Why I Became Interested in the Brain Part 4: The United Nations and Brain Education

After last year's Olympiad, I returned to the U.S. to spend some time learning about the International Brain Education Association (IBREA). IBREA is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to promote excellence in brain education for the betterment of humanity. As part of this mission, IBREA represents KIBS (the Korea Insitute of Brain Science), an NGO (non-governmental organization) in consulative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), at the UN headquarters in New York.

As a representative of KIBS/IBREA, I attended United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI) weekly briefings and participated in non-governmental organization (NGO) conferences and committee meetings. As I sat and listened to discussions about the challenges facing the UN and the world, I felt hope in the contribution that Brain Education could make to each and every issue, including health, education, youth, aging, peace, and guardianship of the earth.

I also had the opportunity to take the Brain Education Teaching Workshop (BETW) in Brooklyn, New York, where I joined teachers, social workers, occupational therapists, and parents from schools in the New York area. Over two days, we experienced the 15-week Brain Education for Enhanced Learning (BE for EL) curriculum, which includes exercises and activities focused on the brain itself, resulting in physical, emotional, and cognitive benefits for students. For more information about the program, see http://www.powerbrainedu.com/.

After returning to Canada, I started teaching the BE for EL program at the Burlington and Mississauga Dahn Centres. I was joined by my colleague, MaryAnn, who helped to teach the class after we both graduated from the BE Leadership course. Through the course, we became certified to teach all 30 weeks of the BE for EL curriculum and the BE for Successful Aging program for older adults (or anyone interested in aging successfully :).


I learned a lot from teaching the children's program and watched as the students grew in their confidence, in their ability to concentrate and to regulate their emotions, and in their concern for each other and for the earth. None of this was something we taught them--the program had brought out the natural abilities and qualities they already had inside. At the end when the students shared what they had learned, I was amazed by their wisdom and by the understanding they had of themselves. As a teacher, this was exactly the kind of program I had been looking for and it gave me a lot of hope for the future of education.

In April of this year, we held a BETW in the GTA area and trained 25 teachers and BE instructors. Since then, Brain Education has also been introduced to educators in Ottawa and Calgary and to schools in the Montreal area. There are plans to hold another BETW in the GTA this year.

(On September 30th from 7:40-9 pm the Burlington Dahn Yoga Centre will be hosting a special Introduction to Brain Education Workshop for Teachers. Please visit or call the centre to reserve a spot: 905-681-7215).

So, this is the long answer to why I became interested in the brain. Through this journey, I've learned to trust my own brain and that everyone has the ability to develop their brain's potential and have a positive impact on others. This has given me hope for the future of education, humanity and the earth and is what brought me here to UBE to learn and experience more about the potential of the brain and about the current and future implications of brain education.
I believe that as individuals, families, organizations, and nations look for ways to solve their most serious challenges, effective self-management, organizational-management, and earth-management through using the brain well will be the key to our successful future.