COLLECTIVE MOVEMENT

15:30 – 16:15

Republic Square

As we gather for the first time at the Hearth Summit, we begin not with words, but with movement — a shared gesture of arrival, presence, and possibility. This is more than an opening: it’s a celebration of being here, now, together. 

In this built-in moment of collective expression, we honor the ember that lives in each of us — the hope that moves us, the courage to show up, and the quiet knowing that transformation begins in the body.

Join the movement taking shape. Join the rhythm of an unfolding Hearth. 

Speakers: Edgard Gouveia and Franco Odhiambo

WALKABOUTS

16:15 – 17:30 

Republic Square

From our first collective movement, we now scatter — each flame finding ground in a smaller hearth.

This session is an invitation to arrive more fully, to acknowledge that we are here, and to greet the land that is welcoming us with attention.

In your Family Circle, you’ll be guided to explore Ljubljana with a wanderers’ eyes — listening, noticing, exploring.

With gentle prompts and open steps, this moment will help us gently tune into a quieter kind of knowing before the sessions and ideas begin to unfold. 

* Family Circles are peer-hosted by your designated Family Head. To learn more about the Family Circles, please refer to the Community Engagement & Participation section.

HEARTH WELCOME COCKTAIL

18:00 – 21:00

Križanke Summer Theatre 

We invite you to the official opening cocktail of the Wellbeing Project’s global Hearth Summit.

On our first evening together, we will gather to celebrate stories, beauty, and connection. Inspired by the Slovenian legend of Zlatorog, the golden-horned guardian of the mountains, this gathering will honor the spirit of resilience and the profound interconnection between humans and nature found in the tale. 

Diverse international performances will speak to the themes at the core of our gathering: reverence, balance, and the healing power of story and arts. 

Artists: Vuyo Sotashe, Chris Pattishall, Slovenski Oktet, Fabula Collective, Ablaye Cissoko, Cyrille Brotto, Falu Shah, and Brown Rice Family

PLENARY SESSION

09:30 – 12:00

Cankarjev Dom – Gallus Hall

This day of the Hearth Summit invites us to come home—to our bodies, to the Earth, and to the truth of our inner lives. In a world that often pulls us outward, today we turn inward and downward, rooting ourselves in presence, story, and relationship. This is a day of listening: to our own rhythms, to the quiet wisdom of the land, and to the sacred connections that hold us. The musical opening of the Hearth Summit gathers artists from around the world in a resonant moment of reflection and invocation, acknowledging global hardship while affirming our collective strength and solidarity. The anthemic opening song sets the stage for an official welcome by Aaron Pereira and Sandrine Woitrin. From there, Rhonda V. Magee grounds us in embodied presence, guiding us into breath, sensation, and the questions we often avoid: What are you holding? What are you offering? What are you ready to release? Vishal Talreja follows with a powerful testimony on burnout, vulnerability, and the hidden costs of changemaking—reminding us that emotional wellbeing is not a luxury, but a necessity. Richie Davidson then expands our field of awareness with scientific insight into consciousness, death, and transformation—revealing how awe and neuroplasticity can reshape the very architecture of our being. Mai Nguyen brings us back to the land through seed and memory, offering a deeply personal story of ecological belonging and cultural resilience. Music from Omar Sosa and Seckou Keita then opens a new register of feeling—followed by Nina Hastie, who invites us to lighten our grip and remember that joy, too, is healing. Rohini Nilekani reflects on how nature’s quiet teachings have reshaped the way she lives and leads—reframing presence with the Earth as a form of social transformation. Sandesh Kadur follows with breathtaking visual storytelling, reminding us that beauty can awaken both hope and responsibility. We turn toward ritual with poetry from Erin Robinsong and Heather Wolf, and a collective moment of grounding with Mallika Dutt—who reminds us that the sacred is always near. Finally, Donna Kerridge brings us home with ancestral wisdom from Māori tradition, inviting us to see the Earth as kin and healing as a return to the living web we belong to. Throughout the day, we remember that home is not a destination—it is a state of being. And when we listen, with openness and care, we begin to find our way back.

Hosts: Edwin Macharia, Shadille Estepan, Mar Cabra

Speakers: Rhonda V. Magee, Vishal Talreja, Dr. Richard J. Davidson, Mai Nguyen, Nina Hastie, Rohini Nilekani, Donna Kerridge, Mallika Dutt, Sandesh Kadur.

Artists: Omar Sosa, Seckou Keita, Erin Robinsong, Heather Wolf, and Falu.

ARTS & IMMERSION LABS

Into a Shared Wilderness: A Cinematic Journey Along the Threads That Bind Us 

14:15 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Kosovel Hall – Floor -2

Step into a shared wilderness through a never-before-seen cinematic journey across India’s first UNESCO Biosphere Reserve—the Nilgiris. Known as the Blue Mountains, this ecologically and culturally rich region is home to endangered species, tribal communities, and a web of life where human and wild intertwine.

Experience a powerful screening and dialogue exploring coexistence, ecological hope, and storytelling as a catalyst for reverence, responsibility, and renewal.

