Join leading experts for dynamic conversations about yoga, COVID-19, and the future of healthcare.
Learn what 30+ experts across the disciplinary spectrum — including medicine, public health, and therapeutic yoga — have discovered about how yoga can enhance resilience and bolster healthcare systems burdened by the COVID-19 crisis. Join this international effort to foster collaboration, disseminate findings, and amplify our collective understanding of this critically important topic.
This virtual symposium will feature the newest research in this field, as well as panel discussions and experiential presentations to translate academic findings into your teaching and practice. Whether you’re a yoga professional seeking tools to assist your students or a healthcare provider aiming to integrate yoga in the continuum of care, you will come away with vital resources for yourself and your clients.
Discover how you can make a difference in your community and join a global network working together to transform lives.
In this virtual symposium, you’ll learn:
- What research tells us about the biological, psychological, and social impact of COVID-19 on individuals and communities.
- Why yoga is uniquely suited to mitigate these complex issues, and how yoga and healthcare professionals can collaborate to improve health outcomes
- Examples of therapeutic yoga practices specifically designed to address symptoms of Long COVID, as well as the mental health crisis, and ease the negative effects of social isolation.
- Key insights from individuals experiencing Long COVID, which can inform a safe and supportive practice for this population, while highlighting potential risks.
- How the pandemic has worsened existing health inequalities, and the role yoga can play in making a difference.
- Simple yoga practices that can support individual self-care and provide health professionals with accessible tools they can offer to patients struggling with anxiety, depression, and breathlessness.
- How restorative practices can assist healthcare workers experiencing fatigue, emotional stress, and burn-out.
- How yoga and health professionals can collaborate to transform public health policy, with the aim of integrating yoga in National COVID-Recovery Plans.
Our Presenters
Adrian James, MD
Adrian James, MD
President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
Akshay Anand, PhD
Dr. Akshay Anand works as Professor at Neuroscience Research Lab, Department of Neurology and Head, Centre for Mind Body Medicine, PGIMER, Chandigarh. He is Adjunct Professor, Panjab University, Chandigarh and Editor in Chief of Annals of Neurosciences and Integrative Medicine Case Reports and former EIC of Integrative Medicine International. He has 202 publications in International peer reviewed Journals. He has mentored 14 PhD students and completed 20 research grants. His research interests range from understanding of neuronal cell survival mechanisms using invitro, invivo, genetic and alternative approaches (mindfulness techniques) to discovering biomarkers of Neuro degenerative disorders for clinical applications.
Akshay Anand, PhD
Center for Mind body Medicine
Amit Bhargava, MD
Amit Bhargava, MD
College of Medicine
Baxter Bell, MD, C-IAYT
Baxter Bell, MD, C-IAYT
Yoga Therapist & Medical Acupuncturist
Charlotte Watts, 500RYT SYT
Charlotte Watts has been teaching yoga since 2009, with a focus on embodiment in her mindful and somatic classes, workshops and retreats. She runs courses specifically for yoga teachers to bring therapeutic somatic practices into their resources and teaching, as well as specialised courses for digestive health, immune and respiratory health, and stress, burnout and fatigue.
Charlotte has published many books, including Yoga Therapy for Digestive Health (Singing Dragon, 2018), Good Mood Food (Nourish, 2018) and The De-Stress Effect (2015). She is also an award-winning nutritionist, practising since 2000 and specialising in stress-related and fatigue conditions, burnout, and digestive issues.
Charlotte Watts, 500RYT SYT
Yoga teacher, nutritionist, and author
Chelsea Roff, C-IAYT
Chelsea Roff, C-IAYT, is the Founder and Director of Eat Breathe Thrive, a nonprofit organization that helps people overcome eating disorders. A yoga therapist, educator, and research collaborator, she has spent the better part of a decade working to make integrative health programmes available to people with mental illness. Prior to her work in the charitable sector, Chelsea worked as a researcher in psychoneuroimmunology, with a focus on yoga as a complementary treatment for breast cancer and HIV/AIDS. She is currently overseeing a research initiative, which includes two randomized controlled trials, on a manualized yoga program for eating disorder recovery.
