Located in the heart of NYC in Hearst Tower, the Good Housekeeping Research Institute is a consumer product testing, advocacy, and education facility. Miriam Arond oversees a staff of engineers, chemists, nutritionists, and other scientists dedicated to helping consumers navigate a confusing marketplace.

Under her direction, GHRI launched the Green Good Housekeeping Seal in 2009, an environmental extension of the Good Housekeeping Seal, to help consumers sift through the clutter of “green” claims on hundreds of products on store shelves. Throughout her career, Miriam has been a champion of family, health, and consumer advocacy issues. Before joining Good Housekeeping in 2007, she was Editor in Chief of Child magazine, a parenthood publication that won over 40 awards for editorial and design excellence during her tenure. Prior to that, Miriam was Editor in Chief of American Health, a women’s health magazine. She has been a guest on The Today Show, CBS Early Show, Good Morning America, CNN American Morning, and numerous other TV and radio talk shows.

Mike Kapalko promotes SCA’s environmental and hygiene initiatives and consults with customers to help them become more sustainable. He has more than 14 years experience working in the away-from-home sanitary paper market. Mike has appeared on the TV show, “Designing Spaces: Think Green” twice, Wisconsin Public Television, and an interview for Sky Radio airing on US Air and American Airlines, offering up his expertise in hygiene and sustainability. He is a certified ServSafe food safety instructor, an active member of the GreenBiz Executive Network, Healthy Schools Campaign, U.S. Green Building Council, National Environmental Health Association and a founding member of David Gottfried’s Regenerative Network. Mike has also been a contributing author for various online and print publications such as Cleaning & Maintenance Management, Maintenance Sales News Magazine, QSR Magazine, and Operator’s Edge on topics such as greenwashing and “green” purchasing habits. He also orchestrated SCA’s successful effort to earn a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most people simultaneously sanitizing their hands to promote healthy habits for Global Handwashing Day 2010.

the bio: Emmy Award winning host, Steve Thomas, consults on residential building and renovation for clients all over the United States. He celebrated his final year as host of television's most popular home improvement series, This Old House, during the 2002/2003 television series. Over the course of his 14 years as host, Steve became known as the "ultimate home enthusiast" and helped catapult This Old House to the top of PBS's list of most-watched ongoing series of all time. He also contributed to the successful debut of Ask This Old House, the all-new series in which viewer questions are addressed on-air, as host during its first year.

Steve was honored with a 1997-1998 Daytime Emmy Award and nine nominations for "Outstanding Service Show Host," Not surprisingly, his enthusiasm for fixing up old houses was influenced by his father, whom he described as a "true weekend warrior - fearless and always ready to take on any project." Steve's first project on his own was to renovate a run down 1920s residence in Olympia, Washington. He then continued working in the field in the Pacific Northwest until moving to Massachusetts in 1980.

the legacy: In between projects, Steve's yen for adventure, which he attributes to his late grandfather, a missionary in the Alaskan Arctic, inspired him to combine his love of fine woodworking with his passion for the sea and sailboats. In 1977, Steve worked as a carpenter on a 75-foot ketch being built in Antibes, France. Over the next few years, he logged many blue-water miles sailing a 43-foot wooden sloop from England to San Francisco via the Panama Canal, Galapagos, Marquesas and Hawaii.

In the early 1980s, Steve journeyed to the remote Micronesian island of Satawal to learn the ancient technique of star path navigation under the master navigator Mau Piailug. Steve's research resulted in the critically acclaimed book The Last Navigator published in 1987. The next year Steve returned with a film crew to shoot a documentary of the same title for the PBS series Adventure. It was in 1989, in between research trips to the Alaskan Arctic for a second Adventure book and film, when Steve received a call from the Adventure series publicist, who also worked for This Old House. The show's producers were conducting a national search for a new host, and the rest is history.

the expert: An "expert in demand" on television shows such as Oprah!, Today, CNN, Entertainment Tonight, and the CBS Early Show, Steve describes This Old House as "one of the best adventures of my life." He has contributed to the Homeowner's Manual, published by This Old House Books in 2000, and has authored the best-selling books This Old House Kitchens and This Old House Bathrooms, published by Little, Brown and Company in 1992 and 1993. His column for This Old House magazine, "House Calls with Steve" was tremendously popular with readers.

