Unite with Students, staff and wellbeing experts to explore how mindfulness can transform your life, learning and our institutional culture
Victoria University of Wellington’s National Wellbeing Symposium is for students, staff (academic and professional) and anyone working to improve wellbeing in tertiary education. This year’s presentations and workshops focus on the role of Mindfulness.

Mindfulness is a powerful and effective wellbeing skill. Internationally there is increasing evidence that Mindfulness practices can significantly enhance individuals’ coping and wellbeing capacity, and its simplicity, yet sophistication, appeals to members of our communities. This symposium will demonstrate and share how Mindfulness awareness and practices can be introduced into the lives of students and staff. It will also show how Mindfulness practices within academic institutions can support a culture of wellness.

This ninth annual gathering also serves as an opportunity for connection and collaboration around the ever more important issue of our health and wellbeing.

All food for the Symposium will be supplied by the Bhakti Lounge and will be a seasonal vegan set menu.
 

Access the symposium’s full programme: Mindfulness-symposium-schedule.pdf

Plenary keynote speaker: Professor Paul Jose, School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington

Professor Paul Jose’s research interests include adolescent stress and coping, cross-cultural comparisons of adolescent adjustment, adolescent depression, psychometrics (statistical treatment of questionnaires) and positive psychology (including topics such as savouring, gratefulness, mindfulness and happiness). He is also interested in how children and adolescents cope with the problems in their lives and how coping either helps or hurts the individual in this process.

He is also a passionate member of Victoria University’s Wellbeing Network and has for many years worked to enhance the University’s Health and Wellbeing strategies.

Break out workshops and sessions
Students, professionals and tertiary staff will present interactive workshops and short talks on their programmes, research and applied practice in the area of Mindfulness.

Workshop presenters, both students and staff, will introduce the ways that Mindfulness is being used in such diverse practices as academic teaching, student led wellbeing groups and activities, digital and online disruption, mental health psycho education programmes and physical rehabilitation.

There will also be four interactive exhibition stands presented by Zen Division, Zeno Project, Student Finance and Healthy Tech Habits.