Since its release on July 28, The Power of Caring by Dr. Tony Nader has gained significant national and international attention, earning places on two major bestseller lists, receiving four book awards, and generating a growing stream of media coverage, interviews, and podcast discussions.
Published by Hay House, The Power of Caring became both a USA Today and Los Angeles Times bestseller. The book has also received four major awards: Gold honors from the Living Now Book Awards and Global Ebook Awards, a PenCraft Book Award, and the Literary Titan Gold Book Award.
The book’s central message is that fulfillment comes not from caring more, but from caring better. Nader introduces the concept of “conscious caring,” which emphasizes compassion, healthy boundaries, and inner balance rather than anxiety, over-responsibility, or emotional exhaustion.
That message helped earn the book a five-star review from Literary Titan, which praised The Power of Caring as an expansive exploration of caring that draws on biology, philosophy, relationships, work, grief, technology, environmental concerns, and spiritual life. The review highlighted one of the book’s central themes: the importance of learning to “care better” rather than simply “care more.”
Prominent media appearances
The book’s visibility has been further amplified through a series of prominent media appearances. One of the book’s highest-profile media appearances came in late August, when Dr. Nader appeared on CNN International’s One World. During the interview, he discussed how people can remain deeply engaged with the needs of others while maintaining their own balance and well-being.
Earlier this year, Nader outlined the book’s core ideas in an article published by Medium Magazine. There he argued that many people become emotionally overloaded not because they care too much, but because they confuse caring with anxiety, control, or excessive responsibility. Conscious caring, he wrote, allows people to maintain compassion and connection while preserving their own energy and resilience.
Several widely heard podcast interviews also explored the book’s themes. On the popular Dharmic Life / BAPS Better Living podcast, Nader examined loneliness, distraction, the biology of caring, and the relationship among self-care, love, meditation, and human flourishing. He emphasized that lasting caring requires an inner foundation rather than simply giving more of oneself away.
Another notable appearance came on Your Thoughts Your Reality, where the discussion focused on trauma, veterans, first responders, emotional resilience, and belonging. During that interview, Nader drew a distinction that has become one of the book’s recurring themes.
“Caring means ‘I see you, I’m here, I’ll help where I can, and I know your life is yours to live,'” he said. Carrying, by contrast, involves assuming responsibility for another person’s outcome and feeling compelled to solve their problems.
“Caring means ‘I see you, I’m here, I’ll help where I can, and I know your life is yours to live.'”
— Dr. Tony Nader
To extend these conversations beyond the book itself, Nader launched the podcast Depth Over Noise in early July. The series explores what he describes as the ten major themes underlying The Power of Caring, including purpose, relationships, burnout, leadership, personal transformation, and well-being.
The inaugural episode, “Choosing to Care When Life Gives You Every Reason Not To,” featured bestselling author Hal Elrod, who reflected on surviving two life-threatening experiences and the deliberate choice to continue caring rather than becoming cynical. Their conversation explored how daily practices can restore purpose and engagement even during difficult periods.
Subsequent guests have included Dwayne J. Clark, founder and CEO of Aegis Living, who discussed “Caring Across a Lifetime” — aging, caregiver burnout, elder care, and leadership.
Another episode featured author and researcher Steven Kotler, whose conversation with Nader on “Flow, Neurobiology, and the Science of Caring,” explored empathy, flow states, intuition, neurobiology, and the implications of artificial intelligence. Together they examined the idea that caring has measurable biological and neurological foundations and should not be viewed solely as a moral or philosophical concept.
The value of Transcendental Meditation practice for caring
Throughout these interviews and discussions, Nader has consistently emphasized that the Transcendental Meditation technique plays a central role in developing what he calls conscious caring.
“Overall, the book really defines caring to be something that comes from the inside,” he said in a recent interview. “That’s what I differentiate: just general caring, empathy, and compassion from conscious caring. Conscious caring is something that comes from within.”
Reflecting on the book’s broader purpose, he added, “I’d love the book to be in the hands of everyone because we all care, we are humans. It’s only a matter of allowing that inner value to blossom, and that is what the book teaches.”
With national bestseller recognition, multiple independent awards, an expanding media presence, and a new podcast dedicated to exploring its themes, The Power of Caring continues to bring Nader’s message of conscious caring to an increasingly broad audience.
For many women in Lebanon’s rural Chouf region, stress isn’t something that comes and goes. It’s part of daily life. Economic hardship, political uncertainty, environmental challenges, and family responsibilities can create a constant stream of pressure.
Researchers wondered whether the simple practice of Transcendental Meditation might help.
According to a study published in Women’s Health, it did.
Women who learned the Transcendental Meditation technique reported greater happiness, resilience, and confidence in their ability to handle life’s challenges, along with lower levels of stress, after just three months of practice.
The women were divided into two groups. One learned the Transcendental Meditation technique, while the other received weekly videos focused on personal development and well-being. After three months, the differences were clear. Compared with the control group, women practicing Transcendental Meditation reported higher levels of happiness, resilience, and self-efficacy, along with lower levels of perceived stress.
“This is very encouraging because it shows the women improved across several dimensions of psychological well-being at the same time.”
