Seane Corn
Social Champion Off the Mat into the World
Web site: www.seanecorn.com
Seane Corn is a nationally celebrated yoga instructor known for her passionate, dynamic and inspirational style of teaching that incorporates both the physical and spiritual aspects of the yoga practice. Seane has been on the covers of Yoga Journal, Nike Goddess, Inner Vision and Healing, Retreat and Spa Magazine and has been featured in other magazines including Glamour, Fitness, Self and Allure, who recognize her as "one of the most sought after yoga teachers in Los Angeles." Seane created the yoga program at Children of the Night a shelter that houses and educates adolescent prostitutes. She serves as the National Yoga Ambassador for YouthAIDS (www.youthaids.org) which raises funds, provides services and spreads national awareness surrounding this global emergency. Seane is the resident yoga expert for Dr. Caroline Myss's web site.
Taj James
Board of Directors
Web site: www.movementstrategy.org
Taj James is Executive Director of Movement Strategy Center, a group known for its work in building widespread coalitions and developing long-term movement strategies. Before starting the Movement Strategy Center, Taj was the Director of Youth Policy and Development at Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth. Previous to his position at Coleman, Taj worked as the Western Regional Field Organizer for the Black Student Leadership Network (BSLN), a project of the Children's Defense Fund. Taj has served on numerous advisory boards, including that of LISTEN, Inc., We Interrupt This Message, The Praxis Project, Youth United for Community Action (YUCA), the Gay-Straight Alliance Network and the California Fund for Youth Organizing. He has published numerous articles on youth organizing and empowerment. Taj was the recipient of a Next Generation Leadership fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation and was named a “Local Hero” by the San Francisco Bay Guardian.
Marianne Manilov
Board of Directors, Executive Director
Marianne Manilov is a grassroots organizer and media strategist. In her 22-year professional career, she’s run campaigns and programs for groups such as Amnesty International and Greenpeace International. She is the co-founder and former Executive Director of The Center for Commercial-Free Public Education, home of the UNPLUG campaign against Channel One. Under Marianne’s direction, the Center was credited with bringing the issue of corporate influence and advertising in schools onto the national agenda, including congressional hearings. She serves on the board of directors of the Movement Strategy Center and EarthRights International. She is part of the Full Circle Fund, a network of engaged philanthropists.
Rob McKay
Board of Directors
Web site: www.democracyalliance.org
Rob McKay is the Chair of the Democracy Alliance, a donor collective of major progressive political donors working to increase grassroots participation in progressive issues and to create a long-term progressive voter base. Rob is also President of the McKay Family Foundation, which supports community-based organizations working for long-term social, political, and economic progress. Last year, he served as Chair of the California Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on the development of the state plan for the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). Rob serves as managing partner for the McKay Investment Group, which provides venture capital for early-stage technology and consumer product companies. He also serves on a number of corporate and non-profit boards, including the Ms. Foundation for Women, the San Francisco Art Institute, Salon Media Group, Foodfit.com, Vanguard Public Foundation, and Mother Jones magazine. He writes a blog for the Huffington Post.
Ina Pockrass
Board of Directors
Web site: www.transcendentist.com, www.circleoflife.org
Ina Pockrass is a sustainable business leader and marketing expert who, together with her husband Dr. Fred Pockrass, founded the first eco-friendly dental spa in the country: Transcendentist. She is now building the Eco-Dentistry Association, an international network for eco-friendly dental professionals. Ina is an intellectual property attorney and for many years led the intellectual property team at the San Francisco office of Heller Ehrman, White and McAuliffe, LLC and Pillsbury Madison and Sutro, LLC. She is the founding Board Chair of Circle of Life, the organization that served as the incubator for the Engage Network.
