About IDP

IDP was founded in 2007 by Ethan Nichtern in NYC and is currently led by Nandini Naik, Executive Director, since 2022. The Interdependence Project (IDP) began as an informal multi-secular Buddhist gathering for meditation, arts, and activism, and has since evolved into a 501c3 non-profit organization, with a focus on educating and supporting mindfulness and meditation teachers. Today, IDP is the premier mindfulness teacher training institute in New York City. Our programs enable everyone to learn to offer meditation and compassion techniques to adults and children with integrity and skill.

We are proudly multi-lineage. You also do not have to identify as a Buddhist to learn with us. Integrating traditional teachings in meditation, mindfulness, ethics, and compassion in an accessible and secular way is what we do best.

Our teaching programs enable everyone to learn to offer meditation and compassion techniques to adults and children with integrity and skill. We seek students who are open and curious about training with their “monkey minds.”

We welcome people of all color, all abilities, all shapes, and all genders. We welcome YOU, as you are, right here, right now.

White clouds and blue sky

Executive Director

Nandini Naik (she/her)

Nandini was born and raised Hindu in India. Her formal practice of mindfulness started over two decades ago with Zen meditation when she was 16 and a High School student at UWC. She had the good fortune of taking classes from His Holiness the Dalai Lama while living for months in a monastery in Dharamsala teaching Tibetan monks and refugees English. Nandini graduated from Colby College after studying Theatre & Religion and later attended NYU for a Masters in Teaching. A founding member at Emma Lazarus School for English Language Scholars, Nandini taught with the DOE in NYC for 6 years. She then worked with the Internationals Network for Public school as an instructional coach for 3 and was on their DEI committee for 2. She is honoured & delighted to be IDP’s ED; IDP has been home to her since she took her first classes there in 2009. Secretary to the Board for 6 years, Nandini also graduated from the first IDP MTT cohort of 2011 and co-taught classes & Training’s for several years.

Our Values

Wisdom

Growth

Understanding

Kindess

Our Board of Directors

Chair

Susan Skinner (she/her)

Susan works to empower individuals and organizations as a therapist, coalition builder, program developer and grant writer. She has a private clinical practice and is currently developing Hope Springs Healing Arts Studio, a curated online space offering clinical and creative opportunities for personal work. Susan holds a PhD in Psychology from Walden University, an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Union Institute and University and a BA in Political Science from St John Fisher College. 

Secretary

Hannah Moon (she/her)

Hannah is a certified mindfulness / meditation and yoga teacher, visual artist, and founder of Soul In Training (SIT).  She came to her practice in 2014, while she was transitioning from being a working actor in NYC for 15 years to being a new mother.  She is passionate about teaching mindfulness practices to kids, entrepreneurs and creatives, and emphasizes cultivating compassion, intuition and creativity.  Hannah also works with the AAPI community to help navigate the challenges of the rising violence against Asians, and the ongoing work for greater awareness and inclusion.  She is an IDP MTT cohort of 2020. She teaches yoga weekly online and offers workshops, courses, and classes.  To learn more: www.soulintraining.com & hannahmoon.com

Member

Evy Fung (she/her)

Evy has been fascinated with spirituality and wellness since she was a teenager. After a difficult time in her life, she began meditating in 2010 and in 2018 received certification as a meditation teacher. Having mixed Caribbean ancestry, she is dedicated to inspiring more representation of BIPOC and LGBTQIA folks in the wellness field. She is the co-founder of a startup called Uniformed Meditation, a convenient meditation experience for Frontline workers and First Responders. In her spare time, she enjoys the arts and being a mom and partner.

Member

Gala Narezo (she/her)

Gala is a mother, artist, educator, activist and meditation teacher, who  started practicing meditation through martial arts in her twenties to help her manage symptoms from depression and hormonal imbalances. Now, Gala shares these practices in many ways, including curating art and mindfulness lessons for students of all ages. Currently, Gala works with schools and educational spaces to incorporate mindfulness and meditation into curriculums.

Member

Kat Hendrix, JD (she/her)

Kat has worked on behalf of children and youth for 16 years. She is currently the Statewide Partnerships Manager at Oregon Child Abuse Solutions, located in Portland. Kat has been a meditator for 17 years and has practiced a broad range of techniques and approaches. She recently completed the two-year Contemplative Studies Immersion Course: An Interdisciplinary Deep Dive into Tibetan Buddhism as well as the Lam Rim Meditation Series: Practice and Application of the Gradual Path of Tibetan Buddhism. She loves spending time camping, hiking, and paddleboarding, along with her four precious cats and her partner. More recently, Kat is the recipient of the 2021 PRSA Oregon Ron Schmidt Community Service Award.