— Marie Loiselle, principle investigator
“This is a significant study considering the methods: a randomized controlled trial with 114 subjects and statistically significant improvements in every measure,” said Marie Loiselle, PhD, principal investigator and researcher in MIU’s Department of Maharishi Vedic Science. “This is very encouraging because it shows the women improved across several dimensions of psychological well-being at the same time.”
Happiness showed the biggest improvement
Of all the outcomes researchers tracked, happiness showed the largest improvement. Women in the Transcendental Meditation group reported increased happiness after both one month and three months of practice. By contrast, the control group showed a small increase after one month, followed by a substantial decline at three months.
The researchers also found that women who felt more capable of handling life’s challenges tended to report greater happiness. Lower levels of stress were also closely linked to higher happiness levels. Together, these factors accounted for nearly half of the differences in happiness scores among participants.
In simple terms, self-efficacy is a person’s belief that they can successfully deal with challenges and achieve desired results. The study found that this sense of capability increased among women practicing Transcendental Meditation while declining in the control group over the same period.
Strong participation in the practice
Participants were encouraged to practice Transcendental Meditation for 20 minutes twice a day. Participation remained high throughout the study. Sixty percent reported practicing twice daily every day or most days, 18% practiced once daily, and 20% practiced less regularly. No harmful effects related to participation were reported.
“The improvements in self-efficacy and reductions in perceived stress are particularly important because both were related to happiness in our analysis.”
— Fred Travis, co-author
Because the study compared Transcendental Meditation with another structured activity focused on personal growth and well-being, researchers could evaluate whether the observed changes were associated with the meditation practice itself rather than simply participating in a supportive program.
“The improvements in self-efficacy and reductions in perceived stress are particularly important because both were related to happiness in our analysis,” said Fred Travis, PhD, statistician, co-author, and senior advisor on the study. “These findings provide a basis for further research into approaches that may help people cope with persistent environmental stress.”
Inspired by the experiences of local women
The research was conducted in collaboration with the Ladies Foundation for Pure Knowledge, which was nearing completion of a project to teach the Transcendental Meditation technique to approximately 1,000 women in the Chouf region.
After hearing many participants describe positive changes in their lives, the foundation wanted to know whether those experiences could be measured scientifically.
“So many of the participants told me their lives had been transformed in many ways that words could not even begin to describe,” said Susan Hamza, the foundation’s director. “We are deeply grateful for all those who were involved in realizing this project.”
Further research needed
The researchers advise that larger and longer-term studies are needed to confirm the findings. Of the 114 women who initially enrolled, 83 completed both post-study assessments, and participants were followed for three months. The researchers recommend future studies involving larger populations and follow-up periods of six months to a year in Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East.
Still, the findings provide early evidence that a simple, twice-daily meditation practice may offer meaningful support for women facing persistent stress in their daily lives.
The Maharishi International University men’s tennis team delivered a dominant performance at the Central Invitational on Saturday, posting an impressive 17-1 record in singles competition and 9-1 in doubles to finish the tournament with 26 total wins and just two losses.
Competing at Central College in Pella, Iowa, the Pioneers faced a strong field that included Grinnell College, Missouri Baptist University, Grand View University, Cornell College, Missouri Valley College, and Central College.
“It was a great day to be a Pioneer. Our men’s team played like champions and I am very proud of our overall performances.”
— MIU head coach Eric Sturgis
From the opening rounds, MIU established its presence across all three singles flights, consistently producing strong results against players from throughout the field.
In Flight A, Jared Escobar opened the tournament with a convincing 6-2, 6-3 victory over Grinnell’s Alex Doane before returning to defeat Gervase Ngo, also of Grinnell, 6-2, 6-1. Lorenzo Lazarte battled through a three-set match against Grinnell’s Joshua Kruger, earning a 5-7, 6-4, 10-6 comeback victory.
J. Arango Restrepo also delivered a strong three-set performance, defeating Missouri Valley’s Felix Ortola 6-1, 5-7, 10-6.
The Pioneers continued their success in Flight B. Tomas Kurtz Cardoso earned a victory over Grinnell’s Keigo Kamata after Kamata retired, then followed with a dominant 6-1, 6-0 win over Missouri Valley’s Sam Andreu.
Ignacio Romero was equally impressive, defeating Cornell’s Henry Lambley 6-2, 6-1 before cruising past Drew Campbell 6-0, 6-1. Katlego Regeong added a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Central’s David Gonzalez.
Flight C featured another strong showing from the Pioneers. Renzo Gianzanti opened with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Missouri Baptist’s Alex Senica and later defeated Drew Black 7-5, 1-6, 10-5 in a hard-fought three-set match.
Yousr Damiri earned a decisive 6-0, 6-2 victory over Cornell’s Eric Dirksmeyer, while Juani Luccione posted two dominant wins, defeating Central’s Aaron Meinders 6-2, 6-0 and Donovan Klish 6-3, 6-0.
The Pioneers were just as effective in doubles competition, finishing 9-1 across the three flights.
Tomas Kurtz Cardoso and Nicolas Quercia recorded two victories in Flight A, defeating Grinnell 6-2 before taking down Central 6-4. Jared Escobar and J. Arango Restrepo also went undefeated, earning victories over Central 6-4 and Cornell 7-5.
In Flight B, Ignacio Romero and Lorenzo Lazarte posted two commanding victories, defeating Grinnell 6-3 before shutting out Cornell 6-0. Katlego Regeong and Juani Luccione also recorded multiple wins, including a 6-1 victory over Central and a 6-0 result in the second round.
