Chip Conley and MEA’s mindfulness & spirituality faculty present…
Landscapes of Silence:
A Summer Silent Retreat
Aug 25 - Aug 30, 2025 in Santa Fe, USA
Led by: Chip Conley, Teddi Dean, Saul, Daniel 'DL' Landes, Lee Johnson
Financial aid is available. Apply Here.
Dissolve your stress, boost your physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing, and find your peace in silence
Silence has the power to transform your mind, body, and soul and lead to self discovery.
The science proves it: people who attend multi-day silent retreats enjoy significant health benefits from their experience.
Silent meditation has been shown to reduce anxiety and depression, improve cardiovascular health and sleep, and dramatically enhance a person’s ability to focus and concentrate.
That’s why we are excited to announce MEA’s first silent retreat happening August 2025 at our ranch in Santa Fe.
MEA’s founder Chip Conley and our in-house mindfulness and spirituality faculty will guide you through a powerful week of silent introspection and provide a safe, nurturing environment that allows you to go inward with a sense of ease and grace.
Join MEA’s own Head of Mindfulness and Movement Teddi Dean, Wisdom Keeper and Poet Lee Johnson, Resident Shaman Saul – along with MEA’s founder and fellow spiritual seeker Chip Conley – for a transformative experience designed to help you reconnect with your own inner self and open up to your most fundamental truths.
Daily practices will include:
We will also gather together in Wisdom Pods once a day, where the silence will be broken for contemplative teaching and discussion.
While most of the week will be held in silence, once a day we will gather for a one-hour Wisdom Pod where Teddi, Lee, Saul and Chip will offer teachings that touch upon mindfulness and wisdom traditions ranging from the Christian Mystics to Buddhism, Judaism to Sufism, and other contemplative mythology and rituals.
We will break silence during these sessions to allow for group discussion that our teachers will lead on the following themes:
- Lee: Nature as our Teacher: Surrender and let nature carry you
- Teddi: Surfing the Waves of Life: Abundance and loss and everything in between
- Saul: Be Your Own Shaman: Find the answers you’re seeking in ourself
- Chip: The Making of a Modern Elder: Show up as the leader the world wants you to be
Each Wisdom Pod will be open for quiet discussion. If you wish to remain in silence during these sessions, that will also be honored.
Rising Circle Ranch is nestled amidst the juniper and pinyon forests within the beautiful Galisteo Basin. Here in the high desert, silence envelops you like a gentle embrace, dissolving the low hum of anxiety that permeates modern life. This awe-inspiring landscape is the perfect environment in which to disconnect from the noise and return to your true self.
Evenings will be spent gathered around a crackling fire, the glow illuminating faces lost in contemplation. Here, you can reflect on your day's experiences, savoring the silence that wraps around you like a warm blanket. The night sky, dotted with stars, serves as a reminder of the vastness of your own inner world.
The benefits of a silent retreat can be experienced by anyone in any profession.
Busy Professionals: Those with hectic lifestyles may benefit from a break to recharge and gain clarity on personal or work-related issues.
Creatives: Artists, writers, and musicians may find that silence fosters creativity and allows for deeper exploration of their craft.
Spiritual Seekers: Individuals on a spiritual journey often use silent retreats to deepen their practice, whether through meditation, prayer, or contemplation.
People in Transition: Individuals experiencing significant life changes, such as loss or career shifts, can use the retreat to process their thoughts and emotions.
Anyone Seeking Inner Peace: People looking to alleviate stress or anxiety can find the quiet environment conducive to reflection and relaxation.
This silent retreat experience will serve as a powerful tool for anyone looking to reconnect with themselves and find a sense of calm amidst the noise of daily life.
Meet Your Faculty
Chip Conley
MEA Co-Founder and Author of Learning to Love Midlife: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age
Bestselling Author | Entrepreneur | Innovator | Disruptor | Speaker
A three-time TED speaker on the big stage, Chip Conley is one of the world's leading experts at the intersection of business innovation, psychology and spirituality.
As one of the creators of the boutique hotel movement and the "modern elder" to the young Airbnb founders, Chip's been a disruptor and expert on entrepreneurship and business leadership. He’s a globally-recognized thought leader on the future of work and the competitive advantages of a multi-generational workplace.