Speakers: Sandesh Kadur & Rohini Nilekani

Becoming Unbound: Libratory Art Practices and Solstice Ritual

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – E3 & E4 Rooms – Floor -2

Spark change for the solstice in a transformative experience of art, healing, and renewal. Through storytelling, ritual, and hands-on creation, participants will co-create symbolic sculptures designed to honor what we need to release, celebrate inner beauty, preciousness, and usher transformation

Speakers: Tracy Ferron

Future Generation in Action

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Štih Hall – Floor -1

What could a Future Generation Act do for you? Drawing from her pioneering work as an architect of the first ever Wellbeing of Future Generations Act in Wales, Jane Davidson is inviting us to rethink democracy not only as a tool for the present, but as a gift for those who follow—with stubborn optimism and the courage to act now. What if future generations had a real seat at the table in our government, communities and organisations? 

Speakers: Jane Davidson

Facilitator: Thobile Chittenden

Reimaging Ecological Identity Informed by Ayurveda

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Alma Karlin – Floor 5

How can changemakers stay rooted while navigating constant change? This experiential workshop draws on Ayurvedic wisdom to explore ecological identity as a path to well-being. Based on the understanding that we and the universe are made of the same five elements, participants will deepen self-awareness, foster resilience, and align inner and outer ecologies—transforming insight into everyday practices of purpose, joy, and balance.

Speakers: Prof. Mala Kapadia

Humanity Becoming: Creating a Field of Coherence Conversing to the Future

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Club CD – Floor 6

Humanity Becoming is a participatory space to explore how communityship, art, and embracing vulnerability help us reclaim personal and collective agency. We’ll be invited to resonate with the powerful stories shared by our remarkable speakers—reminders that we are all part of the same humanity—and together, shape a field of coherence to meet the future with clarity and courage.

Speakers: Ditri Zandstra, Mae Paner, and Mohsin Mohi Ud Din

The Conscious Table: A Sensory Journey Through Food

14:30 – 16:00 

Edvard Space

The Conscious Table invites participants into a multi-sensory exploration of food as a pathway to awareness, connection, and sustainable living. Through guided experiences, we awaken the senses, reflect on the journey of what we eat, and engage in hands-on learning that celebrates food safety, mindful eating, and ecological belonging. Participants will deepen their understanding of food literacy and embrace nourishment as a personal, social, and environmental act. 

This is an invitation to slow down and reconnect with the fundamentals—the kind of simplicity that genuinely fosters wellbeing.

Speakers: Diego Ruete

Beyond Hustle: A Reset for Entrepreneurs and Changemakers

14:30 – 16:00 

Faculty of Pharmacy – Pd Room

Join a rare space for entrepreneurs and changemakers to move beyond the relentless focus on productivity and performance. This workshop invites you to reflect and expand your perspective on what truly sustains you. Through journaling, check-ins, and small group conversations, you’ll explore what well-being means to you and surface the hidden toll of unacknowledged stress. Be ready to bring your human to the boardroom.

Speakers: Nektarios Liolios and Lisa Mikkelsen

Stewards of the Future: Shaping Human and Artificial Intelligence for Ecological Belonging

14:30 – 16:00 

Faculty of Pharmacy – P1 Room – Floor 0

Let’s explore the future of AI as an extension of human intelligence. Delve into how Human-AI collaboration can nurture wellbeing at every level—individual, relational, societal, and ecological. Through case studies, discussions, and experiential activities, participants will explore how AI can be shaped with intentionality to support human well-being and ecological belonging, ensuring technology aligns with our shared humanity and evolving ecosystems. Leave with tools for stewardship and renewed agency.

Speakers: Cynthia López and Luis Portales

Facilitator: Mia Jafari

Arts for Humanity: Creative Action for Connection, Visibility, and Collective Care

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – E1 & E2 Rooms – Floor -2

Join Community Arts Network (CAN) and the newly launched Arts for Humanity for a participatory workshop exploring the transformative power of community-based art. Led by artist and activist Yazmany Arboleda—known for large-scale, joyful interventions that center empathy and shared humanity—this session draws from real-world projects featured on CAN’s global platform and Yazmany’s own practice. Together, participants explore how art can shift public space, amplify voices, and spark meaningful connection.

Artists: Yazmany Arboleda and CAN

Sensory Perception Through Sound: Sensory Awakening Through Nature Connection

14:30 – 16:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Duša Počkaj Hall – Floor 0

Mercury prize nominated singer, highly inventive and original arranger, folksong interpreter, passionate conservationist, and song collector Sam Lee has shaken up the music scene breaking boundaries between traditional and contemporary music and the assumed places and ways folksong is appreciated. 

In this workshop, Sam will hold a space for participants to explore ways of dropping into bodily connection with the land. Using nature awareness practices, participants will grow their sensory perception through sound, song, and sympathetic, playful gesture, invoking our ancestral bodies to reaffirm our innate nature kinship. 

Artists: Sam Lee

Garden GOround: An Augmented Sound Reality Walk Through Nature

14:30 – 16:00

Cankarjev Dom – Starting Point: Registration – Floor 0

Experience a sound walk created and led by artists Irena Pivka and Brande Zorman from CONA, Institute for Contemporary Art Processing. Garden GOround points to the complex relationship between people and plants. Through the prism of the journeys of these two different temporalities, it speculates on the development of a future, solidarity-based coexistence of humans and plants. Plants live at their own pace in their own time, walking the paths we cannot access. Garden GOround takes us along the paths of a possible future scenario for our overstressed, noisy planet, mirrored through the development of local greenways. Can we learn from plants to build a more solidarity-oriented future?

