Aimon Kopera MD is a trailblazing authority in exploratory medicine, with a career spanning over thirty years from emergency medicine to energy medicine, ethnobotany, and plant medicine. She is recognized as Thailand’s leading authority in psychedelic studies and is a prominent figure in the fields of consciousness and psycho-spiritual health. A lifelong practitioner of Vajrayana Buddhist traditions, Aimon's early career included pivotal roles on the United Nations medical team, where she addressed global societal impacts. As a certified MAPS Psychedelic Assisted Therapist, she conducts lectures worldwide and collaborates with the Thai government on Mindfulness and Psychedelics research. She is also the author of the bestselling book, "The Exploratory Mind."

Lisa Kring is an LCSW (MSW- USC), and a committed practitioner of mindfulness meditation in the Theravada tradition for over 20 years, and a mindfulness teacher for over 15 years.  She began practicing studying clinically with Dan Siegel, which led to initial mindfulness training at MARC/UCLA with Diana Winston.  Presently, teaches classes of all kinds, such as Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, Awakening Joy and Mindful Self Compassion, at InsightLA in Los Angeles.  She has studied and practiced with Jon Kabat-Zinn, Joseph Goldstein, Sally and Guy Armstrong, Ven Analayo, Philip Moffitt, among others, and received teacher lineage transmission/authorization from Jack Kornfield in 2017.  Lisa also facilitated groups and classes with people touched by cancer for over ten years at the SIMMS/MANN Center for Integrative Oncology at UCLA and the Benjamin Center Cancer Support Community in Santa Monica.  Her teaching as led her to mindfulness trainings in corporate settings, such as William [...]

Maja Matarić is the Chan Soon-Shiong Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, with appointments in Neuroscience, and Pediatrics at the University of Southern California (USC), and founding director of the USC Robotics and Autonomous Systems Center. Her PhD and MS are from MIT, and her BS is from the University of Kansas. She is Fellow of AAAS, IEEE, AAAI, and ACM, recipient of the US Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics & Engineering Mentoring (from President Obama), Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision for Innovation, NSF Career, MIT TR35 Innovation, and IEEE RAS Early Career Awards, and authored the popular textbook "The Robotics Primer" (MIT Press). She leads the USC Viterbi K-12 STEM Center and actively mentors and empowers K-12 students, women. and other underrepresented groups toward pursuing STEM careers. Her university leadership experience includes serving as vice president of research (2020-21) and as vice dean of research in engineering (2006-19).  A [...]

Alex Maizuss is a globally recognized Mindfulness Intervention Expert who works with individuals and groups in English and Spanish. She is certified in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindful Performance Enhancement, Awareness & Knowledge (mPEAK) through the University of San Diego (UCSD). She is characterized by her sharp attention, deep curiosity, humble presence, kind sense of humor and natural friendliness. In 1996, Alex began practicing meditation and yoga which helped her cope with the daily stress of life and the high demands of working as a software engineer in the aerospace industry. Her work as a mindfulness performance coach for the entertainment industry has allowed her to witness the impact of performance anxiety and stress. Alex is the first program manager for USC Center for Mindfulness Science and her meditations are currently featured in MindfulUSC and Mindful Magazine. She teaches MBSR and mPEAK at InsightLA.org and supports a global community through YourMindfulTribe.org. [...]

Eric R. Pedersen is an associate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences in the Keck School of Medicine at USC. His research interests are primarily in the areas of young adult/adolescent alcohol use and co-occurring mental health disorders. Dr. Pedersen has received funding to develop brief, online interventions to reduce alcohol misuse among young adult populations such as college students and recently discharged veterans. He is interested in finding ways to target comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and substance use disorders among young adults, as well as in using internet-based methods to help reduce alcohol misuse and promote treatment engagement among non-treatment-seeking young adults. He is currently funded by NIAAA with Dr. Jordan Davis to conduct a pilot randomized controlled trial of the VA's Mindfulness Coach mobile app with veterans experiencing PTSD and alcohol use disorder.

Deborah earned her doctorate degree at Saint Louis University with post-doc at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she conducted research on adult development. She is a teaching professor at the Price School of Public Policy, directs the professional doctorate program, and serves on the Board of Directors of the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy, and Ethics at the Gould School of Law. Through collecting the personal stories and lived realities of "leaders," Deborah's scholarship integrates psychoanalytic and neuroscience principles in the design of curriculum to support student well-being and mental complexity, ultimately expanding collective consciousness and social accountability.