The Middle Way Society

We are joined today by the philosopher and founder of the Middle Way Society. Robert has been a regular guest on the podcast and is the author of a range of books on Middle Way Philosophy, both within and beyond Buddhism, including The Christian Middle Way (Christian Alternative 2018). He has a PhD in Philosophy and a Cambridge BA in Oriental Studies and Theology. He has taught in many different contexts, and was formerly a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order. He’s here to talk to us about his latest book The Buddha’s Middle Way (Equinox 2019).

Our guest today is Katherine Weare who is Emeritus Professor at the University of Exeter where she is working to develop and evaluate mindfulness in schools programs. Katherine is a dedicated mindfulness practitioner herself as well as a qualified mindfulness teacher. Her overall field is social and emotional learning and mental health and wellbeing in schools. She is known as an international expert on evidence-based practice and has conducted several definitive reviews and led programmes which have informed policy and practice in many countries. She is the author of several books including Promoting Mental, Emotional and Social Health: A Whole School Approach, Developing the Emotionally Literate School and most recently Happy Teachers Change the World: A Guide for Cultivating Mindfulness in Education which she co-wrote with Tich Nath Hanh and will be the topic of our discussion today

Today’s guest is the British environmental writer and political activist George Monbiot. George writes a weekly column for The Guardian, and is the author of a number of books, including Captive State: The Corporate Takeover of Britain (2000) and Feral: Searching for Enchantment on the Frontiers of Rewilding (2013). He will be discussing the topic of rewilding with the chair of the Middle Way Society, the philosopher Robert M Ellis.

Our guest today is Simon Bell. Simon is a retired mental health nurse who spent 37 years working in the National Health Service in the U.K. For 22 years he dealt solely with suspects, defendants and offenders from the time of their arrest until the point when criminal proceedings took place. He dealt with most types of offending behavior and over the course of his career was involved in assessing and caring for several thousand offenders and victims of crime. His passion for history goes back to childhood; his passion for the Holocaust has its origins in being involved with the care of survivors of Nazi brutality whom he met during his early days in mental health car. He’s the author of 'Auschwitz-Birkenau - From Hell to Hope' and 'Tribalism and Prejudice - The Far-Right and Lessons From History which will be the topic of our discussion today.

My guest today is Maryanne Wolf. Maryanne is the John Dibiaggio Professor of Citizenship and Public Service and Director of the Center for Reading and Language Research. She is an expert on the neurological underpinnings of reading, language, and dyslexia. She is also the author of numerous scientific publications as well two books written for the general public ‘Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain’ which has been translated in 10 languages and her latest book ‘Reader Come Home: The reading brain in a digital world which will be the topic of our discussion today.