Each workshop participant will be given a decorated pair of headphones, and the group will take a walk together, hearing the augmented sound reality while experiencing Ljubljana’s luscious central garden.

Artists: Irena Pivka, Brane Zorman, and Alja Petric 

Mandala Lab: Where Emotions Can Turn to Wisdom 

14:30 – 16:00

Uršulinski Samostan

Do your emotions sometimes get the better of you? Have you ever regretted words uttered in anger? If so, you are invited to attend the Mandala Lab Workshop. Inspired by a Tibetan Buddhist teaching, the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art has teamed up with a distinguished Slovenian artist (Matej Andraž Vogrinčič), a scientist (Urban Kordeš ), and a philosopher (Nina Petek) to guide you through the five sections of Pride, Attachment, Envy, Anger, and Ignorance. You will smell memories, bang gongs, and dip them into water, synchronize your breathing, and learn to cultivate clarity when before there was confusion. The workshop is based on an art installation commissioned for the first Wellbeing Summit in 2022 in Bilbao, Spain, and curated by Tim McHenry.  

Artists: Tim McHenry

Birdheart: Performance and Conversation

14:30 – 16:00

Glej Theatre

Brown paper and a box of sand transform into an intimate, stunning chamber piece of animated theater. A show about transformation, loneliness, and the urge to fly, it holds a hand-mirror up to humanity and offers it a chair. Through a series of fragile images built in front of the audiences’ eyes, Julian Crouch and Saskia Lane create something achingly beautiful from the humblest of beginnings. Following the performance, join them in conversation as they share the creative process behind this visually arresting and emotionally resonant work. 

Artists: Saskia Lane and Julian Crouch

A Wellbeing Concert: Self-Care and Mindfulness Through Live Music

14:30 – 16:00

Academy Of Music – Julija Betetta Hall – Floor 1

Part of the international Well-Being Concert series created in partnership with Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute.

Find mindfulness and self-care through music from two remarkable duos – “…both technically brilliant and emotionally bold…” (REVIVE MUSIC) singer and songwriter Sarah Elizabeth Charles with pianist and composer Jarrett Cherner; acclaimed South African jazz vocalist Vuyo Sotashe with pianist and composer Chris Pattishall. The concert is hosted by Associate Professor and Director of New York University’s Drama Therapy Program and Co-Director, Jameel Arts & Health Lab, Nisha Sajnani. 

Audience members are invited to enter a nurturing environment, to lie or sit on yoga mats, take their shoes off, and fully immerse themselves in a deep listening experience. Chairs will be provided as needed. There will be a conversation and talk back with Nisha and the artists after the concert experience. Join us for this restorative and healing musical journey.  

Artists: Jarrett Cherner, Sarah Elizabeth Charles, Vuyo Sotashe, and Chris Pattishall

Indian Ragas and Chants: The Power of Spirituality Through Music in  Wellbeing

14:30 – 16:00

Academy Of Music – Kazina Jazz Club – Floor 0

An immersive workshop led by Falu Shah, a GRAMMY® Award winner as well as the first Indian-born singer/songwriter to win the award. The workshop explores vedic chants and ragas that heal through sounds and ancient melodies sung at different times of day or night, evoking specific feelings from the nine rasas/colors of India in ancient Sanskrit languages. This musical journey, in the company of one of the world’s greatest Indian classical singers and her band, includes an exploration of Indian solfege, its emotional capacity, and impact on both the body and mind.

Artists: Falu Shah

Let Your Soul Sing: The Sacred Act of Singing as Self-Care

14:30 – 16:00

Academy Of Music – Dr. Primoža Kureta Room – Floor 0

What if the voice in your body could be a wellspring of joy, connection, and healing?

Led by the radiant Bishop Chantel Wright and members of her acclaimed Songs of Solomon gospel choir from Harlem NYC, this workshop invites you to explore the power of collective singing. You’ll learn vocal techniques, sing together, and experience firsthand the deep wellbeing that comes from lifting your voice—in harmony, in community, and from the soul.

Artists: Bishop Chantel Wright

FAMILY CIRCLES

16:30 – 17:45 

Starting Point: Decided by the Family Circle

Today’s Family Circle gathering offers a space to connect with your peers, share what you’ve experienced so far, and learn from one another. It is a moment to collectively pause, reflect, and begin to integrate the diverse sessions and insights that have unfolded throughout the Summit.

Each Family Circle will choose their own meeting point for today. We encourage you to stay in touch and coordinate via your group’s WhatsApp thread.

* Family Circles are peer-hosted by your designated Family Head. To learn more about the Family Circles, please refer to the Community Engagement & Participation section.

** Important information will be shared about the upcoming gathering, the Hearth Feasts.

HEARTH FEAST

19:00 – 21:00

Hearth Feast at Ljubljana Castle

Estates Hall, Palatium Hall, and Hribar Hall

Hearth Feast at Cankarjev Dom

Club CD – Floor 6

Hearth Feast at Grand Hotel Union

Grand Union Hall, Glass Hall

Inspired by the ancestral tradition of gathering around a table to share food, time, and stories, we have recreated this timeless ritual with the Hearth Feast. 

On the back side of your badge,  you’ll find the location of your Hearth Feast.

