Be The Change: Biographies

Biographies

Speakers

Ray Anderson: Founder of Interface Carpets, Ray Anderson led the company through an environmental awakening, reducing its environmental footprint by more than one third, redesigning processes and products, pioneering new technologies and reducing or eliminating waste and harmful emissions while increasing the use of renewable materials and sources of energy. He was featured as a positive role model in the film 'The Corporation'.; Ray has been recognized as one of the world's most environmentally progressive industrialists, having served as co-chairman of the President's Council on Sustainable Development during the Clinton administration; and being honoured by Mikhail Gorbechev with a Millennium Award from Global Green in September 1996 among numerous other awards. He also donated the carpet for our first event last year at Friends House (where it's still in place).; Top of page
Boo Armstrong: Boo likes to find good ideas and put them into action. This includes creating London's most eco-friendly health centre and creating a national IT infrastructure for lesbian and gay telephone helplines. More recently Boo has been creating Get Well UK - an organisation which is making complementary medicine treatments, such as acupuncture and osteopathy, available for free to NHS patients who are referred by their GPs. Boo was a finalist in the 2004 Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.; Top of page
Chris Astill-Smith: Founder of Metabolics Ltd, Chris graduated from the British School of Osteopathy and college of Naturopathy and Dietetics in 1970 and 1972 respectively. He has lectured on Dietetics, Nutrition, Kinesiology, Myology and arthrology. Achieved teaching Diplomat status from ICAK in 1988 and lectures on AK and functional biochemistry internationally. Dr Astill-Smith was awarded Assistant Professor status at the Institute of Manual Medicine in Russia.; Top of page
Richard Barrett: One of the leaders of the Whole Systems Change movement, Richard Barrett's company Corptools leads a worldwide consultancy network that helps organisations to transform to become values led. He works with leaders and senior executives in North America, Europe and Australia to develop values-driven organizational cultures that build human capital, strengthen financial performance, and support sustainable development. Richards personal vision is "To create a sustainable future (economic, environmental and social) for all mankind by accelerating the evolution and transformation of consciousness." He is author of Liberating the Corporate Soul (1998) and A Guide to Liberating your soul (1995) and will be talking for the first time about a new book at Be The Change 2005.; Top of page
Rinaldo Brutoco: President and co-founder of the World Business Academy. An expert in emergent technologies, he is a lawyer, an executive, a consultant, a writer and a public speaker. Recognized as a futurist and an agent of change, Brutoco has served on the boards of many non-profit organizations, such as The Gorbachev Foundation, Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, State of the World Forum, Center for Earth Concerns, Omega Point Institute and Brutoco Family Foundation. He is the author of Profiles in Power.; Top of page
Deepak Chopra: Formerly the Chief of Staff at Boston Regional Medical Center, Dr. Chopra built a successful endocrinology practice in Boston in the 1980's. Chopra realized in his medical practice that there was potential in western medicine for the establishment of a new life-giving paradigm, one which encompassed the fundamental principle that perfect health is more than just the absence of disease.; Acknowledged as a world leader in the field of mind body medicine, Deepak Chopra, M.D. continues to transform our understanding of the meaning of health. In 1995 he created The Chopra Center for Well Being in California, which works to integrate the best of western medicine with natural healing traditions. His mission of "bridging the technological miracles of the west with the wisdom of the east" remains his thrust as he and his colleagues conduct public seminars and workshops and provide training for health care professionals around the world. Dr. Chopra is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and a member of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.He regularly mentors corporate and political leaders through his Soul of Leadership workshops. Dr. Chopra is the best-selling author of more than 36 books.; Top of page
James A. Cusumano: After being Exxon's Director of R&D, Jim Cusumano founded Catalytica, Inc and grew it to become a successful public company with 2 divisions - Catalytica Energy Systems and Catalytica Pharmaceuticals which grew to turnover of $500m. Using advanced catalytic technologies, Catalytica Pharmaceuticals manufactured the world's supply of many important drugs for major pharmaceutical companies including AZT for treating AIDS.; After selling the pharmaceuticals arm, he moved to Prague in the Czech Republic with his wife Inez. They are renovating a castle, Chateau Mcely, to be a holistic Executive Training Center that will bring international thought-leaders to Prague to explore the power of creating productive linkages between technology and business, and the critical needs of society. Jim is Vice Chairman--Europe for the World Business Academy.; Top of page
Norman Drummond: In 1997, Norman founded Columba 1400, a purpose built prototype Community and International Leadership Centre on the Isle of Skye. Columba 1400 is open to all and welcomes the diversity brought by different cultures and backgrounds, with participants from both the mean streets and the corporate boardrooms. In particular Columba 1400 helps young people from tough, underprivileged backgrounds to discover their potential as leaders and responsible contributors within their communities.; He has been Chaplain to The Parachute Regiment, Headmaster of Loretto School, a BBC National Governor, Chairman BBC Children in Need and Founder of The Change Partnership in Scotland. He is Chairman of Drummond International, which offers an extensive portfolio of professional, business and personal development services. His latest book is The Spirit of Success: How to connect the heart to the head in work and in life.; Top of page
Lucian Gill: Professor Lucian Gill has been in industry all his working life as a professional Chemist and Engineer and has acted as visiting professor in Science with particular relevance to new types of bio-remediation on which he is a world authority.; He currently works advising major oil companies on remediation of oil field waste and particularly on the cleaning up of produced waters. His present interests are in education for sustainable development.; Top of page