In Flight C, Renzo Gianzanti and Yousr Damiri opened with a 6-3 victory over Central before finishing the tournament with their only loss, falling 6-3 to Grinnell.
With a combined 26 victories and only two losses, the Pioneers showed impressive depth throughout the lineup and continued to build momentum during the fall season.
MIU head coach Eric Sturgis expressed his pride in the team’s performance durign the tournament.
“It was a great day to be a Pioneer. Our men’s team played like champions and I am very proud of our overall performances.”
What’s next
The Pioneers will carry the momentum from their dominant performance in Pella into their next competition as they continue their fall tennis schedule.
Next tournament: Simpson College
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026
Maria Eduarda Rodrigues da Silva is the sports editor for MIU News and the Sports Information and Creative Director for the MIU Athletics Department.
MIU men’s tennis opened its fall 2026 season this weekend at the Emporia State University George Milton Chicken Dinner Invitational, held September 5-6 at the Kossover Family Tennis Center.
The tournament marked the first competition of the fall season for the MIU men’s tennis program, as the Pioneers competed against Bethel College, the University of Saint Mary and host Emporia State University.
MIU finished the tournament with 18 singles victories and 9 losses, while the Pioneers recorded 5 doubles wins and 8 losses.
The Pioneers made an immediate impact on the opening day, posting a 14-6 record in singles play and going 5-1 in doubles.
Several MIU players advanced deep into their respective flights.
Katlego Regeong advanced to the Flight 4 championship match, while Juan Ignacio Luccione and Renzo Gianzanti reached the Flight 5 championship matches. Jeronimo Arango Restrepo and Ignacio Romero also advanced to compete for third place in their respective flights.
Katlego Regeong was the only Pioneer to win all three of his singles matches on the opening day, including a thrilling semifinal victory over Emporia State’s Evan Goates, 3-6, 6-4, (11-9), to earn a spot in the championship match.
For Regeong, the tournament represented an important milestone — his first collegiate tennis tournament.
“The conditions are different, and I am still adjusting,” Regeong said. “There were some points I couldn’t make through. During the matches, there were mixed emotions — some moments I was angry, and some moments I was happy. It boosted my confidence. It is a dream come true. College tennis is a dream.”
Regeong’s performance also drew recognition from the Botswana National Tennis Association, which celebrated his collegiate debut and his run to the championship match.
The Pioneers continued competition on Sunday, completing the final rounds of singles before competing in two rounds of doubles.
Following the opening day, MIU head coach Eric Sturgis expressed his pride in the team’s performance and the significance of the weekend for the developing program.
“I am extremely happy and proud of the way our whole team competed and represented MIU today,” he said. “MIU tennis is on the map.”
The Emporia State tournament provided the Pioneers with their first opportunity to compete together in the 2026 fall season and offered valuable experience against three collegiate programs.
With the opening tournament now complete, MIU men’s tennis will look to build on its strong start as the Pioneers continue their inaugural fall season. The Pioneers will return to action on September 12 at Central College.
Maria Eduarda Rodrigues da Silva, sports editor for MIU News and the Sports Information and Creative Director for the MIU Athletics Department.
Maharishi International University Athletics is gaining momentum on multiple fronts, highlighted by its recent acceptance into the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), a strong start for the men’s soccer program, and the addition of an experienced basketball recruiter and an assistant men’s and women’s tennis coach.
The USCAA announcement marks a significant step forward for MIU’s rapidly growing athletics department. Membership gives Pioneer student-athletes the opportunity to compete for national championships while providing a competitive framework as the university continues building toward future NAIA membership. The university will compete in men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, tennis, cross country, and esports under the USCAA banner.
Men’s soccer makes strong early statement
That momentum has already been evident on the soccer field.
The strongest indication of the program’s potential came in what MIU Trustee Michael Busch described as “a David versus Goliath event” — a preseason match against William Penn University, a perennial NAIA powerhouse that has reached the national quarterfinals and finals in recent years. MIU earned a draw despite facing one of the strongest programs in the region.
The team opened its inaugural USCAA season with a 4-2 victory over North Iowa Area Community College. After building a 2-0 lead behind two goals from Estevao Goncalves, the Pioneers weathered a second-half comeback before securing the win with late goals from Angel Delgado and Francesco Puch. Goncalves finished with two goals and two assists.
MIU followed that performance with a 1-1 road draw against the University of St. Francis. Goncalves again scored for the Pioneers, netting the equalizer in the first half. Goalkeeper Dylan Stott helped preserve the tie with a series of key saves, including three consecutive stops during a late St. Francis attack. Associate Head Coach Caio Pereira praised his team’s resilience in a demanding road contest.
The Pioneers then faced a setback in a 7-1 loss to Briar Cliff University. Martim Soares scored MIU’s lone goal. Pereira called it a difficult match but said the team intends to learn from the experience and continue improving.
“This team reflects the global character of MIU. Students from many cultures have come together around a shared commitment to education, athletics, and personal development.”
— Michael Busch, MIU Trustee
“This team reflects the global character of MIU,” Busch said. “Students from many cultures have come together around a shared commitment to education, athletics, and personal development.”
The roster includes players from Peru, Chile, Brazil, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and communities across the United States. Busch said the athletics programs are also helping strengthen ties between the university and the Fairfield community.
