NEW YORK CITY
Friday May 31st: Arts Passport Day
June 1st, 2024: All-Day Forum
Step into a world where the arts are not just entertainment but essential elements for a fulfilling and healthy life. Inspired by the groundbreaking insights of our cohosts, Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross, in their best selling book "Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us", this day will be dedicated to exploring how the arts and aesthetic experiences measurably change the body, brain, and behavior. Awaken your senses through the perfect blend of theory and practice - immerse yourself in live artistic experiences where you not only witness but can actively participate in creative expression. Push the boundaries of your mind, feel the changes in your brain and body and experience a whole new way of being.
BrainMind: Your Brain on Art 2024 Highlights
A taste of the forum and samples of the panels:
Photo Gallery
Learning:
Collaborating:
Experiencing:
HOSTS
AGENDA
FRIDAY, May 31st, 2024
Arts Passport Day
10:00AM - 5:00PM Passport Activities, small groups will attend art experiences across the city
SATURDAY, June 1st, 2024
Your Brain on Art
7:30AM Breakfast & Registration
8:30AM Welcome
Susan is an accomplished learning expert and program architect. With over 35 years experience in developing effective learning programs rooted in the science of learning, Susan is an active member of the brain sciences research, arts, education and social impact communities. She currently serves as Executive Director of the International Arts and Mind Lab at the Brain Science Institute at Johns Hopkins University. She is also the senior advisor to the Science of Learning Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Susan’s approach to creating effective translational models combine interdisciplinary, evidence-based research with practical, applicable ideas and programs. She brings together scientists, educators, families, psychologists, advocates, policymakers, educational media, technologists, and others to share their perspectives and expertise on education, family life, and other topics. This work has resulted in successful impact-based work.
Susan Magsamen, Johns Hopkins
Ivy Ross is an American business executive and jewelry designer. Ross’s metal work in jewelry design is in the permanent collections of 12 international museums, including the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.. Ross is the vice president of hardware design at Google. Ivy and her team created the design language for the Google hardware products that launched in 2017, winning over 240 design awards over the last three years. Business Insider recently named her one of the 15 Most Powerful Women at Google. One of few recognized fine artists to successfully crossover into the business world, Ross is also a keynote speaker, a member of several boards, and has been hailed as a “creative visionary” by the art world. Ivy draws on her background in wide-ranging fields including sound therapy, quantum physics, psychology, and play. One of her most notable innovations is Project Platypus, an experimental design initiative where a core team develops a new brand in an enriched environment over three months; the model has been adopted by Mattel (where she was formerly head of innovation) and Procter & Gamble (on whose design board she served). She also served on the Vatican’s Arts and Technology Commission and judged the 2017 Spark Design Awards, the 2018 Core 77 awards, Dezeen Design Awards 2020, Frame Design Awards 2020, Design Leader of the Year Awards 2020, and the Fast Company Design Awards.
Ivy Ross, Google
Diana Saville is the co-founder and COO of BrainMind and leads BrainMind’s Neuroethics Initiative. She is also cofounder and President of Entrepreneur of Your Own Life, a science and technology entrepreneurship and leadership program for low-income college students, and Director of the Global Leadership Incubator, a partnership with the H. H. Dalai Lama which provides scholarship opportunities for exceptional Tibetan refugees. Formerly the Chief Innovation Officer for the Angiogenesis Foundation, Diana is an expert in creative communication of complex scientific concepts. She develops educational multimedia for labs at MIT, Harvard, and MGH, and organizes international expert summits on scientific and medical topics. Her creative work has been featured in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Nobel Museum in Stockholm, at TED conferences, and at the World Economic Forum.
Diana studied biochemical sciences at Harvard College and began her creative work as a scientific animator while pursuing a Ph.D. in molecular and cellular biology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Diana Saville, BrainMind
8:50 AM Session 1: Anatomy of the Arts
— PROVOCATEUR—
John J. Ngai, Ph.D., is the Director of the NIH’s Brain Research Through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies®(BRAIN) Initiative. Dr. Ngai earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry and biology from Pomona College, Claremont, California, and Ph.D. in biology from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena. He was a postdoctoral researcher at Caltech and at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons before starting his faculty position at the University of California at Berkeley. During more than 25 years as a Berkeley faculty member, Dr. Ngai has trained 20 undergraduate students, 24 graduate students and 15 postdoctoral fellows in addition to teaching well over 1,000 students in the classroom. His work has led to the publication of more than 70 scientific articles in some of the field’s most prestigious journals and 10 U.S. and international patents. Dr. Ngai has received many awards including from the Sloan Foundation, Pew Charitable Trusts, and McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience. As a faculty member, Dr. Ngai has served as the director of Berkeley’s Neuroscience Graduate Program and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute. He has also provided extensive service on NIH study sections, councils and steering groups, including as previous co-chair of the NIH BRAIN Initiative Cell Census Consortium Steering Group. Dr. Ngai oversees the long-term strategy and day-to-day operations of the NIH BRAIN Initiative as it strives to revolutionize our understanding of the brain in both health and disease.
John Ngai, NIH
Molecular Neurobiology, Cross-Modal Integration, Neurotechnology Innovation
— IMMERSION —
Renée Fleming is one of the most highly acclaimed singers of our time, performing on the stages of the world's greatest opera houses and concert halls. Honored with the US National Medal of Arts, the 2023 Kennedy Center Honor, and five Grammy® awards, Fleming has sung at momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Super Bowl. In 2024, she stars in The Hours at the Metropolitan Opera and is touring her recital program Voice of Nature: The Anthropocene, inspired by her Grammy-winning album of the same name and with an original film by the National Geographic Society.
In recent years, Fleming has become a leading advocate for research at the intersection of arts, health, and neuroscience, and she has been named a Goodwill Ambassador for Arts and Health by the World Health Organization. As Artistic Advisor to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Fleming has spearheaded the Sound Health collaboration with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and she partners with other leading organizations and initiatives to bring attention to research and practice at the intersection of music, health, and neuroscience.
Renée is Co-Chair of the Johns Hopkins/Aspen Institute NeuroArts Blueprint and Founding Advisor for the Sound Health Network at UCSF, and her foundation has supported research projects including the NIH Music-Based Intervention Toolkit and the Renée Fleming NeuroArts Investigator Awards for early-career arts and health researchers. Renée's advocacy work has earned her Research! America's Rosenfeld Award for Impact on Public Opinion and the World Economic Forum's Crystal Award. Her new anthology, Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, is now available from Viking Penguin Random House. www.reneefleming.com.
Renée Fleming, Soprano, World Health Organization, NeuroArts Blueprint, Kennedy Center
Arts and Health Advocacy, Research Pipeline
— IMMERSION —
David Leventhal is a founding teacher and Program Director for Dance for PD®, a program of the Mark Morris Dance Group that has now been used as a model for classes in more than 400 communities in 28 countries. He leads classes for people with Parkinson's disease around the world and trains other teachers in the Dance for PD® approach around the world. He's conceived and co-produced five volumes of a successful At Home instructional video series for the program and has been instrumental in initiating and designing innovative projects involving live streaming and Moving Through Glass, a dance-based Google Glass App for people with Parkinson's.
For his work on behalf of the Parkinson's community, he received the Alan Bonander Humanitarian Award from the Parkinson's Unity Walk, the Martha Hill Mid-Career Artist Award, the IADMS Pioneer Dance Educator Award, and the 2016 WPC Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Parkinson's Community. He was recently featured in the 2024 'Art Desk 100' listing of creators, thinkers, and voices who give the best of themselves and "evangelize for a better world in a way that transcends their own success."