More than just a seated dinner or a meal, the Hearth Feast is an invitation to remember our deep interconnectedness—with ourselves, our communities, and the Earth. Rooted in the principles of Ecological Belonging, the Hearth Feast offers a warm and thoughtfully crafted space that nurtures presence, connection, and a shared sense of care for the planet.

Each table will be gently guided by a host, who will offer thoughtful questions and invitations to spark meaningful conversation. These shared moments are designed to cultivate reflection, deepen community, and nourish both body and spirit.

With each course, a new prompt will be offered — a question to help reflect on the elements of life that sustain and connect us. These are not tasks to complete, but gentle invitations to share or simply listen. You are welcome just as you are.

While each location across Ljubljana offers a unique setting, all participants will gather in the same spirit — connected by the shared invitation to be fully present: with ourselves, with one another, and with the moment.

You can see the extended invitation here, and the Support Sheet for the Host here, in case it is you who gets to host it at your table.

PLENARY SESSION

09:30 – 12:00

Cankarjev Dom – Gallus Hall

This day, the Hearth Summit invites us into a deepening journey—from the inner landscape of healing, to the interpersonal space of connection, and outward into sacred relationship with community, spirit, cities, countries, and beyond. Through story, song, movement, and dialogue, we explore how belonging is cultivated not only within ourselves, but between us—and far beyond us. We begin with the soulful harmonies of Songs of Solomon, grounding the day in collective spirit and a call to shared humanity. From there, Louisa Zondo and Kumi Naidoo open a tender dialogue on intimacy and inner work—what it means to show up vulnerably, courageously, and in relationship as we heal. Jean Bosco Niyonzima offers a moving reflection on Ubuntu—“I am because we are”—sharing how healing must happen both within and between us. His offering invites us into a collective understanding of care, interdependence, and relational resilience. Through Aakash Odedra’s evocative dance performance, we witness the body as a vessel for transformation—expressing through motion what cannot always be spoken in words. 

This prepares us to receive the next offering: a dialogue across faith traditions, as Imam Hendi, Rabbi Lynn Gottleib, and Dr. Mala Kapadia, moderated by Jen Woolard, explore how spirituality and ritual guide us back into relationship with the Earth. From there, we move into place—into the design of cities and spaces—as Selva Gürdoğan, May East, Marco Casagrande, and Jonathan Rose, moderated by Thobile Chittenden, reimagine the city as a site of reverence, regeneration, and feminine wisdom. What becomes possible when we listen to the land, to children, to grandmothers—and let that listening shape how we live? Werner Backstein then offers a heartfelt “Thing About…” reflection on the arts as a quiet, persistent force for dignity and belonging—especially in moments of societal fragmentation. His words set the tone for Saskia von Diest, who reminds us that humans, when in right relationship with the Earth, can act as keystone species—reweaving connection with the land through ritual, reverence, and deep listening. The day gathers in a circle around the symbolic hearth, as Mary Robinson, Martha Koome, and Jane Davidson, moderated by Edwin Macharia, share reflections on place-based leadership and courageous care. Together, they remind us that real change is rooted—not in size or scale—but in presence, humility, and love for the ground beneath our feet. We close with the soaring voice of Magos Herrera, joined by her quartet and Quartet Accadèmia, whose musical collaboration blends jazz, tradition, and global influences into a final offering of beauty, resonance, and connection. Their performance is a living reminder that healing is a relational act—and that we find our way forward together, in rhythm and relationship.

Hosts: Edwin Macharia, Shadille Estepan, Mar Cabra

Speakers: Louisa Zondo, Kumi Naidoo, Jean Bosco Niyonzima, HE Imam Yahya Hendi, Rabbi Lynn Gottleib, Dr. Mala Kapadia, Jennifer Woolard, Selva Gürdoğan, May East, Marco Casagrande, Jonathan Rose, Thobile Chittenden, Werner Bachstein, Saskia von Diest, Mary Robinson, Martha Koome, and Jane Davidson

Artists: Songs of Solomon, Aakash Odedra, Quartet Accadémia with Magos Herrera

EXPERIENTIAL WORKSHOPS

Co-Designing the Future of Higher Education

14:30 – 16:30

Cankarjev Dom – E3 & E4 Rooms – Floor -2

Be part of launching The Million Dot Project, a step-by-step approach to co-designing the future of education. This experiential workshop invites you to connect the dots of lived experience and collective hopes for higher ed. Together, we’ll craft a shared vision where personal and global transformation meet. Your contributions will help shape a narrative—and a global picture—of positive, systemic change in colleges and universities.

Speakers: Ken Elston

The Inner Work of Organizational Wellbeing: Voices from the Field

14:30 – 16:30

Cankarjev Dom – Štih Hall – Floor -1

Gather around a central stage where stories, music, and emotion intertwine and explore five years of “research” into organizational wellbeing through powerful, personal testimonies and best practices. Music will amplify the moment, as participants pause, reflect, and engage in deep listening. 

Speakers: Gayle Young, Mar Cabra, Carina Ndiaye

Facilitator: Maarten Robben

A Journey Beyond Repair: Ecosystem Approach to Transforming Trauma

14:30 – 16:30

Cankarjev Dom – Club CD – Floor 6

This workshop invites you to gain a fresh perspective on interrupting the cycles of harm caused by personal and societal pain by addressing the deep-rooted trauma that shapes individuals, communities, and systems across generations. 