Chelsea Roff, C-IAYT
Founder of Eat Breathe Thrive
Jennifer Webb, PhD
Jennifer B. Webb is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological Science and the Health Psychology Ph.D. Program at UNC Charlotte. She is a clinical health psychologist whose research program is informed by a non-dieting, weight-neutral philosophy on health promotion in culturally- and body-diverse groups. Her work emphasizes enhancing the integration, dissemination, and accessibility of evidence-based mind-body approaches (e.g., yoga, self-compassion, mindful and intuitive eating, mindful self-care, etc.). Through these initiatives, she helps strengthen embodied self-regulation, positive body image, and well-being among women during the developmental transitions of young adulthood, pregnancy, and postpartum.
Jennifer Webb, PhD
UNC Charlotte
Josefin Wikström, TCTSY-F, E-RYT 500
Josefin Wikström, E-RYT 500
Prison Yoga Project
Jyoti Jo Manuel
Jyoti Jo Manuel
Founder of Special Yoga
Julie Gayer Kris
Julie Gayer Kris
AVI® Viniyoga Instructor & Thai Yoga Therapist
Matthew J. Taylor, PT, PhD, C-IAYT
Dr. Matthew J. Taylor, PT, PhD, C-IAYT has been a leader in integrative rehabilitation for 40+ years. His clinical practice as both a physio therapist and yoga therapist, along with his leadership in developing the professional standards of the International Association of Yoga Therapists laid the foundation for his policy work at the Integrative Health Policy Consortium and his joint venture in integrative rehab with a large US health insurer. He’s the editor of the textbook “Fostering Creativity in Rehabilitation” as well as an expert legal witness in yoga injuries.
Matthew J. Taylor, PT, PhD, C-IAYT
SmartSafe Yoga
Kate Mulligan, PhD
Kate Mulligan, PhD
Dalla Lana School of Public Health
Lord Clive Brooke
Lord Clive Brooke is a Labour Peer Member of the House of Lords: the UK’s second parliamentary chamber. He was appointed by Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1997. Prior to that, he spent most of his working life as a Civil Service trade unionist. His focus in the Lords is on public health and well-being. Lord Brooke specialises in health, concerns related to alcohol, drugs, sugar, and obesity. A deep interest in well-being has led him to explore yoga, mindfulness, spirituality. He is a supporter of the 12-Steps Recovery Programme from Addictions and interested in mind-body solutions for treating addictions.
Lord Clive Brooke
House of Lords
Damien Ridge, PhD
Damien is Professor of Health Studies, as well as Research Director in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Westminster. His research fleshed out for the first time what recovery from depression entailed for patients, and was subsequently adopted by the National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on the treatment and management of depression in adults in the UK (2010). He is currently a co-investigator on a NIHR £2.4 million RCT designed to study the value of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) in diverse populations following cancer treatment. twitter.com/damienridge
Damien Ridge, PhD
University of Westminster
David Peters MB ChB DRCOG DMSMed FLCOM
Professor David Peters is an Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Westminster. The Centre for Resilience researches ways of measuring resilience, and improving it through lifestyle change, biofeedback, mindfulness, positive emotion, and self-care. The centre’s seminars and retreats (in collaboration with Guys and St Thomas) focus on doctors’ wellbeing and the impact of ‘nature connectedness.’ Since the early 1990s, David Peters has led a series of projects bringing non-drug treatments (including osteopathy and acupuncture) into the NHS. He is also the Editor in Chief of the Journal of Holistic Healthcare. www.bhma.org/pages/journal.php
David Peters MB ChB DRCOG DMSMed FLCOM
University of Westminster
Deepak Chopra, MD, FACP
Deepak Chopra, MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a non-profit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a whole health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 91 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. His 90th book and national bestseller, Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential (Harmony Books), unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. For the last thirty years, Chopra has been at the forefront of the meditation revolution and his latest book, Total Meditation (Harmony Books, September 22, 2020) helps to achieve new dimensions of stress-free living and joyful living. TIME magazine has described Dr. Chopra as “one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.” www.deepakchopra.com
Deepak Chopra, MD, FACP
Chopra Global and The Chopra Foundation
Eddie Stern
