Varela 20/30

This year, we are paying tribute to two anniversaries: the 20th of Francisco’s passing in 2001 and the 30th of the publication of The Embodied Mind. Click here to learn more.

Upcoming MLE events and programs

Science Day event with SciWizLIVE!

Join us online on October 23 for a special event with our partners Science and Wisdom LIVE on the topic: "Appearance & Reality - Quantum Physics meets Buddhist Philosophy".

This event is open to the public with a limited number of tickets and will run from 14:00 - 22:00 CEST.

Reserve your tickets now!

Mind Matters webinar with B. Alan Wallace!

We are pleased to announce our next 'Mind Matters' webinar will take place on October 27 at 18:00 CEST with contemplative scholar, philosopher and physicist, Dr. B. Alan Wallace.

The topic of the lecture is: "Contemplative and Scientific Ways of Knowing" .This event is free and open to the general public.

MLE Retreat Applications are now open!

The application period for the next MLE Retreat has begun and will run until October 18.

Our theme this year is "Exploring Contemplative Life: Integrating personal, professional and spiritual aspects of our path". The Retreat will take place at Landguet Ried in Switzerland.

Apply now!

Mind and Life Europe acts as catalyst for human flourishing

Understanding the mind and cultivating the heart

Every day, we support vital work that transforms our scientific understanding of the human mind and its capacity to develop positive mental states. We believe that when contemplative wisdom and practices are fully integrated into modern day science it has the power to act as a catalyst for human and societal flourishing. This is the promise of what we call contemplative science.

The main message, to me, is the importance for human beings to learn how to become experts on their own mind. -- Francisco J. Varela

Together with the world’s leading scientists, contemplative scholars, and healthcare, educational and management practitioners, we create an open and interdisciplinary dialogue between modern sciences and contemplative practices and share our findings with the world.

Varela 20/30 Events

Francisco and Friends webinar series

In the context of Varela 20/30, Francisco Varela's dialogue partners share experiences and insights about working with him and the influence of these special relationships on their life and work. Our next special guests are Antoine Lutz and Jean-Philippe Lachaux (October 13), with the topic: "The Francisco Varela Experience- are you experienced?".

Ouroboros Season 2

The second season of the Ouroboros Seminars is now underway in cooperation with Metanoia and the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts (Slovenia)

We are excited to welcome our next guest speaker Andreas Weber on October 20, who will present and interpret the paper "Life after Kant: Natural purposes and the autopoietic foundations of biological individuality" (2002)

Find out more!

Join the MLE Friends community!

MLE Friends is a community for people who seek to foster human flourishing in connection with science and wisdom traditions.

As an MLE Friend, you benefit from a variety of opportunities to further connect and explore the MLE community like exclusive webinars and discounts on MLE events.

Join us!

Previous Events

ESRI 2021 (online)

In August 2021, we held the second online European Summer Research Institute (ESRI).

This year's program was themed: "Care for life: Enacting knowedlge in an interdependent and uncertain world."ESRI 2021 is the second part of a 3-year thematic arc dedicated to the theme of "Knoweldge".

Learn more!

Webinar with the Dalai Lama - June 9 2021

On June 9, MLE hosted a wonderful webinar with his Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama titled:"Dialogue for a Better World - Remembering Francsico Varela".

The special friendship between the Dalia Lama and Francisco Varela led to the creation of Mind & Life and its groundbreaking work in the field of contemplative science.

Watch now!

MLE Retreat 2021

Our first MLE Retreat was held in 2019 in Fürstenfeldbruck, Germany and themed: "Exploring Contemplative Life: Integrating personal, professional and spiritual aspects of our path".

Following the success of this retreat we held our first online MLE Retreat for young researchers in February 2021.