Leventhal has contributed chapters to the Bloomsbury Handbook of Philosophy and Dance (Bloomsbury, 2021), Moving Ideas: Multimodal Learning in Communities and Schools (Peter Lang, 2013), and Creating Dance: A Traveler's Guide (Hampton Press, 2013), and has served as a co-author on a number of peer-reviewed studies. Leventhal designed and currently teaches a pioneering dance-based elective course that is part of the Narrative Medicine curriculum at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. He's featured in the award-winning 2014 documentary Capturing Grace directed by Dave Iverson.
Leventhal serves on the Board of Directors of the Davis Phinney Foundation and Dance & Creative Wellness Foundation and on the Advisory Board for the Georgetown Lombardi Cancer Center Arts & Humanities Program. He's a charter member of IADMS' Dance for Health Committee.
As a dancer, he performed with the Mark Morris Dance Group from 1997-2011, appearing in principal roles in Mark Morris' The Hard Nut, L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, and Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet, on Motifs of Shakespeare. Leventhal received a 2010 Bessie (New York Dance and Performance Award) for his performing career with Mark Morris. He graduated from Brown University with honors in English Literature.
David Leventhal, Mark Morris Dance Group/Dance for PD®
Panelists:
Combining a passion for music with scientific curiosity, Professor Viskontas works at the intersection of art and science. She has published more than 50 original papers and chapters related to the neural basis of memory and creativity. Her scientific work has been featured in Oliver Sacks’ book Musicophilia, Nautilus, Nature: Science Careers, and Discover Magazine. She has also written for MotherJones.com, American Scientist, Vitriol Magazine, and other publications. Her first book, How Music Can Make You Better, was published by Chronicle Books in April, 2019, and within a week was the best-selling music appreciation book on Amazon. She also serves as the Director of Communications for the Sound Health Network, an initiative promoting research and public awareness of the impact of music on health and well-being.
She often gives keynote talks, for organizations as diverse as Genentech, the Dallas Symphony, SXSW, TEDx and Ogilvy, along with frequent invited talks at conferences and academic institutions. Her 24-lecture course Essential Scientific Concepts was released by The Great Courses in 2014. Her second course, Brain Myths Exploded: Lessons from Neuroscience, based on a class she taught at USF, was released in early 2017 and hit #1 on the nonfiction bestseller list at Audible.com. Her third course, How Digital Technology Shapes Us was also based on a class she teaches at USF, and was released in 2020. Her forthcoming course, The Creative Brain, is slated to be released on the Wondrium platform in 2022. Dr. Viskontas's creative work includes stage directing opera. She is the Creative Director of Pasadena Opera, where she directed The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat, a chamber opera based on the famous case study written by Oliver Sacks. Other directing credits include Katya Kabanova with West Edge Opera at Cal Shakes in Orinda in 2021.
Dr. Viskontas is also a sought-after science communicator. She co-hosted the 6-episode docu-series Miracle Detectives on the Oprah Winfrey Network and has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, major radio stations across the US, including several appearances on the NPR program City Arts & Lectures and The Sunday Edition on the CBC in Canada. In 2017, she co-hosted the web series Science in Progress for Tested.com and VRV. She is also the host of the popular science podcast Inquiring Minds, which has more than 13 million downloads. Her other podcast, Cadence: What Music Tells Us About the Mind was a Webby Award Honoree in 2021.
Indre Viskontas, USF/SFMC
Neural Basis of Creativity, Music and Health
Anjan Chatterjee is Professor of Neurology, Psychology, and Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania and the founding director of the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics. He received his BA in Philosophy from Haverford College, MD from the University of Pennsylvania and completed his neurology residency at the University of Chicago.
The past Chair of Neurology at Pennsylvania Hospital, Dr. Chatterjee’s clinical practice focuses on patients with cognitive disorders. His research addresses neuroaesthetics, spatial cognition, language, and neuroethics. He wrote The Aesthetic Brain: How we evolved to desire beauty and enjoy art and co-edited: Neuroethics in Practice: Mind, medicine, and society, The Roots of Cognitive Neuroscience: Behavioral neurology and neuropsychology and the forthcoming Brain, Beauty, and Art: Bringing Neuroaesthetics in Focus. His editorial services include: American Journal of Bioethics: Neuroscience, Behavioural Neurology, Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, Empirical Studies of the Arts, European Neurology, Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, European Neurology, Neuropsychology, and The Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. He received the Norman Geschwind Prize in Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology by the American Academy of Neurology and the Rudolph Arnheim Prize for contributions to Psychology and the Arts by the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Chatterjee is a founding member of the Board of Governors of the Neuroethics Society, the past President of the International Association of Empirical Aesthetics, and the Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology Society. He is on the Board of the Global Wellness Institute, and has served on the Boards of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, Haverford College, the Norris Square Neighborhood Project and the Associated Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Anjan Chatterjee, University of Pennsylvania
Spatial Cognition, Language, Neuroethics, Neuroaesthetics
Dr. Richard Huganir is a professor of neuroscience, biological chemistry and pharmacology and molecular science at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Huganir’s research focuses on molecular mechanisms that modulate the communication between neurons in the brain.
He serves as the director of the Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Dr. Huganir and his team focus their efforts on researching the mechanisms that underlie the regulation of the glutamate receptors, the major excitatory neurotransmitter receptors in the brain. These receptors are neurotransmitter-dependent ion channels that allow ions to pass through the neuronal cell membrane, resulting in the excitation of neuronal activity.
He received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from Vassar College and earned his Ph.D. in biochemistry, molecular and cell biology from Cornell University. He was a postdoctoral fellow with the Nobel Laureate, Dr. Paul Greengard, at Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Huganir then moved to the Rockefeller University where he was an assistant professor of molecular and cellular neurobiology from 1984-1988. Dr. Huganir joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 1988.
Dr. Huganir received the Young Investigator Award from the Society for Neuroscience and the Santiago Grisolia Award, among others. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Huganir has published over 200 papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Rick Huganir, Johns Hopkins
Arts’ Effect on Synaptic Transmission and Neuroplasticity
9:50 AM Break
10:20 AM Session 2: Mental Wellbeing and Health
— PROVOCATEUR—
Rick Luftglass is Executive Director of the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, which strives to increase access and opportunity for all New Yorkers and build healthy, vibrant communities. The foundation’s programs address disparities in several areas, including access to the arts, health, economic opportunity, and public service. In 2018, the Illumination Fund launched its Arts in Health initiative to support organizations utilizing the arts to address health issues that impact New York communities. Its programs in the Arts in Health initiative have focused on mental health stigma, psychological trauma, and age-related diseases. Before joining the Illumination Fund in 2011, Rick spent 16 years at Pfizer, including as Executive Director of Pfizer’s foundation and Senior Director of U.S. Philanthropy and Community Engagement for the company. He also led Pfizer’s health access initiatives for low-income uninsured patients, which donated medicines for more than two million patients annually. At the time, Pfizer was the world’s largest corporate giver. He has served on the board of Philanthropy New York (PNY) and as co-chair of PNY’s Foundation CEO Roundtable and Community Food Funders. He also has served in committee leadership roles at the Council on Foundations, the Conference Board, and the Contributions Advisory Group. Rick started his career in nonprofit arts organizations, producing jazz concerts and immigrant cultural heritage programs. He continues this engagement role as current President of the board of the Center for Traditional Music and Dance, which collaborates with immigrant community organizations to sustain cultural heritage in New York City’s communities. He received an MBA at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and a BA in History at Haverford College.