Eddie Stern is a yoga instructor, author, and researcher from NYC. He has written yoga protocols for published scientific research studies, and public education health and wellness curriculums that have been used in over 150 schools across the United States for both students and educators. He serves on the boards of several non-profits including LIFE Camp, Urban Yogis, and Black Yoga Teachers Alliance, and is the co-creator of the International Yoga and Science Conference with Dr. Marshall Hagins. www.eddiestern.com
Eddie Stern
NYC Yoga Teacher, Author, and Researcher
Fiona Agombar
Fiona is a yoga therapist in the Krishnamacharya Tradition and is accredited as an advanced teacher with the British Wheel of Yoga. She specialises in yoga for fatigue conditions, including CFS/ME, burnout and Long COVID. Fiona set up teaching modules on fatigue for Yoga Campus and the BWY. She contributed to the British Council of Yoga Therapy guidelines for teaching those with Long COVID. She runs classes for those with fatigue and has referrals for long-Covid from a major hospital in the UK. Fiona is the author of Beat Fatigue with Yoga and Yoga Therapy for Stress, Burnout and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. www.fionaagombar.co.uk
Fiona Agombar
Leading Yoga Therapist on Fatigue Conditions
B.N. Gangadhar, MD
B.N. Gangadhar, MD
National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences
Heather Mason, MA, RYT-500, C-IAYT
Heather Mason is the Founder of the Minded Institute, a leading yoga therapy training school in the UK, and the Yoga in Health Care Alliance. Committed to bringing yoga into health systems, she has also taught in medical schools, educating future doctors in integrating yoga into treatment, and continues to lecture at various universities on this topic. Heather is the secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Yoga in Society in the UK. She is an RYT-500 and C-IAYT; holds MAs in psychotherapy and Buddhist Studies and an MS in Medical Physiology; and has done extensive study in neuroscience. www.themindedinstitute.com
Heather Mason, MA, RYT-500, C-IAYT
Minded Institute and YIHA
Ian Baker, PhD
Ian Baker, PhD
Cultural Historian and Author
Ingrid Yang, MD, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT
Ingrid Yang is an internal medicine physician, yoga therapist, and published author. She has been teaching yoga for over 20 years and is the author of the books Adaptive Yoga and Hatha Yoga Asanas. Dr. Yang leads trainings and retreats all over the world, with a special focus on kinesthetic physiology and healing through breathwork, meditation, and mind-body connection. www.ingridyang.com
Ingrid Yang, MD, C-IAYT
Physician & Expert in Yoga Therapy for Covid
James Marzolf, MD
James Marzolf, MD
Whole Health Institute
Jayagopal Parla, MD(Ayu), C-IAYT
Professor Jayagopal Parla is an internationally known speaker, educator, and practitioner of Ayurvedic medicine and yoga with extensive clinical, and teaching experience. Professor Parla holds a Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) from Bangalore University, India, and a master’s degree in Ayurvedic medicine from Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, India. He is a certified yoga therapist and Founder and Director of Athreya Ayurvedic Integrative Health Center, in Long Beach, California. He also teaches at Southern California University of Health Sciences, Mount Madonna College of Ayurveda, and serves as a visiting faculty member at the Japan School of Ayurvedic Medicine. www.athreyaayurveda.com
Jayagopal Parla, MD(Ayu)
Athreya Ayurvedic Integrative Health Center
Melissa Wickremasinghe, MD
Dr. Wickremasinghe is a Consultant Respiratory Physician specialising in Interstitial lung disease (ILD), also known as lung fibrosis, at St Mary’s Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (ICHNT). She trained in respiratory medicine at the Royal Brompton Hospital and completed her PhD on respiratory immunology at the Hammersmith Hospital. She is a personalised care lead for London and a British Thoracic Society ILD committee member, and as well as the Transformation Chief Clinical information officer at ICHNT. Her interests are in supporting self-care management using digital platforms, social prescribing, yoga for lung fibrosis, remote monitoring for ILD, and staff wellbeing through music.
Melissa Wickremasinghe, MD
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
Michael Dixon, MD
Dr. Michael Dixon is a GP and Chairs the Institute for Social Prescription as well as being Chairman of the College of Medicine. Michael was previously Chair of NHSAlliance and government advisor on GP commissioning. Michael is a strong advocate of preventative medicine, healthy living and integrated care. Its philosophy is to help patients keep well instead of waiting until they are sick before helping them. It is demonstrated by his Devon GP practice with its low referral rates and high scores on all performance indicators. He is visiting Professor at University College London and at the University of Westminster.