Through interactive activities and facilitated discussions, participants will explore the principles of The Journey Framework, drawing on over 50 years of research and practice. You will gain insights into how intergenerational trauma impacts our cognitive, emotional, and physiological responses to global challenges like climate collapse, systemic injustice, and rising despair, fostering deep understanding and empathy.

Speakers: Dr. Mays Imad, Kate Woodsome, and Kendall Bryant

Tending the Hearth: Relational Architectures for Collective Wellbeing

14:30 – 16:30

Grand Hotel Union – White Hall – Floor 1

​This participatory session invites us to explore how we organize for change — not just through structures, but through presence, relationship, and care. Together, we will reimagine how collaboration, decision-making, and shared responsibility can reflect the values we long to live by. An invitation to shift from frustration with stagnant systems to imagining and building new ways of being and working together. 

Speakers:  Ángela Báez-Silva Arias, Jason Ferenczi, Claude Gatebuke, Pedro Portela, Laura Webber

Regenerative Economy: Designing an Economy Rooted in Sacredness

14:30 – 16:30

Grand Hotel Union – Glass Hall – Floor 1

Join us for an immersive workshop where we will explore how to build an economy rooted in sacredness – one that honours life, interconnectedness, and regenerative principles.

As current economic systems face deep questioning, we’ll look at Indigenous-led models of caregiving, regenerative movements, and purpose-driven enterprises. We’ll examine practical examples of sacred economies in action and consider how regions, businesses, and communities can embody sacredness.

Be ready to root action in wisdom, and build systems that serve life’s flourishing.

Speakers: Pedro Tarak, Thobile Chittenden, and Nelson Ole Reiyia

Artists: Magos Herrera

Facilitator: Mia Jafari

Where We Heal the World: Healing Houses of Joy, Earth, and Hope

14:30 – 16:30

Academy Of Music – Kazina Jazz Club – Floor 0

Healing houses are spaces of restoration and care, created by women human rights defenders in Latin America. Join this workshop to explore how reconnecting with joy, Earth, and community can sustain those who protect life — and help us imagine new ways of living together beyond violence.

Speakers: Nallely Tello & Jelena Dordevic

Out Beyond: A Musical and Contemplative Journey into Human Flourishing

14:30 – 16:30

Academy Of Music – Julija Betetta Hall – Floor 1-

“Out Beyond” is a 2-hour musical workshop using voice, rhythm, and movement to explore healing, well-being, and connection—guided by science, ancient traditions, and the power of sound.

Speakers: Dalal Abu Amneh and Dr. Richard Davidson

FAMILY CIRCLES

17:00 – 18:00

Starting Point: Decided by the Family Circle

In this final Family Circle gathering, we begin the gentle process of knitting the threads of our journey back together. It is a moment to pause, take stock, and start closing this shared experience with presence and care.

Together, you’ll have space to express gratitude, acknowledge one another, and reflect on what you’re taking with you—from new insights and connections to moments of personal transformation.

To honor this closing, there will be a simple shared activity and a small, meaningful surprise for each of you to take home—a reminder of the journey and the community that held it.

Let this time be one of tenderness, and appreciation, of all that’s been lived together.

* Family Circles are peer-hosted by your designated Family Head. To learn more about the Family Circles, please refer to the Community Engagement & Participation section.

** Important information will be shared about the Solstice Ritual – A Dawn Procession.

COLLECTIVE MOVEMENT

18:00 – 18:30

Republic Square

After diving deep and weaving through new ideas, conversations, and inner landscapes, we return — to the circle, to the body, to the quiet pulse beneath it all.

This moment will offer a pause to feel what’s shifted, to honor what has been shared and learned, and to hold what’s been found along the way. 

We will gather all together once more, not just with each other, but with ourselves — the selves that have been stretched, stirred, and moved in ways still finding their shape. 

Through shared rhythm and simple motion, we will come back into coherence and collectively prepare to bring the pieces home.

Speakers: Edgard Gouveia and Franco Odhiambo

HEARTH SOIRÉES

Hearth Soirées – Film Screening and Conversation – The Eternal Song: Ancestral Wisdom for Collective Healing

19:00 – 21:15

Cankarjev Dom – Kosovel Hall – Floor -2

The Eternal Song is a cinematic journey through timeless lands and their Indigenous cultures. Voices from around the world and across generations call us to witness the deep, ongoing scars of colonization on lands and peoples, and the healing that comes through ancestral wisdom. Entrusted with medicine stories, we grapple with colonial legacies, intergenerational trauma, our own fragmentation and culture of separation. The film reveals how modernity severs our connection to nature, each other, and the ancestral realm, while feeding us empty promises of salvation, unlimited consumption and economic growth, and individual happiness. As we are drawn into the intricate web of kinship and honoring the living presence of Mother Earth, we awaken a remembrance. A sacred dance comes to life and we begin to hear the eternal song of Life itself, calling us back to belonging.

Speakers: Maurizio Ralitza Benazzo, Zaya Ralitza Benazzo, Bayo Akomolafe and Donna Kerridge

Hearth Soirées – Surprise Soirées…

19:00 – 21:00

A few Surprise Soireés will be organised throughout the city. More information to be disclosed closer to the event…

MORNING PRACTICES – MOVE, SIT, MAKE

07:00 – 07:30

Mirror & Movement

Park Sveta Evrope

During this morning practice, participants will join a very gentle yoga practice guided by Theresa Castillo on the grounds around the sculpture, The Mirror of Peace by Renee Van Bave, with added dialogue helping participants reflect and see themselves and each other with kindness. 