Member

Ian Davis (he/him)

Ian leveraged his gifts, took his passion for helping creative artists and combined it with his professional experiences and a vigor for results to serve emerging to Award-winning creatives and brands through creative consultancy, Age of The Creative. Also as an IMTA Certified Mindfulness and Meditation Teacher engaging creatives with tools and resources to integrate or elevate consistent mindful practices into their daily lives and creative processes to tap into the highest version of themselves through AOTC’s resource platform, Creative Vibes Only®.

Member

Zane r. Ali (they/them)

Zane is a queer Black nonbinary parent based on the indigenous land of Bulbancha, which is has been colonized and known now as New Orleans. The First Peoples of this indigenous land are the Chitimacha, the Houma, the Chahta Yakni(Choctaw) and the Atakapa Ishak Chawasha tribes. They have lived and been in community with this place since 2017. Zane is a writer, yoga and meditation practitioner, lactation counselor and doula in training. Their experience  moving through the world is shaped by ancestral wisdom, devoted spiritual practice, social activism, and being committed to mutual aid. Zane aligns their teachings with the practice of mindfulness, compassion, unlearning societal conditioning and embodying authenticity as they hope for well being for all beings. 

Our Teachers

Andrew Tomasulo (he/him)

Andrew Tomasulo is a certified mindfulness teacher (class of 2022 IDP MTT), artist, father, and lifelong student of communication systems. He was drawn to meditation about 20 years ago, after a personal crisis led him to realize that his thinking was making him crazy (well, it still does). In 2004 he enrolled in a Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program at the University of Pennsylvania, which began his journey. Following that, Andrew studied in the Dzogchen, Thich Nat Hanh, and Shambhala traditions. He’s also completed trainings in Non-Violent Communication, Systems Centered Trainings, and the Art of Hosting which are all designed to explore our habits, personal and collective styles of communication.

Bahar Ashnai (she/her)

Bahar is an academic in the business and management area. Her first formal introduction to meditation was a session by Sharon Salzberg at the Tibet House, New York, in 2014, where she got hooked. Bahar has been a member of the Mindful Astoria group since November 2016, where she has assisted, guided, and organized meditation and spirituality-related events and gatherings. In December 2018, Bahar graduated from the IDP Meditation Teacher Training program and since has led, guided, and facilitated meditation sessions and retreats.

Ven. Dr. Douglas Cheolsoeng Gentile (he/him)

Douglas is a Zen monk and is also an award-winning research scientist, educator, and author, with a research emphasis on the media’s impact on children and adults, as well as how mindfulness practices can reduce anxiety and improve happiness. Named as one of America’s best 300 professors by the Princeton Review, he is a fellow of several scientific organizations, including the American Psychological Association. 

He wrote and narrated the best-selling audiobook Buddhism 101: How to Walk Easily over Rough Ground and Meditation: The Busy Person’s Guide to Cultivating Compassion and Positive Mind States. His upcoming book, Finding the Freedom to Get Unstuck and be Happier blends Buddhist and scientific views on karma and free will.

Holding a doctorate in child psychology from the University of Minnesota, Dr. Gentile is the author or editor of several books and over 140 peer-reviewed scientific studies. He holds a M.Div. from Buddha Dharma University and has dual expertise in Western psychological science and Eastern philosophy. He lives in Ames, Iowa with his wife Jennifer and rabbit Nutmeg.

Evy Fung (she/her)

Evy has been fascinated with spirituality and wellness since she was a teenager. After a difficult time in her life, she began meditating in 2010 and in 2018 received certification as a meditation teacher. Having mixed Caribbean ancestry, she is dedicated to inspiring more representation of BIPOC and LGBTQIA folks in the wellness field. She is the co-founder of a startup called Uniformed Meditation, a convenient meditation experience for Frontline workers and First Responders. In her spare time, she enjoys the arts and being a mom and partner.

Maho Kawachi (she/her)

Maho was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan. She landed in NYC in 1992 and made the city her home. Her training as a meditation teacher includes Interdependence Project, MMTCP (Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach), MMTP (Cloud Sangha) etc. Currently, she teaches at Open Heart Project (under Susan Piver), Year Long Buddhist Study @ Dharma Moon (under Ethan Nichtern), and volunteers at Rikers Island for female inmates.

