COME TOGETHER! A Festival of IntraConnectivity and Spirit
With Daniel Siegel, Elissa Epel, Little Bear Tom Nason, Rhonda V. Magee and Douglas Drummond
July 24 - 28, 2023
We live in times of high existential stress with both ever-increasing personal, societal, and global pressures and the constant pain of witnessing ecological crises and widespread social injustices. These challenges also create opportunities to reconsider our relationships to self, one another, and the planet — and to choose a life of peak purpose and interconnectedness. In this retreat, inspired by the land and its people, we will be guided by rituals reflecting both indigenous and contemporary wisdom. Together, we will learn deep lessons from a variety of modalities, including embodied mindfulness, interpersonal neurobiology, and the four directions of life from the aboriginal Esselen Tribe culture to establish, renew, and recharge our commitments to stewardship of our communities and the earth in these rapidly changing times.
We will have small group listening, experiential activities, lectures, and discussions. We will incorporate ritual, meditation, nature immersion, and movement into each day. Guided by renowned author Diane Ackerman, we will have the opportunity to express ourselves through the written word. Led by contemplative mind-body teacher and musician Nichol Chase, we will become present through mindful movement practices. Supported by Cari Herthel, medicine woman of the Esselen Tribe, we will manifest healing energy circles that will be models to take back to our communities.
Join Tom Little Bear Nason, Rhonda Magee, Elissa Epel, and Dan Siegel as we create new pathways to sacred connection and explore, learn, laugh, love, and bring healing to ourselves and our world. All are welcome. We especially embrace people working on environmental justice issues and anyone needing restoration and rejuvenation.
About the Leaders
Daniel Siegel
Daniel Siegel is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine, where he is on the faculty of the Center for Culture, Brain and Development and the founding co-director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center. His psychotherapy practice includes children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. www.drdansiegel.com
Learn more about Daniel SiegelElissa Epel
Elissa Epel, Ph.D, is a best-selling author and a Professor at UCSF in the Department of Psychiatry. She studies how chronic stress can impact biological aging (including the telomere/telomerase system), and how mindfulness interventions may buffer stress effects and promote psychological and physiological thriving. She also studies food addiction and obesity. She is a member of the […]
Learn more about Elissa EpelLittle Bear Tom Nason
Little Bear is the Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County. He is a traditional cultural resource specialist, Tribal Archeology Monitor, and Wildland Consultant. Little Bear has a deep history at the Esalen Institute, a sacred site for the Esselen, and has led a lifetime of retreats centering around initiation, ritual and ceremony […]
Learn more about Little Bear Tom NasonRhonda V. Magee
Rhonda V. Magee, JD, MA, is a professor of law at the University of San Francisco, and a nationally acclaimed speaker on mindfulness and social justice. She is an expert on mindful teaching and learning, race and law, and professional identity development. Email Me
Learn more about Rhonda V. MageeDouglas Drummond
Douglas is a leader, husband, and father. He has been involved with the wellness movement for over 20 years. His professional passion is aligning impactful projects with like-minded individuals, supporting them in creating lasting teams that become global ambassadors for the future. Douglas has been a conscious movement facilitator for over 12 years. He is […]
Learn more about Douglas DrummondCategories : Creativity & Culture, Mindfulness & Spirituality, Nature & Sustainability, Psychology & Self-Awareness, Relationship & Communication