Alissa Hauser
What's Your Tree Team Leader
Web site: www.whatsyourtree.com
Alissa Hauser is a longtime nonprofit manager and administrator with an MBA in Nonprofit Management. For 7 years, she was the Executive Director of Circle of Life leading their efforts to create and produce the most eco-friendly large-scale rock concerts in the U.S. Alissa produced several promotional and educational video projects, including a visual guide to “greening events.” Prior to her work with Circle of Life, she was the Executive Director of Resourceful Women which provided financial education and philanthropic support to socially progressive women. Alissa has served on several nonprofit advisory boards and boards of directors, including Active Music, an organization that raises money through celebrity music events, Ruby’s Clay Studio and Bitch Magazine.
Julia Butterfly Hill
Social Champion, What's Your Tree
Web site: www.juliabutterfly.com
Julia Butterfly Hill brought international attention to the plight of the world’s last remaining ancient forests when, in 1997, she climbed 180 feet up a 1000 year-old Redwood tree and refused to come down. Her historic 738-day protest of the environmental destruction caused by clear-cutting ancient redwoods culminated with a negotiated agreement that provided permanent protection for the tree (“Luna”) and a nearly 3 acre buffer-zone. She is author of the national best seller The Legacy of Luna and One Makes The Difference, both published by HarperSanFrancisco. For the past 7 years, Julia has toured the world giving presentations at universities, conferences, concerts and community events on each person’s power and responsibility to change the world. Today, Julia is passionate about her work as a life coach, and continues to enjoy joyful vegan cooking and making visual art.
Social Champion Off the Mat into the World
Web site: www.seanecorn.com
Seane Corn is a nationally celebrated yoga instructor known for her passionate, dynamic and inspirational style of teaching that incorporates both the physical and spiritual aspects of the yoga practice. Seane has been on the covers of Yoga Journal, Nike Goddess, Inner Vision and Healing, Retreat and Spa Magazine and has been featured in other magazines including Glamour, Fitness, Self and Allure, who recognize her as "one of the most sought after yoga teachers in Los Angeles." Seane created the yoga program at Children of the Night a shelter that houses and educates adolescent prostitutes. She serves as the National Yoga Ambassador for YouthAIDS (www.youthaids.org) which raises funds, provides services and spreads national awareness surrounding this global emergency. Seane is the resident yoga expert for Dr. Caroline Myss's web site.
Taj James
Board of Directors
Web site: www.movementstrategy.org
Taj James is Executive Director of Movement Strategy Center, a group known for its work in building widespread coalitions and developing long-term movement strategies. Before starting the Movement Strategy Center, Taj was the Director of Youth Policy and Development at Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth. Previous to his position at Coleman, Taj worked as the Western Regional Field Organizer for the Black Student Leadership Network (BSLN), a project of the Children's Defense Fund. Taj has served on numerous advisory boards, including that of LISTEN, Inc., We Interrupt This Message, The Praxis Project, Youth United for Community Action (YUCA), the Gay-Straight Alliance Network and the California Fund for Youth Organizing. He has published numerous articles on youth organizing and empowerment. Taj was the recipient of a Next Generation Leadership fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation and was named a “Local Hero” by the San Francisco Bay Guardian.
Marianne Manilov
Board of Directors, Executive Director
Marianne Manilov is a grassroots organizer and media strategist. In her 22-year professional career, she’s run campaigns and programs for groups such as Amnesty International and Greenpeace International. She is the co-founder and former Executive Director of The Center for Commercial-Free Public Education, home of the UNPLUG campaign against Channel One. Under Marianne’s direction, the Center was credited with bringing the issue of corporate influence and advertising in schools onto the national agenda, including congressional hearings. She serves on the board of directors of the Movement Strategy Center and EarthRights International. She is part of the Full Circle Fund, a network of engaged philanthropists.
Rob McKay
Board of Directors
Web site: www.democracyalliance.org
Rob McKay is the Chair of the Democracy Alliance, a donor collective of major progressive political donors working to increase grassroots participation in progressive issues and to create a long-term progressive voter base. Rob is also President of the McKay Family Foundation, which supports community-based organizations working for long-term social, political, and economic progress. Last year, he served as Chair of the California Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on the development of the state plan for the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). Rob serves as managing partner for the McKay Investment Group, which provides venture capital for early-stage technology and consumer product companies. He also serves on a number of corporate and non-profit boards, including the Ms. Foundation for Women, the San Francisco Art Institute, Salon Media Group, Foodfit.com, Vanguard Public Foundation, and Mother Jones magazine. He writes a blog for the Huffington Post.
