Niemiec, Ryan M.: - Ryan M. Niemiec, PsyD, is a leading figure in the global education, research, and practice of character strengths that are found in all human beings. He is education director of the renown VIA Institute on Character, a nonprofit organization in Cincinnati, OH, that leads the advancement of the science of character strengths. He is an award-winning psychologist; certified coach; annual instructor at the University of Pennsylvania; and author and coauthor of ten books, nearly one hundred academic papers, and several-hundred user-friendly articles.

Niemiec's books include the best-selling The Power of Character Strengths; and other leading books, including The Strengths-Based Workbook for Stress Relief, Character Strengths Interventions, and Mindfulness and Character Strengths. As a frequent keynote speaker and workshop leader, he has offered several hundred presentations on positive psychology topics across the globe. He is a fellow of the International Positive Psychology Association, and serves on their Council of Advisors. He lives in Cincinnati, OH, with his wife and three young, zestful children. His highest strengths are hope, love, honesty, fairness, spirituality, and appreciation of beauty.