Building for the future on and off the field
Approximately 90 new students have joined MIU through athletics, bringing added energy to campus life and broadening engagement opportunities both on campus and in the local community.
MIU has also continued building its basketball program, recently hiring Walter Johnson as men’s basketball recruiting coordinator. Johnson brings experience as both a professional player and coach and has helped several programs achieve record-setting success. Most recently, he was part of coaching staffs at East-West University and John Melvin University during historically successful seasons for both programs.
“MIU’s emphasis on Consciousness-Based education and student well-being offers a unique setting where athletes can reach their full potential as competitors and as individuals,” Johnson said.
MIU has also strengthened its tennis program with the hiring of Lawrence Eyre as assistant men’s and women’s tennis coach. A graduate of Yale University and a 30-year USPTA Elite Professional, Eyre brings more than three decades of coaching experience at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels. His collegiate coaching background includes positions at Grinnell College and Knox College, and he has also served as an Intercollegiate Tennis Association umpire in the Big Ten and Big 12 conferences.
Eyre, who was named National High School Coach of the Year during his time at Maharishi School, is known for developing successful players and programs while emphasizing sportsmanship and personal growth. “Maharishi Pioneers invest in rest for tennis success,” Eyre said. “Twice daily TM builds a physiological foundation for peak performance. When athletes live in the Zone, they play in the Zone.” His addition further reflects MIU’s ongoing investment in experienced coaches as its athletics programs continue to expand.
As MIU Athletics enters its first year in the USCAA, the new affiliation, growing enrollment, expanding programs, and early competitive success show the department’s long-term vision taking shape, especially in allowing student-athletes to compete on a national stage while pursuing MIU’s distinctive educational experience.
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Information provided by Maria Eduarda Rodrigues da Silva, sports editor for MIU News and the Sports Information and Creative Director for the MIU Athletics Department.
A new documentary by MIU professor and filmmaker Stuart Tanner is drawing international attention for its exploration of Mexico’s struggle to protect native corn varieties, biodiversity, and food sovereignty in the face of pressure to adopt genetically modified crops and industrial agricultural practices.
“This documentary is about more than agriculture — it is about identity, resistance, and the fundamental right to shape our own future.”
— Stuart Tanner
Seeds of Sovereignty, a 50-minute documentary and a standout success on the international film festival circuit, examines the conflict between Mexico and the United States over genetically modified corn and the future of traditional agriculture.
Seeds of Sovereignty examines Mexico’s battle to preserve its native corn and farming traditions in the face of GMO crops and corporate agriculture. The documentary highlights threats to biodiversity, food sovereignty, and cultural identity while making the case that decisions made in Mexico today could affect the future of food globally.
Through interviews with farmers, scientists, activists, and community leaders, the film highlights efforts to preserve native maize varieties that have been cultivated for thousands of years.
“Mexico is at a pivotal moment, fighting to protect its native seeds, land, and people from the threat of genetically modified crops and harmful agrochemicals,” Tanner writes in his director’s statement. “This documentary is about more than agriculture — it is about identity, resistance, and the fundamental right to shape our own future.”
Tanner, an award-winning documentary filmmaker and investigative journalist, has produced films for major broadcasters including the BBC, Channel 4, National Geographic, Discovery, Frontline PBS, and ITV. His work has taken him to more than 20 countries and earned numerous international awards. At MIU he is an assistant professor of Cinematic Arts & New Media.
Cody Olivas, assistant professor of Cinematic Arts & New Media at MIU, was the director of photography, and Amine Kouider, chair of the Cinematic Arts and New Media department, served as sound director.
Concerns about industrial agriculture
According to Tanner, the film grew out of concerns about the environmental and social consequences of industrial agriculture.
“I became increasingly troubled by the question of whether this model of agriculture is really serving the people who live alongside it, or whether it primarily serves large corporations that rarely carry the human and environmental costs of the system they profit from,” he wrote in an article discussing the project.
The documentary argues that the battle over corn in Mexico extends beyond agricultural policy. Native maize is deeply embedded in Mexican culture, cuisine, and identity, making efforts to preserve traditional seed varieties matters of cultural and ecological significance.
Tanner hopes the film will encourage audiences to consider broader questions about food systems and sustainability.
“As a filmmaker, my goal is to bring audiences into this fight, not just to inform, but to inspire action,” he writes. “The battle to protect native seeds in Mexico is part of a larger fight for food sovereignty worldwide. Who controls the food we eat? What are the long-term consequences of prioritizing profit over people and the planet?”
“Food sovereignty is easy to read about or discuss in the abstract,” Olivas says. “It becomes something else entirely when you’re looking out over a milpa or sitting with a family whose seed has been selected by hand for nine thousand years and asking them what contamination would actually cost.”
“We want the world to understand the challenges Mexico faces in protecting a food and agricultural system that is thousands of years old,” says Randall Tolpinrud, founder of the Pax Natura Foundation, which funded the project. “That system is under pressure from multinational corporations seeking to reshape the country’s food production and distribution in ways that serve corporate interests, backed largely by organizations and governments in the United States and Europe. Our goal is to document the people resisting those efforts.”
