Keynote: Learning and The Brain Conference in San Francisco
Feb
20
12:00 PM12:00

Keynote: Learning and The Brain Conference in San Francisco

Americans are concerned that student character and autonomy are in decline. A 2023 Gallup Poll found that 54% of Americans rated the state of moral values in the U.S. as poor, and 83% believed they were getting worse. In a 2023 MOTT National Poll on Children’s Health, less than half of parents reported their 5-8 year old children regularly engage in independent activities and research shows children’s autonomy is in decline and may be hurting mental health. Yet, a 2023 Congressional Medal of Honor Society Poll found that nearly four in five Americans (79%) believe having strong values and character are important. Psychological research finds that strength and character-based education can increase student resilience and achievement, and that autonomy and agency can foster intrinsic motivation, critical for academic success.

This interdisciplinary conference will explore the “science of student brain strengths”; ways to create hopeful schools of character; and how to build learner ownership and self-direction. Learn how to provide strength-based teaching; promote character and honesty; strengthen neurodiverse students through their abilities; cultivate gratitude and wonder; harness the power of hope for student success; use the brain's hidden talents; and foster student agency and autonomy to motivate learners in today's disengaged, dependent, and deficit-focused age.

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In Conversation: Elderhood in a Post-Election Era
Nov
4
5:30 PM17:30

In Conversation: Elderhood in a Post-Election Era

Pulitzer Prize finalist Louise Aronson returns to the Commonwealth Club World Affairs stage to discuss the enduring themes of her New York Times bestselling book, Elderhood, and what to expect in the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election. What are the practical and existential implications of aging in a political era defined by polarization and increasing instability? How can individuals look out for their health and families regardless of the election outcome? Aronson is joined by fellow writer Jenara Nerenberg, in a follow-up conversation from their first lively event together five years ago. Nerenberg is the celebrated author of Divergent Mind and a forthcoming book on the psychology of groupthink.

About the Speakers

Louise Aronson, MD MFA, is a leading geriatrician, writer, educator, professor of medicine at UCSF and the author Elderhood: Redefining Aging, Transforming Medicine, and Reimagining Life. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Aronson currently runs the integrative aging practice and age self-care integrative medical group visit program at the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Health. She has received the Gold Professorship in Humanism in Medicine, the California Homecare Physician of the Year award, and the American Geriatrics Society Clinician-Teacher of the Year award. Her writing credits include The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, JAMA, Lancet, and the New England Journal of Medicine, and her work in aging has been featured on NPR, NBC, CBS, and The New Yorker.

Jenara Nerenberg is the bestselling author of Divergent Mind, hailed as "extraordinary, jaw-dropping" by Library Journal; she is an Aspen Ideas Brave New Idea speaker and the author of a second forthcoming book on the psychology of groupthink. A celebrated writer covering the intersection of psychology and society, Jenara's work has been featured in the UC Berkeley Science Center's Greater Good magazine, Fast Company magazine, CNN, NPR, BBC and elsewhere. Nerenberg speaks widely on social science topics, including at universities, libraries, companies and organizations around the world. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley and the Harvard School of Public Health; she grew up in San Francisco and, as a millennial, can now be found on Instagram.


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Keynote: Dayton Metro Library Speaker Series
Oct
10
7:00 AM07:00

Keynote: Dayton Metro Library Speaker Series

To close out its 2024 Speaker Series, the Dayton Metro Library is collaborating with author Jenara Nerenberg to discuss neurodivergence in the modern world.

Running 6-7:30 p.m. Oct 10, “Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World that Wasn’t Designed for You” will be in DML’s main building.

Divergent Mind is hailed by Library Journal as “extraordinary and jaw-dropping.” Endorsed by New York Times bestselling authors Susan Cain, Elaine Aron, Steve Silberman, Robert Whitaker, and many others, Nerenberg’s book has been translated into multiple foreign languages worldwide. She is an award-winning writer and producer, named as a “Brave New Idea” speaker by The Aspen Institute, and. She graduated from the Harvard School of Public Health and UC Berkeley with advanced degrees in public health and race relations.

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Launching Deeply: Books, Writing & Platform Development
Dec
5
to Dec 6

Launching Deeply: Books, Writing & Platform Development

Join Jenara for a special beta course bringing together her decade plus of experience from CNN to Fast Company, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster and elsewhere, helping soulful sensitive folks launch their projects and ideas into the world, with expert guidance on all the details from proposals to pitching to social media collaborations with thought leaders. Register at jenaranerenberg.com

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Divergent Literary: Publishing for Neurodivergents
Jul
31
10:30 AM10:30

Divergent Literary: Publishing for Neurodivergents

Book Publishing & Navigating the Literary World: Connecting Writers With Agents, Editors & Publishers

About this event

Join this neurodivergent-friendly session on book publishing designed and led by producer/journalist and Divergent Mind author, Jenara Nerenberg, about the process, details, nitty gritty, and nuts and bolts about what you need to do to develop your manuscript and get it published.

