About Contemplation by Design

Contemplation by Design (CBD) is a campus-wide, multidisciplinary program designed to encourage all members of the Stanford community to enjoy the power of the pause.

Faculty, staff, students and members of the greater Stanford community are given opportunities to pause from their high-level of productivity and innovation in order to rest and renew the mind-body-spirit.

Research has shown that contemplative practices enhance well-being, professional fulfillment, concentration, memory, learning, creativity, happiness and relationships. CBD provides opportunities for everyone in the community to experience the benefits of contemplative practice.

Quarterly, CBD classes, lectures, workshops, concerts and mixed media events are offered all around campus to provide skill-building experiences that further balance, tranquility, resilience and creative excellence.

Annually, the week-long CBD Summit brings the Stanford community together in recognizing the importance of quieting the thinking mind and refreshing oneself through quiet contemplation. CBD Summit events include the BeWell annual campus-wide Contemplative Pause and Carillon Concert, research presentations on the neuroscience of contemplation, skill-building in contemplative practices, and refreshing contemplative experiences offered through performances by Stanford arts groups, as well as through contemplative walks in the natural beauty of the Stanford campus.

Research

2021 Coping with the COVID-19 pandemic: contemplative practice behaviors are associated with better mental health outcomes and compliance with shelter-in-place order in a prospective cohort study, Preventive Medicine Reports, September 2021

2020 Contemplation By Design: Leveraging the "Power of the Pause" on a Large University Campus Through Built and Social Environments on a Large University Campus Through Built and Social Environments, Frontiers in Public Health Community Case Study, February 28, 2020

Press

2021 Press Articles

Contemplation by Design Summit emphasizes sustainably, The Stanford Daily, Nov. 3, 2021 (Downloadable PDF)

Finding our Zen helps us act in support of the common good, SCOPE, Stanford Medicine, July 12, 2021

2019 Press Articles

Steering the Wheel of Awareness: The power of pause, Stanford Daily, Nov. 4, 2019

2018 Press Articles

Stanford encourages campus community to enjoy the 'power of the pause', Stanford Report, October 29, 20182017 Press Articles

Make Time for Contemplation In a new book, English Professor Blakey Vermeule examines modern stresses in light of ancient debates about balancing action and contemplation

2017 Press Articles

Panel of Stanford Medicine Leaders Discusses Compassion in Health Care, Compassion in health care begins with self compassion, a panel of Stanford Medicine leaders agreed at a discussion last week. The event was part of the …

2016 Press Articles

Branner Residence Students Invite Kitchen Staff to Lunch, Branner students, staff share lunch as part of ...

2015 Press Articles

CBD: A PEACE-ful week. Stanford BeWell Website, November 13, 2015

Stanford puts the spotlight on quieting the busy mind. Stanford Report October 30, 2015

Contemplation By Design encourages focus on wellbeing. Stanford Daily, November 4, 2015

Stanford expert talks about reducing stress, enhancing resilience and practicing peace. Stanford The Dish, September 29, 2015

2014 Press Articles

Applause for the pause. Stanford BeWell Website, November 17, 2014

Contemplation By Design week begins Nov. 7 emphasizing calm, meditation. Stanford Daily, October 27, 2014

Carillon concert to ring in week of reflective contemplation. Stanford Daily, May 5, 2014

The 2014 Concert for Contemplation

People

Contemplation By Design (CBD) is housed within the Stanford Prevention Research Center (SPRC) which models the science of healthy living by using translational research to promote wellness. CBD contributes to the Stanford culture of wellness by empowering and encouraging individuals to enjoy contemplative practices that enhance wellness in themselves and in others. CBD provides classes and programming that cultivates contemplative behaviors and environments supportive to health and well-being.

CBD Collaborators
Contemplation By Design’s service to Stanford includes unique programming created by CBD staff, and also programs that are created through wonderful collaborations between CBD and other Stanford programs and departments. These include: BeWell, The Office for Religious and Spiritual Life, the HELP Center, the Worklife Office, Department of Medicine, Well-Being at Stanford in the Office of Student Affairs, Health and Human Performance, Residential and Dining Enterprises, Stanford Arts, the Ho Center for Buddhist Studies, Religious Studies, Hillel@Stanford, the d.school, the Office for Undergraduate Education, Stanford Storytelling Project, Department of Psychiatry, Department of Psychology, CCARE, Medicine and the Muse, Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve and Bing Concert Hall, and more.

CBD Participants
CBD participants make the programs of CBD come alive through their meaningful and fulfilling experiences made possible by contemplative practices.
CBD participants include Stanford faculty, staff, undergraduate and graduate students, medical center staff, physicians, nurses, alumni, retirees, family members of Stanford employees and students. Stanford community members come together to enjoy the power of the pause.

We look forward to meeting you in a Contemplation By Design program!

Stanford Prevention Research Center
The Stanford Prevention Research Center (SPRC), a division of the Stanford University School of Medicine, is a consortium of renowned experts who are world leaders in investigating ways to prevent disease and promote health. Their work is focused on identifying the most practical, science-based solutions for addressing some of society’s most pervasive—and preventable—health issues, such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic conditions and to raise the standards of scientific investigation that matters for health. SPRC investigators are collaborating on numerous, long-term projects designed to translate research into effective ways to promote well-being at every stage of life.