Elif Shafak is an award-winning British Turkish novelist. She has published 19 books, 12 of which are novels. She is a
bestselling author in many countries around the world and her work has been translated into 55 languages. Her latest novel
10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and RSL Ondaatje Prize; and was Blackwell’s
Book of the Year. The Forty Rules of Love was chosen by BBC among the 100 Novels that Shaped Our World. The Architect’s
Apprentice was chosen for the Duchess of Cornwall’s inaugural book club, The Reading Room. Shafak holds a PhD in political
science and she has taught at various universities in Turkey, the US, and the UK, including St Anne’s College, Oxford
University, where she is an honorary fellow. She also holds a Doctorate of Humane Letters from Bard College.
Dr. David Surrenda is a pioneer in the study of human consciousness. As founder and dean of the Graduate School of Consciousness Studies at John F. Kennedy University, the first accredited graduate school of its kind in the world, he developed nine unique master’s degree programs as well as spearheaded the development of research and counseling centers. These programs have graduated over 10,000 students and were the forerunner to the current efforts in Integrative Health. He supervised 31 faculty and over 600 graduate students. He was appointed to teach within four separate university departments: Management, Psychology, Liberal Arts, and Holistic Studies. He has taught in ten colleges.
Sharon Salzberg is a meditation pioneer and industry leader, a world-renowned teacher, and New York Times bestselling author. As one of the first to bring meditation and mindfulness into mainstream American culture over 45 years ago, her relatable, demystifying approach has inspired generations of meditation teachers and wellness influencers. Sharon is cofounder of The Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, and the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestseller Real Happiness, now in its second edition; her seminal work, Lovingkindness; and her newest book, Real Change: Mindfulness To Heal Ourselves and the World, released in September of 2020 from Flatiron Books. Sharon’s secular, modern approach to Buddhist teachings is sought after at schools, conferences, and retreat centers worldwide. Her podcast, The Metta Hour, has amassed over 3 million downloads and features interviews with the top leaders and thinkers of the mindfulness movement and beyond. Sharon’s writing can be found on Medium, On Being, the Maria Shriver blog, and Huffington Post.
Fariha Róisín is a multidisciplinary artist, born in Ontario, Canada. She was raised in Sydney, Australia, and is based in Brooklyn, New York. As a Muslim queer Bangladeshi, she is interested in the margins, in liminality, otherness and the mercurial nature of being. Her work has pioneered a refreshing and renewed conversation about wellness, contemporary Islam and queer identities and has been featured in the New York Times, Al Jazeera, The Guardian, and Vogue. She is the author of the poetry collection How To Cure A Ghost (2019), as well as the novel Like A Bird (2020). Her upcoming work is a book of nonfiction entitled Who Is Wellness For? out spring 2022, her second book of poetry is entitled Survival Takes a Wild Imagination.
When she was eight years old, the Reverand Dr. Jacqui Lewis hid under her bed as bullets flew in her Chicago neighborhood following the assassination of the Reverand Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In that moment, she felt called to work for racial equality in the United States.
Ted Bunch is an author, educator, activist, and lecturer working to advance gender and racial justice and create a more equitable society. Bunch is Chief Development Officer of A Call to Men and is internationally recognized for his efforts to prevent violence against women while promoting a healthy, respectful manhood. He is a leading voice on issues of manhood, male socialization, promoting healthy manhood/masculinity, preventing violence against all women and girls, diversity, equity and inclusion, and promoting gender and racial equity.