Rick Luftglass, Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund
Health Equity Advocacy, Strategic Philanthropy
— IMMERSION —
Dr. John Beaulieu is one of the foremost philosophers and major innovators in the area of sound healing therapies. A world-renowned speaker, composer, pianist, and naturopathic doctor, Dr. Beaulieu has pioneered a technique called BioSonic RepatterningTM), a natural method of healing and consciousness development using tuning forks and other sound modalities based on the sonic ratios inherent in nature. As the founder of BioSonic Enterprises, he has developed and distributed over 50 different sound healing-related products including tuning forks, instructional videos, audio programs, CDs and books. Dr. Beaulieu is the groundbreaking author of Human Tuning, Music and Sound in the Healing Arts and the composer of Calendula: A Suite for Pythagorean Tuning Forks, a CD designed to physically align your body and create a deep relaxed state of awareness. He lectures and performs worldwide and conducts training seminars for practitioners in the healing arts.
John Beaulieu, Biosonics
Harmonic Healing, Sonic Ratios, Human Tuning
Panelists:
Chris Appleton is the Founder and CEO of Art Pharmacy, a healthcare technology company solving America’s mental health crisis. Appleton’s vision for Art Pharmacy imagines the U.S. healthcare ecosystem adopting arts-based social prescribing as a critical part of an impact-driven mental health field.
Appleton and his work have been featured in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, CNN, ABC, CBS, NPR, TEDx, Fast Company, and more.
Appleton’s strong commitment to servant leadership, family and civic engagement has led him to be bestowed numerous awards and honors, including the Americans for the Arts National Emerging Leader Award, Emory Center for Creativity and the Arts Community Impact Award, Atlanta Business Chronicle 40 Under 40, Georgia Trend’s 100 Notable Georgians, World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers, New Leaders Council Alumni Award, 2019 Class of Leadership Atlanta and Outstanding Atlanta Class of 2014.
Appleton is a member of the Grady Hospital Ambassador Force Advisory Board, creating awareness and providing vital support for the Grady Health System. Appleton has served on numerous additional boards including the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Affordable Housing Advisory Board, Americans for the Arts Emerging Leaders Council, Atlanta Celebrates Photography, Alliance Theatre Advisory Board, Health Connect South Advisory Board and more. He is also co-founder of Vote with Dignity, an all volunteer voter advocacy organization working to improve the voting experience through line warming and neighborhood engagement.
At the heart of Chris’s life’s work, he believes that lasting, sustainable change happens when people work across boundaries and barriers. Appleton and his wife, Annie, who works for Sartain Lanier Family Foundation, live in Atlanta with their two young children. He is currently completing his MBA at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
Appleton’s passions include long-distance running, baking, and hosting dinner parties.
Chris Appleton, Art Pharmacy
Social Prescribing, Mental Health
As President of One Mind, Brandon Staglin channels his deep experience in communications, advocacy, and personal schizophrenia recovery to drive brain health research, services, and media to heal lives. His best-known advocacy work has been for the growth of science-driven, large-scale. continuously improving prevention and early intervention services for youth facing serious psychiatric illness. He has published numerous articles in well-known journals and earned numerous advocacy awards. Brandon serves on councils for the World Economic Forum, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, the California Department of Health Care Services, Mindstrong Health, and Stanford University’s Prodrome and Early Psychosis Program Network, and is a member of The Stability Network. He earned a Master of Science in Healthcare Administration and Interprofessional Leadership from UCSF in September 2018, and Bachelor of Arts degrees in Engineering Sciences and Anthropology from Dartmouth College in 1993.
Brandon’s lived experience with schizophrenia makes him grateful to be enjoying life in health and happy every day he can contribute to the health of others.
Brandon Staglin, One Mind
Brain Health Research, Psychiatric Disorder Advocacy
Dr. Girija Kaimal, (EdD, MA, ATR-BC) is an Associate Professor in the PhD Program in Creative Arts Therapies at the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions and Assistant Dean for the Division of Human Development and Health Administration. In her Health, Arts, Learning and Evaluation (HALE) research lab, she examines physiological and psychological outcomes of creative visual self-expression. Girija currently leads studies examining arts-based approaches to health among cancer caregivers, active duty military service members and veterans (Currently funded by the US Department of Defense and the National Endowment for the Arts). She has led longitudinal evaluation research studies examining arts-based approaches to school leadership development and teacher incentives, and, won national awards for her research. Girija has served on the Board of Directors and is now President of the American Art Therapy Association. She is also serves as an advisor and editorial board member of several arts and health journals and, is a practicing visual artist. Her art explores the intersection of identity and representation of emotion.
Girija Kaimal, Drexel University
Creative Forces, Health Outcomes of Visual and Narrative Self-Expression
Jeremy Nobel, MD, MPH, is on the faculty of the Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His teaching and research activities focus on population health, social determinants of health, and the design and evaluation of health improvement intervention programs. With the unique background and training required to bridge scientific and humanistic disciplines, he has contributed to significant explorations into how creative expression mitigates illness and enhances wellbeing. He has become a prominent advocate for creative engagement, ancillary to and integrated with traditional medical care, as a pathway to healing. Dr. Nobel’s book published by Penguin Random House in 2023 “Project UnLonely: Healing Our Crisis of Disconnection” unpacks our personal and national experience of loneliness to discover its roots and take steps to find comfort and connection. He clarifies how meaningful connection can be nourished and sustained, and he reveals that an important component of the healing process is engaging in creativity. Dr. Nobel graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University within the Science and Human Affairs program. He received his medical education at the University of Pennsylvania and completed his internal medicine residency at the Beth Israel Hospital, Boston. Board-certified in both Preventive Medicine and Internal Medicine, Dr. Nobel also holds Master’s Degrees in Epidemiology and Health Policy from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Jeremy Nobel, Foundation of Arts and Healing/Harvard Medical School
Mitigation of Illness Through Creative Expression
11:25 AM Session 3: Physical Health
— PROVOCATEUR—
Arianna Huffington is the founder and CEO of Thrive Global, the founder of The Huffington Post, and the author of 15 books, including Thrive and The Sleep Revolution. In 2016, she launched Thrive Global, a leading behavior change tech company with the mission of changing the way we work and live by ending the collective delusion that burnout is the price we must pay for success. She has been named to Time Magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most influential people and the Forbes Most Powerful Women list. Originally from Greece, she moved to England when she was 16 and graduated from Cambridge University with an M.A. in economics. At 21, she became president of the famed debating society, the Cambridge Union. She serves on numerous boards, including Onex and The B Team. Her last two books, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder and The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night At A Time, both became instant international bestsellers. Most recently, she wrote the foreword to Thrive Global’s first book Your Time to Thrive: End Burnout, Increase Well-being, and Unlock Your Full Potential with the New Science of Microsteps.
Arianna Huffington, Thrive Global/The Huffington Post
Holistic Health, Mindful Leadership, Conscious Living
— IMMERSION —
A visionary executive and entrepreneur, JP Labrosse has a proven track record of building and scaling global businesses across diverse industries. With four successful startup acquisitions, including the landmark acquisition of Within / Supernatural by Meta, he is recognized for his exceptional leadership and strategic foresight. JP’s 30-year passion has been connecting people through movement, music, and rhythm. This led him to his leadership role at Supernatural, as well as his work as Mindful Freestyle Movement coach and DJ for 100s of events over the past 15 years. Earlier in his career, he served as Engineering Team Lead for the first iPod Shuffle and iPod Classic, helping people bring every piece of music that ever inspired them out in the world. Labrosse’s innovation work has led to 30 patents across ten industries, contributing significantly to advancements in solar technology and human interface design. His personal mission is to create meaningful positive impact in the world by cultivating more connection, joy, kindness, optimism, and presence.
JP Labrosse, Supernatural
Serial Entrepreneur, Mindful Freestyle Movement Coach
Panelists:
BJ’s career has been dedicated to moving healthcare towards a human centered approach, on a policy as well as a personal level. Led by his own experiences as a patient, BJ advocates for the roles of our senses, community and presence in designing a better ending. His interests are in working across disciplines to affect broad-based culture change, cultivating a civic model for aging and dying and furthering the message that suffering and dying are fundamental and intrinsic aspects of life.
