Explore MINDS is a collection of transcripts, gathered from interviews with the non-profit leaders featured in Explore films. It is your chance to dig deeper into the story, to find out the answers to your questions, and to gain a deeper understanding of the real struggles and rewards of the non-profit world.
Mark Marble, AccesSurf
Mark is a therapeutic recreation specialist who truly exhibits the Hawaiian spirit of "pono," or righteousness. Through AcesSurf he is helping people with disabilities enjoy the ocean through beach access, adaptive surfing instruction, and other water activities.
Kaliko Amona, Kokua Hawai'i Foundation
Kaliko Amona started out as a volunteer coordinator for the very first Kokua Festival and now leads environmental programs for kids through the Kokua Hawai'i Foundation.
Juliano Mer Khamis, The Freedom Theatre
Juliano Mer Khamis is an actor, director and filmmaker - but his greatest work lies in the creation of a theatre in the Jenin Refugee Camp that provided a creative outlet for local youth in an emotionally charged environment.
Ken Balcomb, Center for Whale Research
Ken Balcomb is often recognized as the scientist who discovered that Navy sonar might be responsible for beaching the whales. He has been involved in documenting the population and behavior of orcas, or killer whales, in the Greater Puget Sound since 1976.
Sangeeta J.K., Kiran Centre
Sangeeta J.K. is the founder of the Kiran Centre, a place for differently-abled children to learn and grow in a holistic manner. The Centre also provides parents with a much-needed respite from their daily struggles, and helps them understand how to give their children what they need to develop into strong adults.
Craig Sholley, African Wildlife Foundation
Craig Sholley is a wildlife biologist and conservationist who is renowned for his work with the Mountain Gorilla Project in Rwanda.
Dr. Prabhavati Dwabha, Ramana's Garden
Dr. Prabhavati Dwabha is the founder of Ramana's Garden, a home for children in India that provides education, food, and healthcare to those in lower castes, whom might otherwise be neglected in society.
Pjya Swami Chidanand Saraswati, India Heritage Research Foundation
Pjya Swami Chidanand Saraswati is a renowned spiritual leader who is the founder and chairman of the India Heritage Research Foundation.
Dr. Chinny Krishna, Blue Cross of India
Dr. Chinny Krishna is the Chairman of the Blue Cross of India, one of India's largest animal welfare organizations.
Jo-Anne Dixon, The Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley
Jo-Anne Dixon practiced veterinary medicine for 10 years before becoming the medical director of the Wood River Valley Animal Shelter - Idaho's first "no kill" shelter - in early 2006.
Wen Bo, Pacific Environment
Wen Bo is the Beijing-based China programme co-director of Pacific Environment, a San Francisco environmental group working to protect the environment around the Pacific Rim. He is also an Asia Society fellow.
Mrs. Triveni Balkrishna Acharya, Rescue Foundation
Mrs. Triveni Balkrishna Acharya, as the leader of the Rescue Foundation, is committed to protecting and promoting the human rights of women, girls, and children by working to eradicate human trafficking. She often takes a lead in conducting raids on brothels in India.
Dr. Richard Taylor, EARTH University
Dr. Richard Taylor is a professor at EARTH University in Costa Rica, where students come from 25 countries to learn methods for sustainable agriculture and conservation.
Tom Iselin, Sun Valley Adaptive Sports
Tom Iselin is the Executive Director of an Idaho-based program that uses sports and recreation as healing and therapy for people with disabilities, including service members who have been severely wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Denise Herzing, Wild Dolphin Project
Denise Herzing founded the Wild Dolphin Project to study free-ranging Atlantic spotted dolphins - "in their world, on their terms." She is currently writing a book with that title.
Emilia Casella, World Food Programme
Emilia Casella is in Darfur working on one of the world's biggest humanitarian crises, providing food to residents of war-torn Sudan.
Oren Yakobovich, B'Tselem
Oren Yakobovich is Director of Video at B'Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories.
Dr. Suniti Solomon, YRG CARE Center
Dr. Suniti Solomon and her dedicated team of researchers, doctors, and counselors have been helping people living with HIV since 1993.
Blake McElheny, North Shore Community Land Trust
Blake McElheny is leading an effort to protect the pristine coastline of Oahu’s North Shore, home to one of the most famous surf breaks in the world.
Honoré Gatera, Kigali Memorial Centre
Honoré Gatera is the head guide at the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre in Gisozi, Rwanda - one of Aegis Trust's two international centers of reflection and learning.
Africa
Arctic
India
Middle East
China
Bahama Islands
Costa Rica
Hawaii
Tibet
Jackson Hole
New Orleans
Pacific NW
Los Angeles
Sun Valley