Steve hosted and co-produced the Save Our History series on The History Channel and Renovation Nation, on Planet Green.

Steve received his bachelor's degree in philosophy from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington.

the family: Steve has renovated an 1846 Greek revival and an 1836 Colonial revival for his family in Salem, MA. He now lives on the coast of Maine in a green, energy-efficient cottage he recently renovated.

Lou Nowikas is the director of real estate and facilities planning at Hearst Corporation, where he manages the overall operations of the company’s real estate portfolio in New York, including the Gold LEED-certified Hearst Tower, the company’s global headquarters. In this role, he is responsible for leading the efficient and high-quality operations of the Corporation’s properties and all related services offered to tenants, including property management, mail and messenger services, food service operations and fitness/wellness facilities.

In 2004, Lou joined Hearst to oversee the design and construction of Hearst Tower, which opened in October 2006. Prior to Hearst, Lou was a project manager for Goldman Sachs in the Jersey City design and construction team. Before that, he was a project manager with CUH2A, a science and technology architecture & engineering design firm based in Princeton, N.J., and spent the previous seven years managing facility-related projects in the Consumer Products Research and Development division at Warner-Lambert Company (now Pfizer).

He is on the Board of Directors for the New York Chapter of CoreNet Global, a leading organization for corporate real estate professionals. He also serves as the chair of the organization’s Learning Committee. Lou is often invited to speak on topics related to green building and operations.

Lou holds a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Drexel University and a master’s degree in engineering management from The New Jersey Institute of Technology.

John is the CEO of The SOAP Group, a communications consulting firm that activates sustainability and social justice through projects that create positive cultural dialogue. John is the author of the book More Than Promote – A Monkeywrencher’s Guide to Authentic Marketing. He teaches writing and marketing strategy, and is a frequent writer and speaker on the intersection of Language, Culture and Sustainability.

His latest project, Authenticating Real, measures the authenticity gap between what companies say and what they actually do in order to improve their business performance.

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An award-winning journalist, Dan Shapley is the senior editor of The Daily Green.com. The Daily Green is a comprehensive source of "real green for real people," covering topics ranging from the latest global warming news to the best recipes for busy parents.

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Mary Shaughnessy is vice president group account director with Chicago-based integrated marketing firm Cramer-Krasselt. In addition to leading public relations brand marketing initiatives at the agency, Mary also leads C-K’s sustainability practice, effectively driving awareness of clients’ green initiatives and efforts. She helped Sealy Mattresses and its investment firm, KKR, announce its partnership with the Environmental Defensive Fund and its participation in EDF’s Green Portfolio Program. Mary was also instrumental in helping SCA to create a council of thought leaders that provide independent feedback and advice on SCA’s environmental and hygiene initiatives, assisting in SCA’s goal to make the world a cleaner, greener place to live and work.

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Holly Heline Jarrell is Group Managing Director of the GfK Roper Consulting and GfK Roper Public Affairs & Corporate Communications practices of GfK Custom Research North America. In this dual role, Holly leads the firm's advocacy, public opinion, corporate reputation and communications research activities. She also directs GfK's syndicated consumer trends and consulting services, including ROPER REPORTS US™, ROPER REPORTS Worldwide™ and Green Gauge,™ the nation’s longest running environmental study. Combining over two decades of primary research acumen with global trend-spotting expertise, Holly counsels clients on effectively using the freshest research-based insights to meet their business and organizational objectives.

