connection

Elizabeth Zerk founded Upon Return, an organization dedicated to supporting the alumni of high school exchange programs and promoting cultural exchange. She's also dedicated to the art of storytelling. [http://uponreturn.org]

Jim Kwik is the founder of Kwik Learning. He's taught memory improvement, speed-reading, and accelerated learning skills for almost two decades, to learners from more than 60 nations. [www.kwiklearning.com]

Accomplished beauty expert and author, Elizabeth TenHouten has devoted her career to bringing out the best in women, naturally. Her book, Natural Beauty: Homemade Recipes for Radiant Skin & Hair features recipes for homemade topical treatments and skincare remedies. [www.elizabethtenhouten.com]

Two truths and a lie about Rama Hughes: He dropped out of school to work on a farm. About 15 years before they met, he described his wife accurately in a letter. He wrestled bear cubs while working as a zookeeper. [www.ramahughes.com]

Georgia Gwynne-Gruber was a rapper/singer in the rock band Weapons before arriving in Los Angeles to pursue screenwriting. Her science fiction trilogy Darklight is presently in development.

Ryan is a filmmaker, video blogger, and gay rights activist. He recently began prepping his first documentary film, which will focus on the unfair treatment of LGBT individuals in the U.S. [www.ryanjamesyezak.com]

Angela Dunning founded Equine Reflections in 2007 to share her passion for learning life skills through interactions with horses. In addition she writes and dances the Argentine Tango. [www.equinereflections.co.uk]

Aaron Ableman is an acclaimed "edutainer." He grew up under the mentorship of Hopi elders and children's musician Raffi, and has shared stages with K'NAAN and Joan Baez, among others. [www.balanceedutainment.com]

Within six years, Debra Oakland lost her son, her unborn child, two brothers, and her father. Instead of giving up, she chooses to live in courage, joy, and power. [www.livingincourageonline.com]

Andy Lipkis is the founder and president of TreePeople. [www.treepeople.org]

Jennifer Sherman is a Senior Director of Applications Strategy at Oracle Corporation, where she works with public and private sector organizations to transform their supply chains and distribution networks. [www.ted.com/tedx]

Steve Robertson is the founder and CEO of Project Peace On Earth, a music, entertainment ,and transmedia company producing inspirational content that benefits a variety of worldwide charitable causes. [www.Project-PeaceOnEarth.org]

Dr. Tiny Jaentsch is trained in Eastern and Western medicine. She created The Fear-less Sessions, an illness-prevention kick-start designed specifically for people who've battled cancer and are in remission but fear it might return. [www.tinyjaentsch.com]

Artist Daniel Maltzman's work draws from contemporary influences and incorporates a pop-culture bent. He's the new name on the short list of savvy art collectors. [www.danielmaltzman.com]

Jeannine Parker founded Infinite Solutions Institute, to educate and advocate for solutions that already exist, and co-founded The Wealth Garden, a global collaborative platform for social entrepreneurs. [www.infinitesolutions.org]

As a serial entrepreneur and Internet visionary, Richard Rosenblatt co-founded Demand Media and is redefining the next generation of new media companies. [www.demandmedia.com]

As an adopted person, Susan Chapman believes anyone can be her family. She explores and communicates this dynamic philosophy through her personal relationships and her work as a writer and Primordial Sound Meditation instructor. [www.themagicproject.com]

Stuart Roseman is a software engineer turned serial entrepreneur. He co-founded Gamesville.com (bought by Lycos in 1999), Gamelogic (bought by Scientific Games in 2010), and SaneBox. [www.SaneBox.com]

Technically speaking, Christina Rasmussen is a Grief Counselor – she prefers to call herself a Strategist for Life After Loss. She crusades to change the way we cope with grief, devastation, and longing. [www.secondfirsts.com]

Edward Biagiotti shares practical philosophies on the subjects of parenting and education. He works and grows in the field of education as a writer, speaker, consultant, and learner. [www.tappingintogenius.com]

Michelle Durham is an advocate of children's causes as well as a copywriter, a mother, speaker and email and auto-responder writer. [www.michellecopywriting.com]

Ken Torrino is a web relations specialist for Elliman, brokers for New York City real estate. [www.elliman.com/new-york-city]

Gina Rudan is an author, thought leader, and the president of Genuine Insights Inc., a contemporary professional development and training practice with the mission of leveraging the genius within every individual and organization. [www.genuineinsights.com]

As an advocate for quality, person-centered care across all settings, Joseph DeMattos serves as president and CEO of Maryland's oldest and largest provider association of skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers. [www.hfam.org]