Julia Hausermann: A barrister at law and MBE, Julia is the Founder and President of Rights and Humanity an organisation which leads the international movement for the promotion and realisation of human rights and responsibilities. A consultant to the UN, the governments of the UK, Jordan and South Africa, as well as numerous international organisations. A Fellow of Essex University she writes and lectures widely on human rights.; Julia's pioneering work in promoting a human rights approach to development has been adopted by many agencies. In 1997, she was commissioned by the UK Department for International Development to write a Discussion Paper on this subject. The paper was subsequently published as a book, A Human Rights Approach to Development.; Top of page
Dadi Janki: At 88 years of age, Dadi Janki is Co-administrative Head of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKWSU), with centres in 70 countries teaching Raja Yoga. Over the past 57 years, Dadi Janki has dedicated her life to the service of humanity. She began her spiritual apprenticeship in 1937 at the age of 21 and was one of the founding members of the BKWSU. Since 1974, Dadi Janki has served as coordinator for all the Brahma Kumaris' activities in countries other than India.; Acknowledgment of Dadi's work came in 1992 when she was invited to be one of the ten Keepers of Wisdom, an eminent group of world spiritual leaders convened to advise the Earth Summit in Brazil on the fundamental spiritual dilemmas which underpin current worldwide environment issues. She has travelled to numerous cities in all 70 countries, visiting the Brahma Kumaris' centres. For about four months each year she lives in Mt. Abu at the University's world headquarters and for the other eight months she works out of its International Coordinating Office in London.; Top of page
Satish Kumar: Satish undertook an 8,000 mile peace pilgrimage, walking from India to America without any money before settling in England in 1973. He has been editor of Resurgence magazine for over 30 years; qne is Director of Programme of the Schumacher College and Founder of the Small School in Hartland, a pioneering secondary school which brings into its curriculum ecological and spiritual values. In partnership with Vandana Shiva, Satish established Bija Viyapeeth (School of the Seed), an international college for sustainable living in India.; Satish teaches, lectures and runs workshops internationally on reverential ecology, holistic education and voluntary simplicity. His books include his autobiography No Destination and You Are, Therefore I Am.; Top of page
Michael Lerner: Dr. Michael Lerner has been exploring mind-body health and complementary therapies for almost 30 years. Dr. Lerner shows how those with cancer can find their own best responses to their life's challenges.; Former Yale Professor; Recipient of a MacArthur Foundation "Genius" Fellowship; Co-Founder of Commonweal Cancer Help Program, Author of Choices in Healing: Integrating the Best of Conventional and Complementary Approaches to Cancer.; Top of page
Bernard Lietaer: Bernard Lietaer is Research Fellow at the Center for Sustainable Resources of the University of California, Berkeley and was Professor of international finance at the University of Louvain. He has been involved in the world of money systems for more than 25 years, with very wide ranging experience and achievements. Bernard is cofounder of the Access Foundation, an international, educational, non-profit organization dedicated to the betterment of mankind through the understanding and use of complementary monetary innovations.; He co-designed and implemented the convergence mechanism to the single European currency system (the Euro), and served as president of the Electronic Payment System in his native Belgium. For multinational corporations he developed the first models of global currency management and he co-founded and ran one of the largest and most successful currency funds. He has consulted with developing countries on four different continents to help them improve hard currency earnings. His most recent book is The Future of Money (2001).; Top of page
Elisabet Sahtouris: Evolutionary biologist, futurist, professor, author and consultant on living systems design. Dr Sahtouris shows the relevance of biological systems to organisational design in business, government and global trade. She teaches in the Bainbridge Graduate Institute's sustainable business MBA programme and is a Fellow of the World Business Academy. Her books include A Walk Through Time, From Stardust to Us, Biology Revisioned, coauthored with Willis Harman, and Earthdance: Living Systems in Evolution. Elisabet was inspirational at last year's Be The Change event and we are delighted that she is returning this year.; Top of page
Vandana Shiva: Dr Vandana Shiva became a world leading environmentalist having gained a doctorate in quantum physics. Founder of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology as well as Navdanya, a national movement to protect the diversity and integrity of living resources, especially native seeds. Biotechnology, genetic engineering, intellectual property rights, boipiracy and womens' rights are just some of the issues on which she has led major international campaigns.; Her books include The Violence of the Green Revolution, Monocultures of the Mind, Staying Alive and Most Farmers in India are Women. Vandana has founded many institutes has been a visiting professor and lecturer and has served as an adviser to governments in India and abroad as well as NGOs such as the International Forum on Globalisation, Women's Environment and Development Organisation and Third World Network.; Top of page
Sonia Stojanovic: Sonia Stojanovic is the Founder of Integrative Journeys within which she works with Individuals, Leadership and Organisations on the design and implementation of personal and transformational culture change. The impetus for her work was born of 4 years leading Australia and New Zealand Banking Group's (ANZ) corporate cultural transformation, having assumed the role at the inception of "Breakout" in October 2000. Under her tutelage, Breakout received international acclaim and ANZ is recognised as a world leader in cultural transformation. Sonia holds a Bachelor of Science from Canterbury University, New Zealand and a Fulbright scholarship.; Top of page
You: Your participation is essential to ensure we all explore how we can Be The Change. We will provide opportunities for people to share expertise and ideas as well as reflect and share thoughts and feelings at the event:; WORLD CAFÉ
You are invited to step in and co-create Be The Change's living network of conversations around questions that matter. With the opportunity to meet in smaller dialogue groups, we'll explore some questions we hold - what inspires us? what new insights do we have? how might we intend to take our new learning forward into our life/work? - questions which lie at the heart of our capacity to share knowledge and shape the future together. Noticing the deeper patterns that connect us, insights will be converged and fed back to the whole.; CIRCLE TIME
To close each day, you are invited to join in Circle to slow down and honour the need for connectedness; taking a moment of silence and sharing reflections on the day with the conference community when moved to speak. Listening carefully to our own thoughts and the words of others we will deepen our insights, inspiration and intent.; Top of page