The class is tailored for established writers as well as emerging writers and there will be time for questions and answers in order to tailor to everyone's needs.

Jenara is the founder of The Neurodiversity Project and an alum of CNN, Fast Company, Harvard, and Berkeley. Her debut book was published by HarperCollins and received starred reviews and endorsements. Prior to writing her own book, she spent half a decade working with bestselling authors on the publicity/promotion/marketing side of the industry and she's now focused on pipeline needs and accessibility, connecting talented writers to major publishers. Divergent Literary is her literary agency, an initiative of The Neurodiversity Project.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/divergent-literary-publishing-for-neurodivergents-tickets-162482406251

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Pulitzer Finalist Louise Aronson interviews Jenara Nerenberg
Mar
2
5:00 PM17:00

Pulitzer Finalist Louise Aronson interviews Jenara Nerenberg

Pulitzer Prize finalist and physician Louise Aronson interviews Jenara Nerenberg for the paperback release of Divergent Mind at Magic City Books! All virtual, join from anywhere. Louise said, ““What is ‘normal’? Who gets to decide? Jenara Nerenberg’s wide-ranging Divergent Mind asks and answers these and other essential questions, offering a vision for how individuals and society can take better advantage of the many ways in which we are human.” https://magiccitybooks.com/event/virtual-event-jenara-nerenberg/

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Steve Silberman interviews Jenara Nerenberg
Feb
22
3:30 PM15:30

Steve Silberman interviews Jenara Nerenberg

NeuroTribes author Steve Silberman interviews Jenara Nerenberg for the paperback release of Divergent Mind. Steve called Divergent Mind “a signpost to a happier future in which the diversity of human wiring is celebrated while barriers to access are eliminated.”

"In this enormously important book, Jenara Nerenberg brings to light the history and lived experiences of a 'lost generation' of neurodivergent women whose wisdom about coping in a world not built for them has been occluded behind a fog of changing diagnostic labels and overly male-centric research. Divergent Mind is a signpost to a happier future in which the diversity of human wiring is celebrated while barriers to access are eliminated." - Steve Silberman, NYTimes bestselling author of NeuroTribes

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Divergent Mind Tour: Pop Culture Collaborative's Bridgit Antoinette Evans w/ Jenara Nerenberg
Feb
19
4:00 PM16:00

Divergent Mind Tour: Pop Culture Collaborative's Bridgit Antoinette Evans w/ Jenara Nerenberg

Join Jenara & Bridgit for a deep, engaging conversation on narrative, media representation, neurodiversity and the arts, and more! This is a rare conversation and Bridgit brings a tremendous wealth of knowledge about media production and curation in Hollywood and beyond.

https://www.bookcellarinc.com/event/jenara-nerenberg-conversation-bridgit-antoinette-evans-divergent-mind

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Dr. Breeze Harper
Oct
2
1:00 PM13:00

Dr. Breeze Harper

Dr. Harper is a food and ecology activist focused on Black vegan culture and the mother of four in an interracial family; she joins Jenara & The Interracial Project to discuss all of the above as well as her anti-racist training work.

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Advance LA Conference
May
8
3:00 PM15:00

Advance LA Conference

Jenara returns to the Advance LA conference for the second year in a row to share her findings on “Empathy & Neurodiversity: An Examination of Gender & the Traits of Synesthesia, ADHD, Autism, Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), & the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP).”

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Future of Cognitive Diversity & The Promise of Co-Living
May
2
6:30 PM18:30

Future of Cognitive Diversity & The Promise of Co-Living

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/future-of-cognitive-diversity-the-promise-of-co-living-tickets-77642463699

Futures-thinking conversation w/ celebrated authors & self-advocates on cohousing, mental health, and divergent minds.

How do human beings create space for one another? How have “mental health” and “inner life” been neglected from the conversation on diversity? And finally, how do proudly “disordered” people create living environments on their own terms?

In this futures-thinking discussion between celebrated authors and self-advocates, the conversation gets real. We’ll hear from poet Chris Martin, cofounder of  Unrestricted Interest who has ADHD and helps nonspeaking autistic adults express themselves through poetry. We’ll hear from Meghana Junnuru, a passionate nonspeaking autistic poet who is launching a neurodiversity-focused cohousing community in the Midwest. And we’ll hear from Courtney Martin, a celebrated author based in Oakland whose books, On Being columns and TED Talks celebrate the power of vulnerability in cohousing, racial justice work and changing the conversation of “the good life” in America today. 

And finally, the event is hosted by neurodivergent author Jenara Nerenberg, of Divergent Mind, whose work on neurodiversity, mental health, scientific research and pop culture appears at Garrison Institute, UC Berkeley Greater Good Science Center, Susan Cain’s Quiet Revolution, Fast Company, KQED and elsewhere. 

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