Dr. Paul Gilbert is co-author of the new book, Mindful Compassion: How the Science of Compassion Can Help You Understand Your Emotions, Live in the Present, and Connect Deeply with Others. Dr. Gilbert is world-renowned for his work on depression, shame, and self-criticism. He is head of the mental health research unit at the University of Derby and author of The Compassionate Mind andOvercoming Depression.

Terri Apter is author of the new book, Passing Judgment: Praise and Blame in Everyday Life. Terri is a psychologist, and Fellow Emeritae at Newnham College, Cambridge. Her nine books include Difficult Mothers, The Sister Knot, The Confident Child, and What Do You Want from Me?: Learning to Get Along with In-laws. She lives in Cambridge, England.

Andy Couturier is the author of the new book, The Abundance of Less: Lessons for Simple Living from Rural Japan. He spent four years studying sustainable living in rural Japan. There, he worked with local environmentalists, wrote for The Japan Times, and studied how Japanese aesthetics can help us develop new forms of writing. Couturier has also hitchhiked across the Sahara desert, been a researcher for Greenpeace, built his own house with hand tools, and taught intuitive writing for more than two decades. He is a student of many different Asian philosophical systems and is fluent in Japanese.

Linda Kohanov is the author of the new book, The Five Roles of a Master Herder: A revolutionary model for socially intelligent leadership. Linda is also the author of the bestseller The Tao of Equus. She speaks and teaches internationally. She established Eponaquest Worldwide to explore the healing potential of working with horses and offer programs on everything from emotional and social intelligence, leadership, stress reduction, and parenting to consensus building and mindfulness.

Keith Payne is the author of the book The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die. He is a professor of psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an international leader in the psychology of inequality and discrimination. His research has been featured in The Atlantic and The New York Times, and on NPR, and he has written for Scientific American and Psychology Today.

Exploring the brain’s ability to interpret and make sense of the world, Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler describes how your perception can be reality or fantasy and how to separate the two, which is the basis of improving your Perceptual Intelligence (PI). His new book is Perceptual Intelligence: The Brain's Secret to Seeing Past Illusion, Misperception and Self-Deception.

Ira Israel is the author of the book How to Survive Your Childhood Now That You're An Adult: A Path to Authenticity and Awakening. He is a licensed marriage and family therapist and professional clinical counselor. Ira graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and holds advanced degrees in psychology, philosophy, and religious studies. His DVD series, including A Beginners Guide to Happiness and Mindfulness for Depression, along with his sold-out Esalen workshops, have given him a wide following.

Love plays a crucial role in every aspect of human existence, including sex, spirituality, society, and even the meaning of life. Dr. Armin Zadeh is the author of the new book The Forgotten Art of Love: What Love Means and Why it Matters. He is a cardiologist and professor at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Zadeh has authored more than 100 scientific articles and is an editor of scholarly books in medicine.

Dr. Karlene Stange is the author of the new book, The Spiritual Nature of Animals: a country vet explores the wisdom, compassion, and souls of animals. As a child, Karlene wanted to be an “animal doctor” before she knew the word “veterinarian.” Today she incorporates acupuncture, traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and nutritional therapy into her Rocky Mountain practice. She often speaks at conferences and lives in Durango, Colorado.

Emilie Wapnick is a career coach and author of the new book: How to Be Everything: A guide for those who (still) don't know what they want to be when they grow up. Emilie is Founder and Creative Director at Puttylike, where she helps multipotentialites integrate ALL of their interests into their lives. Unable to settle on one path herself, Emilie studied music, art, film production and law, graduating from the Law Faculty at McGill University. She is an occasional rock star, a paleo-friendly eater and a wannabe scientist carpenter.