Serene Singh is a Rhodes Scholar pursuing a Doctoral degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Oxford. Her research centers on the experiences of women on death row in the United States, focusing on topics of femininity, gender identity, and life in confinement. With a commitment to understanding their material realities, Singh aims to contribute to academic knowledge and recommend reforms for this marginalized population.
Singh’s dedication to women’s rights and justice system improvement is exemplified by her nonprofit work, empowering women to build confidence and raise their voices. She holds a Master’s postgraduate degree in Public Policy from Oxford, where she was the youngest student in a global cohort. As a Truman Scholar, Fulbright recipient, and Boettcher Scholar, Singh graduated with Summa Cum Laude honors in Political Science and Journalism from the University of Colorado, with a minor in Leadership Studies.
Outside of academia, Singh has made significant contributions to youth development and social impact causes. Serving as a Dalai Lama Fellow and a project development coach for the Renee Crown Wellness Institute, she provides one-on-one support to fellows in ideating, designing, and executing their passion projects for global change. Singh’s accomplishments include winning the title of National All-American Miss 2020-2023, authoring the acclaimed children’s book “The Queen Machine,” and establishing The Serenity Project, a 501c3 nonprofit focused on empowering marginalized women through fashion shows and confidence coaching. She has also collaborated with Mrs. Obama and the Girls Opportunity Alliance, advocating for girls’ education. Singh’s dedication to challenging stereotypes and promoting diversity is evident in her historic Sikh advocacy efforts at the University of Oxford, where she organized the first Sikh Langar and invited the first turbaned Sikh speaker to the Oxford Union.
Serene hopes to propel her extensive academic background, research focus on women on death row, dedication to advocacy, and involvement in impactful initiatives to pursue a career in justice and civil rights in the United States upon completing her Ph.D. from Oxford University.
Rahma Muhammad Mian is a yogi and academic. She teaches critical media and cultural studies to undergraduates at the Social Sciences and Liberal Arts program at IBA, Karachi. Rahma has over 14 years of experience working in journalism, communications strategy, and media development. From 2003-2012 she was an editor, reporter, and producer for some of Pakistan’s leading news organizations. She has also developed and implemented communication strategy for Unicef’s polio program in Sindh and for Aga Khan University’s examination board nationally. In media development, Rahma’s work has focused on media ethics, civic, and news technology. From 2012-2016, Rahma created, managed, and led programs focusing on media advocacy and public education, open data journalism, news technology, civic technology, and open government. She developed media and technology curricula, data driven media projects, and lead collaborations and partnerships between media organizations, government, universities and development organizations.
Rahma also works as a somatic therapist and yoga teacher. Rahma’s trauma and chronic pain focused body and breathwork practice is grounded in her Vipassana and Brahmavihara practice. Beginning in 2015, she has sat Vipassana retreats in Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Burma and US, learning from monastics and teachersrooted in the Theravada tradition.
Rahma is trained in Ihsaas, a trauma-informed, somatic healing programme designed primarily for Muslim women as well as western trauma and somatic focused trainings. She is also trained in Hatha yoga (RYT-200) from South India and practices Qi Gong and Reiki.
An active part of the local wellness and Vipassana community, Rahma is one of the co-founders of Karachi Sangha, and the annual Karachi Wellness Festival.
Ann Friedman, Ph.D., a psychologist, is the Director of Curriculum for the Mind Body Spirit Institute of The Jung Center of Houston. Ann received her Certification in Mindfulness Facilitation from the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA in 2015, and her Certification in Cognitively Based Compassion Training from the Center for Contemplative Studies and Compassion Based Ethics at Emory University. She has also completed courses for children and teens through Mindful Schools, A Still Quiet Place and .b. She is a Certified Clinicial Trauma Professional (CCTP).
Ann teaches mindfulness to adults and youth individually and through class as The Jung Center, at The Houston Health Museum, and Rothko Chapel. She provides trainings for businesses, nonprofits, schools, and accounting and law firms internationally. She taught across Southeast Texas following Hurricane Harvey and was sent by UNICEF and Mental Health America of Greater Houston to Florida and Puerto Rico following hurricanes. Ann taught in a middle school in Oklahoma through HealthCorps.
She has worked with various trauma groups, including Afghan refugee women through Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston (2022-23) and homeless youth at Covenant House through a study of the University of Texas Nursing School (2020-2023).
For ten years, Ann served as Adjunct Professor in the U.H. Counseling Psychology Graduate Program. She holds both a Doctorate in Counseling Psychology and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from U.H. She completed her Internship in Clinical Psychology at U.T. Medical School and her Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Clinical Neuropsychology at Baylor College of Medicine.
An active community volunteer, Ann is married to attorney J. Kent Friedman. They have five children and eight grandchildren. Ann loves to spend her time in nature and to read.