Workshop Leaders

Alain Forget: Alain Forget, a French philosopher working within the non-dualistic tradition, has developed a remarkably practical and rapid method that can usher in a more conscious life, liberated from fear and anxiety. This method, the 4Ds, which he presents in his forthcoming book, How To Get Out of this World Alive, dismantles the illusory guilt-generating foundations on which the sense of identity is built. As he has repeatedly demonstrated to his own students, it is only if the individual dismantles these mechanisms that he can move from making unconscious losing choices to making conscious winning choices.; The 4 Ds is designed to send the student towards the deepest parts of himself. It is paradoxically by going to these depths that consciousness can raise itself, revealing the individual's talents and his ability to make them manifest. Only if the individual can connect to a richer, happier and more abundant life can he surrender to a process of metaphysical enquiry that can in turn trigger awakening. This is the unconditioned freedom that the awakened Masters of the great philosophic and religious traditions have been discussing for millennia.; Top of page
Judith Hemming: Judith Hemming is one of Britain's foremost practitioners of Constellations, a radical and highly effective approach capable of bringing lasting positive change to complex systems. Originally developed by Bert Hellinger to promote health in family systems, Judith has been pioneering its application in organisational, educational and wider social systems. As well as running Constellations workshops and training courses for over 10 years in the UK, Europe, USA and Australia, she has been leading research projects and consulting to government and commercial organisations. A practicing Gestalt psychotherapist and writer, she is a founding member of the Hellinger Institute of Britain and Director of the nowherefoundation.; Top of page
Don Americo Yabar: Wisdom keeper of the Andes, Don Americo originates from Peru and has an international reputation as a Mystic, Healer and Visionary Poet. He is inspired by ancient world cultures, especially the wisdom of the oldest Andean traditions. The focus of his work is on bringing real and profound change into modern life. He introduces us to new ways of being, with practical skills, which allow us to naturally access our own subtle energy and inner wisdom. This brings increased confidence and a deeper sense of peace and contentment to our lives.; Top of page

