Advisory Board

Eric Newman
Vice President of Organic Valley

Eric Newman has been involved with Organic Foods sales and marketing for over 25 years. An advocate for small farmers, he was the President of the Southwest Montana Chapter of the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) for seven years, worked with the Alternative Energy Resources Organization (AERO) and is an active member of the Montana Organic Growers Association.

Eric began his career in the restaurant business in 1974 and until 1989 actively managed two restaurants in La Jolla California, and ultimately owned two operations in Montana. His work has included management positions as Director of Procurement for the Missoula School District #1 school lunch program, seven years with a Natural Foods Retail Cooperative in Bozeman Montana, and as an Organic feed and forage sales manager for Jersey Pride Inc.

Eric has worked for CROPP Cooperative as the Vice President of Sales, for the past thirteen years, responsible for all global sales. CROPP cooperative with annual revenues forecasted at $538 million for 2008, is the largest organic farmer owned cooperative in North America and owns the Organic Valley ® and Organic Prairie ® brands. CROPP also owns Organic Logistics LLC a third party logistics solution which manages freight, warehousing and delivery of CROPP products and an additional 25 nationally branded refrigerated and frozen natural and organic foods. He sits on the Board of Organic Logistics and the executive management team of CROPP Cooperative. He is an active member of the Organic Trade Association, the Food Marketing Institute’s Natural Foods committee and is involved with their Sustainability initiative.

Eric resides in Viroqua Wisconsin with his wife, Caroline and son Will and enjoys cooking, gardening and the playing outdoors whenever time allows.

Dr. Leonard Coldwell
Board Certified NMD DNM PHD LCHC CNHP DIP.PHC Post curricular degrees and Education Masters in Herbology and Nutrition, ND, special training in Chiropractic and Medical Hypnotherapy and Relaxation techniques, certified education in Iridology.

Dr Coldwell is the most endorsed Doctor for holistic medicine and educational self help systems, and his IBMS and Stress reduction system is the most endorsed and sold system in the world. Dr Leonard Coldwell is, in the opinion of leading authorities, the leading expert for Burn-Out-Syndrome and stress related illness.

He is a 14 times bestselling author, radio show host, TV personality, syndicated columnist, consultant and educator for the leading institutions in the world, and has 243 personal development systems on CD and DVD . Dr Coldwell’s latest book The Only Answer to Cancer sold out in 4 days and the second edition within 11 days this book is now already in the 3rd printing and the fourth Edition is already been bought off by the largest direct book publisher in the world.

Dr Coldwell’s radio show is voted the most successful and is the most downloaded show of its kind in 2009. Dr Coldwell will soon have his own TV channel and show.

Dr. Coldwell has, based on the conclusion of 2 independent studies, the highest cancer cure rate in the world – 92.3% with over 35 000 patients. He had over 2.3 million seminar attendees and is supported by nearly every leader in the field of health. Dr Coldwell has 2.2 million subscribers to his newsletter and over 7 million frequent readers. A tracer email with his newsletter reached over 54 million people.

His IBMS™ ( Instinct Based Medicine® System™ is legendary as well as Dr. Coldwell himself who’s most famous patient is Consumer Advocate and Infomercial King Kevin Trudeau. Dr Coldwell is the founder of the Foundation for Drug and Crime Free Schools and Health for Children and the president of the World Wellness Organization.

Because Dr Leonard Coldwell’s achievements are too much too many to list please visit his website www.DrLeonardColdwell.com

Brock Dolman
Biologist/Ecologist, Founder & Principle of Permacopia

Brock Dolman is the Director of the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center’s WATER Institute and Permaculture Program, and he co-directs their Wildlands Biodiversity Program. He designed and instructs Basins of Relations (a watershed restoration course) and permaculture-related courses. Brock manages the OAEC’s biodiversity collection, orchards and 70 acres of wild lands. Living up to his specialized generalist nature, and rekindling the dwindling art of the peripatetic natural historian, his experience ranges from the study of wildlife biology, native California botany and watershed ecology, to the practice of habitat restoration, education about regenerative human settlement design, ethno-ecology, and ecological literacy activism towards societal transformation.

Brock recently published Basins of Relations: A Citizen’s Guide to Protecting and Restoring Our Watersheds. Brock has consulted on dozens of permaculture and watershed restoration projects around the world. He is currently helping to develop Salmon Creek School (public school in Sonoma County) as a leading environmental education center.

Brock has presented at numerous conferences, such as the Bioneer's Conference, on permaculture and other related topics. In May 2007, Brock was a keynote speaker at the International Permaculture Convergence in Brazil. Brock is recognized as a leader in the field of watershed restoration.

Kendall Dunnigan
Ecologist, Founder & Principle of Permacopia

Kendall Dunnigan is an ecologist, permaculture/landscape designer, and educator. She holds a masters degree in Ecological Education. Her work focuses on finding eco-social solutions to current environmental crisis facing humanity. Specific topics include: permaculture design, sustainable agricultural, urban agriculture, community food security, habitat restoration, and democratic decision-making.