Michael Dixon, MD
College of Medicine
Michael Lee, MA, C-IAYT
Michael Lee, MA, C-IAYT, is the Founder of Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, a psycho-emotional focused and IAYT-Accredited Program. Michael’s keynote presentations include the IYTA Conference in Singapore, IAYT Conference, Yoga Journal Conferences, Family Therapy Networker, Yoga Australia, Japan Yoga Therapy Conference, and Global Consortium on Yoga Therapy. Michael is the author of two books, a contributing author to several yoga therapy texts, and the author of many articles in the yoga therapy and psychotherapy arena. Michael offers programs for therapists and yoga professionals wanting to apply a yoga-based embodied mindfulness approach to life transformation. pryt.com
Michael Lee MA, C-IAYT
Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy
Nikki Jackson
Nikki Jackson
Yoga Therapist and Occupational Therapist
Nina Smyth, PhD
Nina Smyth is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Westminster. Her research focuses on the role of cortisol circadian patterns linking stress, mental/physical health. Nina is interested in designing and evaluating strategies to prevent and/or reverse the negative impact of stress on health. Some of her research examines the role of physical activity, contact with nature, green exercise (i.e. physical activity in green space) in restoring cortisol circadian patterns, which are essential for healthy functioning.
Nina Smyth, PhD
University of Westminster
Patricia Gerbarg, MD
Dr. Patricia Gerbarg, assistant clinical professor in psychiatry at NY Medical College, graduated Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Psychiatry Residency, and the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute. Dr. Gerbarg is Vice-Chair of the APA Caucus on CAIM in Psychiatry. She and Dr. Brown created Breath-Body-Mind programs, starting with First Responders and others affected by the 2001 World Trade Center attacks. Their award-winning books include: The Healing Power of the Breath, Non-Drug Treatments for ADHD, and (with Dr. Phillip Muskin) How to Use Herbs, Nutrients, and Yoga in Mental Health and Complementary and Integrative Treatments in Psychiatric Practice (American Psychiatric Association Publishing, 2017). www.breath-body-mind.com
Patricia Gerbarg, MD
BREATH-BODY-MIND™
Patrick McKeown, MA
Patrick McKeown is founder and Clinical Director of Buteyko Clinic International and author of The Oxygen Advantage. He is a world renowned authority on the breath, offering training courses across the globe. Over the past two decades, he has worked with thousands of clients, including elite military special forces (SWAT), Olympic coaches, and athletes. Patrick’s research appears in international medical journals and he has published over seven books specifically on the breath. The Breathing Cure (2021), his latest, features functional breathing exercises for women’s health, sleep, anxiety, Long COVID, epilepsy, diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, and exercise. www.buteykoclinic.com
Patrick McKeown, MA
Founder of Buteyko Clinic International
Priya Verma, C-IAYT, PA-C
Priya Verma has been a Certified Yoga Therapist and Physician Assistant for over 20 years, and a care provider for COVID patients on the frontline. She has pioneered integration of trauma-informed Yoga Therapy into a traditional medical model of care, specializing in non-pharmacologic pain management. She has taught yoga in corporate, studio, hospital, and school- settings. She offers a Clinical Resiliency Program providing self-care practices for clinicians and healthcare workers across the spectrum. Priya lectures globally on the incorporation of the indigenous wisdom practices of Yoga and Ayurveda into healthcare. She is a member of the DEI Task Force for IAYT. www.sandalwoodyoga.com
Priya Verma, C-IAYT, PA-C
Certified Yoga Therapist and Physician Assistant
H.H. Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji
Pujya Swamiji is President and Spiritual Head of Parmarth Niketan Ashram, Rishikesh, India, one of the largest interfaith, spiritual institutions in India. Under His divine inspiration and leadership, Parmarth Niketan has become a sanctuary known across the globe as one filled with grace, beauty, serenity and true divine bliss. Pujya Swamiji has also increased several-fold the humanitarian activities undertaken by Parmarth Niketan. Now, the ashram is not only a spiritual haven for those who visit, but it also provides education, training, and health care to those in need.
He is the Co-Founder of Global Interfaith WASH Alliance, the world’s first-ever international interfaith initiative which brings together the world’s faiths as allies in ensuring every child around the world has access to safe, life-giving Water, Sanitation and Hygiene. He is also the Founder of India Heritage Research Foundation, Ganga Action Parivar, Divine Shakti Foundation, Interfaith Humanitarian Network/Project Hope, and the International Yoga Festival.