Ina Pockrass
Board of Directors
Web site: www.transcendentist.com, www.circleoflife.org
Ina Pockrass is a sustainable business leader and marketing expert who, together with her husband Dr. Fred Pockrass, founded the first eco-friendly dental spa in the country: Transcendentist. She is now building the Eco-Dentistry Association, an international network for eco-friendly dental professionals. Ina is an intellectual property attorney and for many years led the intellectual property team at the San Francisco office of Heller Ehrman, White and McAuliffe, LLC and Pillsbury Madison and Sutro, LLC. She is the founding Board Chair of Circle of Life, the organization that served as the incubator for the Engage Network.
Alissa Hauser
What's Your Tree Team Leader
Web site: www.whatsyourtree.com
Alissa Hauser is a longtime nonprofit manager and administrator with an MBA in Nonprofit Management. For 7 years, she was the Executive Director of Circle of Life leading their efforts to create and produce the most eco-friendly large-scale rock concerts in the U.S. Alissa produced several promotional and educational video projects, including a visual guide to “greening events.” Prior to her work with Circle of Life, she was the Executive Director of Resourceful Women which provided financial education and philanthropic support to socially progressive women. Alissa has served on several nonprofit advisory boards and boards of directors, including Active Music, an organization that raises money through celebrity music events, Ruby’s Clay Studio and Bitch Magazine.
Julia Butterfly Hill
Social Champion, What's Your Tree
Web site: www.juliabutterfly.com
Julia Butterfly Hill brought international attention to the plight of the world’s last remaining ancient forests when, in 1997, she climbed 180 feet up a 1000 year-old Redwood tree and refused to come down. Her historic 738-day protest of the environmental destruction caused by clear-cutting ancient redwoods culminated with a negotiated agreement that provided permanent protection for the tree (“Luna”) and a nearly 3 acre buffer-zone. She is author of the national best seller The Legacy of Luna and One Makes The Difference, both published by HarperSanFrancisco. For the past 7 years, Julia has toured the world giving presentations at universities, conferences, concerts and community events on each person’s power and responsibility to change the world. Today, Julia is passionate about her work as a life coach, and continues to enjoy joyful vegan cooking and making visual art.
Hala Khouri
Off the Mat into the World, Team Leader
Web site: www.halakhouri.com
Hala Khouri is the National Team Leader for Off the Mat into the World. She has been teaching the movement arts for sixteen years. Her roots are in Ashtanga, Iyengar and Anusara yoga, dance, Capoeira, CORE energetics, and the juicy mystery of Life itself. Hala earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Religion from Columbia University and has a Master's degree Counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Hala has taught yoga and the movement arts to a wide variety of people ranging from schizophrenics and at-risk youth to mommies and rock stars. Teaching is her absolute favorite thing to do! She currently lives in Santa Monica, California.
Suzanne Sterling
Off the Mat, into the World Leadership Team
Web site: www.suzzanesterling.org
Suzanne Sterling is part of the founding and leadership team of Off the Mat into the World. She is an acclaimed ecstatic vocalist and composer, performing at and facilitating retreats and workshops in the U.S. and abroad. Suzanne has been a featured artist at several Yoga Journal Conferences, Esalen Institute and the Institute of Noetic Sciences and has performed and toured internationally for many years. Along with Hala Khouri, Seane Corn, Ashley Turner, and Julian Walker, Suzanne is also co-founder of The Yoga Groove Collective, a group of yoga teachers, musicians and activists dedicated to creating benefit classes and events that serve the yoga community and several other important causes. Suzanne is a ritual designer and priestess and developed curriculums, teacher trainings and apprenticeship programs for numerous communities nationwide.