Prior to GfK, she was Global Director, Insights and Research for MS&L, a top-10 global public relations firm and part of Publicis Groupe. A member of MS&L’s North American Management Team, Holly created, launched and developed the firm’s insights-based research function. In this capacity, she was instrumental in developing thought leadership for the firm’s marketing to women, consumer health, and word of mouth marketing functions, as well as MS&L's Eco Network, the firm’s environmental practice.

Holly was also a Senior Vice President of the Daniel Yankelovich Group (DYG), a premiere "boutique" consumer trends practice

Holly is currently and elected member of the Institute for Public Relations Commission on Measurement and Evaluation and the Market Research Council.

She received her Master's degree in public affairs from the University of Connecticut, where she concentrated in survey research. She is a magna cum laude graduate of Connecticut College.

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Tim Kenyon is Director for the Green Gauge® Study - the longest running survey of consumer environmental attitudes and behaviors. In his current role, Tim consults with a variety of Fortune 500 clients, Governments, and Non-Profits looking to understand consumers and the environment in the United States and abroad.

Prior to joining GfK, Tim was a Research Analyst for the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA). At the NJDA, he spearheaded many research initiatives concerning agribusiness and the environment. Tim has also worked as an Analyst for the New Jersey Solid Waste Policy Group at Rutgers University. Within this roll, Tim helped to influence recycling policy within the state of New Jersey.

While studying Environmental and Agricultural Economics at Rutgers University, Tim was an instructor for the class “Economics, People, and the Environment.” Tim was also a fellow at The Eagleton Institute of Politics where he studied issues surrounding the environment and agriculture in New Jersey.

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Mark Crumpacker became the first Chief Marketing Officer at Chipotle in January 2009. Mark has long standing ties with Chipotle having created the original brand identity when the company was founded in 1993. At Chipotle, Mark is responsible for developing and implementing marketing strategies across a wide range of customer touch points including advertising, online, social media, in store, events, direct marketing and entertainment marketing.

Prior to joining the executive team at Chipotle, Mark worked for San Francisco based Sequence, a design consulting firm he founded in 2003. Prior to Sequence, Marked worked as the president and COO of Planet Out Partners and as the CEO and creative director of Studio Archetype, a San Francisco-based agency that was acquired by Sapient in 1997. Mark attended the University of Colorado and holds a degree from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.

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Robert Safian is editor and managing director of the award-winning monthly business magazine Fast Company. He oversees all editorial operations, in print and online, and plays a key role in guiding the magazine's advertising, marketing, and circulation efforts. Robert, 46, was named 2009 Editor of the Year by Adweek and recognized as 2008 Innovator of the Year by B-2-B Media. Under his leadership, Fast Company has received numerous accolades: a three-time National Magazine Award Finalist, two-time winner of Magazine of the Year from the Society of Business Editors and Writers; twice honored with the prestigious Gerald R. Loeb Award for Distinguished Business Journalism, among many others. The publication was named to the Ad Age A-list in 2008 and, for three consecutive years, to the Adweek Hot List.   

Robert came to Fast Company in 2007 from Fortune, where he served as executive editor. Prior to that, he was an executive editor at Time and headed Money as its managing editor for six years. Robert was honored in 2000 by Crain's New York Business as one of the "40 Under 40" top young business executives in New York City and was named to New York Magazine's "35 Under 35" the previous year. Robert has appeared on CNN and other TV networks and has been a featured speaker at events ranging from the Cisco Systems CIO Summit to Chicago’s City of the Year luncheon with Mayor Richard Daley. Robert began his career with a seven-year tenure at The American Lawyer, where he rose from summer intern to executive editor. He joined SmartMoney in 1994 and moved to Fortune in 1997. Money was a National Magazine Finalist four times under Robert's leadership. He also played key roles in securing National Magazine Awards for The American Lawyer, SmartMoney and Time.

