East Meets West held its annual conference in Oakland California this month, an event that they tout isn’t quite a conference, or a summit or even a festival. In their words, “it’s a vibe and a wave length.”
“East Meets West is a set of principles that animates everyone & changes people’s lives while they are with us.”
We breezed in and breezed out so sadly wasn’t able to say for much of it because of other obligations, but their heart is in the right place. Founded by Jeff Bausemer who kicked off East Meets West with an introduction to Phytopsychology, educating attendees about herbal medicine for mental health, the event is now in its fifth year.
East Meets West
The East Meets West event is based around being and doing good, calm energy and living, music, and consciousness. Over the weekend, they held experiential workshops, panels, and talks with top thought and lifestyle leaders, industry founders, wellness professionals and coaches, mindfulness educators and cultural creatives.
From the arts, mindfulness, technology, design, wisdom traditions, neuroscience, physics and more, they have had speakers from the Tibet House, The Rubin Museum, CBS’s hit show Survivor, Parsley Health as well as yogis, nutritionists and alternative wellness practitioners.
Their focus is at the intersection of Eastern and Western thought and lifestyle and included discussions around ayurveda, modern yoga, branding in wellness, business development, natural medicine, diet, exercise, education, life coaching, politics, meditation, neuroscience, and beyond.
Since we didn’t stay for long, we aren’t able to give the event justice like we normally do when we do event coverage, however a few call outs that were interesting for me, included Yingzhao Liu, who spoke on Buddhist Alchemy: Transforming Everything Into Wisdom and Dr. James Daty, who is a professor of Neurosurgery and the founder of the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education at Stanford.
Where and how does masculinity fit into the age of feminism was addressed tackled by Tom Kubik and Ravi Mishra.
In light of recent events with Harvey Weinstein and the onslaught of women speaking up around the world, particularly in France over the past week, it was timely. Patriarchy has had a good run but it’s tired, they assert. How do we make men and women feel equal in the conversation about how to handle where our society needs to go at a global level?
The rise of the divine feminine
An all female panel took on the social and societal aspects of wellness (Daisy Ozim, Magenta Ceiba and Taraneh) and Sachi Cocto focused on Ayurvedic Inner Wisdom.
Chaikuni Witan, who has been apprenticing with a Peruvian Shaman for five years, talked about Psychedelics, how they work and a nose dive into the Amazonian Plant Medicine known as Ayahuasca. We’ll be writing more about this topic in the future.
I missed a performance I was ever so curious about from Nkechi Njaka who in addition to a choreographer and meditation teacher, is a Neuroscientist, Art Director and Wellness expert. I found her fascinating – she is also a contributing writer for Black Girl in Om and the co-Founder of Sitting Matters. Nkechi, I so wish I could “sit” more. I hear you.
Nkechi Njaka, credit: Metiza
My buddy from Google, Gopi Kalayil was the closing keynote on Sunday, who I always enjoy hearing from — his work inspires me as does his commitment to leading yoga wherever he ventures.
They also had a yoga room throughout the weekend, where folks like Will Meecham led a session on Mindful Biology, Eli Cohen did a session on Tai Chi and Qi Gong, as did Eli Cohen and Jean Mazzei led Aromatherapy Flow and Yoga Nidra, among others. Workshops were varied as well and included Awakening Qi in Chinese Medicine (am a fan), Understanding Hips and Shoulders in Vinyasa Yoga (quirky and fun title) and Tibetan Medicine and healing with Jason Whitlow.
East Meets West was held at The Omni Commons on Shattuck Avenue in Oakland, California. Check out their website for more information on them, their speakers and world.
Renee Blodgett is the Founder and Managing Editor of We Blog the World, a global travel, culture and lifestyle publication exploring the world through the lens of meaningful experiences, human connection and cultural depth. Having lived in 10 countries and traveled to 95, Renee has spent much of her life immersed in the people, traditions, landscapes and ideas that shape how we experience the world.
Since launching We Blog the World in 2007, she has written and produced extensive editorial coverage spanning boutique and luxury travel, culinary experiences, arts and culture, wellness, adventure, technology, spiritual traditions and transformative travel. Her work is rooted in the belief that travel is about more than where we go—it is also about what a place, culture or encounter awakens within us.
Renee brings more than three decades of experience across journalism, photography, media, brand strategy, technology, wellness and global storytelling. She has worked with companies and organizations around the world on brand positioning, communications, product launches, media strategy, speaker positioning and storytelling. Through Blue Soul Media, she works with authors, entrepreneurs, thought leaders and purpose-driven brands to clarify their message and expand their impact, which includes speaker coaching/training for high-profile stages such as TED and bringing authors’ work to market while retaining authors rights.
She is also the co-founder of Blue Soul Earth, an educational platform exploring consciousness, ancient wisdom, spirituality, healing and the intersection between science and the nature of reality. Renee is the producer and host of the award-winning Blue Soul CHATS, a conversational series bringing together leading voices in science, technology, consciousness, wellness and spirituality.
Her growing body of work also includes Blue Soul Living, which extends her interest in consciousness and well-being into the spaces we inhabit, exploring how intentional design, energy and environment can support greater harmony and connection.
Renee is the award-winning co-author of the bestselling Magdalene’s Journey and founder of the Magdalene Collection, inspired by women’s voices, stories and wisdom across cultures and generations.
A longtime photographer and storyteller, Renee has documented people, places and cultures around the world and produced photographic collections focused on destinations including the Galápagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome and Ecuador. She also co-founded Traveling Geeks, an international initiative that brought entrepreneurs, journalists, creators and technology leaders together with their counterparts in other countries to exchange ideas and explore innovation across cultures.
Renee’s work has been recognized by Forbes, the United Nations and others for her influence in media and social storytelling. Across her work in travel, media, consciousness and culture, a common thread remains: curiosity about the world, the stories that connect us and the ways meaningful experiences can change how we see ourselves and one another.