Ori Brafman
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.oribrafman.com
Ori Brafman is the author The Starfish and the Spider: the Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations and the author of the recently-released book Sway. Born in Israel and raised in Texas, Ori Brafman has been a lifelong social entrepreneur. Ori holds a BA in Peace and Conflict Studies from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. As an alumnus, Ori has facilitated an MBA course on interpersonal dynamics at the Stanford Business School. When he was still in college, he co-founded Vegan Action, which successfully launched a network with thirty-six national and international chapters. He brought vegan foods into numerous college dining halls. Since then, Ori has led marketing campaigns for UC Berkeley’s Young Musicians Program, prevented fast food companies from advertising in schools, led marketing efforts for a healthy fast-food startup, and been a founding team member of Courtroom Connect, a courtroom technology company. Together with Rod, Ori co-founded Global Peace Networks, which catalyzed a network of CEOs working on conflict resolution and economic development in Africa and the Middle East.
Allen Gunn
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.aspirationtech.org
Allen Gunn, Executive Director of Aspiration Technology has over twenty years of software development and capacity building expertise. He has shepherded large software projects through all stages of development: from inception, design, development, and testing to deployment, support and marketing in environments ranging from start-up to large corporation to nonprofit. Drawing on engineering, senior management, and volunteer experiences, gunner is a skilled communicator, trainer and facilitator in both the nonprofit and corporate sectors who is passionate about helping nonprofits and NGOs make better use of software technology. He has been closely involved with the US and international technology activist communities; the Silicon Valley engineering, venture, and funding world; environmental activists and organizations, and academic communities. He is a firm believer in melding hard work with serious fun.
Erin Potts
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.atctower.net
Erin Potts is the Executive Director of Air Traffic Control. In her early twenties, Erin created the Tibetan Freedom Concerts with the Beastie Boys. Described as the “Best Festival in the World”, the concerts produced international awareness, while mobilizing hundreds of popular musicians, raising over $5 million, and turning tens of thousands of young people into activists for Tibet. Erin’s almost two decades of work with culture makers has melded music and activism into increasingly compelling, creative, and effective engagement strategies. Erin writes a culture blog at because strategies.
David Salie
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.party2win.org
David Salie, co-founder of Party2win.com, a powerful fund raising and organizing portal for organizations of all sizes. Invited by Governor Howard Dean to work on his presidential campaign in 2002, David Salie became Dean for America's Director for House Party fund raising. Over the course of the campaign, David built relationships with grassroots leaders nationwide, and developed a new outreach strategy for political campaigns. David now works with political campaigns, non-profit groups and businesses to replicate aspects of this grassroots outreach and fund raising model.
Michael Silberman
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.echoditto.org
Michael Silberman Director and Senior Strategist of Echo Ditto. Michael managed the Howard Dean campaign's successful Meet up operation in over 1,200 cities worldwide. He speaks frequently on the effective use of technology for converting online activity into real-world action. Michael managed grassroots field organizing and leadership development programs for Dean's renowned activist base, and he implemented an innovative communication strategy that kept thousands of grassroots leaders engaged and directly connected to the national headquarters. Michael also gained valuable organizing and political experience at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and in the Clinton White House at the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). He graduated on skis with a B.A. from Middlebury College.
Off the Mat into the World, Team Leader
Web site: www.halakhouri.com
Hala Khouri is the National Team Leader for Off the Mat into the World. She has been teaching the movement arts for sixteen years. Her roots are in Ashtanga, Iyengar and Anusara yoga, dance, Capoeira, CORE energetics, and the juicy mystery of Life itself. Hala earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Religion from Columbia University and has a Master's degree Counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Hala has taught yoga and the movement arts to a wide variety of people ranging from schizophrenics and at-risk youth to mommies and rock stars. Teaching is her absolute favorite thing to do! She currently lives in Santa Monica, California.
