Faculty

Barbara Märtens, Director of Faculty Europe

Barbara Märtens is a senior Buddhist teacher with over 20 years experience, which includes holding the title of Acharya in the Shambhala Buddhist tradition. She has a deep training in meditation and contemplation techniques and teaches throughout Europe. She has been an authorised Karuna teacher for many years and, as the Director, is responsible for all curriculum development and teacher training. Her particular focus is on the teachings of maitri space awareness, the development of self-compassion and personal transformation. She lives in Hamburg, Germany.

Jim O’Neill, Faculty

Jim O’Neill has been practicing and studying psychoanalysis for as many years as he has been practicing Buddhism. Jim has built up a thriving therapy practice in London based on a Buddhist and a psychoanalytic understanding and treatment of mental suffering. He is part of the Karuna Faculty and lives in London.

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John Seex, Faculty

John Seex works as a psychotherapist, trainer, supervisor and organisational consultant, supporting people to develop compassion towards themselves and others. He is a meditation teacher within the Shambhala Buddhist tradition where he has been a practitioner for over twenty years. He is part of the Karuna Faculty and lives in Stroud

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We are happy to have an experienced international teaching team on board:

Elisabeth Fey, Beate Kirchhof-Schlage, Sabine Fabach, Susan Chapman, Paul Cashman, Petra Drummer & Dr. An van Bolhuis.

Teachers are mostly authorised Buddhist teachers (Kagyu/Nyingma/Shambhala) as well as practicing psychotherapists or with backgrounds in social or educational work.

Further Members of the Team

Melissa MooreMelissa Moore PhD, Co-Founder of Karuna Training and Director of Faculty North America

Melissa Moore is currently the faculty director of Karuna Training Northern California. She is a Buddhist practitioner, meditation teacher and founding faculty director of Karuna training in Europe. Melissa is empowered as an Acharya in the Shambhala Buddhist tradition. Melissa is currently a Senior Executive of Family Service Agency of San Francisco and is the Founding Director of Felton Research and Training, dedicated to helping improve services within mental health.

Karuna Training is training in how to evoke the innate health of the present moment. Confidence in our intrinsic health requires the ability to let go of our interpretations of the world, and learn to relate to phenomena directly, openly and clearly. This takes a lot of training and a compassionate community to ripen our innate wisdom within.

Melissa Moore, PhD

Christopher TamdjidiChristopher Tamdjidi, Managing Director

As a Physicist with an MBA, Chris Tamdjidi was a business consultant for several years, until becoming self-employed. He is now the director of several companies including: Kalapa Academy, Kalapa Hotels, and Upaya. Chris has trained in and practiced meditation and mindfulness for over 18 years. He has guided courses and trainings in meditation, contemplation and leadership for over nine years. Chris is also involved in a research project with the University of Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) on the theme of Meditation at the workplace—impact on stress reduction and resilience.