Rick Hanson, PhD, is a psychologist, Senior Fellow of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley, and New York Times best-selling author. He’s been an invited speaker at NASA, Oxford, and Harvard, and taught in meditation centers worldwide.

Rik Isensee, LCSW, practices psychotherapy in San Francisco, California. He is the author of three self-help books for gay men, plus the mindfulness guide, Shift Your Mood. He is an accredited mindfulness teacher through The Mindfulness Training Institute.

Risa Kaparo, PhD, author of Awakening Somatic Intelligence, teaches Somatic Learning®, the evidence-based method she developed, internationally, from MIT to China’s Dalian Medical School. She practices somatic-psychotherapy in the California Bay Area and elsewhere.

Robert Browning is HeartMath’s master trainer and health care director as well as a director for Pathways to Peace. For more than 20 years, he’s trained 8,000 individuals in heart-based living. He leads programs at Stanford, UCLA, Brigham & Women’s (Harvard’s teaching hospital), and Kaiser Permanente.

Robert Fisher, MFT, is an international Hakomi trainer, adjunct professor at CIIS and JFK Universities, and author of Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples. He is the lead instructor of the Certificate Program at CIIS for Mindfulness and Compassion in Psychotherapy and a keynote speaker at national psychotherapy conferences.

Robert H. Lustig, M.D., M.S.L., is Emeritus Professor of Pediatric Endocrinology, and a member of the Institute for Health Policy Studies at UCSF. He is the author of Fat Chance (2012), The Hacking of the American Mind (2017), and Metabolical (2021).

Robert MacPhee is the author of the book Living a Values Based Life and the former director of training for Jack Canfield. He is a true expert in experiential learning, peak performance, and effective leadership. 

Robert Moss is the creator of Active Dreaming, an original synthesis of dreamwork and shamanism. His many books include Conscious Dreaming, Dreamgates, The Secret History of Dreaming and Sidewalk Oracles. He leads popular online courses for The Shift Network.

Robert Peng is a qigong master and teacher who has trained 150,000 students throughout the world. From the age of 8, he apprenticed under Xiao Yao. The distillation of his training is reflected in The Master Key: Qigong Secrets for Vitality, Love, and the Wisdom book and CD/DVD series.

Robert Meikyo Rosenbaum, PhD, is entrusted as a lay Zen teacher by Sojun Roshi, and a senior teacher of Dayan Qigong authorized by Master Hui Liu. He has 30 years of experience as a neuropsychologist and psychotherapist. His most recent book is Walking the Way: 81 Zen Encounters with the Tao Te Ching.

Robert Sheeler, MD, is in private practice in Scottsdale, Arizona. Former editor of the Mayo Clinic Health Letter, he is a taiji and qi gong practitioner who has spoken extensively on a variety of topics at conferences on conventional, integrative, and functional medicine.

Robert Walter, Joseph Campbell's editor for a decade, and previous president of the Joseph Campbell Foundation and a poet/playwright with several decades of experience as group leader, teacher, publisher and theatrical producer/director/designer.

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Rob Faust is a maskmaker/performer/director who speaks, performs, and teaches worldwide. Rob designs and creates all the masks he uses onstage. Rob’s work is featured in the book Mask Makers and Their Craft, An Illustrated Worldwide Study.

Rob is co-founder of Thievery Corporation, known for their electronic-infused modifications of dub, trip hop, reggae, and bossa nova. Rob blends musical influences from the past and future, melding modern electronic beats, global grooves and other worldly rhythms into a fiery mixture of mystical and spirited sound.

Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris obtained his PhD in Psychopharmacology from the University of Bristol and an MA in Psychoanalysis from Brunel University. At his current post at the Imperial College London, Robin designed human brain imaging studies with LSD, psilocybin, MDMA and DMT. His areas of research also include a clinical trial of psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression, an ongoing trial comparing psilocybin with escitalopram for major depressive disorder and a multimodal imaging study in healthy volunteers receiving psilocybin for the first time. Robin founded and heads the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial, the first of its kind in the world. He holds an honorary position with the University of Oxford.

Robin Fann Costanzo is a senior instructor who uses her background in dance and yoga to inform her practice. Robin specializes in trauma resolution and applies that to her practice.

Robin Stern, PhD, is the associate director for the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. She is a licensed psychoanalyst, educator, and author of The Gaslight Effect. Robin is co-developer of RULER, an emotional intelligence program that has transformed the lives of over a million children and adults in schools worldwide.

Robin Wilner is a master yoga teacher, certified holistic nutritionist, and co-founder of Spellbound Yoga. She devotes her lifestyle and teachings to healing with food and yoga as medicine, drawing from Ayurvedic principles and her vast studies over the past decade. (E-RYT500, YACEP, MS Holistic Nutrition).

Rob wilks is a full-time bodywork practitioner. He is a faculty member with Esalen Institute Healing Arts Department, teaching all levels of Esalen® Massage. He has taught massage and bodywork in Indonesia, China, and Italy, as well as experiential leadership education in the U.S. and Eastern Europe.