A standout success on the international film festival circuit
The film has resonated strongly with festival audiences. Pax Natura reports that Seeds of Sovereignty has been selected by 77 film festivals in 35 countries and has received 20 awards and honors. These include awards for Best Documentary, Best Environmental Documentary, Best Director, Best Television Documentary, Best Feature Documentary, and Best Half-Length Film.
Among the many festivals recognizing the documentary are the Madrid Film Festival, the Seattle International Film Festival, the Arizona International Film Festival, the Indie Vegas Film Festival, the Wallachia Film Festival, the Liber Film Festival, the Synergy Film Festival, and the World Culture Film Festival in Los Angeles.
The Arizona International Film Festival awarded the film a Special Jury Award for Activist Filmmaking, citing its exploration of Mexico’s efforts to defend biodiversity, food sovereignty, and cultural heritage. The film won the Best Documentary Award four other film festivals and the Best Environmental Documentary at two more.
Festival organizers and reviewers have praised the documentary’s treatment of a complex global issue. The Auguri Film Festival in Italy described Seeds of Sovereignty as “a powerful and thought-provoking documentary that truly captures the urgency of a global issue, the fight for biodiversity and food sovereignty.”
“This is more than a film. It is a call to defend small-scale, sustainable farming, farming that nourishes people, preserves the environment, and promotes human health.”
— Stuart Tanner
The Organic & Non-GMO Report called the film an exploration of “Mexico’s fight to protect its agricultural heritage,” noting its focus on legal and grassroots efforts to preserve native corn varieties and indigenous farming traditions.
As the documentary continues its international festival run, Tanner believes the issues it raises extend far beyond Mexico.
“This is more than a film,” he writes. “It is a call to defend small-scale, sustainable farming, farming that nourishes people, preserves the environment, and promotes human health.”
Seeds of Sovereignty is an independent production of Oak Alley Productions.
Interested in documentary filmmaking?
Stuart Tanner and Amine Kouider have just launched an MFA in Documentary Filmmaking & Social Transformation.
At an international United Nations academic forum in Lisbon, Portugal, the discussion went far beyond heart disease. The larger question was how individuals, communities, and nations can become more resilient in the face of growing environmental, psychological, and social stress.
Robert Schneider, MD, FACC, Distinguished Professor of Integrative Medicine and Health and Director of the Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention at MIU, addressed that challenge during the 39th Annual Meeting of the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS), held July 1–3 at NOVA University Lisbon.
Participating remotely, he spoke to scholars, policy experts, and representatives of international organizations gathered to discuss sustainable development, public health, climate change, conflict prevention, and other global challenges.
Dr. Schneider’s presentation, Environmental Stress, Cardiovascular Risk, and Human Resilience: Evidence-Based Pathways for Policy and Practice, co-authored with Charlotta Bech, MD, adjunct MIU faculty in physiology, examined how environmental and psychosocial stress contribute to cardiovascular disease, the world’s leading cause of death. Click here to see the presentation.
How human beings can become more resilient
He explained that air pollution, climate change, crowded urban settings, economic hardship, and psychological stress often occur together, placing a cumulative burden on the cardiovascular system and increasing the risk of hypertension, heart attack, stroke, and premature death.
“This is more than cardiovascular research. It is about how human beings and societies can become more resilient.”
— Dr. Robert Schneider
“This is more than cardiovascular research,” Dr. Schneider said. “It is about how human beings and societies can become more resilient in the face of environmental, psychological, and social stress, and how science-based approaches to reducing stress may contribute not only to better health, but also to a more peaceful world.”
Among those approaches, Dr. Schneider highlighted Transcendental Meditation. Research has linked the technique to lower blood pressure and, in NIH-funded clinical trials, a significantly lower risk of major cardiovascular events, including heart attack, stroke, and death.
These findings support the growing view that stress reduction should be considered an integral part of cardiovascular prevention. Dr. Schneider and colleagues recently advanced that position in a commentary published in Nature Reviews Cardiology.
Toward social resilience and peace
The presentation also explored the potential of meditation-based approaches to strengthen social resilience and support peace-building efforts. Dr. Schneider encouraged United Nations policymakers and ACUNS participants to integrate health, environmental policy, sustainable urban development, and evidence-based stress reduction within a unified prevention framework.
The ACUNS meeting provided an international platform for MIU research linking personal health, environmental sustainability, collective well-being, and peace. Dr. Schneider’s presentation highlighted how MIU’s consciousness-based approach may contribute to addressing some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
Banner photo from The Soul of the Matter.
Last February, MIU News shared the story of Fairfield’s recognition as one of the Intelligent Community Forum’s (ICF) Top 7 Intelligent Communities of 2025. It marked an important milestone for a small Iowa community recognized alongside metropolitan regions with populations many times its size.
This June, the journey continued.
I was part of the Fairfield delegation that traveled to the Limburg Province of the Netherlands to learn from communities that have spent decades building cultures of innovation, collaboration, and long-term resilience.
The team representing Fairfield included Fairfield City Councilor Bob Ferguson, community resilience leader Margaret Dwyer, Ideal Energy Founder and CEO Troy Van Beek, and me, the Director of Continuous Improvement at MIU.
We joined civic leaders, entrepreneurs, educators, planners, and economic development professionals from North America, Europe, and Asia for the ICF Top7 Conference and an extended VIP delegation through Brightlands-Limburg and Brainport Eindhoven, two internationally recognized innovation ecosystems.
