CNI offered this special Roundtable to create an opportunity for reflection and a processing space for the strong feelings of exhaustion, anger, grief, and sadness that so many people experienced as a result of Covid-19, and which for many was intensified and deepened with the murder of George Floyd. CNI’s panel featured the following leading experts with diverse interdisciplinary perspectives to offer insights on how they think about processing anger, anxiety, and grief either on a personal level or from the vantage points of their respective professions:
Dr. Joel Salinas, a neurologist specializing in brain health, cognitive-behavioral neurology, and neuropsychiatry who trained at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Neurology. To offer solutions and techniques for a more productive and kinder society, he studies the intersection of neuroscience, our social environments, and why we think, feel, and do the things we do. Dr. Salinas is also a CNI Consultant.
Jody Scheier, a mental health counselor and a teaching consultant at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School, Director of Clinical Training at the Family Center, a facilitator/consultant for Triad Consulting Group, and is a Senior Lecturer (adjunct faculty) at Lesley University’s Graduate Program in Counseling and Psychology.
Fr. Josh Thomas, an Episcopal priest, scholar and interfaith educator. He is the interim Executive Director of Seeds of Peace, Board Chair of the Alliance for Middle East Peace, a coalition of 100+ organizations working at the grassroots level to build peace between Israelis and Palestinians, and has also served as Executive Director of Kids4Peace since 2011.
Tess Thomas, an inclusive talent leader with extensive experience designing and implementing recruiting programs as well as people, culture, and employee engagement initiatives. She has spent the last several years of her career building and managing talent strategy & operations in startup and midsize organizations while leveraging inclusive hiring and inclusive culture building best practices.