Bestselling author and Harvard educated psychologist Dr Melanie Joy shares the principles and tools that can make any relationship, from personal to professional, healthier and more resilient.

Relationships are complicated. Yet it’s an unfortunate reality that while most of us have to learn complex geometry that we’ll probably never use, we don’t get a single formal lesson in how to relate to others.

In this livestream event, Dr Melanie Joy will reveal the common psychological dynamics that underlie all kinds of relationships: with a romantic partner, friends, family members, colleagues–in short, with anyone in any situation. Understanding these dynamics can enable you to make all your relationships healthier and more resilient, and help you contribute to creating a better world.

Drawing on the most relevant research as well as on her own extensive experience as a psychologist, Joy will explain how to strengthen your “relational immune system” to resist not only interpersonal stressors but also largely invisible yet potentially devastating societal stressors like racism and sexism. With this understanding, you can cultivate relationships that consistently reflect core moral values and honour the dignity of everyone involved.

Praise for the books of Melanie Joy:

“Melanie Joy’s work is… important and groundbreaking.” – Yuval Noah Harari

“One of the most thought-provoking books in decades.” – Heather Mills

“Melanie Joy instills empathy and non-violence. It is no coincidence that she received…following Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama, the famous Ahimsa Prize.” – Matthieu Ricard and Martin Gibert

“Dr. Melanie Joy is one of the most important theorists of how we rationalise cruelty. Here, she shows the way oppressive ideologies build upon one another by desensitising us to the worth of other thinking, feeling beings. And more optimistically, she shows how we can rediscover sensitivity and help others rediscover it as well.” – Ezra Klein