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Dr. Michael S. Brown has worked in environmental and energy management for 25 years leading efforts to establish cutting-edge programs in industry and government. Clients in his consulting practice, Brown And Wilmanns Environmental, have included firms in apparel manufacturing and retailing, mail order, personal care products, footwear, and winemaking along with a public sector municipality and nonprofit organizations. A Partial client list includes: Aramark, Aveda, Cartridge World, Kinko’s, Columbia Sportswear, Good Housekeeping Research Institute, Lubrizol, New Balance, Nike, Norm Thompson Outfitters, Patagonia and Timberland. Michael directed the Environmental Assessment Program at Patagonia, the outdoor clothing company recognized for its state-of-the-art environmental practices. His work in state and local government agencies resulted in the development of innovative technical assistance programs for businesses ranging from manufacturers of high tech components and biomedical devices to auto body shops and dry cleaners. His focus is on providing measurable environmental and energy improvements and bottom-line benefits through creative approaches to environmental issues integrated with an appreciation for the diversity and needs of different business organizations. Michael received his M.R.P. and Ph.D. degrees from the Department of City and Regional Planning, specializing in environmental health policy, at Cornell University. He has written and spoken extensively on state-of-the-art environmental practices and is co-author of the book, Workers at Risk. Michael serves as an Assistant Editor for the Journal of Industrial Ecology.

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An accomplished and surefooted leader, Tim Thornhill is focused on the advancement of Mendocino County and the “greening” of Parducci winery, the heart of Parducci. “Sustainability is not a noun but an active evolution,” he says. “We always find room for improvement.” Tim is dedicated to the well-being of his community, his extended family and their 250 acre ranch: La Ribera in Talmage, Ukiah Valley.

Born and raised in Houston, Tim describes himself as someone who “started out with a pickup truck and a wheelbarrow and kept working his way up.” As a young man he established a landscaping business in Texas. In 1980 Tim moved to Orlando, Florida where Walt Disney World became his largest account. Following 11 years in Florida, Tim moved to New York State and developed extensive botanical gardens for a private client. Tim’s pioneering work as an arborist and horticultural expert resulted in his mastery of a unique specialty: successfully moving and re-establishing very large, old trees. Known worldwide for his work with heritage trees, Tim consults today as a Supreme Court Certified Expert Witness in horticulture and construction. He also addresses professional groups, such as the Green Industry Expo. “I can save many more big trees by teaching other people how to safely work around them,” says Tim.

One day, while living in New York State, Tim took inventory of his successes and concluded that his life’s work had helped other people realize their dreams and fantasies. He then set out to build on his own vision: “To reunite our extended family on several hundred acres of land where we can grow something.” It took four years, visits to ranches across the U.S. and repeated due diligence before Tim and his brother Tom found La Ribera Vineyard, one of Mendocino County’s finest properties. The Thornhill family purchased the ranch in 2002; by the end of the year, Tim, his wife Roselle and their son Tyler moved to La Ribera. Six months later, parents Tommy and Ann Thornhill relocated here from Houston. Kate, Tim’s daughter, followed soon after. Brother Tom and family, involved in both the vineyard and Parducci, split their time between their home in Marin County and the ranch.

Tim views Mendocino County as a great, undiscovered land where history, agriculture, fresh air, natural beauty and warm-spirited people create a comfortable lifestyle. Tim has a passion for changing other people’s perceptions, and his goal is to raise the value of Mendocino grapes, making farming more profitable and the vineyards more valuable than other kinds of land development.

“I see Parducci as a way for Paul, Tom and me to work together to benefit the community while improving things environmentally,” says Tim. The goals of the three men and their families align: build community, expand the business opportunities and safeguard the environment. Each of the partners has a specialty. Tim is in charge of day-to-day operations, redevelopment of the old Parducci winery and community relations. He spends time each day in the winery’s historic tasting room. Captivated by the history of the old Parducci facility, Tim is collecting and archiving old winery equipment, photos and other records from the past.

