is the English way"… says Pink Floyd in the iconic song “Time”.
Well maybe not if former British MP Chris Ruane’s vision for Britain becomes a reality.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I attended the Mindful Leadership Forum last week here in Sydney. One of the speakers I found particularly inspiring was Chris Ruane. (Actually it was more of an interview format with Jono Fisher, Founder of the Wake-up Project). Chris was a MP in the British parliament for about 18 years.
Chris began his foray into mindfulness while helping his daughter with a school project on Buddhism. He started practicing some of the techniques he read about and then began sharing the benefits with his fellow MP’s. From small things big things grow.
Today over 100 MP’s are trained and are practicing mindfulness and it is being rolled out to the 2000 staff in parliament. From there too the Mindfulness All-Party Parliamentary Group began. The research and inquiry undertaken by this group has led to the Mindful Nation UK report. The interim reports states in the first 2 lines of executive summary:
“The Mindfulness All-Party Parliamentary Group has carried out an eight-month inquiry into the potential for mindfulness training in key areas of public life - health, education, workplaces and the criminal justice system. We find that mindfulness is a transformative practice, leading to a deeper understanding of how to respond to situations wisely.” It goes on to outline some high level recommendations for the implementation in those sectors.
The two specifics that Chris mentioned in the interview was the training of teachers in mindfulness (there is a lot of burn out and drop out in the teaching profession). Mindfulness would not only better equip the teachers for their demanding roles as educators but they are in a perfect position to teach mindfulness to the next generation. What a point of impact on a society!!!
The other one he mentioned was training doctors not only as a means to inoculate doctors from stressful workloads but also as a means to encourage mindfulness as a ‘prescription” for anxiety and depression. The rate of depression and anxiety related health issues have been growing at frightening rates in the UK (as I am sure is reflected here in Australia). The research has been conclusive that mindfulness can be very effective in the treatment for anxiety and depression. No drugs needed in many instances (sorry big Pharma).
Already in place is the ability for doctors to recommend mindfulness based stress reduction programs in place of medication and the cost of the course will be covered by the NHS. But there has been a low uptake of this option to date.
The full report will be tabled in the UK parliament next month on Oct 20.
This week Chris is in Canberra meeting with various politicians for discussion on mindfulness and public policy.
I was practically levitating from my seat with a sense of hope and possibility. And I do hope Chris finds some political ears that will listen and too see the possibility
My personal practice of mindfulness has led me to experience greater empathy and compassion for my fellow humans. And without a doubt Canberra sure could use more of that!!!
If you want a little hope in your day..check out this short little video from Chris talking about this journey…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AcAaUIRpzE
Well maybe not if former British MP Chris Ruane’s vision for Britain becomes a reality.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I attended the Mindful Leadership Forum last week here in Sydney. One of the speakers I found particularly inspiring was Chris Ruane. (Actually it was more of an interview format with Jono Fisher, Founder of the Wake-up Project). Chris was a MP in the British parliament for about 18 years.
Chris began his foray into mindfulness while helping his daughter with a school project on Buddhism. He started practicing some of the techniques he read about and then began sharing the benefits with his fellow MP’s. From small things big things grow.
Today over 100 MP’s are trained and are practicing mindfulness and it is being rolled out to the 2000 staff in parliament. From there too the Mindfulness All-Party Parliamentary Group began. The research and inquiry undertaken by this group has led to the Mindful Nation UK report. The interim reports states in the first 2 lines of executive summary:
“The Mindfulness All-Party Parliamentary Group has carried out an eight-month inquiry into the potential for mindfulness training in key areas of public life - health, education, workplaces and the criminal justice system. We find that mindfulness is a transformative practice, leading to a deeper understanding of how to respond to situations wisely.” It goes on to outline some high level recommendations for the implementation in those sectors.
The two specifics that Chris mentioned in the interview was the training of teachers in mindfulness (there is a lot of burn out and drop out in the teaching profession). Mindfulness would not only better equip the teachers for their demanding roles as educators but they are in a perfect position to teach mindfulness to the next generation. What a point of impact on a society!!!
The other one he mentioned was training doctors not only as a means to inoculate doctors from stressful workloads but also as a means to encourage mindfulness as a ‘prescription” for anxiety and depression. The rate of depression and anxiety related health issues have been growing at frightening rates in the UK (as I am sure is reflected here in Australia). The research has been conclusive that mindfulness can be very effective in the treatment for anxiety and depression. No drugs needed in many instances (sorry big Pharma).
Already in place is the ability for doctors to recommend mindfulness based stress reduction programs in place of medication and the cost of the course will be covered by the NHS. But there has been a low uptake of this option to date.
The full report will be tabled in the UK parliament next month on Oct 20.
This week Chris is in Canberra meeting with various politicians for discussion on mindfulness and public policy.
I was practically levitating from my seat with a sense of hope and possibility. And I do hope Chris finds some political ears that will listen and too see the possibility
My personal practice of mindfulness has led me to experience greater empathy and compassion for my fellow humans. And without a doubt Canberra sure could use more of that!!!
If you want a little hope in your day..check out this short little video from Chris talking about this journey…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AcAaUIRpzE
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