Robyn Scherr is a diplomat-certified CranioSacral Therapist through the Upledger Institute, and a certified massage therapist in California. Robyn is dedicated to making CST and the efficacy of educated, noninvasive touch understandable and accessible to both therapists and clients.

Rodney Waters is a Jungian Analyst and graduate of the International School of Analytical Psychology (ISAP Zurich). His areas of interest include music, gender, creativity, and tattoos. He has been a professional pianist for 40 years.

Rod Stryker is a world-renowned meditation, yoga, and yoga nidra teacher with more than 40 years of experience. Founder of Tantra Yoga Alchemy®, he has guided tens of thousands worldwide in practices of freedom, resilience, and spiritual awakening.

Roger Jahnke, OMD, has dedicated his professional life to sharing the healing traditions of China. He is the director of the Institute of Integral Qigong and Tai Chi, in Santa Barbara, CalifORNIA, and author of The Healer Within and The Healing Promise of Qi.

Dr. Roger Kuhn is a Poarch Creek Two-Spirit Indigiqueer somacultural sex therapist, sexuality educator, writer, activist, and musician. Roger’s work explores the concepts of decolonizing and unsettling sexuality and focuses on the way culture impacts and informs our bodily experiences. He is a community organizer of the Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirit powwow and a board member of the Two-Spirit & Native LGBTQ+ Center for Equity. His first book, Somacultural Liberation, is available in both paperback and audio. His music can be streamed on all digital platforms.

Roger Zim has worked closely with Oscar Ichazo since 1970, first as a student, then as a teacher and administrator. From 2005 to 2022, he was a university lecturer in Eastern and Western Philosophy.

Dr. Roksana Badruddoja (pronoun: hir) is a feminine/masculine Woman of Color; an ancestral/intergenerational/inherited family trauma liberation scholar; a tenured full professor of sociology, women and gender studies, critical race and ethnicity studies, Indigenous and decolonial studies, and grief studies; and an interfaith and cross-cultural urban Akashic and Shamanic practitioner.

Rolf Gates conducts Vinyasa teacher trainings and programs internationally. His work has been widely featured in television and in print. As a former U.S. Army Ranger and social worker, Rolf brings his eclectic background to his teaching and his life. He is the author of Meditations from the Mat.

Roma Hammel, PhD is an embodiment-meditation teacher from Los Altos, CalifORNIA. Certified by Judith Blackstone in Realization Process, by Russel Delman in Embodied Life Mentorship, and deeply engaged in philosophy, meditation, and qigong, Roma guides people into an embodied spiritual awakening.

Ronald Alexander, PhD, is the director of the Open Mind Training Institute and leads trainings internationally in mindfulness, mind-body therapies, and transformational leadership. He is the author of Wise Mind Open Mind.

Ron Ames is a filmmaker, meditation teacher, and certified Life Balance strategist. He is a senior teacher at InsightLA in Santa Monica, CA. Ron trained at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and InsightLA as a dharma teacher and secular mindfulness teacher.

Since training with Phillip Moffitt and becoming a certified Life Balance strategist, Ron has been leading workshops and working with private clients and companies to build their capacity to make skillful changes.

Ronald J. Frederick, PhD, is a psychologist and author of the award-winning book Living Like You Mean It: Use the Wisdom and Power of Your Emotions to Get the Life You Really Want. He lectures and facilitates workshops nationally.

Rosemary Garrison began her study of yoga in the traditional Ashtanga style, then expanded into Vinyasa. She teaches a strong flow, emphasizing breath, alignment, and, ultimately, the cultivation of energy and awareness. Rosemary leads annual retreats and trainings around the world.

Rosemary O’Connor is a Hazelden author and a certified professional and addiction coach. With more than 17 years of personal and professional experience, she has helped thousands of people recover from addiction and rebuild rewarding lives.

Rosie Lila writes and speaks on how to increase human engagement through inclusion, diversity, and collaboration. She is the creator and host of the show What Comes Now, and founder of the infrastructure investment firm Lumera. Rosie worked with the Burning Man Project for three and a half years supporting areas around culture, production, and public relations including coaching public speaking.

Roxan McDonald dedicates herself to helping people find their voice both on the page and in their lives. She is the author of two self-help decks published by Knock Knock Inc. She teaches writing throughout the Monterey Bay area and leads international retreats.

Roxann Burroughs is a certified facilitator with more than 28 years of experience doing The Work of Byron Katie for inquiry and stress reduction.

Ruediger Dahlke, MD, is the founder of Transformative Medicine, author of 60 books, and trainer of thousands of doctors, psychologists, and laypeople in Europe. He leads the Certificate in Transformative Medicine, a year-long program offered by the Center for a New Mainstream.

Rupert Spira is the author of The Transparency of Things: Contemplating the Nature of Experience and Presence volumes I and II. For 20 years, he studied the teachings of Ouspensky, Krishnamurti, Rumi, Shankaracharya, Ramana Maharshi, Nisargadatta, and Robert Adams, until he met his teacher, Francis Lucille, in 2004.

