Opening to Connection: Positive Emotions and Compassion Across Difference
October 30 @ 7:00 am - 8:00 am
Free
How do we keep our hearts open when our differences make us want to pull away?
Leading researchers and clinicians Barbara Fredrickson, Kamilah Majied, and Myriam Mongrain will examine how everyday moments of joy, love, and contemplative practice can disarm defensive habits, restore compassion, and build the enduring psychological resources needed to heal deep societal divides.
This is the fourth event in our 2026 series exploring the hindrances to compassion, curated by Myriam Mongrain, PhD, Chair of the Global Compassion Coalition’s Science Committee.
Exploration will include: how we can strengthen the inner capacities that support openness, connection, and compassion across difference. Specifically…
- Move Past Division: What helps us step out of “us vs. them” habits and reconnect across difference.
- Build Inner Resilience: How contemplative practices bring grounding and courage during social friction.
- Open the Heart: How micro-moments of joy and curiosity replenish our emotional capacity when we feel closed off.
- Explore Wider Possibilities: Ideas for both personal and collective changes that support everyday compassion.