Ryan M. Niemiec, PhD, PsyD, is Education Director of the VIA Institute on Character, the nonprofit positive psychology organization that educates people about the latest science and practice of character strengths.

He is a licensed psychologist, certified coach, international workshop leader, and is Adjunct Professor at Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH. He is co-author of Positive Psychology at the Movies (2008; 2013) and Movies and Mental Illness (2005; 2010). In 2011, Ryan received the Distinguished Early Career Award from the American Psychological Association (Division 46).

Ryan has led several hundred mindfulness meditation groups for clinical and nonclinical populations over the last decade, and has delivered mindfulness retreats, seminars, and workshops to a variety of groups including physicians, counselors, religious leaders, and the general public.

Ryan created Mindfulness- Based Strengths Practice (MBSP) out of his ongoing passion for the two topics. MBSP marks the first, structured character strengths program. He has enjoyed training the early pioneers in this approach. He is a member of Being Peace Sangha, just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio.

His dharma name, in the Thich Nhat Hanh lineage, is "Fullest Breath of the Heart." He blogs for Psychology Today and PsychCentral, and his work has been featured by a variety of sources including Dr. Oz, USA Today, the Huffington Post, Positive Psychology News Daily, and Greater Good.