BJ Miller, Mettle Health
Palliative Care, Resilience, Holistic Well-being
Dr. John Krakauer is a neurologist and neuroscientist with an interest in the healthy and damaged motor system. He was an Associate Professor of Neurology and Co-Director of the Motor Performance Laboratory at Columbia University up until 2010. He is now the Director of the Center for Motor Learning and Brain Repair at Johns Hopkins University where he studies motor learning and control in patients after stroke and their relationship to functional recovery. There is a critical need to establish whether motor learning itself is affected after stroke and to determine which forms of motor learning should be the focus of rehabilitation strategies. He has made a number of observations/contributions to the study of motor learning in healthy subjects and motor recovery after stroke that suggest new directions for the treatment of impairment early after stroke.
John Krakauer, Johns Hopkins/Champalimaud Center for the Unknown
Immersive Gaming, Neuro-Restoration and Brain Plasticity
David Leventhal is a founding teacher and Program Director for Dance for PD®, a program of the Mark Morris Dance Group that has now been used as a model for classes in more than 400 communities in 28 countries. He leads classes for people with Parkinson's disease around the world and trains other teachers in the Dance for PD® approach around the world. He's conceived and co-produced five volumes of a successful At Home instructional video series for the program and has been instrumental in initiating and designing innovative projects involving live streaming and Moving Through Glass, a dance-based Google Glass App for people with Parkinson's.
For his work on behalf of the Parkinson's community, he received the Alan Bonander Humanitarian Award from the Parkinson's Unity Walk, the Martha Hill Mid-Career Artist Award, the IADMS Pioneer Dance Educator Award, and the 2016 WPC Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Parkinson's Community. He was recently featured in the 2024 'Art Desk 100' listing of creators, thinkers, and voices who give the best of themselves and "evangelize for a better world in a way that transcends their own success."
Leventhal has contributed chapters to the Bloomsbury Handbook of Philosophy and Dance (Bloomsbury, 2021), Moving Ideas: Multimodal Learning in Communities and Schools (Peter Lang, 2013), and Creating Dance: A Traveler's Guide (Hampton Press, 2013), and has served as a co-author on a number of peer-reviewed studies. Leventhal designed and currently teaches a pioneering dance-based elective course that is part of the Narrative Medicine curriculum at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. He's featured in the award-winning 2014 documentary Capturing Grace directed by Dave Iverson.
Leventhal serves on the Board of Directors of the Davis Phinney Foundation and Dance & Creative Wellness Foundation and on the Advisory Board for the Georgetown Lombardi Cancer Center Arts & Humanities Program. He's a charter member of IADMS' Dance for Health Committee.
As a dancer, he performed with the Mark Morris Dance Group from 1997-2011, appearing in principal roles in Mark Morris' The Hard Nut, L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, and Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet, on Motifs of Shakespeare. Leventhal received a 2010 Bessie (New York Dance and Performance Award) for his performing career with Mark Morris. He graduated from Brown University with honors in English Literature.
David Leventhal, Mark Morris Dance Group/Dance for PD®
Dance for Parkinson’s Disease
Professor Li-Huei Tsai is the Director of the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Picower Professor of Neuroscience, and an Associate Member of the Broad Institute. She obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and completed her postdoctoral training at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories and Massachusetts General Hospital. Tsai became Assistant Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School and was promoted to tenured Professor at Harvard in 2002. She relocated to Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2006. She was an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute from 1997 to 2013. Tsai is also a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a Member of the National Academy of Medicine, an Academician of the Academia Sinica in Taiwan, and a Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Tsai is interested in elucidating the pathogenic mechanisms underlying neurological disorders that impact learning and memory. She is a recipient of the Mika Salpeter Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2018 Hans Wigzell Research Foundation Science Prize for her research on Alzheimer’s disease. In 2022 she was named a Visiting Professor of the Vallee Foundation.
Li-Huei Tsai, MIT
Learning and Memory, Precision Medicine, Alzheimer’s Disease
12:30 PM Lunch with panelists
Michael Murphy + BJ Miller - Spaces of Transition
Jeremy Nobel + Chis Appleton - Art as Medicine
Nina Kraus + Dan Levitin - Harmonizing Medicine & Music
Nick Wilton + Tom Sweitzer - Creative Healing
Sarah Lock + Ellen Galinsky - Artful Advocacy: Navigating Health and Social Impact
Indre Viskontas + Brandon Staglin - Melodies for Healthy Minds
Chris Wilson + John Krakauer - The Creative Process: How and Why
Girija Kaimal + Margaret Chisholm - Artistic Expression in Mental Wellness
Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho + Sunil Iyengar - Arts Research and Practice
Charles Limb + Rick Huganir - Exploring the Auditory Brain
Anjan Chatterjee + Renée Fleming - Arts as a Response to the Malady of our Times
Mary Ittelson + Tooshar Swain - Entrepreneurship and Public Policy in the Arts
David Leventhal + Jill Sonke - Arts and Health in Motion
Li-Huei Tsai - Sensory Frequencies For Brain Health
2:00 PM Session 4: Learning
— PROVOCATEUR—
President of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Deborah Rutter is one of the leading voices in arts administration today. As leader of the national cultural center, Rutter oversees programming across all genres, as well as a global network of education initiatives. In 2016, Rutter, along with Renee Fleming and Dr. Francis Collins, started Sound Health, an on-going partnership between the Kennedy Center and National Institutes of Health, in association with the National Endowment of the Arts exploring potential health benefits of music. In 2019 Rutter opened the REACH — the first expansion of the Center‘s campus designed to bring audiences into the artistic process — setting the stage for a dynamic era of growth. She has expanded programming to fully represent the diversity of art in America, and introduced social impact and wellness programs across communities. Rutter sits on the board of Vital Voices, is a member of the board of directors of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and served as co- chair of its Commission on the Arts. In recognition of her advocacy for the role art plays in diplomacy she was one of the inaugural recipients of the European Union’s Transatlantic Bridge Award in 2022. In May 2023, Deborah was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Arts by Duke University. Before her tenure at the Kennedy Center, Rutter held executive leadership roles with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, the Seattle Symphony, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Rutter is a graduate of Stanford University and holds an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California.
Deborah Rutter, The Kennedy Center
Cultural Stewardship, Educational Outreach, Arts Engagement
— IMMERSION —
Kena is an actor, musician, and teaching artist at The National Jazz Museum in Harlem. His credits include co-writing, co-producing, and performing lead vocals for the album WE ARE by Stylophonic which was distributed by Universal Music Italy. Regionally, he has performed in Marley at Center Stage in Baltimore and To Kill a Mockingbird at Virginia Public Arts Center of Coastal Carolina. Mr. Onyejekwe is an alum of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. His Film and TV appearances include the film Begin Again and The View on ABC.
Kena Onyejekwe, The National Jazz Museum
Writer, Producer, Performer, Teacher
Panelists:
Tom Sweitzer – MTT, MT-BC – Tom is Co-Founder, Creative Director and Head of Music Therapy at A Place to Be, a non-profit organization serving over 300 families weekly, offering Music Therapy in Northern Virginia. Tom holds a B.F.A. in Music Theater, a Graduate Certificate in Music Therapy from Shenandoah University and a Master’s in Music Therapy from Berklee College of Music. Tom has created several therapeutic musical productions that focus on acceptance, diversity and empathy that toured schools and beyond. His Rock Opera about Suicide prevention, A Will to Survive, performed at the Terrace Theater at The Kennedy Center. He has collaborated with Wolf Trap Performing Arts Center, writing and directing their first fully-inclusive and disability focused production for the children’s theater and education department. He is an adjunct professor at Shenandoah University and consults as a Music Therapist across the country.