A rich learning experience
During our week in the Netherlands, we visited research campuses, advanced manufacturing facilities, startup incubators, government offices, and the Einstein Telescope Pathfinder, a groundbreaking scientific initiative being developed by partners in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany.
Along with the other delegates, we also explored how the region has organized four specialized innovation campuses around health, sustainable materials, digital services, and agriculture, creating what local leaders describe as an “ecosystem of ecosystems.”
We found that the communities attracting international attention are not defined by a technology, industry, or economic development strategy. Instead, they’ve built strong relationships among universities, businesses, government, and residents. Innovation is woven into their community culture.
“Cathedral planning” and “moonshot” ambitions.
Many presenters from successful communities spoke about “cathedral planning” — making decisions that may not fully bear fruit for decades but create lasting benefits for future generations. These communities cultivated a willingness to experiment, accept calculated risks, and move promising ideas into action.
They also challenged communities to think beyond incremental improvements and pursue ambitious “moonshot” ideas that inspire collaboration across sectors.
For Marg, whose work spans environmental stewardship, civic engagement, and community resilience, this long-term, moonshot thinking was one of her strongest impressions — and one example really stood out.
“To me, that’s the peak of human evolution and consciousness — cooperation for mutual success. We must figure out how to reproduce that here!”
— Marg Dwyer
“In Maastricht, we saw an amazing demonstration of collaboration regarding Europe’s ‘moonshot,’ the Einstein Telescope,” Marg said. “The science was mind-blowing, but the most important thing was that multiple industries, universities, and levels of various nations’ governments are working together to ensure their mutual future resilience. They’re sharing the massive costs connected with the Einstein Telescope and have pledged that all will share any scientific or manufacturing breakthroughs that result. To me, that’s the peak of human evolution and consciousness — cooperation for mutual success. We must figure out how to reproduce that here!”
Collaboration is key
“Our most important takeaway was that building intelligent communities depends far more on collaboration than technology,” Fergusson said.
We learned that breakthrough innovations rarely emerge in isolation. They grow from ecosystems where education, industry, government, and community organizations continuously invest in one another.
Troy looked at this from a Fairfield entrepreneur’s perspective.
“Participating in this delegation helped me understand an actionable and exciting community formula for success: the quadruple helix, which focuses on collaboration among people, government, universities, and businesses,” Van Beek said. “Fairfield is uniquely positioned to benefit from this model. Innovation was at the core of Brightlands’ success, and by using this formula, I expect Fairfield to become a valuable epicenter of innovation for our community and beyond.”
An important issue here is retaining young people. Successful regions have moved beyond trying to attract talent to creating communities where talented young people want to stay.
And this starts with the youth, we found. We encountered examples of students still in school working alongside local governments, businesses, and researchers to solve real-world challenges.
We saw that meaningful work, opportunities to contribute, and a shared sense of purpose can be just as important as economic incentives, and hope itself can become an economic engine when communities give people a compelling vision for the future.
The role of universities
We also saw how universities can play a powerful role in regional development.
Across Brightlands and Brainport, universities functioned not only as educational institutions but also as research partners, talent pipelines, conveners, and catalysts for entrepreneurship. Students, faculty, government leaders, and industry representatives worked together to address practical challenges with direct benefits for their communities.
And we realized again how important it is for MIU to engage with the larger Fairfield community. Through education, workforce development, research, and community partnerships, MIU contributes to Fairfield’s long-term vitality while helping connect organizations around shared opportunities. And we can do more.
Returning to Fairfield, going forward
For Fairfield, Bob outlined opportunities to build stronger connections among organizations working in manufacturing, agriculture, arts and culture, financial services, and energy — helping existing organizations share knowledge, align around common goals, and strengthen Fairfield’s innovation ecosystem.
“We’ve now spent several years participating in the Intelligent Community Forum, first earning recognition as a Smart21 Community and later being named one of the Top 7 Intelligent Communities in the world,” Bob said. “This inspires us to continue learning from some of the world’s best examples of innovation, cooperation, and long-term thinking — not to replicate another community’s model but to build on Fairfield’s own strengths.”
The next ICF Global Summit takes place this October, when it convenes its annual Summit in Columbus, Ohio. Fairfield will be sending a delegation.
Interested in becoming involved?
We encourage interested Fairfield community members to explore the ICF Community Accelerator, a free online learning program made possible by local donor support. Consider nominating yourself or others for future Fairfield delegations. To access the course, you have to register on this special Fairfield community link that will open all the courses at no cost.
As chronic diseases continue to drive health care costs and reduce quality of life across the United States, Maharishi International University and the University of Iowa are exploring how prevention science, integrative medicine, and public health can work together to improve community health.
Researchers have identified many effective ways to prevent chronic disease. The challenge now is translating that knowledge into practical, scalable approaches that help people make healthier choices in everyday life.
That challenge was the focus of a recent invited Spotlight Session at the University of Iowa College of Public Health, where MIU’s Dr. Robert Schneider presented “Integrative Prevention and Public Health: A Practice-Based Collaboration Model.”
The invitation followed an earlier MIU visit by leaders from the University of Iowa College of Public Health and Carver College of Medicine, making the Spotlight Session part of a growing exchange between the two institutions.