Inspired by his experience of intergenerational mentoring as a “modern elder” at Airbnb – where his guidance was instrumental to the company’s extraordinary success – Chip founded MEA and has since dedicated his midlife years to reframing the concept of aging and helping people navigate midlife with a renewed sense of purpose and possibility.
Teddi Dean
Head of Mindfulness and Movement
Teddi Dean is the Head of Mindfulness and Movement here at MEA. He offers a fun, accessible and wisdom-filled approach to both mediation and yoga. Teddi teaches with a creative and authentic approach. He loves working with beginners and has a gift in showing that each and every one of us is capable of dropping into stillness
Teddi Dean grew up in Southern California where he was immersed in surf and skateboard culture. He was part of skateboard royalty as a team member of the infamous Powell and Peralta Bones Brigade. He is also an artist and has written and directed two feature films, A Holy Promise and Love Will Travel.
Saul
MEA’s Resident Shaman
If you have attended one of our workshops in Baja, you’ve probably met Saul and received some wisdom from him. He is a shaman, designer, and entrepreneur who has charmed and enlightened MEAers for seven years now.
Born in Mexico to a Mexican mother and Jewish father, Saul has always lived in multiple worlds and realities at the same time. His early sensitivity to other vibrations and premonitions shaped his life’s path, leading him to dedicate his life and work to serving others and supporting communities in their spiritual growth and well-being.
People of many different belief traditions and many with no spiritual beliefs at all have received valuable insights from their experiences with Saul. We are sure you will feel inspired and grateful for the time you get to spend in his calm and peaceful presence.
This workshop is for you if...
You’ve been struggling with stress or anxiety and are looking for an emotional reset
You want to replace overwhelm with an expansive feeling of peace, calm, and harmony
You yearn to quiet your constantly chattering “monkey mind” to better hear the innermost voice that always steers you right
You’d like to improve your ability to focus and be mindful and become more present in the moment
You want to sink deeply into your body and ground yourself fully in the here and now
You’re eager to spend five inspiring days contemplating wisdom from different traditions and belief systems
Santa Fe, USA
Rising Circle Ranch
An upscale regenerative ranch featuring traditional Pueblo architecture and spanning nearly 2,600 acres of wildlife, hiking trails in the arroyo, with ancient petroglyphs, and awe-inspiring beauty. Close to historic Santa Fe, an artisan’s mecca.
Meet Your MEA Facilitators
In addition to these powerful sessions conducted by Chip, Teddi and Saul , your visit to MEA will also be supported by the seasoned MEA faculty members listed below:
Daniel 'DL' Landes
Experience Facilitator
View Bio
Before joining MEA, Daniel “DL” Landes spent decades as a restauranteur, author, and publisher. As the owner of multiple restaurants in Denver, CO – and then a hostel in Mexico – he dedicated himself to creating environments where people could work out their humanity while eating and drinking (which is why he fits in so well at MEA).
Now relocated to Santa Fe, DL says that “living in the Galisteo Basin impresses a unique and humbling perspective. Under the expansive, enchanted New Mexican sky I can feel so small and so big. I made a career of kicking up dust; living in the storm until the storm lived in me. When the dust settled two guideposts appeared: Spend more nights under the stars; provide a service.”
You will appreciate his dedication to creating memorable experiences during your time in Santa Fe.
Lee Johnson
Land, Livestock, and Mindfulness
View Bio
Lee likes to say that he’s as ordinary as dirt but as complex as soil. He’s resident “cowboy sage” at our campus in Santa Fe, where his love for the simple yet complex hum of nature has led him to work in holistic land management. As steward of our four-square mile regenerative ranch, Lee translates nature’s teachings into simple insights that encourage us to tune into the inner and outer landscape of the world around us.
You will appreciate the opportunity to be in his presence and slow down, listen to nature, and gather around the campfire of shared understanding.
Join us for this special week, where every moment will bring you back closer to who and what you really are.
This retreat isn’t just a pause from the outside world – it’s an invitation to reconnect with your true self. As you are held by the silence, you will discover the beauty that lies within, emerging with renewed clarity, creativity, and a profound sense of peace.
