Mindfulness and Justice Education Barbara Schatz Columbia Law School GAJE 8 th Worldwide Conference Eskisehir, Turkey July, 2015

Plan for our session Definitions of mindfulness Empirical evidence of benefits Relevance to law practice and legal education, especially justice education A few exercises Putting mindfulness to use in the classroom Resources and homework

What is mindfulness? paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally accepting and acknowledging the present moment without getting caught up in thoughts about it or emotional reactions to it seeing things as they actually are with “fearless curiosity” and living in harmony with oneself and the world approach to stressful situations that promotes response rather than reaction

Meditation and Mindfulness Meditation practice: training the mind to better understand it and to cultivate certain states of mind Focus, insight, compassion Sitting, walking, lying down, Qi gong In the shower and washing the dishes

Mindfulness in the Corporate World

Mindfulness in Legal Profession And more than 20 other law schools, as well as state bar associations, and the Association of American Law Schools.

Evidence of Effects of Meditation: Neuroscience Meditation changes the structure and function of the brain

Evidence of Effects of Meditation: Empirical Studies decreases anxiety, depression, and stress (as well as physical pain); improves cognitive function enhances memory improves focus reduces bias promotes empathy and compassionate behavior

Mindfulness: Law Practice and Legal Education Stress reduction Focus Emotional intelligence Reflection Listening Balance Professional identity

Mindfulness and Justice Education Compassion Normal meditation practice Compassion and loving kindness meditation Difference between empathy and compassion Applications Re-envisioning systems (e.g. criminal justice) Training participants (e.g, judges, police, corrections officers, at-risk youth, those who have committed crimes, parole officers)

Trying it out A short meditation Listening: Take 3 minutes to tell a story to person next to you about something on your mind Listener doesn’t interrupt and doesn’t chime in if speaker doesn’t use all of allotted time Reverse roles Compassion meditation

Putting Mindfulness into Practice Side 1: Imagine beginning (or deepening) a meditation practice yourself? What hopes would you have for it? What fears would you have?

Putting Mindfulness into Practice Side 2: Imagine using mindfulness with your students? What would you do? What goals would you have? What fears would you have?

Initial efforts at Columbia 1 credit 6-session course last semester on Mindfulness and the Practice of Law Very positive student evaluations: course helped with stress reduction, management of emotions, building community Weekly student meditation time Plan: a four-session course for all first year law students this fall Considering: how to use in clinics

Homework For the rest of the conference: try to silently send good wishes to the people you pass (e.g., may you be happy, may you be healthy, may you live with ease; or just “may you be well”) try to cultivate an attitude of kindness toward yourself (e.g., by releasing self-judgment, taking care of your body) Observe how this affects your experience.

Resources Websites law/mindfulness-in-legal-education Dharmaseed.org (a Buddhist site not directly related to lawyering, but with many guided meditations) Books (not directly related to lawyering) Jon Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go There You Are (Hachette Books, 1994, republished with afterword in 2005) Thich Nhat Hanh, Miracle of Mindfulness (Beacon Press, 1987) Thich Nhat Hanh, Being Peace (Parallax Press, 1987) Daniel Barbezat and Mirabai Bush, Contemplative Practice in Higher Education (Jossey Bass 2013)

Resources Articles about mindfulness/meditation in legal practice and law school Riskin, Leonard, “The Contemplative Lawyer: On the Potential Contributions of Mindfulness Meditation to Law Students, Lawyers, and their Clients” 7 Harv. Negotiation L. Rev. 1 (2002). Magee, Rhonda, “Educating Lawyers to Meditate?” UMKC Law Rev. 79 (2010): 535. Harris, Angela; Lin, Margaretta; Selbin, Jeff, “From the Art of War to BeingPeace: Mindfulness and Community Lawyering in a Neoliberal Age” 95 Cal. L. Rev (2007) The Mindful Lawyer Symposium in the Journal of Legal Education, Spring 2012 – articles on the state of mindfulness in legal education

Resources Article about science of meditation M. Ricard, A, Lutz and R.J. Davidson “Mind of the Meditator” Scientific American (November, 2014)