The presentation highlighted areas of shared interest between MIU’s work in Consciousness-BasedSM and integrative health and the University of Iowa’s strengths in public health research, education, implementation, and community engagement. Leaders from both institutions discussed opportunities for student projects, faculty collaboration, community health initiatives, and pilot research studies.
Toward whole-person, integrative care
Dr. Schneider, Distinguished Professor of Integrative Medicine and Health and Director of the Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention, described one of the central challenges in modern prevention: helping proven approaches reach people in practical, consistent, and scalable ways.
“Public health has made tremendous progress in identifying the major drivers of chronic disease,” Schneider said. “The next frontier is implementation — creating practical, accessible systems that help people translate prevention science into healthier daily life. This is where whole-person, integrative care can make an important contribution.”
Drawing on decades of NIH-supported research in cardiovascular prevention, health equity, stress reduction, and lifestyle medicine, Dr. Schneider introduced Total Health Centers, LLC, an Iowa-based model for whole-person prevention that combines modern medicine with evidence-based lifestyle, behavioral, and integrative approaches.
Schneider’s presentation focused on major chronic health challenges, including hypertension, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, mental health conditions, dementia risk, and healthy aging. Its distinguishing feature is a whole-person framework that addresses not only biological risk factors but also behavior, stress, mental well-being, social context, and long-term resilience.
The framework reflects ideas described in a recent Heart and Mind editorial by Schneider, Fred Travis, and MIU President Dr. Tony Nader, which proposed a unified systems medicine perspective linking mind, body, environment, and consciousness in promoting health and resilience.
Peace through health
Schneider argued that prevention can be viewed at the community and societal levels. He discussed the principle of “peace through health,” connecting whole health with individual, community, and societal well-being.
Schneider also discussed research on the Maharishi Effect and the potential role of collective meditation-based practices in reducing social stress and improving community quality of life. The presentation reflected MIU’s long-standing commitment to bringing rigorous science to the study of consciousness, mind-body medicine, Ayurveda, and integrative approaches to health.
Joining prevention science and whole-person health
“Dr. Schneider’s presentation showed how rigorous prevention science and whole-person health can come together in ways that are highly relevant to today’s public health challenges”
— Dr. Robert B. Wallace
“Dr. Schneider’s presentation showed how rigorous prevention science and whole-person health can come together in ways that are highly relevant to today’s public health challenges,” said Dr. Robert Wallace, the co-host for the visit. “It was especially valuable to see how these ideas can be translated into practical models for community benefit.” Wallace is the Irene Ensminger Stecher Emeritus Professor of Epidemiology and Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa.
Dr. Mark VanderWeg, Dr. Schneider’s host, emphasized the importance of implementation and community engagement. “A central question in public health is how evidence-based practices can be developed, evaluated, and delivered in partnership with communities,” he said. “Practice-based models that connect prevention research, behavioral interventions, and real-world delivery systems offer important opportunities for student learning, faculty collaboration, and public health impact.” VanderWeg is Professor and Head of the Department of Community and Behavioral Health at the University of Iowa College of Public Health.
The discussion included possible collaboration pathways between MIU, Total Health Centers, and the University of Iowa College of Public Health, including student practica, capstone and thesis projects, community outreach, faculty collaboration, and pilot studies. The session concluded with a discussion of next steps, including the possibility of an exploratory working group to identify shared priorities.
“This kind of exchange is exactly what is needed to move prevention forward,” Schneider said. “MIU brings a long-standing commitment to the scientific study of consciousness, mind-body medicine, and integrative approaches to health. By working with public health partners, we can explore practical ways to bring these approaches into the broader systems of prevention, research, education, and community service.”
For further information:
Robert Schneider, Frederick Travis, and Tony Nader, “Addressing Clinician Burnout: A Unifying Systems Medicine Model with Meditation as a Heart-Mind Intervention,” Heart and Mind 8:1 (2023).
Robert H. Schneider, Michael C. Dillbeck, Gunvant Yeola, and Tony Nader, “Peace Through Health: Traditional Medicine Meditation in the Prevention of Collective Stress, Violence, and War,” Frontiers in Public Health 12 (2024);12:1380626.
Maharishi International University and Consciousness-BasedSM are protected trademarks and are used in the United States under license or with permission.
On a warm and sunny Saturday afternoon, June 20, MIU conferred degrees on 679 graduates at its 2026 commencement ceremony, with graduating students representing 55 countries. Altogether, MIU awarded 159 bachelor’s degrees, 493 master’s degrees, 26 Masters of Fine Arts degrees, 30 doctoral degrees, and two honorary doctorates.
Click here to see the full commencement ceremony as well as videos of the key speeches.
The ceremony opened with recognition of the broader community behind the graduates’ achievements, appreciating parents, families, and friends — many of whom had traveled long distances, including from outside the United States — as integral to the students’ success.
“I encourage you to stay in touch with joy” — Dr. Pedro Noguera’s commencement address
Dr. Pedro Noguera, Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education, delivered a spirited commencement address.
He highlighted the urgency of issues such as climate change, political polarization, and economic inequality — yet he invited graduates to reframe these challenges as “learning challenges.” Then, he said, “The problems become less daunting and
insurmountable. We must simply learn how to address them.”
“I believe education is not only the best tool we have for creating a better future — it may be all we have,” he said. “The human ability to adapt and learn has proven to be our superpower.”
