The Student Meditation Team

Hi there! Get to know our team!

Student Meditation is a society (Studentenvereniging) run by committed students who regularly practice meditation and are moved by bringing the benefits of the practice to peers.

Currently, the team consists of Myriam, Beau, Diana, Jeroen, Prateek, Sabina, and Sam. Within the team there is also a group of board members:

The Board of 23/24

Myriam (Chairwoman)

I’m Myriam, meditation teacher and chairwoman of Student Meditation. I coordinate the team, facilitate events for the association, teach beginners’ courses, train new guides, and guide weekly meditations on campus. I also do a master in political philosophy at the UvA. I had tried meditation before but could never keep up a regular practice before I joined the Student Meditation community three years ago! My meditation interests are focused on cultivating self-compassion, bodily awareness and awareness of tactile sensations. I am also interested in how mindfulness can be combined with other activities like journaling, yoga, dancing, singing, touch, and interpersonal practices like Nonviolent Communication. I strive to make Student Meditation a space where we empower each other to take good care of ourselves and introduce each other to supportive and creative practices.

Diana (Treasurer)

I'm Diana, a 20-year-old studying psychology at UvA. I wear two hats at Student Meditation — I handle the money stuff (as the treasurer) and lead the team that spreads the word about our events (as head of the Promotion Committee). My mission? To build a welcoming space where everyone can count on finding peace through meditation and mindfulness. Kindness is my guiding principle, and I live by the motto "It will pass," reminding myself to approach life with resilience and a commitment to promoting well-being to those around me. I thrive on creating a positive impact within the university community and beyond.

Beau (Extra Board Support)

Hello, I'm Beau—an active meditator for 5 years. As the events committee coordinator and a meditation guide/teacher, I seek to cultivate compassion to all that was, is, and will be. Above all, my motivation for being on the Student Meditation board is rooted in promoting a sense of playfulness to mindful living. Join us in exploring the beauty of the present moment!

Jeroen (Secretary)

I’m Jeroen. The guiding committee coordinator and secretary of the association. I discovered meditation around 7 years ago and i learned a lot from it in combination with yoga. I work as a software developer for Gemeente Amsterdam, so I am not a student at UvA. That does not stop me from being a student in meditation though! I am intrigued by the nature of consciousness and I like to study it through a regular meditation practice.

You will slowly get to know us when you join our guided meditations, follow the beginners' course, or participate in other events.

Our main goal of Student Meditation is to increase mental well-being, resilience to stress and quality of life of students in Amsterdam and staff at the UvA, by introducing people to down-to-earth meditation and its benefits. We offer science-backed forms of meditation that are shown to benefit people in terms of happiness, concentration, stress levels and self-compassion.

Our second focus is on fostering a sense of community, creating a space where people feel like they can be themselves and find likeminded individuals who are interested in cultivating more peace of mind and presence. We focus on organizing meaningful activities aimed at personal growth.

All team members are committed to this goal, and we love to see the organization grow to have a positive effect, however small, on as many individuals as possible.

If you also like to bring change in your life and in the lives of your friends/peers/communities join our team of volunteers; or simply reach out to mail@studentmeditation.nl.

Interested in joining our team?

Here at Student Meditation we like to keep it simple. We do what we like, for the well-being of others.

We are really enjoying the Student Meditation project, but at the moment we're just a handful of people. We would like to expand and get some help from you.

We need people for:

• Teaching the beginners course.
• Hosting guided meditations.
• Booking rooms and making sure we have a place to meditate.
• Managing the community, bringing people together and buying cookies.
• Creating promotion material such as posters.

You have:

• Finished our beginners meditation course or have related experience.
• A regular meditation practice.
• Some free time to help us out.

Then we are looking for you!

Send us an email at mail@studentmeditation.nl, you can also find us at the guided mediation sessions.