Annellen Simpkins, PhD, is a psychologist in private practice who, with her husband C. Alexander Simpkins, specializes in research and practice of hypnosis, neuroscience, and meditation. Together they teach widely and have written 28 books, including Neuroscience for Clinicians, Tao of Bipolar, and Neuro-Hypnosis.

Anthony Giacobbe is a former Esalen executive chef. Inspired by international travels, his culinary style is fresh, bright, and showcases seasonal ingredients. Currently the executive chef for an organic catering company, Anthony is known for his engaging personality and kitchen DJ skills.

Anushka Fernandopulle, MBA, studied at Harvard and Yale, and is on the Teacher's Council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. She teaches retreats globally, bringing Eastern practices to Western modern life and making them accessible to individuals and organizations.

Arielle Ford is a leading personality in the personal growth and contemporary spirituality movement. Since 1990, she has been living, teaching, and promoting consciousness through all forms of media. She is the author of nine books, including the international bestseller The Soulmate Secret.

Ashanti Branch, MEd., is an inner-city teacher who invited underachieving African-American and Latino males into a support group called The Ever Forward Club. Members achieved a 100 percent high school graduation rate, with 93 percent attending college, military or a trade school. He has now formed ten Ever Forward Clubs.

Ashley Turner is a yoga-meditation instructor, licensed psychotherapist, and writer. She is the founder of Yoga Psychology, co-founder of Urban Priestess, a modern-day mystery school for women, creator of nine best-selling yoga DVDs, and co-author of Aroma Yoga.

Athena Katsaros is an executive coach and leadership trainer who works with leaders to become catalysts for positive change in their organizations and in the world. She cofounded Open A Door Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing young women leaders in post-conflict countries.

Aubrey Streit Krug directs The Land Institute’s Ecosphere Studies program. She is a co-author of The Omaha Language and The Omaha Way.

Aviva Gold, has taught art and trained teachers for more than 30 years. Her background includes psychoanalytic, Jungian, and Gestalt psychotherapy. She is author of Painting From The Source: Awakening The Artists Soul In Everyone and Source Art in the World: How Your Authentic Creativity Heals the Planet.

Aviva Romm, MD, is a Yale-trained physician, midwife, herbalist, speaker, and author dedicated to optimal health for women and children.

Banafsheh Sayyad, MFA, LAc, is a Persian sacred dance artist, transformational teacher, and licensed acupuncturist. She is the founder of the pioneering synthesis of embodied spirituality known as Dance of Oneness® which beckons ALL to exalt. She teaches and performs worldwide.

Barbara Bogatin is a cellist with the San Francisco Symphony, chamber music performer, and a mindfulness educator. She has taught Mindfulness for Musicians seminars at the San Francisco Conservatory, the Juilliard School, and the University of Southern California.

Barbara McAfee is a voice coach, oral tradition community song leader and author of Full Voice, The Art and Practice of Vocal Presence. A singer/songwriter with seven albums, Barbara founded the Morning Star Singers and gave a TedX Talk on the power of singing in community.

Barbara Waxman is a gerontologist and nationally recognized life coach for adults, midlife and better. She is the author of The Middlescence Manifesto: Igniting the Passion of Midlife, and is dedicated to naming middlescence as a new stage in life.

Barnet Bain's films include Milton’s Secret (director), Oscar®-winner What Dreams May Come (producer), Emmy® nominee, Homeless to Harvard (executive producer), and The Celestine Prophecy (writer, producer). Barnet’s most recent book is The Book of Doing and Being: Rediscovering Creativity in Life, Love and Work.

Barry Robbins, is a long-term Esalen teacher and former nationally ranked athlete who has used affirmations for peak performance. A student of Michael Murphy and George Leonard, Barry continues their groundbreaking work in Integral Transformative Practice (ITP), created from decades of collective experience at Esalen. He is the vice president of ITP International.

Barry Vissell is a psychiatrist. Joyce Vissell is a master’s level nurse/psychotherapist. Together, they are co-founders of the Shared Heart Foundation. As mental health professionals dedicated to changing the world one heart at a time, they write a syndicated column for 80 periodicals worldwide, have authored numerous books, and have raised three children.

Bart Weetjens is a Belgian Zen priest and internationally celebrated social entrepreneur (Ashoka, Schwab, Skoll awardee) for his humanitarian work. He accompanies individuals and organizations that are on a path to inner peace and harmony between people, Earth, and a sustainable future.

Bella DePaulo, PhD, is the author of Singled Out and How We Live Now and has written the “Living Single” blog at Psychology Today since 2008. Atlantic magazine described her as “America’s foremost thinker and writer on the single experience.”