Using his vast experience as an innovative landscaper, Tim has designed wetlands and ponds to recycle all winery waste water. “Reduce use and re-use are where I begin. We are so careful about paper here at Parducci, we even recycle our recycled paper. Now we need to focus on water.”

To realize the company’s goal of enhancing the recognition and perception of Mendocino County wines, Tim spearheaded the development of the Mendocino Winegrape & Wine Commission. This organization, approved by industry vote, assesses growers and vintners, raising funds to promote the reputation of grapes and wines from the county.

Visionary Tim Thornhill is sensitive to being a newcomer in a region where third and fourth generations farm their family vineyards. The newly arrived Thornhill family has a motto: leave it better than you found it. They are sinking their roots deep in Mendocino County and proving their commitment to the community and environment, and demonstrating their confidence in the area’s economic potential.

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Diane MacEachern is a prominent green expert and award-winning entrepreneur who recently received the “Image of the Future” award from the World Communication Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Named one of America’s EcoHeroes by Glamour magazine, she was also included on Earth & Industry’s List of “16 Women in Sustainability You Must Follow” as well as Blogtrepreneur’s “100 Must Read Green Blogs for Women.” Diane founded Big Green Purse to inspire women to use their consumer clout to protect the planet and themselves, and Big Green Purse at Work to help companies, government agencies and non-profits achieve greater sustainability. She is also a founding member of the Green Moms Carnival, which won Twitter’s first Shorty Award for green content. A best-selling author, Diane’s “how to go green” books have collectively sold almost four hundred thousand copies. Her writings have also appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Baltimore Sun, Christian Science Monitor, Family Circle, Self, and many more. Diane’s most recent book, Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World, was a finalist for the prestigious Books for a Better Life award. When Diane’s not blogging at www.dianesbiggreenpurse.com , she provides expert advice, consumer guidance, and employee engagement workshops to such companies as Avon, St. Ives, Whole Foods, Frito Lay, American Bankers Association, Pacific Life Insurance, Ceridian, Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, Norfolk Southern Railroad, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the American Society for Training and Development.

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Susan Arnot Heaney joined Avon Products, Inc. in June 1997 with the goal of working for a company committed to corporate citizenship and empowering women. She has worked for both the Avon Foundation and Avon Products, Inc., serving since 2006 as Director of Corporate Responsibility for the company. Susan is responsible for developing and implementing strategic global communications and mobilization programs in support of Avon’s corporate responsibility agenda, with a current focus on the Hello Green Tomorrow environmental program. She is also responsible for the company’s Corporate Responsibility Report and reporting to stakeholders who track goals, metrics and performance.

Susan has helped Avon achieve #16 of the “Best 100 Corporate Citizens,” #52 on the Newsweek “Green Ranking” and #28 on the “Corporate Social Responsibility Index Top 50,” as well as a 2010 Ladies Home Journal Do Good Award.

In addition to Hello Green Tomorrow, Susan has played a leadership role in award-winning programs such as Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund, Global Forum for Women and Justice, Avon Walk for Breast Cancer and Speak Out Against Domestic Violence.

Prior to joining Avon, Susan was Director of Public Relations and Corporate Communications for Elizabeth Arden, and spent over a decade in the business side of publishing, including two years at USA Today during the newspaper’s initial rollout.

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Nick Harris is the Director of Digital Marketing for Benjamin Moore Paints, a Berkshire Hathaway Company, celebrating over 127 years in the business of premium residential, commercial and industrial paints and coatings. Nick is responsible for Benjamin Moore’s digital, social and mobile strategies.

Born and raised in the U.K., Nick chose Canada as home for twenty five years. During that time, he joined Benjamin Moore in Toronto and took on the role of National Manager of Professional Services. In 2006, Nick moved to the U.S. and assumed the directorship of brand marketing for Benjamin Moore.

Nick believes that successful brands are much more about action than words and must work constantly to earn proximity to their customers - always remaining relevant, accessible and enduring.

