Mindfulness practices for public policy practitioners

Mindfulness practices can help us cope with the everyday and societal stressors, especially those that come from working in public policy.  

Join Nicole Fernandes, MPP/SEAS ‘08, acting Deputy Director for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of Aquaculture and founding member of Mindful NOAA to: 

• Discuss mindfulness and its benefits, and the science behind it
• Learn how mindfulness can support you in the workplace and beyond, including leadership and DEI in the workplace 
• Explore practices to calm the body and mind

Register by September 23, 2022. A Zoom link will be sent prior to the program. 

From the speaker's bio

Nicole Fernandes graduated from the U-M Ford School and earned a Master of Public Policy and a Master of Science in environmental science/education from the UM School of Sustainability and the Environment in 2008. She currently serves as the acting Deputy Director for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of Aquaculture. She has also worked as a NOAA policy analyst since 2016. Her previous federal experience includes five years as a policy/budget analyst at the White House Office of Management and Budget. She has also served as a secondary science teacher and worked for environmental non-governmental organizations. 

Nicole is a founding member of Mindful NOAA, a community of practice committed to incorporating science-based mindfulness in support of NOAA’s mission of science, service, and stewardship. She was trained as a mindfulness facilitator at the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Nicole is a Certified Workplace Mindfulness Facilitator and a professional coach with the Federal Internal Coaching Network and received a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from the University of South Florida. 

• alumni
• Nicole Fernandes