Ben Geilhufe (he/him/his) is the director of community-based clinical programs for the UCSF Child and Adolescent Gender Center, adjunct faculty at Santa Clara University, co-facilitator of the Gender Therapist Team of the Central Coast, and a clinician in private practice in Santa Cruz, Calif.

Ben Saltzman is an internationally known leadership coach, Enneagram expert, spiritual maverick, and world-class facilitator.

Ben co-founded the Israeli Enneagram Center and has taught seminars at John F. Kennedy University. He teaches relational skills with his wife, Kerena Gordhamer Saltzman. 

Ben Sessa is an MD psychiatrist interested in the developmental trajectory from child maltreatment to adult mental disorders. He is a MAPS and Compass-approved MDMA and psilocybin psychotherapist and senior research fellow at Bristol and Imperial College London Universities, and has been a study doctor administering and receiving LSD, DMT, psilocybin, MDMA, and ketamine on scientific studies. He is the author of multiple articles and medical textbooks exploring psychedelics, including Psychedelic Renaissance, and is co-founder and director of the Breaking Convention conference.

Benjamin Fox is the founding director of A New Possibility, a community of individuals dedicated to healing and education rooted in the ancient wisdom of alchemy. He is a licensed massage therapist, certified Zero Balancer, and Evolutionary astrologer.

Benjamin von Mendelssohn started exploring holistic approaches to bringing about change after a radical but frustrating period of political engagement in his youth. Although trained as a healer, dancer, and choreographer, Benjamin retained a focus on new models for living and a passion for complex synergies and systems theory. Ben has lived in Tamera since 1998 where he now serves as a next-generation leader, co-leading The Global Love School and currently directing the Grace Foundation for Humanizing Money.

Benny Holloway is a soulful sound-o-phile travelling the world sharing healing vibrations. Through live looping of his voice and guitar he creates deep atmospheric ambient soundbaths that encourage the listener to take a compelling introspective journey.

Bessel A. van der Kolk, MD, has taught yearly at Esalen for more than 20 years. He is medical director of the Trauma Center in Boston, professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine, and author of the New York Times bestseller The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma.

Beth Jaeger-Skigen, LCSW, is a San Francisco-based therapist, relationship expert and Rising Strong Workshop leader. She is a certified supervisor and therapist in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT). She has led hundreds of groups on relationships, parenting,

Beth Sternlieb is a senior teacher at InsightLA in Santa Monica and co-director of mindfulness and yoga programs at the UCLA Pediatric Pain Program. She has co-authored several research studies on Iyengar yoga and chronic health issues. Beth graduated from the Spirit Rock and IMS teacher training programs and is a certified mindful self-compassion teacher.

Bill Morgan, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist specializing in couples psychotherapy. He has practiced mindfulness meditation throughout his adulthood, including more than six years of silent retreats. He is a founding faculty member of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy.

Bill Plotkin, founder of Colorado’s Animas Valley Institute, is a depth psychologist, wilderness-based soul guide, and agent of cultural evolution. Author of Soulcraft, Nature and the Human Soul, and Wild Mind, he has guided thousands of people through initiatory passages in the underworld of soul.

Bradley Lewis, MD, PhD, is an associate professor at New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study and a practicing psychiatrist. He has interdisciplinary training in humanities and psychiatry, and his recent books are Narrative Psychiatry: How Stories Can Shape Clinical Practice and Depression: Integrating Science, Culture, and Humanities.

Brady Gill wants to make the world a playful place. Brady is a writer/performer, camp director of Camp Anywhere (a summer camp for grown ups) and founder of Custom Camps, which creates summer camp style retreats for companies and teams.

Branan Freeman is an artist and art educator with over 15 years of experience. She was an art and museum educator at the San Diego Museum of Art and the Children’s’ Museum San Diego, and a former residential education manager at Esalen.

Brant Secunda is a world-renowned shaman in the indigenous Huichol tradition of Mexico. Recognized as a global thought leader, Brant has lectured at the Mayo Clinic, the American Holistic Medical Association, and the World Health Organization, and co-founded the Peace University.

Acclaimed psychic medium/teacher Brenda Rose, renowned for her powerful spiritual transmissions, inspires hearts and minds to process the unseen. Her healing presence creates a connection of safety and curiosity for you to awaken and explore at your own pace.

Bri Boertman, MEd, 500 E-RYT, has facilitated therapeutic yoga, art, and adventure experiences for nearly 20 years. Bri coaches people from all walks toward transformation and healing through emBodied yoga practices, connection to wild spaces, and creative self-expression.