Tom Sweitzer, A Place to Be
Music Therapy, Theater for Healing, Disability Awareness
Daniel J. Levitin is an award-winning neuroscientist, musician, and best-selling author. His research encompasses music, the brain, health, productivity and creativity.
Levitin has published more than 300 articles, in journals including Science, Nature, PNAS, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and The Wall Street Journal. His research has been featured over 1800 times in the popular press, including 17 articles in The New York Times, and in The London Times, Scientific American, and Rolling Stone. He is a frequent guest on NPR and CBC Radio and has appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, CBS This Morning, and CNN. His TED talk is among the most popular of all time.
He is the author of four New York Times bestselling books: This Is Your Brain On Music, The World in Six Songs, The Organized Mind and Successful Aging, as well as the international bestseller A Field Guide to Lies. A popular public speaker, he has given presentations on the floor of Parliament in London, to the U.S. Congress, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. He has consulted for a number of companies including Apple, Booz-Allen, Microsoft, the United States Navy, Sonos, Philips, Sony, Fender, and AT&T.
Dr. Levitin earned his B.A. from Stanford in Cognitive Science, his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology with a Ph.D. minor in Music Technology from the University of Oregon, and completed post-doctoral training at Stanford University Medical School and UC Berkeley in Neuroimaging and Perception.
As a musician (tenor saxophone, guitar, vocals and bass), he has performed with Mel Tormé, David Byrne, Rosanne Cash, Sting, Bobby McFerrin, Victor Wooten and Tom Scott. Levitin has produced and consulted on albums by artists including Stevie Wonder, Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell and on the films Good Will Hunting and Pulp Fiction, and has been awarded 17 gold and platinum records.
Levitin taught at Stanford in the Departments of Computer Science, Psychology, History of Science, and Music, and has been a Visiting Professor at Dartmouth, and UC Berkeley. He is currently the Founding Dean of Arts & Humanities at the Minerva Schools at the Keck Graduate Institute, San Francisco, California, and James McGill Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Neuroscience and Music at McGill University.
Daniel J. Levitin, McGill University
Neuroscience of Music, Cognitive and Perceptual Processing
Ellen Galinsky is the President of Families and Work Institute (FWI), an organization she co-founded in 1989. She is the elected President of the Work and Family Researchers Network, a network of several thousand researchers globally and additionally serves as a senior advisor to the Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary of Youth Mental Health at the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Between March 2016 and September 2022, she served as Chief Science Officer of the Bezos Family Foundation. Before co-founding FWI, she spent more than two decades at the Bank Street College of Education. Her life’s work revolves identifying important societal questions as they emerge, conducting research to seek answers, and turning the findings into action. She strives to be ahead of the curve, to address compelling issues, and to provide rigorous data that can affect our lives. Over her career, her research has focused on work-life, children’s development, youth voice, child-care, parent-professional relationship, and parental development. Galinsky is the author of Mind in the Making, a best-selling book on early learning that the New York Times called “an iconic parenting manual,” and Judy Woodruff of the PBS NewsHour named “must reading for everyone who cares about America’s fate in the 21st Century.” Her book on adolescence, The Breakthrough Years, will be published in March 2024 and involved nine-years of research, including three original studies. Adam Grant, author of Hidden Potential says that “it smashes common stereotypes of teens and tweens,” Dan Siegel, author The Whole Brain Child calls it a “masterpiece;” Mitch Prinstein of the American Psychological Association says it is “a tour de force. Don’t attempt to raise a teenager without reading this book,” while Rich Lerner of Tufts University says it is a “superb contribution to science and society.” She is also the author of 90 books/reports and 360 articles for books, academic journals, magazines, and the Web.
Ellen Galinsky, Families and Work Institute
Children and Adolescent Development, Life and Learning Skills
Nina Kraus, Ph.D., is a scientist, inventor, and amateur musician who studies the biology of auditory learning. She began her career measuring responses from single auditory neurons and was one of the first to show that the adult nervous system has the potential for reorganization following learning; these insights in basic biology galvanized her to investigate auditory learning in humans.
In her deep examination of sound and the brain, Kraus makes the case for the far-reaching impact of sound, showing how hearing engages how we think, feel, move, and combine our senses. Through auditory neuroscience, she discovered how the sounds of our lives engage our neurological health for better (musicians, bilinguals) and for worse (language disorders, autism and other developmental disorders, concussion, HIV, hearing loss). Having witnessed first-hand (in single neurons and humans) how hearing can change the brain, affecting, more than any other sense, our interactions with others, she places a premium on communicating the scientific rationale for engaging in activities to strengthen the hearing brain and our sonic world. The cornerstone of her research is the ambition to improve social communication.
Her book OF SOUND MIND How Our Brain Constructs a Meaningful Sonic World communicates these principles in a narrative digestible to any interested reader. OF SOUND MIND is Kraus’ love letter to sound, how sound connects us, its biological impact on making us us, and how it affects the world we live in.
Never having accepted a lack of technology as a roadblock to scientific discovery, Kraus has invented new ways to measure the biology of sound processing in humans that provide unprecedented precision in indexing brain function. By finding connections across seemingly disparate disciplines, she is pushing science beyond the traditional laboratory, in schools, community centers, athletic facilities, and clinics, and advocating for best practices in education, health, and social policy.
Nina Kraus, Northwestern
Auditory Learning, Power and Neurobiological Basis of Sound
3:05 PM Session 5: Flourishing
— PROVOCATEUR—
Keith Yamashita has dedicated a life to creating a world that’s more creative, more beautiful, more just, more inclusive. He is a co-founder of The Institute for Moral Imagination. We live in a species-defining era. The Institute ignites humankind’s creativity—so we can imagine and build a future in which we all thrive. It undergirds artists, change-makers, leaders, and everyday citizens with the nourishment, inspiration, deep muscle, and capacities to claim their full agency in building preferred futures. In past lives, Keith founded SYPartners (a transformation consultancy), the kyu collective (one of the world’s largest creative collectives), and This Human Moment (an online community working through the suffering of the pandemic to find a new humanism on the other side). Keith is a photographer, poet, and gay dad. He holds an M.A. in Organizational Behavior and a B.A. in Quantitative Economics from Stanford University.
Keith Yamashita, The Institute for Moral Imagination
Strategic Innovation, Design Thinking, Storytelling
— IMMERSION —
IN-Q is an Emmy nominated poet, multi-platinum songwriter, world renowned keynote speaker and the best-selling author of Inquire Within.
His groundbreaking achievements include being named to Oprah’s SuperSoul 100 list of the world’s most influential thought leaders, being the first spoken word artist to perform with Cirque du Soleil, and being featured on A&E, ESPN, and HBO’s Def Poetry Jam.
He’s inspired countless audiences around the world, live and virtually, through his performances and storytelling workshops. Many of his recent poetry videos have gone viral with over 60+ million views combined, and his stand-up poetry special, IN-Q – Live at the Ace Theatre, is now streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
As a songwriter, IN-Q’s hit single “Love You Like a Love Song” by Selena Gomez went multi-platinum, winning him a BMI award. He has written with renowned artists including Aloe Blacc, Miley Cyrus, Mike Posner, ZHU, Foster the People and has collaborated with RockMafia on 40+ songs for Disney Television. Most recently, he was nominated for a Billboard Award for his contributions on the Descendants 3 soundtrack. His songs have accumulated over two billion views on YouTube alone.
Leading organizations including Nike, Instagram, Spotify, Google, Zappos, Lululemon, Live Nation, Shazam, The Grammy Foundation, and many more have brought IN-Q in to motivate their teams through his keynote performances and transformational storytelling workshops. These unique offerings provide a powerful bonding experience for companies that want to learn to lead with vulnerability and share their voice more authentically.
