This is the second session of a two-part series is dedicated to BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) human services workers and social activists actively supporting BIPOC communities experiencing trauma and adversity. We understand the unique challenges and emotional toll of this work, and we believe in the power of being well to serve well. Join us for two sessions of reflection and connection as we explore the concepts of radical self-care and community connection. We will delve into strategies for nurturing our own well-being while continuing to serve our communities with passion and resilience.
About the Presenters
Jennifer Winther: She/Her. Proudly mixed race. Japanese American. Asian American. Ph.D. Yogi. Meditator. Breast cancer survivor. Motherless mother. LGBTQIA+ parent ally. Teacher. Writer. Buddhist. Lover of nature, music, art, travel, and heritage cooking. Defender of the right to rest and heal.
In her work as teacher and facilitator, Jennifer focuses on the real, the accessible, and the simply profound benefits of regular practice. Whether in virtual workday sessions, on retreat in some beautiful place around the globe, or anywhere else that people gather, she specializes in creating the conditions for you to nourish a practice of mindful, embodied movement, stillness, and contemplation that can create powerful ripples in your life. As a teacher, her greatest joy is seeing you gradually embrace your own empowered practice, liberating yourself from the internalized patterns that have made you suffer for too long.
Yikai Xu
Yikai is a PhD student in counseling psychology at the Culture, Emotion, and Health Lab at New York University and a member of Mind & Life’s Young Adult Advisory Council. His research interests primarily focus on cognitive and emotional processes underlying adaptive coping and psychological well-being across cultures. His current constructs of interest include contemplative practices, emotion beliefs, psychological flexibility, insights, dialectical thinking, and acculturative and race-based stress. Currently, Yikai is interested in investigating emotion beliefs across cultures and how culture shapes emotion beliefs and influences the process of self-reflection. Additionally, he is interested in mapping out the underlying cognitive, emotional, and behavioral processes of psychological flexibility and exploring how psychological flexibility influences coping with acculturative and race-based stress among ethnoracial minorities. He is also interested in ways to promote equitable access to quality mental health services among underserved communities on the individual level as well as the policy level. Yikai is committed to building lasting community partnerships and advocating for social justice in the mental health field and beyond.