Advisory Council: A Collective Vision
Our Advisory Council is a cornerstone of wisdom and guidance, bringing together a diverse group of experts, thought leaders, and innovators dedicated to the Amazon’s future. With expertise spanning environmental science, sustainable development, community engagement, and global policy, these advisors provide invaluable insights that shape our strategies and amplify our impact. Their collective vision ensures our work remains aligned with cutting-edge research, systems design, finance, policy, land rights, and the urgent need for bold, effective action to protect and restore the Amazon Rainforest.
Atossa Soltani
Amazon Sacred Headwaters
LinkedIn
Atossa Soltani has spent over three decades advocating for indigenous peoples' rights and rainforest protection. She founded and led Amazon Watch and now directs global strategy for the Amazon Sacred Headwaters Initiative. Atossa is recognized for her leadership and has produced a documentary on aligning with nature. She has also served as a trustee and board chair for the Christensen Fund, supporting biocultural diversity. Atossa's campaigns have achieved significant victories for rainforest protection, indigenous land rights, and corporate accountability.
Carlos Nobre
Science Panel for the Amazon
LinkedIn
Carlos Nobre is a prominent Brazilian Earth system scientist and climatologist, internationally recognized for his research on the Amazon rainforest and its critical role in global climate regulation. He has been a leading voice in warning about the tipping point at which deforestation could trigger the Amazon’s transition into a savannah-like state. Nobre served as Vice Chair of the IPCC and has contributed extensively to climate policy and environmental initiatives. He is also the creator of the Amazon 4.0 project, which promotes a bioeconomy model harnessing the Amazon's biodiversity through sustainable technologies and innovation. His work focuses on sustainable development, ecosystem restoration, and innovative solutions to combat deforestation and climate change in the Amazon and beyond.
Rob de Laet
Founder of Cooling the Climate
Climate Strategist, Co-author of Cooling the Climate
Organizations: Global Evergreening Alliance https://www.evergreening.org/ Cooling the Climate Amazon Rainforest Project, CoolingtheClimate.Earth, Project Lead.
Dutch, born in 1956, world traveler, serial entrepreneur, building an international ecotourism company with partnerships in seventeen countries, philosopher, climate activist, rewilding a damaged part of the Brazilian rainforest and working to avert the dieback of the Amazon Rainforest by strengthening the biotic pump over the area. Co-author of the book ‘Cooling the Climate - How to Revive the Biosphere and Cool the Earth Within 20 Years’.
As a principal member of the EcoRestoration Alliance and a fellow of the Global Evergreening Alliance, Rob is developing the Cooling Climate Chaos project together with Peter Bunyard and others to reverse the climate crisis fast, working from the Lovelockian Gaia perspective to restore the Earth’s metabolisms through the restoration of the water cycles and regeneration of the biosphere. Three tipping points need to be averted right now to avoid wholesale civilizational collapse: the dieback of the Amazon Rainforest, the collapse of ocean biology, and the collapse of Arctic Sea ice. This can be done if the world wakes up and acts at the speed and scale needed.
Download a free copy of Rob de Laet and Peter Bunyard’s book Cooling the Climate here.
Peter Bunyard
Peter Paul Bunyard is a British environmental scientist, author, and lecturer known for his work in climate science, rainforest ecology, and hydrology. He has extensively studied the Amazon rainforest's role in regulating the Earth's climate and is a strong advocate for ecological restoration to combat climate change. Bunyard has authored several books and numerous articles on environmental issues, emphasizing the interconnectedness of ecosystems and the importance of preserving biodiversity. In his experiments he has proven the existence of the biotic pump phenomenon. He is co-author together with Rob de Laet of the book Cooling the Climate: How to Revive the Biosphere and Cool the Earth within 20 years. His work highlights the urgent need to restore degraded landscapes and protect natural systems to ensure a stable and resilient planet.
Dr. Stuart Cowan
Buckminster Fuller Institute
LinkedIn
Dr. Stuart Cowan, executive director of the Buckminster Fuller Institute, brings 25 years of experience in regenerative design, finance, and systems and is a skilled systems thinker, transition designer, researcher, and leader of transdisciplinary initiatives. He is the Co-founder of Autopoiesis LLC, which works to regenerate communities, ecosystems, and organizations. Dr. Cowan was the founding convener of the Regenerative Communities Network from 2018-20, supporting 15 bioregions on their journeys of regeneration.
Stuart brings a diverse range of experiences, including Chief Scientist at the Smart Cities Council, Transaction Manager for the sustainable investment fund, Portland Family of Funds, and Conservative Economy Research Director at the non-profit Ecotrust. He is the co-author of Ecological Design with Sim Van der Ryn (Island Press, 1996/2007) and received his doctorate in Applied Mathematics from U.C. Berkeley with a focus on Complex Systems and Ecological Economics. He has taught and facilitated internationally for academic institutions, cities, companies, indigenous groups, government agencies, and NGOs. He is also an advisor to several international regeneration initiatives, including Common Earth.
Anita Sanchez
Organization: Sanchez Tennis & Associates, LLC
LinkedIn
Named a 2020 World-Changing Woman by Conscious Company, Anita Sanchez, Ph.D., is a transformational leadership consultant, speaker, coach, and author of the international award-winning bestseller, “The Four Sacred Gifts: Indigenous Wisdom for Modern Times,” available in hardback, paperback, audiobook and eBook, from Simon & Schuster. With four decades of experience coaching and training executives and their teams in dozens of Fortune 500 companies, governmental groups, and non-governmental agencies, Anita is a recognized leader in global organizational change initiatives, where she bridges indigenous teachings with the latest science to inspire and equip women and men to enjoy meaningful, empowered lives and careers. She is a member of the Transformational Leadership Council, as well as the Association of Transformational Leaders, and serves on the Boards of the Pachamama Alliance, Bioneers, and the Evolutionary Business Council.
