October Gathering in New York to Feature Session on ‘Nature Education’
The Collaborative for Spirituality in Education (CSE), in partnership with the Spirituality Mind Body Institute at Columbia University Teachers College, will convene a National Conference on Spirituality in Education at the school’s Manhattan campus on the theme of “Awakened Education: Engaging the Spiritual Core.”
Scheduled from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 26, 2024, the in-person, free-admission gathering will feature expert keynotes and sessions on topics related to the application and impact of spiritualty in education, including a session on “Nature Education.” The conference is geared to educators, practitioners, academics, and others who are interested in “whole person education.”
CSE, which receives support from Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, describes its mission as “nurturing the innate spiritual capacity of educators (independent of any doctrine, ideology, or religion) through enriching activities, engaging discourse, scientific research, and contemplative practices, beginning with childhood and continuing across the lifespan.”
The October conference follows CSE’s “Awakened Campus Global Conference,” which was held in March in Europe. Leading global scholars spoke on humanity’s “transcendent relationship with a higher power” and how this can be translated into a scientific, evidence-based solution to post-COVID-19 mental health malaise.
Speakers at the European conference included Spirituality Mind Body Institute founder Lisa Miller*, who is also a professor of psychology and education at Teachers College. In 2015, she was the host of the inaugural CSE conference.
The “Nature Education” session at the upcoming National Conference on Spirituality in Education is likely to address what Prof. Miller and her colleagues have described as a scarcity of programs that “educate students on how to cultivate a direct and personal relationship with nature.”
Updates and information on the conference, including registration information, can be found at the CSE website.
*Author of the bestseller, The Awakened Brain, Prof. Miller teaches innovative courses such as "The Animal/Human Bond" that highlight the importance of conscious interaction with nature, and the profound connection between animals and human beings. (See The Earth & I, June 22, 2023)
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