Community

As part of Alumni weekend 2026, the Contemplative Commons will host a restorative afternoon of contemplative and wellness offerings designed for UVA Reunion alumni on Friday June 5, 2026 and an open house and golden hour for alumni on Saturday June 6, 2026. All alumni are welcome to explore the Contemplative Commons, attend practices, and experience the space throughout both afternoons. Participants must register with the UVA Alumni Association.

Join us for a day of community, connection, peace in nature, joy in creative and contemplative practices, and celebration of educators! Offerings to include meditation, yoga, contemplative music and crafts, nature walk, sound bath, lunch, snacks, and more. For Charlottesville City Schools, Albemarle County Public Schools, and Community Partner

Join us for some Halloween day community events: an all-levels yoga class (all levels, all bodies) from 11:00am-12:00pm (Studio 3C) and some seasonal creativity from 12:30-2:00pm (Gallery). A cozy, low-key space to make something festive and take a breather before afternoon and evening festivities. Everyone welcome.

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.

College is full of pressure, and time is at the heart of so much of it. Join members of the Contemplative Sciences Center for an evening of slowing down, connecting with one another, and finding some of our own wisdom about how we want to move through our college years. There will be no hacks for managing your time, just a reminder a rushed life is not necessarily a full life.

Where has sound moved you? Live music, a quiet forest, a harsh city street, a voice across the table. Some sounds settle us. Others set us on edge. Why? In her work with sound and energy healing, people report a shift, and Karianne observes it too. These subtle changes reveal something deeper: sound moves through the body, shapes attention, and influences the environments we inhabit, inside and out. The Salon will begin with a short sound bath meditation, then open the conversation from that grounded place, with sound as our point of connection. Where has sound moved you? Live music, a quiet forest, a harsh city street, a voice across the table. Facilitator: Karianne Michelle.

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).

This event is full. Join us for a one-hour conversation on being a positive catalyst for flourishing in your adult children’s lives. Learn how to optimize what you most hope for them while effectively managing your worry for them.