Dr. Elli Weisbaum, BFA, MES, PhD, has worked internationally facilitating mindfulness workshops and retreats within the sectors of education, healthcare and business. She is currently the Acting Program Director for the Buddhism, Psychology and Mental Health Program (BPMH), at New College, in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and is jointly appointed to the Department of Psychiatry, in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, with a cross-appointment to the Dalla Lana School of Public Health in their Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME).

At the heart of her teaching and research is an interest in cultivating learning and occupational environments where all members of the community can flourish and thrive. Her work draws upon research from the fields of neuroscience, education, healthcare and the workplace to explore how the scientific evidence base for mindfulness is being integrated and operationalized across key sectors of society.

Past and ongoing collaborations include working with UofT’s Faculty of Law, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Faculty of Engineering, Rotman School of Management, Physical Therapy Department, the Ontario Hospital Association, The Hospital for Sick Children, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to integrate mindfulness into programming for faculty, staff, clinicians, patients and students.

She attended her first retreat with Zen Master and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh at the age of ten and has continued to train with his international Plum Village community. Elli’s novel background in both academic research and traditional mindfulness practice provides a distinct approach to her ongoing work teaching and researching in the field.