Benjamín Sánchez Adam
Organization: United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
LinkedIn
Benjamín Sánchez Adam is a dedicated professional with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), where he focuses on advancing sustainable land management and combating desertification globally. With expertise in environmental policy, international cooperation, and project development, Benjamín works to promote innovative solutions for restoring degraded lands and supporting communities affected by climate change. Benjamin has offered to bring the project to the UNCCD.
David Hodgson
Organization: Stealth Network
LinkedIn
David Hodgson, the founder of Stealth Network, the environmental services organization, is the global voice of social entrepreneurship and a resilient and regenerative future. Hodgson is currently activating an ecosystem that realizes the state of significant sociopolitical fragmentation worldwide by 2050. His analysis includes the failure of states with resulting rapid, enduring, and significant loss of capital), and extinction events.
“Humanity is destroying the fabric of life that we call nature I am weaving and activating an ecosystem of visionary social entrepreneurs who are working to manifest a regenerative global economy.”
Edivan Guajajara & Ronilson Flay Guajajara
Edivan Guajajara and Ronilson Flay Guajajara are two young Forest Guardians of the Guajajara People in the Arariboia Indigenous Territory of Brazil. They both have worked on creating movies about the destruction of the Amazon in their area and are actively protecting the forest by patrolling it, which is dangerous. Thirty of them have been killed since 2012 in confrontations with criminals.
Edivan Guajajara is one of two idealizers of the Mídia Indígena communication network. As an activist and filmmaker, he creates photographs and documentaries focused on the perspectives of indigenous people, showing their struggle for land protection and defense of Mãe Terra. Edivan is the director of the award-winning film We Are The Guardians [Netflix]. As a designer and video editor, he uses his world to create works of art that give visibility to the permanent struggle of two Brazilian Indigenous people, who have endured for 521 years.
Ronilson ‘’Flay’’ Guajajara is a filmmaker and photographer from the Guajajara people in Maranhão, Brazil, who co-founded the "Mídia Índia" network to amplify indigenous voices across Brazil. Flay has produced several short films highlighting Indigenous communities' cultural and territorial realities. One of his notable works is the documentary "Ka'a Zar Ukyze Wà - Forest Keepers in Danger," which brings attention to the threats faced by the uncontacted Awá Guajá tribe due to deforestation. Additionally, Flay was an executive producer for the 2023 documentary "We Are Guardians," which focuses on the communities and the vital ecosystem of the Amazon.
Ali Bin Shahid
Ali Bin Shahid is a systems architect and regenerative land designer based in Islamabad, Pakistan, known for blending engineering precision with ecological wisdom. His work bridges diverse disciplines, integrating insights from Greek medicine, permaculture, and hydrology to craft resilient landscapes and communities. Ali follows the Regrarians approach to land management, drawing inspiration from his studies under Larry Korn—Masanobu Fukuoka’s student—and Darren Doherty. With a background in aeronautics, navigation, and mechatronics, Ali applies a systems-thinking lens to large-scale ecological restoration.
Ali is the author of the Substack newsletter r3genesis, dedicated to regenerative climate care and translating transformative practices into actionable strategies for landscape restoration. His expertise is sought in discussions about the role of integrated design and natural systems in repairing hydrological cycles and addressing climate challenges.
Jakub Molski
Jakub P. Molski is a British entrepreneur and financial professional with experience in investment banking, asset management, and fintech. He has held leadership roles such as Chief Corporate Development Officer at Omnio and Co-Founder/Co-CEO of Chicken Financial. Jakub has also been involved in investments at Hoist Finance and business development at Rocket Internet. He holds a Master’s degree from ESCP Europe and currently serves as a director at Clean Valley Capital Limited, driving impactful environmental change through innovative financial solutions.
Bru Pearce
Bru Pearce is MD and founder of Envisionation Ltd, a UK-based organization focused on understanding and providing solutions for global environmental degradation. Envisionation translates climate science into commercial risk assessments. Envisionation has developed a Biosphere Restoration Plan and is launching Empathy Economics, enabling everyone to invest in the delivery of the plan. The Plan takes a business-based approach to a sustainable future by engaging the global corporate and financial communities in biosphere repair.
Bru is a yachtsman turned international property developer with experience in delivering marinas, ports, and resorts. Experiencing Category Five Hurricane Ivan in 2004 led me to establish Envisionation Ltd Grenada, focused on sustainable solutions.
Jon Schull
EcoRestoration Alliance
LinkedIn
Jon Schull is a biological psychologist, inventor, entrepreneur, and digital community organizer. He founded e-NABLE, an online philanthropic community that designs and fabricates open-source, affordable 3D-printed prosthetic hands and arms for individuals with upper limb differences. citeturn0search2 Schull has served as a research scientist at Rochester Institute of Technology's Center for Media, Arts, Games, Interaction, and Creativity. He is also the co-founder of the EcoRestoration Alliance, a global network dedicated to restoring the planet's climate by revitalizing the biosphere. Throughout his career, Schull has been recognized for his innovative contributions to human-computer interaction and adaptive systems, holding multiple patents in these fields.
‘’We live on a live planet that can respond to the changes we make, either by canceling the changes or by canceling us.”
— James E. Lovelock, The Revenge of Gaia