Hosts

Jim Fadiman: Jim is our 'host' - a job the generously shares with the group of us who are steering Be The Change. He's a professor of Psychology, a writer of fiction and a business consultant - and he's been closely involved in many of the key developments in the humanist psychology movement from the 60s on - from succeeding Abraham Maslow to helping form Noetic Sciences and the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology. For a fascinating insight into Jim's life, have a look at this interview.; Top of page
Lawrence Bloom: Lawrence has had an innovative, highly respected and successful career in the property business. While in charge of Inter-Continental Hotels' property portfolio, he developed an environmental manual, subsequently endorsed by H.R.H. The Prince of Wales and adopted by all the major 5-star hotel groups worldwide. In 1996, Lawrence decided to take a prolonged sabbatical and began to travel the world extensively, furthering his studies of business and spiritual philosophies and practice. Lawrence's personal focus is on raising awareness of the need for individual, cultural and organizational transformation, based on sharing best practice and breakthrough technology.; Top of page
Ursula Capell: Ursula's work in the TV and branding industry lead her to seriously question communications and the personal and business integrity behind them. Realising this, she took time out to explore what she really wanted her life to be about - and discovered that others could benefit from this space too. In 2002 she founded The Create Space Company, a facilitation company working with people and business to have space to question their real priorities and work to help their actions achieve that. Ursula is also working with her partner developing eco-housing in Northern Iraq.; Top of page
Christopher Cooke: An international senior manager, consultant, coach, confidante, counsellor, trainer and qualified engineer, with over 20 years experience in pioneering and managing personal and organisational change. Christopher acts as a catalyst and is personally curious about what is really possible for leaders and their organizations.; Top of page
Tatiana Glad: Tatiana Glad is passionate about hosting meaningful conversations that lead to meaningful action for our Selves and our Planet. A skilled facilitator of learning processes and a consultant for sustainability and social responsibility, Tatiana is a partner of Engage! InterAct, co-founder of Waterlution, and a social entrepreneur (since stepping out of a role as a global change manager for Citibank!).; Top of page
Nick Hart-Williams: Currently the full-time 'organiser' of Be The Change, Nick has had a lifetime in media, with particular interest in sustainability and change. He was founder of the Other Cinema; a documentary Commissioning Editor at Channel Four; a documentary film-maker (Greenbucks, Prophets & Loss); and an internet and multi-media entrepreneur.; Top of page
Colin Morley: Colin's marketing career in the food and mobile phone industries led him to whole systems change work through Spiral Dynamics and Open Space facilitation. His mission, through his consultancy, Intentional Marketing Ltd is to help develop brands and marketing processes that transform and uplift organisations and enable them to fulfil their higher purposes.; Top of page
Helen Jane Nelson: Helen-Jane focuses on Organizational Transformation and serves leaders in building visionary and values driven organizations. She works with multicultural Leadership Teams on a global basis and specializes in Cultural Transformation and Leadership Development / Executive Coaching. She is a qualified practitioner of key integral methodologies which she applies for whole system change with clients.; Top of page
Sir John Whitmore: Recently voted Britain's top business coach, John works with major Public and Private sector clients in UK, Scandinavia, Central Europe, Russia and Australia. Best selling author (Coaching for Performance), journalist and lecturer. Founder of The May Lectures in 1974 - and 30 years later co-creator of Be The Change. Introduced the transpersonal into coaching and lectures worldwide on coaching. Co-founder of two coaching consultancies, one here and one in Australia. Ex-professional racing driver, British and European Championships.; Top of page