Kendall is an ecologist, community organizer and teacher. She has over fifteen years of hands-on experience teaching and facilitating the cultivation of ecological literacy and community environmental change. For the past decade, Kendall has been the Director of and faculty member in the B.A. program in Culture, Ecology and Sustainable Communities at New College of California’s North Bay Campus in Santa Rosa, California. Her instruction focuses on environmental sustainability, sustainable agricultural education, developing school and community gardens, community food security, popular education, and skill building for democratic engagement.

Kendall is also a co-founder and principle in Permacopia, an ecological design consulting firm, and is on the faculty at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, where she teaches 2-week Permaculture Design courses. Formerly, Kendall was the Executive Director of the Berkeley Community Gardening Collaborative, and an instructor for University of California Extension Service Master Gardeners Program. She co-authored a book for the American Community Garden Association called Growing Communities: How to Build Communities Through Community Gardening. She has worked as a youth outdoor environmental educator for many years, including at Walker Creek Ranch, Ocean Song Farm and Wilderness Center, and in Guatemala.

Kendall is recognized for her project management, group facilitation, and teaching skills in the areas of land management and permaculture design. She is a professor in Dominican University of California’s Green BA in Sustainable Communities.

Roger Drummer
NCCAOM Diplomat of Chinese Herbology

Roger’s 29 years of experience ranges from formulating personalized tonic herb and nutritional programs for tens of thousands clients, including many notable celebrities. He has created nutritional supplement product lines, consults and teaches courses to the public on health and nutrition and training apprentices in the art of Herbalism. In addition, Roger is the spokesperson for Functional Fungi, a grower and distributor of medicinal mushrooms for whom he lectures on the immune properties of mushrooms.

Roger holds a U.S. patent for growing biologically active, anthocyanin rich medicinal mushrooms. He has given hundreds of lectures in the past 10 years on a variety of health related issues including Chinese herbology, Roger has studied a variety of healing modalities, including Jin Shin Do, Shiatsu and Pranic Healing. Roger is a published writer, Certified Herbalist, Certified Nutritionist, public speaker, educator, a former triathlete, runner, cycling enthusiast, husband and father of three girls.

Cary Losson
Founder and President of Inverness Holdings, Inc

Cary is an equity partner and consultant with a variety of companies, including EarthClub. These businesses, whether product or service oriented, are devoted to making the Earth a cleaner, more equitable and healthier place for all. The diversity of the companies is broad – ranging from artisan organic popsicles to a global all-natural health supplement company to a company which offers large scale environmental services centered on water conservation and sanitation issues.

In the mid-1990s, Cary founded INVERNESS Real Estate Investments, formerly 1031 Exchange Options, a leading investment firm focused on real estate securities. Clients of INVERNESS have acquired more than $4 billion of commercial real estate nationally. In 2010, INVERNESS finalized a formal agreement with Oppenheimer & Co. Cary will continue to be involved in consulting through Inverness Holdings, Inc.

Cary, his wife and four children live in the Santa Barbara wine and horse country, Santa Ynez, CA. He enjoys traveling, reading, ranching, hiking, living a healthy lifestyle, and is a wine enthusiast. Passionate about global pollution, health awareness issues and humanitarian causes, Mr. Losson is an active member of the Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation, Union of Concerned Scientists, Environmental Defense Fund and other grassroots environmental and humanitarian organizations.

Cary holds a BS in Political Science & International Relations from California State University Long Beach. A believer in lifelong learning, he has continued to complete post-grad business coursework and substantial continuing education requirements.

Peter Velardi
Former Senior VP of Ameriprise Financial

Peter Velardi has helped individuals and organizations unlock their potential for over 28 years. During his career, Peter has successfully developed over 1,000 highly successful advisors, leaders, entrepreneurs, and small businesses through a formula of talent, focus, and execution.

For the last 10 years, Peter has served the small business community as a consultant, advisor, investor, and mentor. His most recent clients include Dinova, LLC; eRollover; and Forte Printing. His background includes leading organizations through start-ups, turnarounds, realignments, acquisitions, and divestitures.

Previously, Peter had a 25+-year career as a financial services executive, most recently as Senior Vice President, US Advisor Group for Ameriprise Financial Advisors, Inc. At Ameriprise (formerly American Express Financial Advisors), Peter built numerous top-performing networks of personal financial advisors at the practice, district, regional, and national levels, including a field force of 5,000+. In addition, he had national responsibility for field leadership development.

Peter holds a BS/BA in Business Administration from Boston University School of Management. He is a Certified Financial Planner and holds active securities and insurance licenses.

Steve Ehlinger
CFO EcoCapital and Elevate Films,
Former CFO of EcoMedia

Steve Ehlinger has over 20 years of experience in the areas of finance and operations management, as well as a strong background in marketing and information systems. Steve is a leader in exploring and extending the intersection of consciousness and business. He is also the Chief Financial Officer of EcoCapital, LLC, an environmental investment group.

Steve has served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for EcoMedia (www.ecozonemedia.com), where he was instrumental in structuring critical financing for the creation of this cutting-edge national media company founded in 2002. Prior to his tenure at EcoMedia, Steve was Managing Director for the asset management company Adams O’Connell, Inc., as well as Morgan Adams, Inc. He has expertise in a broad range of financial management areas, including policy formulation, capital structuring, and financial reporting. He holds master's and bachelor's degrees in business administration.

 

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