Brigitte Grof is a psychologist, licensed psychotherapist and artist with 30 years of experience in Holotropic Breathwork. She leads HB workshops and teaches training modules worldwide. She also maintains a private practice in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Bristol Baughan is a professional leadership coach, speaker and executive producer of Emmy®-winning and Oscar®-nominated films. She is a TED fellow, founder of Inner Astronauts, and holds a master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica.

Brita Ostrom has led massage and somatic workshops at Esalen and internationally for more than 40 years. She is a founding member of the Esalen Massage School, practices Gestalt awareness work, and participated in Esalen’s two-year somatic education program. She is also a licensed psychotherapist.

Brooke Dean is the founder of Digital Detox, leader of Camp Grounded, and their director of hospitality, sustainability and nutrition. She is dedicated to slowing down the speed of life and encouraging us to take care of ourselves.

Brother David Steindl-Rast, Benedictine monk, psychologist, and author, has lectured on five continents. He was Spiritual Teacher in Residence at Esalen, and is concerned with the unique challenges and opportunities of our time.

Bruce Lyon is an author and teacher of cosmology and soul initiation. His path has been the trans-Himalayan wisdom tradition and the esoteric teachings of the world. He has written several books, founded Shamballa School, Highden Temple, and is part of the wisdom council for the international School of Temple Arts.

Bryan Reeves is a former US Air Force Captain who has survived multiple dark nights of the soul and now coaches individuals and couples. He's written two books, including Tell The Truth, Let The Peace Fall Where It May.

Byron Katie created The Work, which has been bringing freedom to millions of people for more than 20 years. Her books include the best-selling Loving What Is, I Need Your Love—Is That True? and A Thousand Names for Joy.

C. Alexander Simpkins, PhD, is a psychologist in private practice who, with his wife Annellen Simpkins, specializes in research and practice of hypnosis, neuroscience, and meditation. Together they teach widely and have written 28 books, including Neuro-Hypnosis, Neuroscience for Clinicians, Meditation and Yoga in Psychotherapy, and Self-Hypnosis for Women, with CD.

Caitlin Wild is a wilderness guide, wholeness coach, musician and facilitator of Wild Soul awakenings. A student of wild lands, she has led both traditional and experimental wilderness workshops internationally and is devoted to re-membering us back to our miraculous and creative wild soul.

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Caley is an embodiment business coach and internationally renowned yoga teacher & yoga nidra guide. Her work is focused on helping females to connect deeply to their passions, find their purpose, and turn their biggest obstacles into their greatest superpowers.

www.CaleyAlyssa.com

Camille T. Dungy is an author whose recent books include Guidebook to Relative Strangers: Journeys into Race, Motherhood and History, and her fourth poetry collection, Trophic Cascade. She has also edited anthologies including Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry.

Cara is a Hatha Yoga RYT certified yoga teacher, Yoga Nidra certified, has a bachelor's in Film & Television studies and a master's in Psychology. She spent over a decade working in the TV industry, helping storytellers find their voice and share authentic stories. Her unique teaching style blends storytelling, movement, and connection with the intuitive voice.

Cari is the Vice Chair of the Esselen Tribe and medicine woman for the Esselen Tribe. Cari extends her healing and reconciliation practice into mending the sacred hoop. She is a survivor leader and somatic therapist. By experiencing and continuing her ancestral knowledge, Cari shares the connection to her Esselen culture. It is this connection to her Ancestors that allows her to regulate her unhealed trauma.

Carl Swanson is an Esalen Massage practitioner/instructor and a yoga instructor. He has taught workshops at Esalen and abroad.

Carla Fernandez is a strategist for Census Open Innovation Lab where she focuses on designing unexpected experiences that help individuals, teams and communities move forward. Carla has conceptualized and facilitated experiences that include creatives, police chiefs, a youth poet laureate, government appointees, researchers, major funders, brand leaders, and a community of 6,000 millennials she built from scratch with the intention of getting disparate groups of people to connect, come up with ideas and take action together. Her work has been featured in NPR, Oprah Magazine, the New York Times, and as a case study in multiple books. Carla is a Reynold's Scholar at NYU's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where she concentrated in Social Entrepreneurship, and is a Senior Fellow at USC's Annenberg Innovation Lab.

A holistic therapist, ceremonial leader, teacher, and lecturer, Carlos Sauer works with Shamanic Spiritual Healing and comes from a long lineage of Brazilian mediums and healers.

Carol Bevilacqua is an accomplished tile maker, sculptor, and mosaic artist. She is an inspiring instructor at the Institute of Mosaic Art in Berkeley and teaches community-based mosaic through the Richmond Artists in Schools/Community program.

Carol Donahoe has worked in retreat centers for over 20 years and has held the position of program director at the Omega Institute for the past 13 years. Her passion is creating programs that have the ability to transform people’s lives.