I have been interested in meditation for quite some years now and I am currently taking courses to become a mindfulness and meditation teacher. I would love to incorporate these in the projects I design as an Educational Coordinator in our cross-cultural exchanges of Know My World. So you can understand my excitement when I met someone writing Mindfulness curricula in Bali. This is his story.
What’s your name and where are you from?
My name is Remington, and I am from Australia but I have lived overseas most of my life.
Where do you live at the moment?
I live in Bali, Indonesia.
What is your profession?
I’m a mindfulness coach and a meditation teacher. Right now, I work at a university as a module coordinator.
What is the name of the university?
Stenden University, a Dutch international university, with campuses worldwide. I work in the Bali campus.
What is a module coordinator?
Module coordinator has the role of designing curriculum and lecturing.
Mindfulness is a form of self regulation practice that cultivates wisdom and emotional intelligence.
What curriculum are you designing at the moment?
The curriculum is for a mindfulness program, called mindful leadership. It’s an emotional intelligence program for third year university students that bridges the gap between traditional mindfulness practices and modern business leadership.
Tell me more about it.
There is a great need in business industries for leaders to be able to lead with both the heart and the intellect. To create this holistic balance means training our emotional intelligence. Mindfulness is a form of self regulation practice that cultivates wisdom and emotional intelligence. The program incorporates these tools and techniques but within a business context.
The program is split into multiple units. The first unit is more personalized, they develop the ability to sit still and meditate. They develop their skills in introspection and self reflection through journaling. As the units continue, they bring these skill sets into team management and leadership roles. They do things like pair exercises, practicing nonviolent communication, and practicing different leadership personas. Learning how to manage a team with compassion and kindness.
How did you get into this profession?
I had an aspiration since my late teens early twenties, to teach the wisdom practice that is meditation. But I also needed a day job. So I ended up getting into education, I did a masters in education in Vancouver Canada and I focused on bringing mindfulness practices in curriculum design. It was that unique blend, that was just starting to become popular when I graduated.
Upon graduating I was hired by a Malaysian university to implement this sort of work in their life skills program. I spent 2 years in Kuala Lumpur doing this work, it was very intensive work. So even though it was this type of work, I got burned out. For this, I decided to retreat to Bali and continue my work at the university here.
Did you teach your own curriculum in Malaysia as well?
What I taught there was co-designed by me. Mindfulness and meditation were difficult to bring in to Malaysia because of the orientation of religion of many people. Meditation come with baggage and that baggage comes with false views on the spiritual nature of it. They have an idea that mindfulness and meditation are connected to a certain religion but in reality it isn’t. Although mindfulness is largely inspired by Buddhist traditions, the practice itself is universal and can be found in all religious traditions.
Is it differently received in Bali, Indonesia?
Yes, Bali is a culture that was founded on mindfulness practices. From the offerings and the incense in the morning, to the temple rituals in the evening. If anyone is an expert in the practices of mindfulness is the Balinese. That sets the scene for even the non Balinese students, to be more accepting of mindfulness practices. It creates the right conditions to teach these things.
Where are your students in this university from?
70% Dutch, and the rest other European countries.
When will your program be finished?
The design will be finished in August and will be taught in September this year.
What do you like most about this job?
Because I am the module coordination, I have complete freedom and creative control. Which allows me to design something that I feel is most beneficial for the students on this subject matter.
What is challenging about this job?
The same thing, the fact that I am working mostly solo. It means it can be difficult to know what to do next.
What are some common misconceptions of Bali?
I have been here only 4 months so far, Bali has got elements of everything. It’s not the paradise everyone thinks it is, it can be, but there’s a lot of tourist and pockets of Balinese culture. Its interesting to see how they interact.
The integrity of Balinese traditions and culture have withstood modern industrialization of the island, and that is a testament to how important and strong their culture is.
The integrity of Balinese traditions and culture have withstood modern industrialization of the island, and that is a testament to how important and strong their culture is. The mindfulness of this culture, the integrity of the traditional culture acts as a counter balance to the chaos that the tourism industry has brought.
What are your plans for the future?
I will live here for the next two years. Stenden University has campuses worldwide. One goal of mine is to be able to bring this program to as many as these campuses as possible, so the gifts of mindfulness can be shared. And the other part of me wants to create online courses that offer the same content, so that I can begin building a monastery without walls. Which was the dream of my late mediation teacher.
What is your favorite place in the world?
Hands down without a doubt is Kyoto japan. Because it’s the perfect blend of traditional old Asia and modern life.
Thank you Remington for sharing your story, I wish you luck in completing your curriculum and hopefully get the opportunity to teach it with you one day.
If you have any questions, or are part of similar programs worldwide and would like to share your story on this blog, email me at [email protected]
Thank you for reading. Faleminderit, grazie, gracias, teşekkürler, obrigada, terima kasih, dank je, thank you.