“Unlike humans, AI can’t think outside the box,” he said. “We have the ability to use education, compassion, and our ability to innovate, to imagine new alternatives, to uplift humanity and protect our Mother Earth.”
“We are the ones we’ve been waiting for,” he said, quoting the Hopi elders’ teaching.
He described how, as a university student, he traveled to war-torn El Salvador to negotiate the release of a political prisoner, a student leader at a university. While waiting in a dark waiting room, he inadvertently walked into one of the prison areas. “I was shocked to see how close I was to the men behind bars, who looked upon me with curiosity.”
He got to talking with one of them, who said, “When I get out, I’m going to celebrate” — and though no music was playing, “he proceeded to show me some impressive dance moves.” And they both laughed.
“I thought, if that man could joke about dancing even while facing the cruelty of imprisonment under a military dictatorship,” Noguera said, “couldn’t I find a way to maintain a sense of joy?”
“Graduates,” he then said, “I encourage you to stay in touch with joy, to maintain a lightness of spirit, a smile on your face, and even a little dance in your step, so that you can counter the forces of negativity and doom with compassion, kindness, and love.”
He quoted the Sufi poet Rumi, “Love is the bridge between you and everything” — then said to the graduates: “Be the bridge.”
“The Maharishi Effect is real,” he said. “We can change the world by changing ourselves, and small actions do add up and have effects that we may not perceive at the moment, but nonetheless ripple into the universe. You have the power to be a force of good in the world, and the world needs that now more than ever.”
“Class of 2026,” he concluded, “I hope you do well, I hope you do good, and I hope you have some fun while you do both. All the best.”
President Nader honors Dr. Noguera
“You have given us more than a commencement address,” President Nader said, reflecting on Noguera’s address. “You have given us a benediction.”
Nader underscored three key ideas from Noguera’s speech: the urgency of personal responsibility, the sustaining power of joy and love even in adversity, and the metaphor of being a bridge between seemingly separate worlds. “There are moments,” he said, “when the line from the Hopi elders, ‘We are the ones we have been waiting for,’ ceases to be inspirational and becomes simply true. This is one of them.”
He also reflected on the deeper significance of the “be the bridge” metaphor. “That, in three words, is the entire mission of this university,” he said. “We have spent decades preparing young people to be exactly that. Bridges between cultures, between disciplines, between the inner life and the outer work. You have given them a single sentence to carry with them. They will carry it.”
MIU President Dr. Tony Nader presented Dr. Noguera with the degree of Doctor of Education honoris causa, honoring his lifetime of service to humanity through education.
Professor Amine Kouider, representing the Board of Trustees, then presented a second honory degree, a Doctor of Fine Arts honoris causa, to MIU graduate and Fairfield resident Dick DeAngeles, for his lifelong service to Fairfield and MIU and especially for his award-winning eight-part History of Fairfield video documentary series.
“MIU was never meant to be ordinary” — valedictorian address
Valedictorian Polo Altinsky-Ross described MIU as consistently exploring ideas ahead of their time. Long before concepts such as wellness, sustainability, and human-centered development became mainstream, he noted, they were already central to the MIU’s approach.
“MIU is not easy to explain,” he said, “because it was never meant to be ordinary.” MIU challenges conventional assumptions about higher education by combining academic rigor with daily practices aimed at developing consciousness.
He argued that MIU’s focus on human development is becoming increasingly relevant. “A more advanced society is not just one with better machines,” he said, “but one with better people — clearer, more balanced, more compassionate.”
“Established in Being, perform action” — salutatorian address
Salutatorian Chirl Dawn Saylor offered a more personal reflection, describing her educational experience as transformative on multiple levels. Drawing on the Sanskrit phrase Yogastha Kuru Karmani — “established in Being, perform action” — she emphasized the distinction between intellectual understanding and lived experience.
“There is a difference between knowing something and being it,” she said. For Saylor, MIU’s impact lay not in introducing entirely new concepts but in enabling a deeper integration of ideas she had encountered throughout her life. She described her time at MIU as a process of rebuilding “from the inside out,” affecting her health, awareness, and daily experience.
She challenged the notion that inner growth requires withdrawal from the world, instead highlighting the “householder path” — the possibility of pursuing personal development while remaining fully engaged in everyday life. Her remarks underscored a central theme of the ceremony: that inner development and outward action are mutually supportive.
“Do not underestimate your single life” — President Nader’s charge to the graduates
In his closing charge to the graduates, Nader offered them a single unifying concept: care. He described caring as an expression of consciousness itself. “Caring is what consciousness does when it recognizes itself in another,” he said.
He outlined three practical principles to sustain this orientation: distinguishing between caring and becoming overburdened, clarifying daily priorities by asking what is truly one’s responsibility, and recognizing the far-reaching impact of individual actions. “Do not underestimate your single life,” he told graduates, emphasizing that acts of care ripple outward in ways that may not be immediately visible.
Of special note, 16 of the doctoral students graduated from MIU’s PhD program in China, with five of them traveling from China to participate in the ceremony in person. As their class gift, they pledged $50,000 to help promote MIU in China, specifically by having President Nader’s two books — the New York Times best-selling Consciousness Is All There Is and his new book The Power of Caring — translated, published, and promoted in their country.
Click here to see the ceremony, here for more graduation photos, and here video clips of graduating students.
Photos by Dileep Krishnamoorthy