Biljana Pesheva is the Founder and Executive Director of the Association of Citizens SUNA Healthy LIFE in Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia. As a nationally qualified adult trainer
under North Macedonian law for education, she has extensive experience in the psychological direction of transactional analysis, with over 600 working hours of training domestically and internationally. Biljana specializes in training individuals and organizations to improve intellectual and interpersonal skills.
Biljana is also a certified “Holistic Health and Wellness Coach,” possessing in-depth knowledge of a holistic approach to personal well-being. With over 30 years of practice in classical yoga, meditation, and breathing techniques from the Bihar School of India, the Sathya Sai Organization, and the Art of Living, she has led various projects and humanitarian events aimed at implementing five human values.
In 2014 Biljana established the Healthy Life Skills & Healthy Yoga brand in North Macedonia, through which she conducts seminars, retreats, active vacations, training sessions, and classes aimed at reducing stress and tension using a comprehensive holistic approach. She is the author and creator of several programs, including “Healthy ME – Mental wellbeing for youth”, “Conscious Health,” “Create a New Image for Yourself,” “Move with Ease,” “Learn How to Increase Your Self-Confidence,” “Release from Suppressed Emotions,” “Cycle of Spiritual Workshops,” “Mental and Emotional Healing,” and “Learn How to Achieve Your Goal.” She also leads regular challenges designed to foster mental and emotional maturation and transformation.
With a focus on supporting women and youth who feel stuck in life and need encouragement for personal transformation, Biljana has organized eighteen active yoga retreats and numerous seminars for the development of soft skills in professional settings. Her dedication to mental and emotional purity and clarity guides her work and personal life. Outside of her professional endeavors, Biljana is a mother of two children, a dog owner, and an avid lover of mountains and nature.
Web page www.healthylifeskills.mk
Contact mail unamkd@gmail.com
With the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022, I initiated the process of uniting the Ukrainian community of mindfulness instructors and facilitated its dialogue with the global community of mindfulness teachers, which led to wider networking and various collaborations.
Starting in March 2022, for about a year and a half, I held open weekly online support groups for my fellow citizens inside the country and in refugee status, teaching everyone the basics of emotional intelligence, mindfulness and other simple self-regulation techniques. I also conducted several special courses on mindfulness for volunteers in two youth NGOs and for psychologists working at a hotline for military families.
I am an MBAT trainer and a representative in Ukraine, now focusing all my efforts on bringing mindfulness training to those who face the most difficult challenges: military personnel and their families, military psychologists, policemen, rescuers, combat medics, etc.
Liz Grant is one of the Assistant Principals ( Presidents) of the University of Edinburgh with a remit for global health, Professor of Global Health and Development, Director of the Global Compassion Initiative and the Compassion Lab at the University’s Edinburgh Futures Institute. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE), and the UK Royal Society of Arts. She is Deputy Dean International for the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh (RCPE).
Suzanne Bond is President of the Mind & Life Institute, assuming her role in March 2024. Throughout her career, Suzanne has worked across non-profit, corporate, and public sector organizations, applying her skills in organizational development to benefit the lives of the world’s most vulnerable people. With proven strategic acumen, she has served as an advisor to the White House, Congress, the State Department, non-profits, Fortune 100 companies, the UN, and governments worldwide. She has coached CEOs, prime ministers, cabinets, and boards seeking to navigate complex change.
For 19 years, Suzanne lived abroad, leading international development initiatives in dozens of countries, including lengthy engagements in Bhutan, Kenya, Thailand, and South Sudan. Prior to joining Mind & Life, she was Vice President of Programs for an international development firm, where she drove strategy and met revenue, new business, client satisfaction, and employee engagement goals. Previously, she worked with world-class management consulting firms such as Deloitte and Accenture.
Suzanne is a certified mindfulness meditation teacher and devoted contemplative practitioner. She lives just outside of Washington, DC and loves hiking, games, high adventure travel, and spending time with friends and her two grown children.
Rabbi Geoffrey A. Mitelman is the Founding Director of Sinai and Synapses, an organization that bridges the scientific and religious worlds, and is being incubated at Clal – The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership.
His work has been supported by multiple foundations, including the John Templeton Foundation, and his writings about the intersection of religion and science have been published in the books Seven Days, Many Voices and A Life of Meaning, as well as on The Huffington Post, Nautilus, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, and My Jewish Learning. He has been an adjunct professor at both the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion and the Academy for Jewish Religion, and is an internationally sought-out teacher, presenter, and scholar-in-residence.
From 2007 to 2014, he served as Assistant and then Associate Rabbi of Temple Beth El of Northern Westchester, and he appeared on Jeopardy! in March 2016, and lives in Westchester County with his wife Heather Stoltz, a fiber artist, with their daughter and son.