Russell Delman has dedicated his life to the study of human transformation. Deeply indebted to approximately 50 years of marriage, Zen meditation, and the study of somatic psychology, he has helped train more than 2,500 Feldenkrais® practitioners.

Russ Hudson is one of the top teachers and developers of the Enneagram system in the world today. He is the co-author, with Don Richard Riso, of several books, including The Wisdom of the Enneagram and Personality Types.

Ryan Babineaux, PhD, is a career counselor, writer, and researcher in the area of purposeful living. He is a lecturer at Stanford University, and co-author of the book Fail Fast, Fail Often: How Losing Can Help You Win.

Sabine Lichtenfels is a freelance theologian, author, and co-founder of Tamera and the GRACE Initiative for a Future without War. Her spectrum of knowledge and activity includes international peace work, community building, spiritual research, and developing a new female consciousness and reconciliation of the sexes. With her comprehensive knowledge and radical commitment, she is an ambassadress for a global perspective of peace.

Sachin Patel is a father, husband, functional medicine practice success coach, speaker, and author. He is committed to helping others raise their consciousness, activate their inner doctor, and initiate their deepest healing through the use of lifestyle, breathwork, and a respectful approach to sacred plant medicines. Sachin founded The Living Proof Institute, pioneering a revolutionary approach to patient-centered healthcare through which he coaches hundreds of practitioners around the world.

Sadia Bruce is a creative force and educator at Esalen, shaping transformative experiences at the intersection of yoga, breath, somatics, and ancestral wisdom. Her work invites embodied inquiry, playful experimentation, and deeper connection with self, others, and the unseen.

Saeeda Hafiz is the author of The Healing: One Woman’s Journey from Poverty to Inner Riches. She is a yoga teacher and wellness expert with certifications from the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centers and the Natural Gourmet Institute.

Sally Kempton teaches applied spiritual wisdom and helps students work with meditative experience as a framework for practical life change. Sally teaches workshops in meditation and practical yoga philosophy based on Kashmir Shaivism. She is the author of the best-selling book, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga and Meditation for the Love of It.

Samantha Dunn was a PEN Award finalist for her novel, Failing Paris. She has also authored two memoirs. Her essays are widely anthologized and her writing has been featured in many publications, including O: The Oprah Magazine and Ms. She is the executive editor of Coast Magazine.

Samantha Snowden is a mindfulness coach for youth, adults, and families. She has taught courses at the graduate level at Columbia University in subjects such as mother-child matrix, adjustment, and mindfulness with youth. She developed a well-funded mindfulness program at Columbia while a leading researcher in the mindfulness lab.

Sam Berne, OD, is a pioneer in behavioral optometry and integrative health. Two of his books, Creating Your Personal Vision and Taking It In, have helped propel his method into the mainstream eye care field. His gentle and humorous approach creates a safe, trusting environment for students to discover their own relationship to healing.

Sam Jinich, PhD, is a San Francisco-based clinical psychologist, relationship expert and Hold Me Tight® Workshop leader. He is a certified trainer, supervisor and therapist in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT). Sam teaches internationally.

Sam Keen is a freelance philosopher, teacher, and workshop leader. He is the author of numerous books including Fire in the Belly, Learning to Fly, and Faces of the Enemy. He has taught at Esalen for more than 50 years.

With a background in AI, neuroscience, Eastern religion, and psychology, Dr. Sam created a new quantum healing modality called Source Code, in which we quickly and gently get to the root of our core issues so we can shift our energy and embodiment and, in turn, our world.

Sam Sebastian has been practicing massage and bodywork for over 15 years, guiding clients and students to cultivate self-awareness through mindfulness. His practice of Esalen® Massage emphasizes compassion through loving presence and a deepened connection to self and others through presence-based touch.

Sam Stern is a Senior Content Creator at Esalen and host of the million-download podcast Voices of Esalen. He speaks about and teaches human-centered AI at Esalen, exploring how emergent technologies can be engaged with curiosity, critical thinking, and play.

Sanga of the Valley has played African drums from an early age. Sanga moved to New York City in 1970 from Trinidad, where he met Babatunde Olatunji and became one of Olatunji’s students. Sanga went on to be one of Olatunji’s lead djembe players and spent 25 years as a member of Olatunji’s Drums of Passion. Sanga of the Valley has worked with artists such as Carlos Santana, Nina Simone, The Grateful Dead, the Neville Brothers, and Stanley Jordan.

Sara is forever a student of dharma. She is passionate about bringing the teachings into her daily life and onto the mat. She started studying yoga with Janet 6 years ago, illuminating a new path in life. One of more meaning, introspection, and commitment to kindness, compassion, and patience.

With a fiery spirit, a love of nature, travel, and all things adventure, Sara calls on her courage often and hopes to inspire others to do the same. She aims to spark joy while also holding space for healing.

Sarah Marshank is the founder of Selfistry, a methodology dedicated to mastering the art of being human. Integrating theory from Eastern and Western philosophy and psychology with meditative and somatic practices, Sarah guides practitioners to discover their authentic self and purpose in life.