Criteria for Eligibility & Certification

Faculty

Rodger Kamenetz has been instrumental in shaping and articulating Natural Dreamwork. He is Professor Emeritus of English and Religious Studies at Louisiana State University and an award-winning author, poet and teacher. He has been working with clients who seek spiritual direction through dreams since 2003. When his book The History of Last Night’s Dream appeared in 2007, Oprah Winfrey interviewed him on her “Soul Series” program, saying, “What’s so exciting about this book is that it talks about how there’s a whole other life that we are living when we sleep and that our dreams are there as offerings and gifts to us if we only recognize what the dreams are there to teach us.”

Kamenetz’s best known book is The Jew in the Lotus, the story of rabbis making a holy pilgrimage through India to meet with the Dalai Lama. His account of their historic dialogue became an international bestseller, prompting a reevaluation of Judaism in the light of Buddhist thought. Now in its 36th printing overall, The Jew in the Lotus is a staple of college religion courses. The New York Times has called it a “revered text.” A PBS documentary followed, and a sequel, Stalking Elijah, won him the National Jewish Book Award for Jewish Thought. Kamenetz’s eight books of poetry include Yonder, Dream Logic and The Missing Jew: Poems 1976-2022. His memoir Terra Infirma centered on the impact of a single dream of his mother after her untimely death.

Born in Baltimore, Rodger Kamenetz has degrees from Yale, Johns Hopkins and Stanford. He lives in New Orleans.

Laura Smith-Riva practices Natural Dreamwork through the cultivation of a dream practice based on the natural healing qualities found in dreams inherent in the sacred objects, symbols, creatures and archetypes that populate the dream landscape. She compassionately creates space for the dreamer to delve deeply into the images and feelings of the dream to find their authenticity, voice, passion and creativity. Laura brings her personal experience to support individuals in the areas of queer/trans identity, addiction recovery and adoption related issues and firmly believes in the dream’s ability to help us with core wounding and trauma.

Laura lives in the mysterious Green Mountains of Vermont with her partner of 27 years. Outside the dream realm, you can find her painting or writing in her studio, connecting to the healing energy of the earth, or engaged in laughter and general mayhem with her friends and family on various parts of the globe.

She regularly blogs about her journey through dreams and vision work on the dream blog In Search of Puella and her dream-inspired art work and writing have been featured in several publications and e-zines. Find out more: https://www.laura-smith-riva.com/

Dr. Keren Vishny is a psychotherapist and certified Natural Dreamwork Practitioner. She is also a teacher and workshop facilitator affiliated with the CG Jung Center, Evanston Illinois, and the Marion Woodman Foundation. Over her 28 years of work in the healing arts, Keren has shifted from mainstream medical practice to a focus on psycho-spiritual healing through dreams.

Keren has a master’s in Counseling Psychology from Northwestern University, studied for many years with Jungian Analyst Marion Woodman and completed the BodySoul Rhythms Leadership training offered by the Marion Woodman Foundation.

In 2012 she met poet/ dreamwork practitioner Rodger Kamenetz, whose guidance and mentoring provided the capstone to her dreamwork training.

Kezia Vida has been a diligent student of her dreams since she graduated from Yale University with a degree in Philosophy in 2009. It was then that she began 1:1 dreamwork with Marc Bregman, later joining North of Eden and entering their practitioner training program in 2013. Since then she has spent over 2000 hours directly working with 1:1 dream clients, leading dream groups, coordinating and participating in dream retreats, and educating about dreams. She has coordinated numerous retreats with and for the Natural Dreamwork team and spearheaded the Dream Caravan gatherings in New Orleans 2014-2016 which featured many Natural Dreamwork teachers.

Brinda Jacob-Janvrin is the Founder and Director of the Studio for Movement Arts and Therapies. 

She is a movement-based expressive arts therapist, trainer, facilitator, supervisor, natural dream worker, and contemporary dancer/choreographer (with over 25 years of performing experience). 

Brinda is passionate about the arts and the mysterious workings of the psyche-soma and advocates for an embodied presence in learning and life.