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Ken Kobrick is an entrepreneur who went from certified welder to handbag designer. He co designs luxury handbags, satchels and duffels form recycled tractor tire inner tubes.

Ken was building water treatment equipment until his partner, entrepreneur Angela Greene, brought home a trunk full of old dirty tire inner tubes from a local tire center.

Having no formal fashion design training, his company, Passchal, went from sewing basic crafty looking bags in his garage to one of the top 10 Eco-Luxury handbag companies in the industry. To date 56 tons of inner tubes has been collected and reused to make Passchal bags for men and women.

Having an Associates degree in computer graphics, Ken oversees all website development, social media marketing and manufacturing. Working with his hands most of his life allows him to easily create prototypes of new designs that the partners painstakingly create.

Their first marketing efforts were an immediate hit with the media who labeled Passchal as “Eco-Luxury”. When they started the venture they were not really thinking of recycling. They thought the inner tubes were amazing because the tubes are like individual pieces of art, each having their own distinct lines and embossed patterns”. But soon they were collecting more and more tubes that were destined for the landfill.

Ken’s interviews have included Entrepreneur magazine, BBC Radio, CNN and West Coast Women. The bags have appeared on the Today Show, Japan’s Fuji TV, Access Hollywood and back stage at the Tony Awards.

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Bob Davino is the Vice President of Marketing for Nestlé Waters North America. In this role since 2000, Bob’s mission is to oversee the marketing activities for North America’s third largest non-alcoholic beverage company.

The company is recognized across the U.S. and Canada for providing refreshment to meet people’s healthy lifestyle goals through its bottled water and natural bottled tea products. The company’s foundation is the size and strength of its regional spring water brands, such as Poland Spring and Deer Park, its nationally distributed Nestlé Pure Life brand, and its iconic international brands Perrier and S. Pellegrino.

Bob is responsible for overseeing the brand marketing, management and activation for Nestlé Waters North American portfolio of leading domestic and imported water brands. He is also responsible for product and packaging development, retail channel marketing and retail shopper insights.

A 15-year veteran of Nestlé Waters, Bob joined the Company in 1996 as Director of Brand Marketing. His professional 26-year background experience includes assignments in marketing, sales and finance, and category experience in the beverage, dairy and fresh produce industries.

Bob earned his undergraduate degree in accounting and finance from The William Paterson University and his marketing MBA from The Montclair State University.

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Aliza Freud is a savvy, young entrepreneur who is pioneering new territory in the word-of-mouth women’s marketing space. She has proven expertise in brand marketing and true passion for giving women their due share of voice in product development and communications campaigns.

Aliza is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SheSpeaks, Inc. SheSpeaks is a unique women’s insights and word-of-mouth marketing network that stages and showcases products, services and content for companies that want to establish a direct dialogue with target female consumers. Through its unique relationship with a diverse, national network of female members, SheSpeaks helps client companies spark women’s interest, obtain candid feedback, grow word-of-mouth awareness, and build long-term brand advocates.

Understanding the tremendous power that women have as consumers, Aliza conceived the idea for SheSpeaks and founded the company in February of 2007. Recognizing women in the U.S. represent more than $5 trillion dollars in spending every year and make over 85 percent of all purchasing decisions, Aliza found that smart companies also appreciated women as a growing economic force and had a need to understand women’s preferences in much greater depth.

Aliza also observed that in this era of increasing consumer control over media, marketers need to be smarter about winning consumers’ attention, and are beginning to integrate rapidly evolving social networking tactics into the marketing mix. Aliza founded SheSpeaks on the principle that women would thrive in a dedicated online community where they could come together, connect with other women and see the power of their voices in action.

Since SheSpeaks launched, its member network has grown to over 50,000 women from across the U.S. SheSpeaks has successfully tested products and services for leading brands in the beauty, packaged goods, and media industries, including Philips, Dove® chocolates, Oxygen, AOL, Martha Stewart, and others.