Practitioner: Theresa Castillo

Silk & Stories

Križanke Church

Don’t miss this singular opportunity to experience The Spinners in its entirety — a four-part poetic narrative by acclaimed poet and interdisciplinary artist Erin Robinsong, commissioned for the Global Hearth Summit. The full poem will be performed live , with Robinsong’s voice joined by evocative musical accompaniment from composer and dulcimer player Heather Wolf. Set in the atmospheric Križanke Church, this performance invites listeners into a deep, immersive encounter with language, sound, and the elemental rhythms that bind us to the living world.

Storyteller: Erin Robinsong

Artist: Heather Wolf

ARTS & IMMERSION LABS

Rest and Play as Sacred Acts

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – E3 & E4 Rooms – Floor -2

Explore an ancient tradition of collective rest and joyful expression—an enduring practice of cultural resistance to the exploitation of human and animal labor and spirit. Through singing, dance, storytelling, and radical hospitality, we will engage in ceremonial play as a method for cultivating communal joy and honoring our shared creative power.

Speakers: Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb 

Flourish: Cultivating Wellbeing and Resilience in Educators

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Štih Hall – Floor -1

This engaging workshop explores how restoring educator well-being—through social and emotional learning, compassion, and systemic support—can help teachers thrive both inside and outside the classroom. 

Drawing on her research, Dr. Kimberly  A. Schonert-Reichl will highlight why educator well-being matters and share simple, practical strategies to promote resilience, connection, and flourishing in everyday teaching.

Speakers: Dr. Kimberly A. Schonert-Reichl, John Gasko

The Art of Interbeing: Systemic Constellation Work for Holistic Healing

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Lili Novy Glass Hall – Floor 1

Guided by one of the world’s foremost experts, experience systemic constellation work as a tool to reveal the hidden dynamics shaping social systems, communities and organizations. Rooted in field theory and ancestral knowledge, this practice helps surface unspoken loyalties, inherited trauma, and entanglements that influence how systems function, stagnate, or evolve. 

Together, we will ask: What wants to be seen? What has been excluded? What becomes possible when a system is witnessed as a living whole?

Speakers: Stephen Hauser

Conflict Alchemy: A Shift from Breakdown to Breakthrough

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Alma Karlin – Floor 5

Do you dread conflict?

Do you get frustrated when it’s ignored—or made worse by poor attempts to resolve it? Conflict is a major source of disconnection in our lives, organizations, and society. Conflict Alchemy invites a new perspective: seeing conflict as a fire that can destroy or fuel transformation, if held with skill and care.

We’ll explore the gold that conflict can reveal—healing, deeper connection, clarified needs, and creative solutions. Through reflection, exercises, and embodied practice, this workshop helps shift how we think, feel, and engage with conflict.

Speakers: Roy Jacob

The Elephant in the Room Has a Name: A Playful Reckoning with Power, Funding and Possibility

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Club CD – Floor 6

In this experiential workshop, funders and grantees come together as fellow changemakers navigating today’s nonprofit and funding landscape. Using tools from Theatre of the Oppressed, story circles, and embodied imagination, we’ll explore the tensions, grief, and possibilities in funding relationships.

With play, honesty, and care, we surface what’s often unspoken and create space for joy, connection, and creative re-visioning.

Speakers: Chilande Kuloba-Warria, Gannon Gillespie, Dana Preston, and Ken Elston

Awe in Parenthood: An Exploration of Wellbeing and Connection

08:00 – 09:30

Edvard Space

This workshop invites parents and others who are deeply involved in caring for young children to learn more about the transformative power of awe. The precious moments that surprise, expand, and restore us, even in our busiest days.Together, we will explore how awe can serve as a powerful tool for finding calm, presence, and connection with our children and share parent-specific examples from the 8 wonders of awe central to the work of Dacher Keltner and his team at the Greater Good Science Centre at the University of California Berkeley.  

Through guided reflection, peer sharing, and action planning, we will create a space for participants to reflect on their own experiences of awe, learn from each other, and shape a personal approach to cultivating more awe in everyday life. 

Speakers: Hannah Rothschild and Lou Deringer

Whispers of the Body: Wisdom from Tibetan Medicine

08:00 – 09:30

Faculty Of Pharmacy – PD Room

In our modern culture, we often stay in our heads—disconnected from the body’s subtle signals. Grounded in centuries of observation,Tibetan medicine offers a different path: one that begins with deep listening. Rooted in the elements and in the balance of wind, bile, and phlegm, this ancient system sees the body as a guide toward armony and wellbeing.

This session invites you to explore practical ways to attune to your own constitution, recognize early signs of imbalance, and reconnect with your inner rhythms.

Speakers:  Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo

The Alchemy of Becoming: A Workshop with Visual Artists Chiara Camoni, Renee Van Bavel and Cheng Tsung Feng  

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – E1 & E2 Rooms – Floor -2

This workshop explores the transformation of means and materials in the act of personal creation. Moderated by Carrie Rebora Barratt, Hearth Summit Curator, the session includes images and video from these three remarkable artists. The conversation is guided by questions about what makes the artists feel most connected to their inner sense of aliveness; what truths or surprises emerge, and how do they inform the artists’ sense of place in the larger ecosystem of life? What does “belonging” feel like in the artists’ creative process, and how does the work featured at the Summit invite others into a deeper relationship with wonder and care for ourselves and our living world?

