A fireside chat with Dacher Keltner, Ph.D and Knitted

What is friendship doing to our brains, our bodies, and our lives? And what are scientists learning about how friendships begin, deepen, and last?

Join us for an intimate evening at IDEO in San Francisco, where UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner, a leading scientist of human emotion and connection, sits down with MEA co-founder Jeff Hamaoui. Together they’ll explore what researchers are discovering about the impact of friendship on our well-being, and what the emerging science can teach us about building the connections that make a life meaningful.

What we'll explore:

What friendship does to us. What researchers are learning about how close relationships shape the brain and body, and how they connect to health, well-being, and longevity.

Inside the lab. What Dacher’s team at Berkeley, and researchers around the world, are exploring right now.

The science of making friends. What we know about how connection forms, deepens, and lasts, and why it can feel harder as adults.

The emerging psychology of connection. New thinking on belonging, trust, and the small moments, including shared awe, that bring people closer.

What to try next. Simple, research-informed ways to put it into practice in ordinary days.

Space is limited and registration is required. We look forward to seeing you!

Dacher Keltner, PhD is a professor of psychology at UC Berkeley and the faculty director of the Greater Good Science Center. He is the author of Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life, Born to Be Good, and The Power Paradox, and the host of The Science of Happiness podcast. He has also collaborated with Pixar on films including Inside Out.