Founder & Executive Director, Beyond Us & Them
Jared Seide
Jared Seide is the founder and Executive Director of Beyond Us & Them (formerly Center for Council), a nonprofit organization that fosters social connection by building “structures of belonging” that promote mutual respect, wellbeing and care across sectors, helping to dismantle systems of oppression, exclusion and racism and creating the conditions for compassion to emerge. He is the author of Where Compassion Begins: Foundational Practices to Enhance Mindfulness, Attention and Listening from the Heart. Beyond Us & Them offers evidence-based programs and trainings that resource individuals and organizations in self-awareness, self-regulation, effective communication and embodied compassion. The organization is committed to transforming systems through training law enforcement officers, healthcare providers, educators, policymakers, community based organizations, among other populations and individuals, to cultivate wellness, relationality, compassion and resilience. Jared is a graduate of Brown University and the Upaya Institute Chaplaincy Program. A member of the Zen Center of Los Angeles, Jared has been a Spirit Holder for Zen Peacemaker Bearing Witness Retreats around the world. He was honored by Foundation for Social Connection with the 2023 Marcia Slater Johnston Awarded in recognition of Outstanding Leadership in Community-Based Efforts to Reduce Social Isolation & Loneliness.