieke van Vugt

Anne C. Klein, Rice University
Olga Klimecki, Technische Universität Dresden
Claire Petitmengin, Institut Mines-Telecom Business School
Marieke van Vugt, University of Groningen

---

18:00-18:30

Practice: Tibetan Buddhist Meditation

Ven. Losang Gendun

---

 

Location: Capitanio Palace

---

08:00-18:00

Registration/Info Desk Open

---

08:00-18:00 

Meditation Room Open

---

08:30-09:00

Practice: Mindful Embodiment Training

Harold D. Roth

---

09:00-10:00

Invited Speaker Panel 4: New paradigms for body-mind practices – Chaired by Marcello Ghilardi

Marcello Ghilardi, University of Padua
Olga Klimecki, Technische Universität Dresden
Sarah Shaw, Oxford University
Shirley Telles, Patanjali Research Foundation

---

10:00-10:30

Morning Break on your own

---

10:30-12:30

Session Block 9 – Thematically Organized Individual Talk Sessions

Session 9.1: Contemplation within Religious Traditions – Chaired by Harold D. Roth

S9.1.1: Looking within: Contemplation and body cultivation in early China

• Christopher Yang, Brown University

S9.1.2: The scope of transformation in Daoist practice

• Larson Di Fiori, Brown University

S9.1.3: Active while in contemplation: The integration of contemplative and active life in the Christian tradition

• Daniele Gunetti, University of Turin

S9.1.4: “You have no need to travel anywhere – journey within yourself” making space for Sufism in contemplative research

• Andrea Pintimalli, University of Padova

S9.1.5: Christian apophatic Ttadition in the Latin Catholic church and contemplative studies

• Rossano Zas Friz, Santa Clara University

Session 9.2: Contemplation and the Environment – Chaired by Chiara Mascarello

S9.2.1: Contemplative ecological educational practices from ancient India

• Pooja Sahni, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

S9.2.2: Psychedelics and environmental virtues

• Nin Kirkham, The University of Western Australia
• Chris Letheby, The University of Western Australia

S9.2.3: The path of the Ecosattva in uncertain times

• Karsten Struhl, New School for Public Engagement

S9.2.4: Opening (to) the sacred: The ecology of contemplation in the Tibetan treasure tradition

• Oriane Lavole, Stanford University

Session 9.3: Meditation at the Edge: Exploring Consciousness – Chaired by Francesco Tormen

S9.3.1: Beyond “mindfulness” and toward a science of advanced meditation: Neurophenomenological investigations of absorption and cessation

• Matthew Sacchet, Harvard Medical School / Massachusetts General Hospital

S9.3.2: Meditation Beyond Relaxation: Wakeful alertness, alpha suppression and peak meditative states studied in a meditation expert

• Chuong Ngo, All Here SA
• Hang Yang, Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuro-X Institute and Brain-Mind Institute, EPFL

S9.3.3: Cessations of consciousness during meditation

• Ruben Laukkonen, Southern Cross University
• Heleen Slagter, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

S9.3.4: Meditators’ brains show an acceptance of death which predicts positively-valenced self-dissolution experiences

• Yair Dor Ziderman, University of Haifa
• Aviva Berkovich-Ohana, University of Haifa

S9.3.5: The contemplative practice involved in Thukdam: A post-clinical death meditation observed among certain Tibetan monks

• Tenzin Bhuchung, Princeton University

Session 9.4: The Challenges of Measuring Compassion – Chaired by Dave R. Vago

S9.4.1: Unraveling the science of Tonglen meditation: A psychophysiological study of active compassion in healthcare professionals

• Catherine Andreu, University of Valencia
• Joana Vidal, University of Valencia

S9.4.2: “Ready to help, no matter what you did”: Responsibility attribution and compassion in expert Buddhist practitioners

• Enrico Fucci, Institute for Globally Distributed Open Research and Education (IGDORE)
• Oussama Abdoun, INSERM – Centre de Recherches en Neurosciences de Lyon

S9.4.3: The quality of practice matters: Exploring the effect of Tonglen meditation practice in daily life

• Aida Palacios, Instituto del Polibienestar, Universidad de Valencia
• Desirée Colombo, Department of Basic Psychology, Clinic and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I (Spain)

S9.4.4: Challenges of measuring and conceptualizing self-compassion among Tibetan population

• Tenzin Sonam, Emory University
• Shawn Chen, Emory University

S9.4.5: We are in this together: Ascetic practice and cultivating compassion in Nyungne retreat

• Renee Ford, Aarhus University

---

12:30-13:00

Closing Session

---

13:00-14:30

Lunch on your own

---

14:30-16:00

Post-Conference Workshops

Workshop 1: Anthropology of and from the heart

Christian Suhr, Aarhus University

Workshop 2: How do we measure the effects of contemplative practices on mind, brain and body?

David Vago, Virginia University
Marieke van Vugt, University of Groningen

Workshop 3: Frontiers in contemplative education: Where do we go from here?

Chiara Mascarello, University of Padua; Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
Josipa Mihić, University of Zagreb
Robert W. Roeser, Pennsylvania State University
Harold D. Roth, Brown University

---

16:00-16:30

Afternoon Break on your own

---

16:30-18:00

Post-Conference Workshops

Workshop 4: “The Elephant in the Room” – Do Contemplative researchers need their own contemplative practice?

Harold D. Roth, Brown University
Marieke van Vugt, University of Groningen

Workshop 5: Contemplative practices in liberatory mentorship and leadership

Doris F. Chang, New York University Silver School
Cheryl Woods-Giscombé, University of North Carolina School of Nursing
Ram Mahalingam, University of Michigan
Kamilah Majied, California State University, Monterey Bay
Felipe Mercado, California State University, Fresno

Workshop 6: Integrating contemplative practices with psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy research: Methodology, best practices and ethics

Aviva Berkovich-Ohana & Yair Dor-Ziderman, University of Haifa
Rael Cahn, University of Southern California
Linda E. Carlson, University of Calgary
Franz Vollenweider, University of Zurich

---