How are mindfulness meditation teachers implementing social justice literacy in their classes?

A team of researchers led by Associate Professor Ana Eclair and Dr Julieta Galante has received a PEACE grant from Mind & Life for an innovative project examining the relationship between mindfulness meditation and social justice literacy.

Many mindfulness practitioners are trying to find ways to address the fast-emerging demands to end social injustice around the world. This interdisciplinary project aims to investigate, for the first time, how mindfulness meditation teachers and courses are incorporating social justice literacy training, and how such incorporation is perceived to intersect with fostering personal well-being.

Focusing on teachers committed to promoting social justice, the project will determine teachers’ attitudes and existing practice towards incorporation of social justice literacy including, but not limited to gender, racial, and environmental literacy.

The research team will survey and subsequently interview mindfulness meditation teachers to investigate their experiences with social justice issues. We will examine experiences of training, incorporation of methods, and barriers to learning and implementation. These insights will be accompanied by a textual analysis of social justice manuals.

We will take special care to add global representation to our mapping. This project will provide crucial input into existing discussions about whether and how modern mindfulness applications could and should support social justice. Ultimately, this work will contribute to the refinement and expansion of this dimension in mindfulness training.

University of Melbourne contributors

  • Associate Professor Ana Eclair, Gender Studies, Faculty of Arts
  • Associate Professor Julieta Galante, Deputy Director, Contemplative Studies Centre
  • Dr Cullan Joyce, Insight Fellow, Contemplative Studies Centre
  • Associate Professor Nicholas Van Dam, Inaugural Director, Contemplative Studies Centre
  • Ms Luara Karlson-Carp, Research Assistant, Contemplative Studies Centre