Associate Professor Nicholas Van Dam is the inaugural Director of the Contemplative Studies Centre. Nicholas is a highly regarded global leader in contemplative research and practice with a strong commitment to interdisciplinary dialogue and empirical rigour. His research explores the ways that meditation and mindfulness practices can support wellbeing, in pursuit of a better understanding of the human condition. He completed a PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University at Albany, SUNY (USA), and worked at New York University, the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, and the Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, prior to joining the University of Melbourne. Associate Professor Nicholas Van Dam is the inaugural Director of the Contemplative Studies Centre in the Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne. His vision for the Contemplative Studies Centre reflects a desire for inclusivity, authenticity, integrity, and excellence, embedded within a rigorous ethical framework to ensure retention of the ethos of contemplative practices while simultaneously promoting their empirical study.