Michelle Johnston
Michelle Johnston is a Holistic Nutritionist and Workplace Wellness Specialist. Since 2004 she has been transforming the employee experience by designing and delivering inspiring Workplace Wellness programs through her company, Working Well. Michelle graduated from UTM in 2004 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology. She uses the foundation of what she learned at UofT in many aspects of the work she does today! Michelle is a knowledgeable facilitator in the areas of stress management, mindfulness, mindset and healthy living. In her spare time, you will find her at her cottage in Orillia with her husband Ken and their Goldendoodle, Whiskey.
Jennifer Stellar
Jennifer Stellar is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at the University of Toronto, Mississauga. As director of the Health, Emotions, & Altruism Laboratory (HEAL) her work examines the forces that drive prosociality and morality. Living harmoniously in large-scale societies requires individuals to suppress their more selfish inclinations and prioritize the welfare of others. Dr. Stellar investigates how a group of emotions called self-transcendent emotions (e.g., awe, compassion, gratitude) promote empathy and altruism toward others, encourage cooperation and cohesion within groups, and enhance the health and well-being of the individual. She also explores how individuals encourage moral behavior and uphold moral norms through expressing moral outrage and allowing others to regain moral status through redemption. Her works aims to answer a fundamental question about humans—how do we transcend our own self-focus to care about other people, groups, and society as a whole?
Megan Morgan
Megan Morgan has been practicing yoga for 20+ years, completed her 200 HR Yoga Teacher training in Toronto in 2013, and has been teaching since then publicly and privately. After graduating from the University of Toronto in 2009, she moved to San Francisco, completing her MFA in Photography at the San Francisco Art Institute. In 2014, she moved to California full-time, and three of her photographs were included in the Harvard University Press Journal, The Image of the Black in Western Art: The 20th Century and the Rise of Black Artists, in an essay written by Dr. Deborah Willis, and edited by Henry Louis Gates Jr. In 2019, Megan’s first book was published called, The End of Me, an autobiographical memoir, and in 2020, she launched the podcast, MYA ~ My Yoga Audio, to bring audio-only yoga practice, meditation and wellness-oriented interviews to listeners all over the world who suddenly found themselves in pandemic induced lock-down.
Norman Farb
Norman Farb, PhD, is an Associate Professor in Psychology at the University of Toronto Mississauga, where he directs the Regulatory and Affective Dynamics laboratory (www.radlab.zone), and a fellow at the Mind and Life Institute. He studies the psychology of the self and human emotion, with a focus on how biases in self-representation shape emotions to determine well-being. Using methods that range from qualitative interviews to brain imaging, Dr. Farb researches how training practices such as meditation and yoga foster resilience against stress, reducing vulnerability to disorders such as depression. Fun fact - Norm also graduated from UofT, where he completed his Master's and PhD research!
Bani Aello
Bani Aello currently has her own business called Njoythejourney where she teaches and facilitates stress reduction and personal growth. She works with businesses, schools, hospitals and individuals desiring to live their best life. Bani has lived in Rochester New York for the past 27 years, but visits Toronto regularly to see her family. Bani is also an avid Yogi and teaches weekly Yoga classes.