Paul is a historian of Western esotericism who has served the Open Center on numerous occasions, tracing the rich spiritual traditions within European literature. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, he has taught in several British universities, most notably alongside the late Professor Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke at the University of Exeter’s Centre for the Study of Esotericism. Originally trained as a medievalist at the University of York, in his early twenties, Paul is delighted to be back on home ground for our conference in Portugal. 

is an English voice actor and translator who has lived in Portugal for many years. She has performed in a number of plays by, or about, Fernando Pessoa, both in the UK and Portugal, and has given readings of Pessoa’s translated works and English poems at venues throughout LIsbon.

is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Lisbon, and a meditation teacher. He has authored fifty-five books on philosophy, fiction, poetry, and theater. Co-founder and president of the Circle of Inter-Being, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Tibiscus University, Romania in 2017, and given the 2019 Ibn Arabi–Taryumán Award for his work in inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue.

are accomplished Fado performers, composers, and instrumentalists who share original works and reinterpretations of traditional songs for voice, acoustic guitar, and cello. Inspired by poets from Al-Andaluz to Lusofonia, they take audiences on a musical and poetic journey into the land and spirit of Portugal.

is a Canadian psychologist, writer, educator, and broadcaster. He has given lectures and seminars on five continents and has written two books: Crimes of Perception: An Encyclopedia of Heresies and Heretics, and Alternative Realities: The Paranormal, the Mystic, and the Transcendent in Human Experience. A life-long student of esotericism, he has served for many years as an advisor and presenter for the Esoteric Quest.

was born in England and educated at Cambridge and Cornell Universities. From 1971 to 2016 he taught Music History at Colgate University. One of the most knowledgeable speakers we have on esoteric and musical subjects, his books include Harmonies of Heaven and Earth, The Theosophical Enlightenment, The Pagan Dream of the Renaissance, Upstate Cauldron, and The Greater and Lesser Worlds of Robert Fludd.

was Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religion at the College of Central Florida and the author of The Golden Section: Nature’s Greatest Secret, which was awarded first place for design by the Bookbinders’ Guild of New York. He lectures widely on the Perennial Philosophy with special emphasis on the Divine Proportion and Transformative States of Consciousness.

teaches music history at Nazareth College in Rochester, NY. An active teacher, scholar, and performer, she has published on Orlando di Lasso’s motet cycle, Prophetiae Sibyllarum, and on music history pedagogy. She was the organizer of a recent symposium devoted solely to Esoteric Music Performance and Research which attracted scholars from the US, Canada, and Europe.

holds a master’s degree in the Science of Religions from the Lusophone University of Humanities and Technologies. He is a researcher, lecturer and author of books and articles in the fields of esotericism, symbolism and the mythical imagination. He is also a musician and music teacher. He directs a weekly cycle of studies engaged with the work of Professor Henrique José de Souza, founder of the Brazilian Theosophical Society.