H.H. Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji
Parmarth Niketan Ashram
Rani Elwy, PhD
Dr. A. Rani Elwy is the Director of Brown University’s Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior’s Implementation Science Core, and is Acting Associate Director of the Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research at the VA Bedford Healthcare System in Massachusetts. Dr. Elwy leads dissemination efforts for the Complementary and Integrative Health Evaluation Center (CIH), funded since 2016 by the VA Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation and the VA QUERI program. She recently guest edited two journal special issues on CIH effectiveness and implementation research, and she founded and directs the bi-monthly VA CIH Cyberseminar series.
Rani Elwy, PhD
Brown University
Rhonda Smith, MBA
Rhonda M. Smith currently serves as the Executive Director of the California Black Health Network. Previously, she was the Executive Director of the Life Serve Youth Foundation and the Interim Executive Director for Integrative Medicine for the Underserved (IM4US). Rhonda also has been the Consultant/Project Director for the LiveHealthy OC Initiative and the Susan G. Komen Circle of Promise California Initiative. Rhonda earned her MBA in Marketing and Operations Management from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and her BS Degree in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech. www.cablackhealthnetwork.org
Rhonda Smith, MBA
California Black Health Network
Richard Brown, MD
Dr. Richard P. Brown, associate professor of psychiatry at Columbia University, gives over 100 lectures each year and has co-authored over 100 scientific publications. A certified teacher of Aikido, Yoga, Qigong, and meditation, and a pioneer of Integrative Psychiatry, Dr. Brown researches the effects of breathing practices on mental and physical health. In collaboration with Dr. Gerbarg, he developed a neurophysiological theory about how mind-body practices can be optimized to quickly and safely reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, insomnia, and trauma. They have completed numerous studies, co-authored several books, and teach programs for stress resilience and recovery in healthcare providers, first responders, and disaster survivors worldwide. www.breath-body-mind.com
Richard Brown, MD
BREATH-BODY-MIND™
Robin Rothenberg, C-IAYT
Robin Rothenberg, C-IAYT
International Leader in Yoga & Breathwork
Ryan Castle
Ryan Castle is Director of the Chopra Research Library which he co-founded with Deepak Chopra, MD. The library is an integrative sciences archive and data analysis resource operating under the Whole Health Institute. Ryan manages research projects and analyzes information to improve public health via integrative medicine. He has published interdisciplinary research in consciousness theory, meditation’s medical efficacy, and the bio-behavioral effects of chronic inflammation. Ryan has presented at Harvard, Berkeley, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Kingdom of Bhutan, Foundations of Mind, Sages, and Scientists, Parliament of World Religions, as well as many conferences.
Ryan Castle
Chopra Research Library
Shirley Telles, PhD
Shirley Telles has a degree in conventional medicine (MBBS) and a MPhil and PhD in Neurophysiology. Both MPhil and PhD theses were on the effects of yoga practice. Dr Telles received a Fulbright fellowship in 1998 and in 2001 an award from the Templeton Foundation for creative ideas in neurobiology. In 2007, she received an Indian Council of Medical Research Center for Advanced Research to study meditation’s effects through autonomic variables, evoked and event related potentials, polysomnography and fMRI. Dr Telles has been the director of Patanjali Research Foundation since 2007. Dr Telles has over two-hundred research papers cited in bibliographic databases, and she has edited seven books. She is an enthusiastic practitioner of yoga. www.patanjaliresearchfoundation.com
Shirley Telles, PhD
Patanjali Research Foundation
Stacie Graham, PhD
Dr Stacie CC Graham, certified mindfulness teacher and E-RYT 500, is the founder of OYA: Body-Mind-Spirit Retreats, the first holistic wellness brand serving Black women and women of color communities in the UK. She is also the co-founder of Radical Darshan, a Yoga Alliance accredited 300-hour advanced yoga teacher training school focused on racial and intersectional equity in yoga. She has an MS in economics and a doctorate in psychology, where she focused on neuro-affective cognitive science and leadership behavior. In her primary profession, she works as the Global Racial Equity Program Director at WPP. www.stacieccgraham.com
Stacie Graham, PhD
OYA: Body-Mind-Spirit Retreats
Starr Sanborn, C-IAYT
