The Team
Lucy Chan
Lucy is a teacher of mindfulness, self-compassion, and Buddhism who leads retreats and courses worldwide. She is a senior Mindful Self-Compassion teacher, having trained directly with the internationally renowned pioneers of self-compassion Kristin Neff and Chris Germer. As a practising doctor within the NHS, she understands the importance of integrating practice into daily life as a way to keep balance in everyday life.
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She loves sharing practices of self-acceptance and kindness, and feels especially called to support young people, the BPOC community, and the caregivers of society.
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Her TEDx talk on Fierce Compassion is featured on the TED website - watch here.
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Ethan Pollock
Ethan has been facilitating mindfulness groups and retreats for over a decade. He spent five years training at Plum Village with the internationally recognised mindfulness teacher & Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. He is a qualified Mindful Self Compassion teacher. He facilitates and teaches around the UK including at the Sharpham Trust, Schumacher College, The Royal Drawing School and local groups.
Guest Teachers
Laila Narsi
Laila is a US-based psychotherapist and was one of the first international teachers to be trained in Mindful Self-Compassion. She has had the pleasure of being trained by world renowned teachers including Jack Kornfield, Tara Brach, and The Dalai Lama. In addition to being a mindfulness and self-compassion teacher, she is a practicing Muslim who is actively engaged in her local community.
Michael Schwammberger
Michael Schwammberger began his practice at Gaia House, The Barn and Sharpham College in the early 90's; soon after inspired by the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh he was ordained as a monk and spent the next 15 years accompanying Thich Nhat Hanh on his teaching tours and living in the different monasteries of Plum Village. In 2012, after a sabbatical, he decided to return to lay life and now continues to guide retreats and courses as a lay teacher.
Dene Donalds
Dene is a teacher in the Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. He also facilitates MBSR courses and trains mindfulness teachers for several organisations including within the NHS. His work includes also offering chaplaincy within prisons and mental health hospitals. We appreciate his warm and deeply compassionate presence!
Armel Wraight
Armel (they/them) has been teaching mindfulness and self-compassion to individuals, groups and businesses for 8 years. They trained at Bangor Centre for Mindfulness and with Kristin Neff and Chris Germer in teaching Mindful Self-Compassion. Armel is a practising psychotherapist and also facilitates LGBTQIA+ international mindfulness spaces.
Mick McEvoy
Mick specialises in bringing mindfulness practice out into nature. He lives and works at the mindfulness practice centre Plum Village, where he supports retreats combining mindfulness, deep ecology and organic farming. He is a native of Ireland, a qualified yoga teacher, and also supports LGBTQ mindfulness groups and retreats.
Jasmine Shaw
Jasmine has facilitated mindfulness groups for both children and adults for over 10 years. Most recently she helped train adult mindfulness facilitators in educational and community settings. She was trained to teach mindfulness by the internationally recognised teachers Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield, and has undergone training in the Mindful Self-Compassion programme.
