NewPark grounds
Dr Goldstein addresses the group
Dr Tashi Tzangmo also addresses students at the Avon Global Center for Women and Justice at Cornell Law School during the conference weekend.
Spectacular fireworks close the day
Dr Leslee Goldstein, PhD Empowerment from Within: The Effects of Transcendental Meditation on the Lives of Mothers in Uganda,
Margaret Mullins, BA, BSN, MSN Ideal Health Care for Women through the Prevention-Oriented, Natural Approach of Maharishi AyurVeda,
Dr. Tashi Zangmo, PhD Providing Educational Opportunities for the Buddhist Nuns of Bhutan,
Conference in Ithaca, New York
12–13 September 2014
Theme of the Conference: A Breath of Serenity
The conference was held at the scenic NewPark conference centre near Cayuga Lake in Ithaca, New York. A range of experts engaged in interesting work described their research and activities to create a better quality of life for women around the world.
Conference Speakers
Leslee Goldstein, PhD
Dr. Leslee Goldstein holds a PhD in Maharishi Vedic Science (2014) and MA in Higher Education Administration from Maharishi University of Management, Iowa, USA. Dr. Goldstein has worked in various administrative positions at Maharishi University of Management, including Director of Admissions and Director of Alumni Relations. She also served as Executive Vice-President of Maharishi University of Enlightenment (2007–2009).
In 2013 she and her daughter travelled to Uganda to do research on mothers in poverty who learned Transcendental Meditation, which became the basis for her PhD dissertation.
Title of her talk: Empowerment from Within: The Effects of Transcendental Meditation on the Lives of Mothers in Uganda
Margaret Mullins, BA, BSN, MSN
Margaret Mullins earned her BA from Bard College and her BSN/MSN from Catholic University in Washington, DC, with certification as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner and post-master’s certification as a Family Health Practitioner. She has over 30 years of nursing experience. Presently she is Pediatric Nurse Practitioner for the Ashe County Middle School in North Carolina, a school-based clinic providing physicals, health promotion services, and management of pediatric acute and common illness.
Since 1985 she has also been working in the field of Maharishi AyurVeda, with extensive training in this field. She has given consultations to hundreds of people in clinics and private practice and has lectured widely on Maharishi AyurVeda.
Her special field of interest is applying the knowledge of Maharishi AyurVeda for mothers and babies. She currently serves as National Co-Director of the Health Foundation for Mothers, responsible for curriculum and course development related to female and children’s health needs according to the knowledge of AyurVeda. She developed the precursor of the present training course for health professionals in this field, “Maharishi AyurVeda Family Health Series, Course One: Healthy, Happy Mothers and Babies,” and is co-author of Blissful Baby: Healthy and Happy Pregnancy with Maharishi Vedic Medicine (1999).
Title of her talk: Ideal Health Care for Women through the Prevention-Oriented, Natural Approach of Maharishi AyurVeda
Dr. Tashi Zangmo, PhD
Dr. Tashi Zangmo is Executive Director and founder of the Bhutan Nuns Foundation in Thimphu, Bhutan. She has a bachelor’s degree in Buddhist Higher Studies from the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies in Varanasi, India. In 1999 she earned her second bachelor’s degree, in Development Studies, as a student at Mount Holyoke College in the United States. She then earned MA and PhD degrees in Education from the University of Massachusetts, USA.
The first girl in her village to attend school, Dr. Zangmo’s childhood experience inspired her to champion the cause of underprivileged women and girls through educating Buddhist nuns in Bhutan. As a student in the United States, she raised funds to start an organization that would elevate the education of the young nuns in Bhutan.
Right after she received her PhD degree in 2009, Dr. Zangmo returned to her home country and started the Bhutan Nuns Foundation (BNF) under the patronage of Her Majesty Tshering Yangdon Wangchuck, the Queen Mother of Bhutan. The Foundation’s mission is to provide adequate learning opportunities and improve the basic living conditions for every nunnery in Bhutan so that the nuns of Bhutan will in turn benefit the women and young girls in the larger Bhutanese society. It also plans to create a Higher Buddhist Learning Center (equivalent to a college) that will be open to all Bhutanese young nuns seeking higher education in Buddhist studies, as well as providing a space for lay women in Bhutan.
Title of her talk: Providing Educational Opportunities for the Buddhist Nuns of Bhutan
The conference concluded with an evening celebration of the forthcoming Autumn season featuring poetry by Ruth Guillard, author of four books of poetry; harp music by Melissa Collins; and a magnificent fireworks display.
Next year’s conference will take place at the same venue in Ithaca, 23-27 September 2015.
