Hawkes Varela Grant Announcement 2009

Teresa Hawkes of the Woollacott Lab was a 2007 recipient of a Francisco J. Varela Research Award
by the Mind and Life Institute.

The Mind and Life Institute is dedicated to fostering dialogue and research at the highest possible level between modern science and the great living contemplative traditions.

Named for esteemed neuroscientist Francisco J. Varela (1946 - 2001), these grants of $15,000 each have been awarded annually since 2004 to more than 40 outstanding junior researchers to encourage active collaboration of senior scientists and contemplative scholars with junior scientists who are working at the cutting edge of the boundary between contemplative traditions and science.

These grants provide seed funding to recipients to undertake studies which have resulted in an exceptional amount of research – some of which have led to much larger studies funded by, among others, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the Canadian Institutes of Health. Emphasis is given to rigorous experimental designs that evaluate both state and trait effects of contemplative practice, and experimental designs that incorporate "first-person" contemplative methods into cognitive/affective neuroscience research on consciousness.

Ms. Hawkes was also a 2008 Systems Training Grant Appointee at the Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon. This award supported her last year of academic work, planning of her Varela project, and comprehensive exams preparation.