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All CSC Events

Rock sculptures in the forest.
Step Away and Recharge: A 90-Minute Nature Retreat

Slow down your pace to reconnect with the natural world. In this 90-minute micro-retreat, you’ll explore simple expressive eco-art practices, relaxing therapeutic movement, and sensory activities designed to support wellbeing and deepen your connection with nature. Discover how a retreat is possible even in an urban setting for a short block of time.
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The University of Virginia Rotunda in the snow
Faculty Winter Wellness Retreat Day
As the semester’s demands crest alongside holiday pressures, join us for a faculty-centered day dedicated to rest, connection, and renewal. Rooted in the spirit of hygge, the practice of finding warmth and coziness in the everyday, this retreat for UVA faculty members isn’t about escaping the season; it's about remembering to pause in the busyness. The day offers two full rounds of programming blending movement, nature, community, and stillness to help you navigate winter blues and end of season stress. Choose your own adventure of T’ai Chi, nature connection, two interactive workshops offering practical tools to carry into the new year, and a restorative soundbath.
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Contemplative Commons Angle Front
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Contemplative Commons Closed For Thanksgiving Break (Nov 25-29, 2026)

Contemplative Commons and the Contemplative Sciences Center’s offices will be closed from Nov. 25 - 29, 2026 for Thanksgiving Break.
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AI Conference poster with students in background
Student Salon: AI Anxiety + Human Flourishing

The Contemplative Sciences Center will be hosting a Student-Led Salon on AI Anxiety + Human Flourishing. Though the discussion will closely relate to the topics being discussed and explored in the conference, it will also be an open space for discussion and processing relating to students experience with AI. The discussion will be moderated by other students and prompts will be provided to help stimulate conversation.
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A group doing restorative yoga in the Contemplative Commons
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Introduction to Iyengar Yoga: The Art of Inner and Outer Alignment
Spend long hours at a desk, in the lab, or hunched over a laptop? This series offers a reset. Learn the foundations of Iyengar yoga with a focus on posture and alignment, especially the neck, shoulders, and hips, where study and work stress tend to settle. Props like blocks, straps, and blankets make each pose accessible, so every body can practice with more confidence. Come away with practical tools for easing tension, improving focus, and moving through your day with more steadiness. No experience needed. Great for beginners.
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AI Anxiety + Human Flourishing
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AI Anxiety + Human Flourishing
AI Anxiety + Human Flourishing will be held November 18-19, 2026 at the Contemplative Commons. Registration is now open! At a time when anxiety is increasingly felt about the rapid advancement, widespread adoption, and future uncertainty of artificial intelligence, this symposium convenes changemakers in emerging technology, higher education, and the contemplative sciences to address the driving question, “How can we prepare young adults for the future of AI?”
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Two hands reaching toward each other
Conflict, Power, & Dialogue: Faculty & Staff Lunch Series
The Space Between Us is a highly interactive workshop designed for faculty and staff who want to navigate disagreement more effectively, provide direct and constructive feedback, and build stronger professional relationships across differences in perspective, status, and expertise. Drawing on mindfulness, mediation, contemplative traditions, and conflict transformation, participants practice four essential skills: tuning inward to recognize their own reactions, observing without evaluation to separate facts from assumptions, expanding beyond positions to understand underlying needs and interests, and exploring conflict with curiosity rather than defensiveness.
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The Omnisonan Project: Synaisthesis
Synaisthesis Premiere
Join the Contemplative Sciences Center and TechnoSonics for the debut of this live neuroart creation in the Conservatory. In partnership with TechnoSonics Festival, the Omnisonan Project, a new ensemble in the Contemplative Commons, launches its debut immersive light and sound exhibit, Synaisthesis in the CSC Conservatory. Omnisonan is a neuroart collaboration between Karianne Michelle (sound bowls), Matthew Burtner (computer music), R. Lee Kennedy (digital lighting), and David Acunzo (neuroscience).
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Students doing yoga at the Contemplative Commons
Active Series Micro-Residency Classes

Active Series Micro-residency

Join this all-level Active Series micro-residency with instructors Elizabeth Van Genderen and William Mushkin — Sharath Jois Authorized teachers from Ashtanga Yoga Denver. The series honors Ashtanga linage holder, Sharath Jois, who passed away two years ago in November. Sharath was an inspiration to many including Elizabeth and William. Learn more about Sharath Jois. 

All offerings are free and open to the public.

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Contemplative Commons Angle Front
Contemplative Commons Closed for Election Day (Nov 3, 2026)

The Contemplative Commons, including the Contemplative Sciences Center’s offices, will be closed for Election Day on November 3, 2026.
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