Following the conversation, the participants engage in a simple “making” exercise, facilitated by Chiara and Feng. 

Artists: Chiara Camoni, Renee van Bavel, and Cheng Tsung Feng

Beyond the Noise: Finding Stillness and Focus Through the Body

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Duša Počkaj Hall – Floor 0

Internationally celebrated dancer and choreographer Aakash Odedra leads an embodied and powerful exploration of movement as a path to clarity. Drawing from classical Indian dance, contemporary movement, and personal narrative, the session invites participants to listen more deeply to their bodies and to the space within. Through guided movement, breath, and reflection, you’ll explore what it means to tune out distraction and move with intention—beyond the noise.

No dance experience is necessary—just a willingness to move, reflect, and reconnect with the body’s innate intelligence.

Artists: Aakash Odedra

Garden GOround: An Augmented Sound Reality Walk Through Nature

08:00 – 09:30

Cankarjev Dom – Starting Point: Registration – Floor 0

Experience a sound walk created and led by artists Irena Pivka and Brande Zorman from CONA, Institute for Contemporary Art Processing. Garden GOround points to the complex relationship between people and plants. Through the prism of the journeys of these two different temporalities, it speculates on the development of a future, solidarity-based coexistence of humans and plants. Plants live at their own pace in their own time, walking the paths we cannot access. Garden GOround takes us along the paths of a possible future scenario for our overstressed, noisy planet, mirrored through the development of local greenways. Can we learn from plants to build a more solidarity-oriented future?

Each workshop participant will be given a decorated pair of headphones, and the group will take a walk together, hearing the augmented sound reality while experiencing Ljubljana’s luscious central garden. 

Artists: Irena Pivka, Brane Zorman, and Alja Petric 

Mandala Lab: Where Emotions Can Turn to Wisdom

08:00 – 09:30

Uršulinski Samostan

Do your emotions sometimes get the better of you? Have you ever regretted words uttered in anger? If so, you are invited to attend the Mandala Lab Workshop. Inspired by a Tibetan Buddhist teaching, the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art has teamed up with a distinguished Slovenian artist (Matej Andraž Vogrinčič), a scientist (Urban Kordeš), and a philosopher (Nina Petek) to guide you through the five sections of Pride, Attachment, Envy, Anger, and Ignorance. You will smell memories, bang gongs, and dip them into water, synchronize your breathing, and learn to cultivate clarity when before there was confusion. The workshop is based on an art installation commissioned for the first Wellbeing Summit in 2022 in Bilbao, Spain, and curated by Tim McHenry.

Artists: Tim McHenry

Birdheart: Performance and Conversation

08:00 – 09:30

Glej Theatre

Brown paper and a box of sand transform into an intimate, stunning chamber piece of animated theater. A show about transformation, loneliness, and the urge to fly, it holds up a hand mirror to humanity. Through a series of fragile images built in front of the audiences’ eyes, Julian Crouch and Saskia Lane create something achingly beautiful from the humblest of beginnings. Following the performance, join them in conversation as they share the creative process as well as the ideas and intention behind this visually arresting and emotionally resonant work.

Artists: Saskia Lane and Julian Crouch

A Wellbeing Concert: Self-Care and Mindfulness Through Live Music

08:00 – 09:30

Academy Of Music – Julija Betetta Hall – Floor 1

Part of the international Well-Being Concert series created in partnership with Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute

Find mindfulness and self-care through the moving and transporting music of Senegalese kora master Ablaye Cissoko and French accordionist and composer Cyrille Brotto. Together, they create a sound that melds the deep traditions of their very different musical cultures and showcases their unique artistry. The concert is hosted by Associate Professor and Director of New York University’s Drama Therapy Program and Co-Director, Jameel Arts & Health Lab Nisha Sajnani. 

Audience members are invited to enter a nurturing environment, to lie or sit on yoga mats, take their shoes off, and fully immerse themselves in a deep listening experience. Chairs will be provided as needed. There will be a conversation and talk back with Nisha and the artists after the concert experience. Join us for this restorative and healing musical journey. 

Artists: Cyrille Brotto and Ablaye Cissoko

Indian Ragas and Chants: The Power of Spirituality Through Music in Wellbeing

08:00 – 09:30

Academy Of Music – Kazina Jazz Club – Floor 0

An immersive workshop led by Falu Shah, a GRAMMY® Award winner as well as the first Indian-born singer/songwriter to win the award. The workshop explores vedic chants and ragas that heal through sounds and ancient melodies sung at different times of day or night evoking specific feelings from the nine rasas/colors of India in ancient Sanskrit languages. This musical journey, in the company of one of the world’s greatest Indian classical singers and her band includes an exploration of Indian solfege, its emotional capacity and impact on both the body and mind.

Artists: Falu Shah

PLENARY SESSION

10:00 – 12:00 

Cankarjev Dom – Gallus Hall

The final day of the Hearth Summit calls us into courageous listening—beyond the known, toward the future, and into action. We are invited to cross belief systems and borders, to meet uncertainty with presence, and to listen for what is emerging—within ourselves, between one another, and in the world we are shaping together. We begin with a keynote from David Simas, who names the “green shoots” of possibility rising amidst division, and invites us to listen beyond our assumptions—to the quieter truths that often go unheard. Through music by Sarah Elizabeth Charles and Jarrett Cherner, we are drawn into a space of intimacy and emotional depth, preparing us for Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe’s poetic reflection on synodality, inclusion, and the spiritual practice of listening itself. From there, we step into a layered dialogue with Anne Walker, Elaine Forde, and Catalina Cock Duque, moderated by Paula Moreno, who bring hard-won lessons from conflict zones in Northern Ireland and Colombia. They remind us that peace is not abstract—it is painstakingly built through truth, tenderness, and time. A performance by Duo Silence offers space to pause, reflect, and feel—before we shift toward the horizon of technological transformation. In a visionary dialogue moderated by Grace Clapham, Srinija Srinivasan and Sennay Ghebreab explore how AI might reflect—not replace—our deepest values, asking what it means to embed care, interdependence, and ecological belonging into the future we’re coding. As we turn toward action, Rohini Nilekani, Cristiane Sultani, and Laurence Lien challenge the field of philanthropy to evolve—not only through reflection, but through courageous responsibility. They ask: What does it mean to listen in ways that lead to relational, practical commitments? The Summit draws to a close with reflections from Regional Hearth Summit leaders, as Aaron Pereira and Sandrine Woitrin gather us one final time to look forward together. And finally, in a burst of fierce, embodied joy, Dobet Gnahoré lifts the room with voice, rhythm, and movement—a reminder that listening leads to connection, and connection calls us to act. This is not a conclusion. It is a continuation. A call to carry the hearth forward—to tend the flame, to weave the relationships, and to keep the movement alive.

Hosts: Edwin Macharia, Shadille Estepan, Mar Cabra

Speakers: David Simas, Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe, Anne Walker, Elaine Forde, Catalina Cock Duque, Paula Moreno, Bayo Akomolafe, Grace Clapham, Srinija Srinivasan, Sennay Ghebreab, Rohini Nilekani, Cristiane Sultani, Laurence Lien.

Artists: Quartet Accadèmia, Sarah Elizabeth Charles, Jarrett Cherner, Duo Silence, and Dobet Gnahoré.

TENT – CHIARA CAMONI

Križanke Church

Born in Piacenza, Italy, and working in the Apuan Alps of Tuscany, Chiara Camoni creates connections with people, places, and plants. Her practice engages a shifting, spontaneous group of friends, family, and others who shape the work alongside her.  In Ljubljana,  she is working with Krater, the artist collective that embraces regenerative practices and alliances to open eyes to nature and each other anew. Camoni’s installation of silks dyed with the natural pigments of local plants, invites all to immerse themselves in an environment of belonging.

THE MIRROR OF PEACE – RENEE VAN BAVEL

Park Sveta Evrope

Based in Berlin,Dutch artist Renee van Bavel, creates timely work asking the urgent questions: What does peace look like? And how can we protect it?  Her reflective wall, THE MIRROR OF PEACE is a spatial monument that invites the viewer to have a personal experience with peace.  While looking at their reflection, viewers read: “This is what people living in peace look like.”  A life lived in peace cannot be taken for granted, and we must act consciously, every day, to preserve it.  

The Mirror of Peace can be seen  24/7 in Sveta Park.

EYES AS BIG AS PLATES – KAROLINE HJORTH & RIITTA IKONEN

Cankarjev Dom – Homebase – Floor 0

Eyes as Big as Plates captures the poetry of age, nature, and identity. 

It is an ongoing exploration of relations across beings, challenging conventional narratives on how humans relate to their surroundings across diverse cultures and landscapes. 

The evocative portraits reframing older adults as wise figures connects us back to the natural world.

Through a combination of photography, wearable sculpture, action research and activism, the Norwegian-Finnish artist duo calls for a collective and synchronized environmental stewardship.

HOMEBASE – WORK, CONNECT, CHILL

Cankarjev Dom – Floor 0

The Homebase is located at Cankarjev Dom, next to the Registration area.

Attendees can meet there to connect, grab some light refreshments, and spend time together. The open space is ideal for conversations, organizing small group meetings, working, or just relaxing.

The Homebase opening hours for delegates:

• Tuesday, 17 June: 8:00 – 18:00
• Wednesday, 18 June: 8:00 – 18:00
• Thursday, 19 June: 8:00 – 18:00
• Friday, 20 June: 7:30 – 13:00

EMOTIONAL SUPPORT SPACE – ON-SITE MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELLING

Cankarjev Dom – M2 Room – Floor -1

This space is located in the M2 room, at Cankarjev Dom, on the -1 Ground Floor. 

In the Emotional Support Space, a mental health counselor will be on-site to provide responsive, immediate wellbeing support to anyone who may experience distress, emotional triggering, or needs a moment of grounding during the Summit. 

Attendees can expect brief, caring counseling and wellbeing check-ins within a safe and private space designed to support them.

The Emotional Support Space will be available:

• Wednesday, 18 June: 8:00 – 18:00
• Thursday, 19 June: 8:00 – 18:00

Friday, 20 June: 8:00 – 12:00