Neil Seeman, at The Blogs

Oct 7, 2024, 12:18 AM

Infinite Potential: Bridging Vedanta and Judaism

Swami Vivekananda, September, 1893, Chicago. Source: Wikipedia Commons (Public Domain)

On September 14th, I had the privilege of speaking at a day-long seminar organized by the Vedanta Society of Toronto, led by Swami Kripamayananda. The theme, “Infinite Potential,” resonated deeply with me—not just as a lifelong student but as...

Sep 29, 2024, 6:36 PM

Quiet experts in shaping this world

Pirkei Avot, Public Domain (Source: Wikipedia)

In this age of chest-thumping on social media, it’s easy to mistake fleeting attention for lasting influence. As the son of two pioneering researchers in mental health, I’ve learned that true impact comes from those who work quietly, diligently,...

Sep 6, 2024, 11:10 PM

Tikkun Olam in the AI Era: Careers for a New World

Blessed be the jacks of all trades, for they shall inherit the jobs of the future. This rallying cry echoes as students return to school and workers settle into routines. It reminds us of the Talmudic wisdom that ‘A person...

Aug 2, 2024, 8:12 AM

Jewish Wisdom in Career Reinvention

In my years of mentoring and leadership, I’ve noticed a rising anxiety among young professionals: a fear of deviating from a linear, “mole-like” career path. While the idea of nestling into a safe career can be comforting for some,...

Jun 3, 2024, 12:13 AM

The Renaissance of Jewish Literary Voices

Meg Wolitzer, 2011 Texas Book Festival, Austin (Source: Wikipedia Biography)

Is Jewish writing in decline? Author Noah Richler has invoked nostalgia for the era of the great greats, like his father, Mordechai. It’s plausible that some publishers eschew books about the trauma that once defined Jewish literary tradition. Or...

May 5, 2024, 6:12 PM

Theodor Herzl on College Campus

Theodor Herzl Portrait (Public Domain: Wikimedia Commons)

Once a forum for free speech and debate, Has the campus now lost its noble state? Unbound, its purpose gets questioned, What fuels its freedom goes unmentioned. Do campus agitators know their foe's best case? Have they learned it, confronted it, seen its grace? Only...

Jan 24, 2024, 8:10 PM

Reclaiming Anne Frank for Holocaust Remembrance

In 1997, the writer Cynthia Ozick asked: “Who Owns Anne Frank?” Because this Saturday January 27th marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day, I ask myself a version of this same question: “Was Anne’s story uniquely Jewish or is it a...

Jan 22, 2024, 5:27 PM

The UN Secretary-General’s Mental Health Advocacy

To be a mental health advocate is to always take suicide prevention seriously and to acknowledge that mental health is a universal human right. A March 2022 scientific brief by the World Health Organization presented a “wake-up call” to...

Jan 21, 2024, 3:06 PM

Anne Frank, Genocide, and Contranyms

Anne Frank in 1940. Montessori school, Niersstraat 41-43, Amsterdam (the Netherlands). Photograph by unknown photographer.

In death, I weep when words decay, like “genocide,” born in ’44, now twisted, its truth led astray. In The Hague, where Justice is sought, Lemkin's word, to falsehood, was brought. The Nazis’ words, deceit, and denial, masked their horrors with Hitler’s guile. Nietzsche’s ideal of...

About Me

Neil Seeman is an author, educator, essayist, mental health advocate, and entrepreneur. Neil is CEO of publishing firm Sutherland House Experts. At the University of Toronto, Neil is an Adjunct Professor and senior fellow at the Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, the Fields Institute, the Investigative Journalism Bureau, Massey College, and the HIVE Lab. Neil founded technology and Big Data firm RIWI Corp. and he is the author or co-author of several books on mental health topics. He was a founding editorial board member of the National Post and co-founder of the Health Strategy Innovation Cell. Neil’s last book was "Accelerated Minds: Unlocking the Fascinating, Inspiring, and Often Destructive Impulses that Drive the Entrepreneurial Brain" (Sutherland House). Neil is a graduate of the University of Toronto Law School (JD) and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (MPH).

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