Oneika Mays (she/her)

Oneika (LMT, E-RYT) transitioned to yoga and meditation from a career in corporate retail over 10 years ago, and used that experience to support social justice work. Today, she is the first Mindfulness Coach at Rikers Island Correctional Facility. Oneika also facilitates workshops, trainings and retreats around the country centered around resilience, liberation and compassion. She is a graduate of IDPMTT 2019. Learn more at www.oneikamays.com.

Gala Narezo (she/her)

Gala is a mother, artist, educator, activist and meditation instructor. She has meditated for more than thirty years and which has been the one thing that has consistently helped her feel healthy and productive throughout her life. Gala has studied meditation and breathwork from the perspective of Taosim, Buddhism, QiGong, Chinese martial arts (Xing Yi & Pa Kua), Yoga, Pranayama and more. She is continually looking for ways to incorporate breathwork, meditation and reflective practices into everyday life. Gala recently finished her masters degree in art education where her focus was on using mindfulness to expand educational frameworks and offerings. She is also writing a book of meditation, art and reflective practices for families and educators. Much of her teaching is based in Tibetan Buddhist traditions as well as Mexican indigenous practices and circle practices. “I have learned from many teachers who I am deeply grateful to and for,” says Gala. Visit galanarezo.net to learn more.

Margherita Tisato she/her

Margherita is a dancer, teacher to teachers, movement enthusiast and a passionate changemaker. She has been dancing and teaching since she was 17 and leading yoga and meditation classes, workshops and teacher trainings for over a decade. Margherita is known for creating Trauma-informed spaces for transformation. She facilitates a range of experiences spanning from meditation, yoga and somatic movement to dance, Butoh, and body suspension.

Sam Moll (he/him)

MTT Graduate & Mindfulness Teacher

Sam’s career in wellness started in the dirt as an organic vegetable and pig farmer. Through farming, Sam learned the connection between soil and human health, and the interdependence of caring for the planet and people. Sam continues to grow his connection with food and well-being as a Registered Dietitian. He completed the IDP Teacher Training in 2021 and continues to offer mindfulness in hospitals and K-12th grade schools.

Connect with Sam on Instagram

Khary "KJ" Green (he/him)

Loves sharing his passion for the arts with others. He started his training in the arts at the age of 13 years old. He has performed in Paris, London, Egypt, Euro-Disney, and Norwegian Cruise Line to name a few.  Recently, Khary graduated from Lesley University, studying Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Dance/Movement Therapy.  As well as a 2022 graduate of IDP-TMTC.  His experiences include working as an EMT, a residential counselor who worked with kids who had brain injuries. As well as teaching dance classes, workshops, and choreographing musicals. Khary had the pleasure of interning at Camp Erin Boston, HeartPlay, Academy of Physical and Social Development and at the Jeremiah E. Burke Highschool in Dorchester, MA. Where he learned how to support people through the grieving process. His favorite mindfulness activities include honoring the pause and mindful emotion themes. Khary firmly believes we all can be heroes without the capes!

Nandini Naik (she/her)

Nandini was born and raised Hindu in India. Her formal practice of mindfulness started over two decades ago with Zen meditation when she was 16 and a High School student at UWC. She had the good fortune of taking classes from His Holiness the Dalai Lama while living for months in a monastery in Dharamsala teaching Tibetan monks and refugees English. Nandini graduated from Colby College after studying Theatre & Religion and later attended NYU for a Masters in Teaching. A founding member at Emma Lazarus School for English Language Scholars, Nandini taught with the DOE in NYC for 6 years. She then worked with the Internationals Network for Public school as an instructional coach for 3 and was on their DEI committee for 2. She is honoured & delighted to be IDP’s ED; IDP has been home to her since she took her first classes there in 2009. Secretary to the Board for 6 years, Nandini also graduated from the first IDP MTT cohort of 2011 and co-taught classes & Training’s for several years.

Susan Skinner (she/her)

Susan works to empower individuals and organizations as a therapist, coalition builder, program developer and grant writer. She has a private clinical practice and is currently developing Hope Springs Healing Arts Studio, a curated online space offering clinical and creative opportunities for personal work. Susan holds a PhD in Psychology from Walden University, an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Union Institute and University and a BA in Political Science from St John Fisher College. 

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