What We Do

Undergraduate Programs 

Current Courses: We currently offer four undergraduate courses: 

• Principles of Secular Ethics: The Dalai Lama’s Approach – REL354R/HLTH 385
• Tibetan Buddhism: The Psychology of Enlightenment – REL306
• Religion and Healing: Buddhist Meditation – REL358/HLTH385
• CBCT^® (Cognitively-Based Compassion Training) – PE285 Special Topics

Mind-Body Sciences Summer Abroad Program

In collaboration with the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, Drepung Loseling Monastery, and Emory’s Office of International and Summer Programs, the Mind-Body Sciences Summer Study Abroad Program offers students the opportunity to join an emerging dialogue between contemplative science and the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. During this five-week program held in Dharamsala and Mundgod, India, students learn from leading members of the Tibetan exile community. In conjunction with the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative, students also have the opportunity to actively engage with Tibetan monastics studying the philosophy of science, biology, neuroscience, and physics.

The current courses offered through this program are:

• Mind, Medicine and Healing - REL358 / HLTH385 / IDS385                
• Culture of Buddhist Tibet - REL331 / ANT385 / MESAS390 / HLTH385 

For more information on applying, please visit the Emory Office of International and Summer Programs Abroad: http://abroad.emory.edu/index.cfm?FuseAction=Programs.ViewProgram&Program_ID=1443

Graduate and Professional Programs  

Currently, the center has a formal collaboration with the Emory School of Medicine through the CBCT^® program and works with other graduate-level schools and programs on an ad hoc basis. This may take the form of guest lecturing on secular ethics in existing courses (e.g., Goizueta Business School), offering CBCT^® courses (e.g., Emory School of Law), or facilitating research around contemplative science. 

We encourage graduate students from across the university to participate in the Contemplative Science Seminar Series. This forum provides a space to create connections within the university and with external scholars and to present their own research for feedback from a community of scholars. 

Research Collaborations  

All programs within the Center for Contemplative Science and Compassion-Based Ethics have research arms: SEE Learning^® (a K–12 program for fostering compassion) CBCT^® (a compassion-training course for all ages), and ETSI (a science education program for Tibetan monastics). We collaborate with scientists and scholars from a range of disciplines, including neuroscientists, anthropologists, medical professionals, and psychologists. 

We continually welcome proposals from both the Emory community and other institutions for research collaborations investigating the science of compassion. We offer undergraduate opportunities in research through directed study focused on research around the SEE Learning^® program or CBCT^® as an intervention. 

Please review our bibliography of published research.