Ultimately IN-Q writes to entertain, inspire, and challenge his audiences to look deeper into the human experience and ask questions about themselves, their environment, and the world at large.
Spoken Word Artist, Songwriter, Authentic Communication
Panelists:
Dr. Charles Limb is the Francis A. Sooy Professor of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and the Chief of the Division of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery at University of California, San Francisco. He is the Director of the Douglas Grant Cochlear Implant Center at UCSF and he is the Medical Director of Cochlear Implantation at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital, Oakland. He also holds a joint appointment in the Department of Neurosurgery.
Dr. Limb received his undergraduate degree at Harvard University and his medical training at Yale University School of Medicine, followed by surgical residency and fellowship in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Center for Hearing Sciences at Johns Hopkins with Dr. David Ryugo studying the development of the auditory brainstem, and a second postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health studying neural mechanisms of musical improvisation and perception using functional neuroimaging methods. He was at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1996 to 2015, where he was Associate Professor of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and a Faculty Member at the Peabody Conservatory of Music and School of Education at Johns Hopkins University. He left in 2015 to join the UCSF Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery.
Dr. Limb’s expertise covers the full scope of otology and neurotology, with a focus on the treatment of hearing loss and auditory disorders. He specializes in all surgery of the temporal bone, with particular expertise in acoustic neuroma surgery, cochlear implant surgery, implantable hearing aids, stapes surgery, cholesteatoma surgery, and cancers of the ear. His current areas of research focus on the study of the neural basis of musical creativity as well as the study of music perception in deaf individuals with cochlear implants. He is the past Editor-in-Chief of Trends in Amplification (now Trends in Hearing), the only journal explicitly focused on auditory amplification devices and hearing aids, and an Editorial Board member of the journals Otology and Neurotology and Music and Medicine. His work has received international attention and has been featured by National Public Radio, TED, National Geographic, the New York Times, PBS, CNN, Scientific American, the British Broadcasting Company, the Smithsonian Institute, the Library of Congress, the Sundance Film Festival, Canadian Broadcasting Company, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and the American Museum of Natural History.
Charles Limb, UCSF
Musical Perception, Creativity, Improvisation
Dr. Margaret Smith Chisolm is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Director of the Paul McHugh Program for Human Flourishing at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She has a secondary appointment in the department of Medicine. She has over three decades of clinical experience in both general and specialized psychiatric outpatient and inpatient settings and has served as PI or co-investigator on multiple NIDA- and Foundation-funded research projects. She has published over 100 scientific, clinical, and medical education articles and book chapters on substance use in pregnancy and other psychiatric disorders, as well as the use of social media and the arts/humanities in medicine. She is an author of a psychiatric textbook and a book on psychiatric illness for patients and families ("From Survive to Thrive: Living Your Best Life with Mental Illness"). Dr. Chisolm is a member of the Miller-Coulson Academy of Clinical Excellence, has been twice recognized as an Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism Scholar, and is the recipient of the 2014 Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association Excellence in Teaching Award. She is a Fellow in the Association of European Medical Education, the Association for Academic Psychiatry, and the American College of Psychiatrists. She was selected to participate as a Design-Partner in the Art Museum-based Health Professions Education fellowship sponsored by the Cambridge Health Alliance and the Harvard Macy Institute, to which she returned as associate faculty. Dr. Chisolm's current focus of education research is on the integration of the arts and humanities in health professions education across the learning continuum.
Margaret Chisolm, Johns Hopkins
Museum-Based Education for the Flourishing of Health Professionals
Nicholas Wilton was born in San Francisco, California and spent his youth exploring the wilderness areas of Marin County. As a teenager he studied design with the German contemporary glass artist Ludwig Schaffrath, who catalyzed his ongoing passion for art making. Nicholas studied art at the College of Creative Studies in Santa Barbara and then went on to receive his BFA from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. In addition to gallery exhibitions and the inclusion in numerous private and corporate collections in both the United States and Europe, Wilton’s paintings have been used on the covers of the national bestseller “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz, and Brene Brown’s “The Gift of Imperfection”. Recently, the US Postal Service issued a stamp featuring Wilton’s artwork.
Nicholas is the founder of the Art2Life Creativity workshops and classes. This highly effective system of teaching returns authenticity, spontaneity and joy back into the creative process. Nicholas also has established the Creative Visionary Mentoring Program, which offers artistic, business and creative coaching to artists. He speaks and writes extensively on the subject of creativity, purpose and inspiration.
Nicholas Wilton, Art2Life
Visual Art, Authenticity in the Creative Process, Purpose
“Art," Gauguin said, "is either plagiarism or revolution.” Mary Ittelson favors revolution, helping arts organizations adapt to changing tastes and demands. For decades she led a consultancy that provided strategic planning and governance counsel to arts and cultural organizations. At Stanford Graduate School of Business she developed and taught a course on leadership in the arts and creative industries. In her class at Booth she exhorts future arts leaders to try radical strategies for impact and sustainability.
Spurred by the health, social, economic, and political upheavals of recent years, Mary is researching potential ventures at the intersection of artistic creativity and business entrepreneurship. Her new class, Art + Business Lab, enlists students alongside artists and business leaders to work towards fostering positive change in businesses, civic organizations and communities.
Mary knows a thing or two about art museums having been Chair of the Board and Associate Director at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago where she is a Life Trustee. She has pounded gavels and hammered nails. Mary has also worked at McKinsey, consulting to a variety of Fortune 100 companies. She serves on the Stanford Arts Advisory Council, the Board of Directors of Parliament, and was formerly a member of the Chicago Cultural Advisory Council. Mary earned an MBA at Stanford, a BA in Choreography from New York University, and studied dance at Juilliard.
Mary began her career as a professional choreographer, ran a modern dance company, and was an Assistant Professor in the Theater Department at Northwestern University where she was elected to the Faculty Honor Roll. She is writing a novel and can still touch her toes.
Mary Ittelson, University of Chicago
Disruptive Arts Advocacy, Creative Leadership Development
4:05 PM Break
4:35 PM Session 6: Building Community
— PROVOCATEUR—
Van’s honest and poignant social commentary has made him one of the most compelling and powerful public voices in America. His reach transcends age, race, geography and political ideology. Van is a CNN political contributor, the host of the Van Jones Show and The Redemption Project. He appears regularly across the network’s programming and political coverage. He is a popular guest on TV programs like The Daily Show and Real Time with Bill Maher. He also made special appearances on House of Cards and Ava Duvernay’s documentary “The 13th.” Van Jones burst into the American consciousness during the 2016 presidential campaign with an unscripted, truth-telling style and an already established history of bridge-building across party lines. A longtime progressive activist with deep roots in the conservative South, Jones has made it his mission to challenge voters and viewers to stand in one another’s shoes and disagree constructively. He pushes people on both the left and the right to be better.
Van Jones, CNN
Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Social Advocacy, Community Organizing
— IMMERSION —
Gary is an award-winning musician-composer-producer and a pioneer of personal and organizational transformation who bridges the worlds of business, the arts, education, and well-being. He is a leadership coach, a team-building catalyst, a designer and facilitator of multi-sensory learning experiences, and a TEDx presenter.
Gary is influenced by neuroscience research and how it can be applied to learning, collaboration, and creativity. He is the founder of Orchestrating Excellence, a global firm that combines music with other creative engagement experiences to cultivate emotional/social intelligence in leaders and greater harmony across teams and organizations.
Clients include Apple, Pixar, Cisco, Disney, Chase, Genentech, Fast Company, U.C. Berkeley, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Deloitte, McKesson, and North Dakota Correctional System.