Suzanne Sterling
Off the Mat, into the World Leadership Team
Web site: www.suzzanesterling.org
Suzanne Sterling is part of the founding and leadership team of Off the Mat into the World. She is an acclaimed ecstatic vocalist and composer, performing at and facilitating retreats and workshops in the U.S. and abroad. Suzanne has been a featured artist at several Yoga Journal Conferences, Esalen Institute and the Institute of Noetic Sciences and has performed and toured internationally for many years. Along with Hala Khouri, Seane Corn, Ashley Turner, and Julian Walker, Suzanne is also co-founder of The Yoga Groove Collective, a group of yoga teachers, musicians and activists dedicated to creating benefit classes and events that serve the yoga community and several other important causes. Suzanne is a ritual designer and priestess and developed curriculums, teacher trainings and apprenticeship programs for numerous communities nationwide.
Ori Brafman
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.oribrafman.com
Ori Brafman is the author The Starfish and the Spider: the Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations and the author of the recently-released book Sway. Born in Israel and raised in Texas, Ori Brafman has been a lifelong social entrepreneur. Ori holds a BA in Peace and Conflict Studies from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. As an alumnus, Ori has facilitated an MBA course on interpersonal dynamics at the Stanford Business School. When he was still in college, he co-founded Vegan Action, which successfully launched a network with thirty-six national and international chapters. He brought vegan foods into numerous college dining halls. Since then, Ori has led marketing campaigns for UC Berkeley’s Young Musicians Program, prevented fast food companies from advertising in schools, led marketing efforts for a healthy fast-food startup, and been a founding team member of Courtroom Connect, a courtroom technology company. Together with Rod, Ori co-founded Global Peace Networks, which catalyzed a network of CEOs working on conflict resolution and economic development in Africa and the Middle East.
Allen Gunn
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.aspirationtech.org
Allen Gunn, Executive Director of Aspiration Technology has over twenty years of software development and capacity building expertise. He has shepherded large software projects through all stages of development: from inception, design, development, and testing to deployment, support and marketing in environments ranging from start-up to large corporation to nonprofit. Drawing on engineering, senior management, and volunteer experiences, gunner is a skilled communicator, trainer and facilitator in both the nonprofit and corporate sectors who is passionate about helping nonprofits and NGOs make better use of software technology. He has been closely involved with the US and international technology activist communities; the Silicon Valley engineering, venture, and funding world; environmental activists and organizations, and academic communities. He is a firm believer in melding hard work with serious fun.
Erin Potts
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.atctower.net
Erin Potts is the Executive Director of Air Traffic Control. In her early twenties, Erin created the Tibetan Freedom Concerts with the Beastie Boys. Described as the “Best Festival in the World”, the concerts produced international awareness, while mobilizing hundreds of popular musicians, raising over $5 million, and turning tens of thousands of young people into activists for Tibet. Erin’s almost two decades of work with culture makers has melded music and activism into increasingly compelling, creative, and effective engagement strategies. Erin writes a culture blog at because strategies.
David Salie
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.party2win.org
David Salie, co-founder of Party2win.com, a powerful fund raising and organizing portal for organizations of all sizes. Invited by Governor Howard Dean to work on his presidential campaign in 2002, David Salie became Dean for America's Director for House Party fund raising. Over the course of the campaign, David built relationships with grassroots leaders nationwide, and developed a new outreach strategy for political campaigns. David now works with political campaigns, non-profit groups and businesses to replicate aspects of this grassroots outreach and fund raising model.
Michael Silberman
Strategic Advisor
Web site: www.echoditto.org
Michael Silberman Director and Senior Strategist of Echo Ditto. Michael managed the Howard Dean campaign's successful Meet up operation in over 1,200 cities worldwide. He speaks frequently on the effective use of technology for converting online activity into real-world action. Michael managed grassroots field organizing and leadership development programs for Dean's renowned activist base, and he implemented an innovative communication strategy that kept thousands of grassroots leaders engaged and directly connected to the national headquarters. Michael also gained valuable organizing and political experience at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and in the Clinton White House at the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). He graduated on skis with a B.A. from Middlebury College.