Disciplinary Interests: environment

Alyson Vogel
Academic program developer, coach and project manager with significant expertise in course design, curriculum planning, online teaching, training, coaching & mentoring and major event logistics & execution. In depth knowledge of media education and of integrating the Internet and new media into teaching & learning. Researching, developing, administering and evaluating large and small scale adult education courses, conferences, seminars and study tours. Design and teach workshops for teachers on web and data mining, document publishing, grant writing and the use of social media tools. My experience in course programming and media education spans nearly 10 years. Most recently I was a Program Development Specialist for Teachers College, Columbia University until our organization was closed as a result of restructuring. At Teachers College I liaised with faculty and administration to research, develop, administer and evaluate hundreds of large and small scale adult education courses, conferences and study tours. I am best known for my soup to nuts approach to academic project management, and I add a unique blend of coaching and mentoring support to thought leaders in their field who want to communicate for ultimate impact with their students in the new millennium.
Mark Peterson
Mark Peterson is an Associate Professor in the graduate school of human and environmental studies at Kyoto University
Dr. Ludmila Smirnova
Ludmila Smirnova is Associate Professor of Education at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, N.Y. Prior to coming to the U.S., she was professor of education at Volgograd State Pedagogical University, Russia, where she also served as Dean of the School of Foreign Languages. During her 25-year Russian career, Dr. Smirnova was known for her work in innovative approaches to teaching. She played a key role in creating a model Ecological Gymnasium and other experimental “charter schools” in Southern part of Russia. A number of her Ph.D. students and scores of Masters students worked with her to produce comparative studies of successful innovative efforts in education. Dr. Smirnova has been a Montessori trainer, and has run seminars and training programs for Montessori teachers in Russia, Holland and the U.S. Moving to the U.S. in 2000, she brought this focus on innovation into the realm of emerging Web technology, where she quickly became recognized for her leadership in Web applications to education. She has used her own teaching to drive her learning, regularly offering such courses as Curricular Planning, Methods of Teaching, Nature of Schools and Society and Teaching with Technology.
Erick Groot
Erick Groot is a professor in the Biology Department with a cross appointment in the Fisheries & Aquaculture Dept. at Malaspina University-College on the west coast of Canada. He teaches a variety of courses including introductory biology, animal physiology, human anatomy & physiology, and aquatic ecology at both the junior and senior undergraduate levels.