Gary Muszynski, Orchestrating Excellence
Musician, Facilitator, Experience Designer
Panelists:
Chris Wilson splits his time between Miami, Florida and New York City and works as a visual artist and a social justice advocate. Through his work, he investigates societal injustices, human relationships, and public policies. His artwork is collected and displayed internationally. His bestselling book, The Master Plan, has inspired countless individuals to find hope, meaning and purpose in their lives. He founded the Chris Wilson Foundation in order to support social entrepreneurs and prison education, including reentry and financial literacy for returning citizens, as well as diversity and inclusion in the arts. He loves house music, traveling and getting time in the studio.
Chris Wilson, The Chris Wilson Foundation
Social Justice and Impact, Empowerment, Interconnection
Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho is from Zuni Pueblo and her clans are dakkya:kwe (frog) deyan yadokkya:kwe awan cha’le (child of the sun). After receiving her Masters in Education from Portland State University, she returned to her hometown of Zuni to teach 7th grade language arts. She loved the youth and the classroom but knew there were foundational needs beyond academics. The opportunity to serve as the Executive Director for Zuni Youth Enrichment Project has allowed Tahlia to foster the growth, resilience, and holistic wellness of Zuni youth through engaging programs that are rooted in the strengths of Zuni culture. Being a ZYEP summer camp counselor when she was in high school, Tahlia feels honored to work for the organization that supported her to strive for her goals as she grew up. She feels a deep sense of responsibility to continue the ZYEP tradition of providing high quality activities and caring mentors to youth. Tahlia would not be able to do this work if it weren’t for her sons, husband, family, ZYEP team, her mentors, and the Zuni community
Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho, Zuni Youth Enrichment Project
Intergenerational Leadership, Culturally Grounded Programs, Youth Empowerment
Jill Sonke, PhD, is research director in the Center for Arts in Medicine at the University of Florida (UF), director of national research and impact for the One Nation/One Project initiative, co-director of the EpiArts Lab (a National Endowment for the Arts Research Lab at UF), and currently serves as Senior Advisor to the CDC Vaccine Confidence and Demand Team on the COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence Task Force. She is an affiliated faculty member in the UF School of Theatre & Dance, Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases, the Center for African Studies, the STEM Translational Communication Center, and the One Health Center, and a consulting editor for Health Promotion Practice journal.
Jill studied dance at Interlochen Arts Academy, the Florida State University, in London, Paris and Athens with teachers of the Horton and Duncan techniques including Bella Lewitsky, Lynda Davis, Milton Meyers, Joy Kellman, Lori Belilove, Julia Levine and Hortense Koluris. She has been a principal dancer and soloist with Lori Belilove & the Isadora Duncan Dance Company in New York and a guest performer and choreographer with Dance Alive! and Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theatre.
With 27+ years of experience and leadership in the field of arts in health, Jill is active in research, teaching, and international cultural exchange. She is a mixed methods researcher with a current focus on population-level health outcomes associated with arts and cultural participation, arts in public health, and the arts in health communication. She is the recipient of a New Forms Florida Fellowship Award, a State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship Award, an Excellence in Teaching Award from the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development, a UF Internationalizing the Curriculum Award, a UF Most Outstanding Service Learning Faculty Award, a UF Public Health Champions award, a UF Cross-Campus Faculty Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and over 300 grants for her programs and research at the University of Florida.
Jill Sonke, University of Florida
Community Health, Medicinal Art, Synaptic Creativity
Michael Murphy co-founded MASS Design Group in 2007 after an invitation from Dr. Paul Farmer to design the Butaro District Hospital in Rwanda. He served as the organization’s President and Executive Director until 2022 before leaving to focus on new ventures. During Michael’s tenure as executive director, MASS grew from a small group of classmates from the Harvard School of Design to an organization with hundreds of employees, designing and building projects in over a dozen countries across the world, including the Butaro District Hospital in Rwanda, the Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama and the Embrace Memorial on the Boston Common. An important element in that success was taking full advantage of MASS’s nonprofit status to secure donations from like-minded philanthropists and using that support to help seed projects that might not have happened otherwise. Michael also placed a priority on important research projects, including those focused on the Public Monument, architecture’s role in Restorative Justice, and exploring the shrinking “Fringe” city in America, inspired by his hometown of Poughkeepsie, NY. During Michael’s tenure, MASS was the recipient of numerous awards, including the AIA Firm of the Year Award in 2022, Wall Street Journal Magazine’s Innovator of the Year for 2021, The American Arts and Letters Award, and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award. Michael has been personally honored by the Royal Institute of British Architects as an International FRIBA and has held fellowships and advisory roles with the Emerson Collective, the Aspen Institute, The Santa Fe Art institute, and the Clinton Global Initiative. He has lectured around the world, advocating for a different approach to architecture, including as a keynote speaker for the 2017 AIA Annual Conference and the presenter of 2016 TED Talk “Architecture that Heals”, which has received over 1.8 million views to date. Michael also authored the book “Architecture of Health” with Jeffrey Mansfield and MASS Design Group, which examines how our built world was shaped by disease and reveals how historical examples can offer us both caution and inspiration. Michael holds an M.Arch from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design and a Bachelors in English Language and Literature from the University of Chicago. He has held teaching positions at Harvard University, The University of Michigan, Columbia University, Cornell University and others. Currently, he is the Thomas Ventulett Chair of Architecture at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Michael Murphy, Michael P. Murphy Studio
Intentional Spaces, Environmental Impact on Health
5:40 PM Session 7: Future of the Arts and How We Get There
— PROVOCATEUR—
Susan is an accomplished learning expert and program architect. With over 35 years experience in developing effective learning programs rooted in the science of learning, Susan is an active member of the brain sciences research, arts, education and social impact communities. She currently serves as Executive Director of the International Arts and Mind Lab at the Brain Science Institute at Johns Hopkins University. She is also the senior advisor to the Science of Learning Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Susan’s approach to creating effective translational models combine interdisciplinary, evidence-based research with practical, applicable ideas and programs. She brings together scientists, educators, families, psychologists, advocates, policymakers, educational media, technologists, and others to share their perspectives and expertise on education, family life, and other topics. This work has resulted in successful impact-based work.
Susan Magsamen, Johns Hopkins
Translational Models, Neuro-Aesthetics, Mind and Art
— IMMERSION —
Ivy Ross is an American business executive and jewelry designer. Ross’s metal work in jewelry design is in the permanent collections of 12 international museums, including the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.. Ross is the vice president of hardware design at Google. Ivy and her team created the design language for the Google hardware products that launched in 2017, winning over 240 design awards over the last three years. Business Insider recently named her one of the 15 Most Powerful Women at Google. One of few recognized fine artists to successfully crossover into the business world, Ross is also a keynote speaker, a member of several boards, and has been hailed as a “creative visionary” by the art world. Ivy draws on her background in wide-ranging fields including sound therapy, quantum physics, psychology, and play. One of her most notable innovations is Project Platypus, an experimental design initiative where a core team develops a new brand in an enriched environment over three months; the model has been adopted by Mattel (where she was formerly head of innovation) and Procter & Gamble (on whose design board she served). She also served on the Vatican’s Arts and Technology Commission and judged the 2017 Spark Design Awards, the 2018 Core 77 awards, Dezeen Design Awards 2020, Frame Design Awards 2020, Design Leader of the Year Awards 2020, and the Fast Company Design Awards.
Ivy Ross, Google
Incorporating Neuroscience in Design, Sustainable Innovation
Panelists:
Sarah Lenz Lock is Senior Vice President for Policy and Brain Health in AARP’s Policy, Research and International Affairs (PRI). Ms. Lock leads AARP’s policy initiatives on brain health and care for people living with dementia, including serving as the Executive Director of the Global Council on Brain Health, an independent collaborative of scientists, doctors, and policy experts. Ms. Lock coordinates AARP’s role in the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations.