Starr Sanborn is a C-IAYT, Buteyko Breathing Instructor, and Restore Your Prana Mentor. She offers an approach to Yoga Therapy which adapts individual and group practices to support healing on the physical and psycho-emotional levels. Starr has personal experience with managing chronic pain, with a complicated diagnosis of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. She is committed to helping others find their way back to health through yoga therapy, and is experienced working with many conditions including musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, neurological, and respiratory. Starr contracted COVID last spring and continues to deal with related symptoms, which she mitigates through her various yoga practices. www.guidingstarryoga.com
Starr Sanborn, C-IAYT
Yoga Therapist & Buteyko Breathing Instructor
Stephen Porges, PhD
Stephen W. Porges, PhD, is Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium in the Kinsey Institute. He is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and Professor Emeritus at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland. He is the originator of the Polyvagal Theory, a theory that emphasizes the importance of physiological states in the expression of behavioral, mental, and physical health problems related to traumatic experiences. www.stephenporges.com
Stephen Porges, PhD
Founder of Polyvagal Theory
Suzy Bolt, BA, BKSIYT
Suzy Bolt is an Iyengar-trained yoga teacher, teaching since 1997. Additionally, she is an NLP Master Practitioner, trained in CPCAB-counseling studies, and also works as a Leadership Team Coach, mainly in the higher education sector. With over two-decades of experience, Suzy specialises in the mind-body connection, combining NLP with her Yoga teaching. Based on her own experience post-COVID, Suzy’s work now focuses on helping others recover from Long-Covid through the Rest.Repair.Recover classes on her online platform, 360mindbodysoul. www.360mindbodysoul.co.uk
Suzy Bolt, BA, BKSIYT
Yoga Teacher and NLP Practitioner
Tina Cartwright, PhD
Dr Tina Cartwright is a Reader at the University of Westminster and a Chartered Health Psychologist. Her research focuses on understanding the patient experience and improving the management of long-term physical and mental health conditions. With a long-standing interest and publications in complementary medicine, her current research evaluates the impact of yoga and mind-body practices on health and wellbeing in educational, health and community settings. She conducted the first national survey of yoga practice in the UK and recently evaluated the first yoga social prescribing programme in the UK, commissioned by West London CCG.
Tina Cartwright, PhD
University of Westminster
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, PhD
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, PhD is the Director of Yoga Research for Yoga Alliance and the Kundalini Research Institute, a Research Associate at the Benson Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine, a Research Affiliate at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He has conducted research on yoga and yoga therapy since 2001 and has been a practitioner/instructor of Kundalini Yoga since 1973. His research has evaluated yoga for insomnia, chronic stress, and anxiety-related disorders, and in workplace and public school settings. He works with the International Association of Yoga Therapists promoting yoga research as scientific director for the annual Symposium on Yoga Research, and as editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Yoga Therapy. He is medical editor of the Harvard Medical School Special Report, Introduction to Yoga, and chief editor of the medical textbook, The Principles and Practice of Yoga in Health Care.
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, PhD
Harvard Medical School
Victoria Santos, MA
Victoria Santos, MA, is the Director of the Center for Healing and Liberation, a home for transformative work dedicated to cultivating individual and collective liberation through a range of initiatives, events, practices, actions and community networks. Additionally, she is the Director of Strategic Initiatives and External Relations at Young Women Empowered, an organization focused on cultivating the power of diverse young women* to be creative leaders and courageous changemakers.
Victoria Santos, MA
Center for Healing and Liberation
William Bushell, PhD
William Bushell, PhD, is a biophysical/medical anthropologist and has been researching the health enhancing effects of yoga, meditation, and behavioral health practices for decades. His research has explored how these practices enhance the immune system, with a particular focus on infectious disease. During this time he has collaborated with leading figures in immunology, psychoneuroimmunology, and nonwestern cultures, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Nobel Prize winning scientists. He was an affiliate researcher at MIT for 26 years, and presently serves as a research director at the Whole Health Institute. He recently co-authored a paper with a team from Harvard, UCSD, and several other leading universities, which sets forth a groundbreaking framework based on decades of cross-disciplinary research for yoga as an adjunct treatment for COVID-19. He and his collaborators are continuing to further develop this model.
William Bushell, PhD
Whole Health Institute
With gratitude to our event partners:
