MYSTICS AND SCIENTISTS - Key Persons
Adam had a career in finance and investment. He has been a director at a number of leading City investment houses and in that time managed a variety of domestic and international funds (including award-winning). He also leads the development of a number of new funds in the UK.
He has held a long term interest in complementary and alternative medicine, Bohmian dialogue and the work of Carl Jung
Alice Letts graduated this year with a BA in Philosophy at the University of York, and has now begun her masters at Durham University studying Philosophy. Her research interests include the Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy of Mind (particularly debates within consciousness studies) and Ethics. During her masters, she will be working on phenomenology and sciences of mind, aswell as virtue ethics and conceptual engineering. Her main research will focus on Christian ethics in comparison with contemporary ethics and their congruity with the notion of ‘self-love.' She hopes to continue her research after her masters into the philosophical significance of religious/spiritual beliefs, and potentially provide a defence for religious belief using a cosmopsychist framework of consciousness.
Job Titles:
- General Manager
- Member of the Management Team
Prior to joining the Scientific and Medical Network Andrew was been in the print industry, having worked in the production and sub-editing department for a leading UK consumer magazine publisher for the previous ten years. He has also had event organising experience, booking and facilitating weekend meditation retreats and workshops in London. With an educational background in the humanities and a Masters degree in Education and Politics, Andrew has maintained a keen interest in philosophy, science and the latest research into consciousness, and in 2017 he completed a two-month online course through The University of British Columbia on the Science of Religion. Originally from Auckland, New Zealand, Andrew has lived in the United Kingdom for over 15 years and now holds dual citizenship in both countries.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Software Programmer
- Web Master & Cloud Services Manager, Membership Support
Armando is a passionate software programmer with a wide range of skills and a flair for scouring systems, to find bugs and set them free. He has the ability to dive into an existing project, quickly comprehend the structure and how different parts interact with each other, and see ways of improving and building new features. "Optimize" is his favourite word!
As an open-source developer who cares a lot about free software, he contributes in various ways. Offering support by helping developers and users understand and implement software, forms part of his daily routine.
He has an irksome sensitivity to spelling and typographical errors, which he puts to good use as a proofreader. Be it technical documentation, books, articles or menus, they can all benefit from some loving attention.
Away from the keyboard, he enjoys listening to trance & electronic music and loves watching movies that have a meaningful story to tell. As a budding permaculturist, looking at his surroundings in a more holistic way has changed his understanding and way of looking at nature.
My interests span science, religion and psychical research (which I see as forming a bridge between them). All three activities date back to my undergraduate days at Cambridge , where I read mathematics and was later a Fellow at Trinity College , and all three fall within the remit of the SMN. My professional area of research is cosmology - for my PhD I studied the first second of the universe under Stephen Hawking - and includes such topics as the early universe, dark matter and the anthropic principle. In 1985 I moved to London University, where I am now Professor of Mathematics and Astronomy at Queen Mary. I have a long-standing interest in the relationship between science and religion, giving frequent talks in this area, and was recently awarded a Templeton grant to organize a series of conferences on the evidence for cosmological fine-tuning. This has led to a book, entitled "Universe or Multiverse", which I edited. I have been a member of the Society for Psychical Research for some 30 years, serving as its President in the period 2000-2004. My approach to the subject is mainly theoretical: I'm particularly keen to extend physics to incorporate consciousness and associated mental and spiritual phenomena. The SMN is unique in being broad enough to accommodate all three of my activities and I'm delighted to be currently serving on the Programming Committee.
Bruce is a software engineer, skill collector and student of life deeply interested in exploring the metaphysical nature of reality and evolving paradigms, like decentralization, to enrich the human experience. He is expressing himself through poetry, music, art, podcasts and writing, and is seeking to create interactive multimedia experiences to generate real change change; inspiring, connecting and coordinating drops in the ocean into generative tsunamis. Deeply moved by the challenges facing humanity, he is determined to be the change he wants to see in the world and take part in optimistic solutions. He is also studying astrology, alchemy, synchronicity and all things divination to further understand consciousness & cosmos and to assist others on their journeys. Devoted to Love and Truth, his awakened purpose is to help humanity unite and harmonize, on and with Earth, before going interstellar.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Accounts & Membership Manager
Chiara is from Italy, has a PhD in literature, and over 10 years of administrative management, project management and sales and operations management experience. She has taught at university level and her most recent job was project managing English courses for a language school. She works 4 days a week at present. Due to Chiara's direct experience, she will also support some of the schools & university outreach e.g., the Speaker Service. Chiara is thus our internal face, and will most likely be the person you will have spoken to if you phoned the office. However, Chiara is expecting her second child and will be on maternity leave for about six month from October 2017.
I was born in Brazil and came to the UK in my twenties. Here I married, and brought up my three boys, now all grown up. Throughout my adult life I worked in a variety of industries and in my 40's went back to Psychology - studied in Brazil - and retrained in psychotherapy. My interests are all connected with my passion for life and living and I see human beings as an expression of a meaningful Universe. I currently run the London local group of the SMN.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Programme Director & Global Ambassador, Galileo Commission Chairman, Paradigm Explorer Editor / Director of the Scientific and Medical Network from 1986 - 2000
David is now Programme Director & Global Ambassador and continues to edit Paradigm Explorer.
He is author and editor of over a dozen books, including ‘Survival: Death as Transition', ‘Resonant Mind', ‘Radical Prince: the Practical Vision of the Prince of Wales', ‘Science, Consciousness and Ultimate Reality', ‘A New Renaissance' and most recently ‘A Quest for Wisdom' and a book of poems, ‘Better Light a Candle.' He is a Fellow of the International Futures Forum, Founding chief executive of Character Scotland, and former President of Wrekin Trust and the Swedenborg Society. He was educated at Eton and the Universities of St Andrews and Cambridge. After a spell in merchant banking, he spent a number of years teaching modern languages and philosophy at Winchester College.
Job Titles:
- Dialogue and Mutual Trust
It is our view that no single idea or solution has a monopoly on truth. Our events and publications, therefore, create spaces for sharing different ideas and experiences with an ethos of deep listening, dialogue and mutual trust.
Andrew Powell was educated at Trinity College Cambridge where he gained Distinction in Medicine. His clinical medical training at St Thomas's Hospital, London, was followed by specialist psychiatry and psychotherapy posts at the Maudsley Hospital. Andrew's first consultant and academic appointments were at St. George's Hospital and Medical School, London. After eleven years, he moved to Oxford as consultant and honorary senior lecturer at the Warneford Hospital and University of Oxford until his retirement from the NHS in 2000.
During the ‘80s, Andrew served on the Council of the SMN, during which time his earlier training in psycho-analytic and group-analytic therapy broadened to include psychodrama, spiritual healing and transpersonal psychology. In 1999 he was elected Founding Chair of the Spirituality and Psychiatry Special Interest Group, the Royal College of Psychiatrists, UK.
Andrew is co-editor of Spirituality and Psychiatry and Spirituality and Narrative in Psychiatric Practice: Stories of Mind and Soul. He is author of the companion volumes, The Ways of the Soul. A Psychiatrist Reflects: Essays on Life, Death and Beyond and Conversations with the Soul.
Job Titles:
- Research Scientist With Connor Whole Health at University Hospitals
Dr Natalie Dyer, PhD, is a Research Scientist with Connor Whole Health at University Hospitals, studying the therapeutic effects of integrative medicine practices, including yoga, acupuncture, music therapy, meditation, and energy medicine. She is also the President of the Center for Reiki Research, where she conducts and educates the public about Reiki research. Natalie completed her Doctorate in Neuroscience at Queen's University and Postdoctoral Fellowships in Psychology at Harvard University and Harvard Medical School. She has published many scientific papers and book chapters and has presented her research to diverse audiences around the world. Natalie is also an energy medicine practitioner and teacher specializing in Reiki and North American, European, and Tibetan shamanic practices.
Job Titles:
- Board Director
- Senior Researcher at the Physics of Complex Systems Department
Dr Vasileios Basios is a senior researcher at the Physics of Complex Systems Department of the University of Brussels, conducting interdisciplinary research on self-organisation and emergence in complex matter as well as aspects of the foundations of complex systems. During his formative years, he worked within the team of Ilya Prigogine at the Solvay Institutes for Physics and Chemistry in Brussels. He is interested in the history of ideas in science and their role in the transformation of science beyond the prevailing mechanistic world-view. He believes that never before has the need for a qualitative change in science been so apparent and pressing and that complexity studies have made such a radical change not just possible but imperative. He is inspired by the prospect of introducing self-reflection into the practice -and the understanding- of science and he aspires to contribute insights from complex systems science that can help put forth a resilient, flexible and robust network of networks comprising of individuals, groups, organizations and research initiatives towards this noble goal.
He is a senior member of and speaker for the Scientific and Medical Network and an active adviser of the Galileo Commission.
In science and engineering, Edi has worked as a Consultant to the petrochemical, oil and gas, aerospace, transport, and construction industries. He has been Project Manager and Head of Design for major innovative projects such as the Channel Tunnel, London Underground systems and offshore installations.
A student of the perennial philosophy for some fifty years, Edi has given courses and lectured extensively in the UK, and internationally in California, The Netherlands, India and Australia. He worked as Education Manager for the Theosophical Society in Australia developing study courses and study papers, researching, and lecturing. Additionally, he supervised the Campbell Theosophical Research Library, the National Media Library, the National Members Lending Library, and the development of the website.
His written work has been published extensively in the fields of science, engineering and the esoteric philosophy. His book The Snake and the Rope was awarded the Network prize in 2008. In 2023, his work, Unfolding Consciousness consisting of four volumes, was awarded the SMN's Grand Prize. He is deeply committed to the SMN mission.
Educated at Trinity College Dublin and the Kings Inns, Jacqui spent two decades working in business before realising an earlier ambition in being called to the Irish bar in 1987. Jacqueline runs the SMN Irish Group and since joining the Board has accepted the portfolio for national and local groups.
Her reasons for joining the Network:
"I am an enthusiastic member of SMN because I have found that its academic range and its ethos exactly correspond to my personal intellectual interests and approach. I have found within it a milieu which combines intellectual rigour with openmindedness and good fellowship, almost a spiritual home."
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Chairman of the Trustees
Janine is a lawyer, mediator and mentor. Formerly she was a partner of law firm Slaughter and May, Head of its Financial Services Unit and Visiting Fellow in Organisational Psychology at Nottingham Law School. Janine is the founder of the charity TalkingWorks which brings mediation skills into schools, and now advises social enterprises particularly those with a focus on education, sustainability, conflict resolution and mental health. Since 1999, Janine has been a trustee of the Scientific and Medical Network Charitable Trust and became Chairman in 2006.
Job Titles:
- Interim Marketing Events Assistant President and Vice Presidents
Jena Axelrod serves as a an Interim Marketing Events Assistant at the SMN, and in Customer Support and Operations for Dr Iain McGilchrist. She is also the director and producer of "Absurdity of Certainty," a documentary exploring certainty's rise in the Western worldview with insights from Pari Center founder F. David Peat. (absurdityofcertainty.com)
Jena's exploration of consciousness was sparked by a spontaneous kundalini arousal. With a background in stand-up comedy and software sales, Jena brings a diverse skill set to her roles. Her academic credentials include a graduate degree in Transpersonal Psychology and a major in Psychology with honours from the University of Vermont. Jena is a hammock-loving, digital nomad.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant
- Consultant
Jerome is a chartered accountant and consultant. He's author of ‘Life on the Line' about the first half of his nearly three-year solo round-the-world motorcycle trip. He had many extraordinary experiences he couldn't explain at the time e.g.; a local farmer knew "you'll find your wallet" over 130 miles of Texan Interstate when it was sucked out of his unzippered pocket; Rosa, his Mexican ex-girlfriend, knew he was upset from 400 miles away; he had an OBE at 80 mph in Patagonia; and a feeling of foreboding saved him from crashing on a bridge with missing steel plates in Madagascar, and falling into a chasm around a blind corner in Rwanda.
His favourite thought of the whole trip was: ‘how many atoms are needed for consciousness?'
Job Titles:
- Communications Coordinator
- Communications Coordinator, Galileo Commission Portfolio
Jessica Corneille is a research psychologist specialised in spontaneous spiritual awakening experiences. Finding herself at the intersection where science and spirituality meet, her mission is to challenge the default pathologisation of these experiences by helping to inform and encourage mainstream psychology to look beyond the current designated spectrum of ‘normality', to encompass the transpersonal as something that is intrinsic to the human experience. Jessica is also the communications coordinator for the Scientific and Medical Network, in charge of all things marketing, press and PR. She is also a certified Kundalini Yoga teacher and Extinction Rebellion activist and in her free time, enjoys practicing embodied movement and ritual, reading, spending time in nature, slacklining, playing her hand pan and mixing music on her inherited Technics 1210s.
Joan is Senior Lecturer in the School of Education at York St John University, teaching Research Methods on the Masters programme, and supervising doctoral students. She is particularly interested in exploring the ontological and epistemological contexts within which approaches to research are located. This has led to her taking an active interest in the phenomenon of consciousness, which, to quote Christian de Quincey, is ‘our deepest mystery and our most intimate reality'.
Joan, in collaboration with colleagues from both western and eastern cultures, are researching different ways of understanding consciousness. This also leads to a meaningful dialogue about various interpretations of science and spirituality, the relationship between them, and the significance of this discussion for the ontological and epistemological foundations of social and educational research. She draws on a wide range of disciplines, including quantum physics, biology, transpersonal psychology, and diverse spiritual traditions, to inform her research.
Laurel Waterman is a doctoral student in Curriculum and Pedagogy, Wellbeing Emphasis, at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on transformative education about consciousness for wellbeing. She specializes in narrative inquiry research and is working to popularize participatory and post-materialist paradigms in the field of education and educational research. She holds an MA in Adult Education and Community Development from OISE, and has been teaching narrative non-fiction writing in the Professional Writing and Communication program at the University of Toronto, Mississauga since 2009.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Director of the Heart Sense Research Institute
- Supportive Project Manager
- Young Persons Support Administrator / Support Staff
Louise Livingstone is the Director of the Heart Sense Research Institute and Co-Founder of the Centre for Myth, Cosmology and the Sacred. She has a PhD from Canterbury Christ Church University and an MSc in Holistic Science (with distinction) from the Schumacher College, Devon. Her research explores the heart's role in navigating conflict; drawing on discourses including transformational learning, depth psychology, holistic science, cultural history, esoteric wisdom and religious philosophy.
In everyday life I'm a senior producer in the BBC Radio Science Unit, where I've worked for 20 years. I joined the Beeb with a Geology degree from University College London, where I spent more time than I should staging student plays and operas. Most of my broadcasting has been for World Service, but I do a lot on Radio 4 too. It's mostly conventional science news and features, but I try where I can to include deeper aspects of cosmology, the nature of consciousness, spirituality and the interface between science and religion. For example, I made three features on science and religion based around the Templeton- sponsored ‘Science and the Spiritual Quest' conference last October. I am an active member of ‘The Study Society' where I learnt meditation and study the non-dualistic or Advaita system of philosophy. I also enjoy the countryside and its wildlife, archaeology and pottering around my large garden in Kent.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
Natalie is a webinar host and network support person for the SMN. She is also a Hypnotherapist practicing Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT), specialising in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). She set up her own practice in 2020, www.nataliemears.co.uk
Natalie is a Public Health professional with a MSc in public health from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, a first class honors degree in Psychology from UWE Bristol, and a decade's worth of experience in public health including NHS, World Health Organization, local authorities and corporate settings. Natalie has a wide variety of experience in public health including sexual health, mental health and suicide prevention.
Job Titles:
- Content Manager for the Galileo Commission, Recordings Editor
I am currently an MSc student at the University of Oxford reading for Psychological Research; my personal bio can be found at www.nikolaybpetrov.com. My primary role within the Scientific Medical Network is as a content manager for the Galileo Commission project and occasionally assisting with email marketing and web design across different SMN projects.
Job Titles:
- Conference Co - Organiser
I am a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Greenwich University, specialising in adult development. I have recently written a book called ‘Development through Adulthood‘, published by Palgrave Macmillan. I help out with marketing and communications for the Scientific and Medical Network. The Network provides a forum where I can discuss both scientific and spiritual ideas in an atmosphere of friendliness, criticality and open-mindedness. I believe that science is brilliant but limited, and that where its limitations are reached, we find that mystical and spiritual ways of being and knowing have their niche in the search for Truth. I meditate regularly, enjoy spiritual dance practices, and find sustenance in silence and prayer. I have co-edited a book with David Lorimer entitled A New Renaissance: Transforming Science, Spirit and Society, published by Floris Books. The material within the book covers many of the areas that I find fascinating: the nature of mind and consciousness, the question of what it means to be spiritual, and the nature of modernity and the ‘transmodern shift' that we are currently experiencing.
Since becoming the first woman CEO in her sector more than 30 years ago, Oonagh has worked tirelessly with boards in the public, private and charitable sectors to deliver results with love and integrity for all. Her experience has shown that boards who govern well create more shared value for all stakeholders. Oonagh is a passionate advocate for business as a force for good, enabling a world where people can thrive across society; an ethos that is evident through her inspirational career.
Paul lectures in personal and professional development, entrepreneurship, electronics and business management, predominantly to postgraduates at the University of Plymouth, after having been a research physicist for many years. His current research is in creativity and break-through problem solving both for the individual and organisations. He gives talks around the world and is a regular judge for international innovation competitions. He also runs an educational consultancy. He always looks for opportunities to incorporate the spiritual aspect in his research talks, workshops and teaching.
He has a very great interest in all areas of education and with his wife Catherine, jointly ran the original Network student ‘Wider Horizons' course, for many years. He has been active in the Network for over forty years, since meeting George Blaker and Peter Leggett as an undergraduate, and attending the very first Wider Horizons course. A few years later he became a trustee of the SMN, at George Blaker's request, and has been until summer 2015, when he switched roles to be chairman.
Job Titles:
- Board Director & Deputy Chairman, Editorial & Ethical Overview
George Blaker, a founder of the SMN expressed the purpose of the organization : To win greater acceptance by science and medicine of man's spiritual essence; to show that this is wholly consistent with current knowledge of the physical chemistry of his physical body. For many years this has been my life work, expressed through my writing and lecturing. I hold advanced degrees in Astronomy and in Geophysics. For twenty years I worked in the oil and gas industry as a specialist of the Earth's gravity and magnetic field. Other interest are the human biological field, the Gaia Theory and Gnostic Christianity. I am also a practitioner of non-contact healing and live in Aberdeenshire on four acres which is becoming a lush bio-diverse garden. I am the co-author (with Andrew Glazewski) of Harmony of the Universe and science fiction novels Gaia's Children and Immortality Machine. Currently the Web Content Editor for the SMN website and co-editor of the Network Review.
Job Titles:
- Vice President
- Vice - President of the SMN
Prof John Clarke BA, MA is a Vice-President of the SMN, having been on the Board of Directors and Chair of the Board, and a long-time member of the Network. He has taught philosophy at various universities abroad and in the UK, and retired some years ago as Professor in the History of Ideas. His most recent book, The Self-Creating Universe: the Making of a Worldview, is a study of emergentism as a way of bringing science and spirituality together in a philosophical synthesis.
Job Titles:
- Research Scientist
- Vice President
Marilyn Monk is an academic research scientist in the fields of molecular biology, early development and cancer. She is Emeritus Professor of Molecular Embryology at UCL London and, previously, Honorary Professor at University of Melbourne, and Adjunct Professor at Monash University in Australia. Her research covers DNA replication and repair in bacteria, cell signalling and aggregation of slime mould amoebae, and gene expression and its regulation by epigenetic modification in mammalian development, Among her discoveries are mechanisms of epigenetic programming of gene expression, deprogramming and re-programming in development, epigenetic environmental adaptation (Lamarckian inheritance), and embryonic gene expression in cancers. Her group developed a wide range of single cell molecular techniques to study gene expression, gene modification, and gene mutation at the sensitivity of the single cell. Clinical applications include early diagnosis of genetic disease, stem cells and regenerative medicine, and a search for a possible cancer vaccine targeting embryonic gene expression in cancers. In addition to her scientific career, she has a longstanding interest in the arts, psychology and mysticism. She is qualified as a Psychosynthesis Counsellor and an Alexander Technique Teacher. Marilyn has been a member of SMN since the 80's, a member of the SMN Board for 7 years, and a regular contributor to the SMN review.
Remo is a fresh father of two, a passionate student of Transpersonal Psychology currently studying in MSc in Alef Trust Institute and a practicing psychotherapist. He is also a New Media enthusiast, producing video & podcasts, digging for pearls and distilling wisdom from our rich past and traditions. He's deeply interested in meaning, mysticism and magic. Through his work he aspires to be an agent of re-enchantment helping people remember their true calling, origin and creative potential.
Job Titles:
- Professional Director, Consultant
Richard Irwin is an entrepreneurial and professional director, consultant and IT Due Diligence practitioner with a passion for reconciling science with spirituality (see danceineternity.com), who also composes and arranges music (see hymnswithoutwords.com). Richard was an Internet pioneer in the 1990's, writing what was possibly the first on-line hotel reservation system in 1995. The technology he built was used by companies such as Travelocity and Lastminute.com for hotel availability for many years. Since 2005 he has worked as a technology due diligence consultant providing strategic reviews of company ICT systems and technology.
Richard has responsibility for driving forward the SMN's new web strategy.
Job Titles:
- Board Director
- SMN Strategy Consultant
Purpose: To inspire people enhancing their life: To develop, implement and promote, methods, knowledge, products and solutions which enhance self awareness, open minded, well-being, and quality of life. To help people know and better understand their whole-selves, their relationships, their purpose, empowering them to improve their health, well-being and potential, and to achieve their goals, so enjoying a longer, healthier, happier enhanced fulfilled and meaningful life.
To contribute to global mind change and promote a new paradigm that enhances mainstream science to include consciousness, and spirituality and creates bridges between business and values, between conventional medicine and integrated holistic health, and inspires people to be more open minded and enjoy meaningful life.
Entrepreneur, established and managed several companies (one public in NASDAQ one in the London Stock Exchanged and 3 private, and software incubator which created tens companies.) in the areas of software, health, psychology and well-being.
Founder of www.tohealth.com and MindLife.net and Managing Trustee of an educational charity help2helptrust.com.