SheSpeaks won a 2007 Stevie Award for Women in Business for Best New Service of the Year, which recognizes the accomplishments of outstanding women executives, business owners, and the companies they run.

Before founding SheSpeaks, Aliza was an executive at the American Express Company’s Global Advertising and Brand Management group and led global brand enhancement initiatives. In her 10 years at American Express, Aliza earned multiple patents for innovating new financial and membership card services.

Aliza holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and is actively involved in the Columbia University alumni community, addressing various groups on marketing, entrepreneurship and women in business. She most recently served as a member of a panel on controlling brand image in a consumer-controlled world. Aliza also recently addressed the Forbes Leadership Network Forum, the Health & Beauty Association Global Expo and the KidPower Food & Beverage Conference on topics related to word-of-mouth marketing.

In addition to running her own business and speaking at industry conferences, Aliza is a mother of two and serves on the board of Step Up Women’s Network, a non-profit organization dedicated to developing the next generation of female philanthropists.

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Bringing nearly ten years of award-winning strategic communications experience specializing in sustainability, cause marketing and social engagement, Kara Gaffney has a passion for developing creative communications programs that enable and encourage social change.

At PainePR Kara oversees social media strategy for P&G’s Future Friendly, a multi-brand conservation education program aiming to spark motivation in women online and at home to take small steps to conserve. Working with P&G’s myGIVE social sustainability program that connects consumers to P&G brands that give back, Kara leads a team that earned P&G recognition as one of the top ten cause campaigns of 2010 by Ad Age for its innovative “Clean Water Blogivation” initiative bringing together over 350 bloggers to donate water to people in developing countries.

Kara previously worked at global communications firm Burson-Marsteller, building corporate reputation, corporate responsibility and digital programs for brands such as Intel, Comcast, Thomson Reuters and Coca-Cola; and before that had stints at Publicis Advertising and Seventeen Magazine. In her spare time, Kara co-chairs the Executive Committee of the New York City Leadership Committee for the nonprofit buildOn.

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Michael Parrish DuDell is a writer, speaker, and entrepreneur. He is the managing editor of The Domino Project – a new publishing venture started by Seth Godin and powered by Amazon -- as well as a senior editor at Ecorazzi.com. Michael is also a frequent contributor to publications like The Huffington Post, Crazy Sexy Life, and VegNews magazine.

In 2009, Michael cofounded the Sustainable Leadership Council — a coalition of experts focusing on food sustainability in New York City. Michael regularly consults with companies on issues relating to Generation Y and social change and is currently working with American Express on the ZYNC card. Michael is twenty-seven years old and lives in New York City.

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Jasper van Brakel serves as CEO and President of Weleda North America, a fully owned subsidiary of the Swiss Weleda Group, a worldwide industry leader in natural, organic skin care and anthroposophic medicine. Since July 2008, Jasper has led Weleda North America through a major growth initiative, working to elevate the brand’s presence and educate the consumer about the importance of natural skin care.

Weleda pioneered natural, organic and Biodynamic® skin care 90 years ago and has since held sustainability, fair trade and authenticity as its core values. Building on this strong heritage, Jasper is committed to growing consumer awareness about safe cosmetics and expanding Weleda’s position in the North American market.

Prior to his role as CEO of Weleda North America, Jasper held various positions at Weleda AG in Germany, most recently as a Director of Sales.

Jasper joined Weleda in 2002 as a strategic project manager and rapidly took on additional leadership responsibilities. During his tenure with Weleda AG in Germany, he was responsible for strategic sales and marketing initiatives for the company’s skin care and medical business units.

Before coming to Weleda, Jasper worked as an account executive for the Dutch company Ormit BV, which specializes in Management Development. Prior to that, he worked as a project manager and consultant in various companies, focusing on new business development and controlling. Having grown up in the Netherlands, he graduated in 1998 with a Master of Science in Economics from Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands. Jasper now resides in New York with his wife and three children.

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