Ms. Lock is a frequent writer and public speaker on issues related to healthy aging. She has been quoted or appeared in numerous media outlets including The New York Times, NPR, Good Morning, America, The Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, CBS News, the Baltimore Sun, and the Chicago Tribune.
Sarah serves on numerous boards and is a member of the American Society on Aging, the Gerontological Society of America, the Dementia Friendly America National Council, the Stakeholder Advisory Committee for the National Institute on Aging’s IMPACT Collaboratory, and the National Academy of Social Insurance. Sarah represents AARP on the Milken Alliance to Improve Dementia Care and serves as a Health and Aging Policy Fellow Program National Advisory Board Member. She formerly served as a Commissioner for the American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging and on the HHS Administration on Community Living Aging and Cognitive Health Technical Expert Advisory Board.
From 2007 to June 2018 she directed the Office of Policy Development and Integration, where she led the office responsible for the development of AARP’s public policies. Previously, Ms. Lock was Senior Attorney/Manager at AARP Foundation Litigation conducting health care impact litigation on behalf of older persons. She has authored numerous amicus briefs in appellate courts all over the country on health care issues impacting older Americans.
Prior to joining AARP, Sarah served as a Trial Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice. Sarah began her career as a Legislative Assistant in the U.S. House of Representatives to Congressman Michael D. Barnes working with the Federal Government Service Task Force, and worked at the law firm of Arent, Fox, Kintner, Plotkin & Kahn.
Sarah Lock, AARP
Brain Health Public Policy, Longevity
Sunil Iyengar directs the Office of Research & Analysis at the National Endowment for the Arts. Under his leadership, the office has produced dozens of research reports, hosted periodic research events and webinars, led strategic plan development for the agency, and established research and data partnerships with the U.S Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. His office also conducts program evaluations and performance measurement for the Arts Endowment. Working with his team, Iyengar has created and pursued a long-term research agenda (based partly on an arts “system map” his office helped to design), founded a national data repository for the arts, and launched two awards programs for arts researchers, including the NEA Research Labs initiative. He chairs a federal Interagency Task Force on the Arts and Human Development. For nearly a decade, he has contributed a monthly research post (titled “Taking Note”) to the agency’s official blog.
Iyengar and his team have collaborated with organizations such as the Brookings Institution, the National Academy of Sciences, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to explore the arts in relation to such topics as health and well-being, economic development, and STEM and medicine. His office provides research consultative support to Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network. Most recently, he has led a research funding partnership with NIH as part of Sound Health, an initiative of the Kennedy Center and NIH in association with the Arts Endowment.
Prior to joining the agency as research director, Iyengar worked as a reporter, managing editor, and senior editor for a host of news publications covering the biomedical research, medical device, and pharmaceutical industries. He writes poems, book reviews, and literary essays. Iyengar has a BA in English from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Sunil Iyengar, National Endowment for the Arts
Research Resources, Federal Partnerships
Renée Fleming is one of the most highly acclaimed singers of our time, performing on the stages of the world's greatest opera houses and concert halls. Honored with the US National Medal of Arts, the 2023 Kennedy Center Honor, and five Grammy® awards, Fleming has sung at momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Super Bowl. In 2024, she stars in The Hours at the Metropolitan Opera and is touring her recital program Voice of Nature: The Anthropocene, inspired by her Grammy-winning album of the same name and with an original film by the National Geographic Society.
In recent years, Fleming has become a leading advocate for research at the intersection of arts, health, and neuroscience, and she has been named a Goodwill Ambassador for Arts and Health by the World Health Organization. As Artistic Advisor to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Fleming has spearheaded the Sound Health collaboration with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and she partners with other leading organizations and initiatives to bring attention to research and practice at the intersection of music, health, and neuroscience.
Renée is Co-Chair of the Johns Hopkins/Aspen Institute NeuroArts Blueprint and Founding Advisor for the Sound Health Network at UCSF, and her foundation has supported research projects including the NIH Music-Based Intervention Toolkit and the Renée Fleming NeuroArts Investigator Awards for early-career arts and health researchers. Renée's advocacy work has earned her Research! America's Rosenfeld Award for Impact on Public Opinion and the World Economic Forum's Crystal Award. Her new anthology, Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, is now available from Viking Penguin Random House. www.reneefleming.com.
Renée Fleming, Soprano, World Health Organization, NeuroArts Blueprint, Kennedy Center
Arts and Health Advocacy, Research Pipeline
Music and Brain Connectivity, Neuroplasticity, Well-being
Tooshar Swain is the Director of Public Policy at Americans for the Arts. Before joining Americans for the Arts, Tooshar served as Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at the National Association for Music Education. There he oversaw federal and state policy initiatives while supporting music educators in their efforts to advocate for their music programs. During this time, he also served as a board member for both the Committee for Education Funding and the Title IV-A Coalition.
Tooshar began his career on Capitol Hill working on tax policy, judiciary, and healthcare issues in the United States Senate. Following his time on Capitol Hill, Tooshar joined the Biotechnology Innovation Organization where we worked on tax policy and financial service issues for emerging companies. Tooshar has also worked as both a policy and communications consultant for presidential and congressional campaigns.
As the husband of a teacher and the father of two daughters, Tooshar has seen firsthand the need for the arts in a child’s life. This drives his commitment to advocacy for the arts on all levels.
Tooshar Swain, Americans for the Arts
Arts in Education, Policy, Art Advocacy
6:40 PM Closing and Cocktail Reception
MULTISENSORY EXPERIENCES AND LIVE DEMONSTRATIONS
The forum will include a hands-on NeuroArts activations with exciting inventions, technology demonstrations, and artistic exhibits: melt into VR naturescapes, get in tune with medical grade sound beds, move like never before with techno-interactive music therapy sessions, and more.
TUNE Sound Beds: Enhanced Soundscape for Ultimate Zen
TUNE is a performance technology for your nervous system. They are harnessing the science of sound to reduce stress and anxiety. With the use of proprietary medical-grade vibrations synced with custom neural music, they aim to re-balance the body to its most optimal state in just 15 minutes.
Nick Wilton: Unleash Your Creativity
Experience the impacts of artistic expression first hand, as you join Nick Wilton for a painting class. Nick is the founder of Art2Life Creativity workshops and classes, which is a system of teaching that returns authenticity, spontaneity and joy back into the creative process.
REULAY: Experience VR NeuroArts for Mental Health
Elevate your wellness as you become immersed in soothing naturescapes with Reulay’s virtual reality. This research-backed program is designed to reduce stress and increase focus as users enjoy the tranquil beauty of nature in VR. Immerse yourself in a symphony of calming sights and sounds, allowing your mind to wander freely and recharge amidst the serene landscapes specifically curated for relaxation and rejuvenation.
MedRythms: Transforming Neurotherapeutics
Experience firsthand how MedRhythms is pioneering next-generation treatments tailored for neurological conditions such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson's disease. Immerse yourself in the forefront of innovation as they redefine the landscape of neurotherapeutics.
BRAIN-HEALTHY CUISINE
New research indicates that diet plays a significant role in brain function, impacting everything from memory to risk for brain diseases. We put these exciting findings into practice at our gatherings. You won’t find junky conference fare at BrainMind. Meals and snacks served at BrainMind feature foods and ingredients with published findings for brain health benefit. Learn more about our approach here.
DETAILS
Dates: Friday - Saturday, May 31 - June 1, 2024
Time: Arts Passport Day: 10AM - 5PM; Forum: 7:30AM - 7:00 PM on June 1st
Location: Confidential - see your confirmation email and calendar invites
Hotels: See our recommended hotels here
SUPPORTERS
We would like to thank the following supporters of BrainMind: Your Brain on Art
