The 2010 Team
Brian Skeele
Growing up in southern California and watching communities and neighborhoods altered by sprawl and gentrification he began asking What else can we do? That life-defining question shaped the course for Brian creating opportunities to research, write, design, and present living designs of how we can live in harmony and balance with the planet and each other. Now, 25 years later, people, city councils and community task forces all across America are asking the same question. Brian’s response? “I’m glad you asked!”
He has 25 years of building and 4 years of designing/developing sustainable communities experience. He holds a Master’s in Spiritual Science and has been active on various task forces in Santa Fe County. Presently, he is a member of the Executive Committee for the Santa Fe Chapter of the Sierra Club and co-chairs the Urban Issues Committee.
Rebecca Skeele
Rebecca is a master facilitator, coach and counselor in the field of personal and spiritual growth. To lead the formation of new social models impeccably and not continue to follow old dead end paradigms, Rebecca believes attention must begin inside. Figuring out what works for all, beyond limiting perceptions of lack, is her approach. If we are spiritual beings having a human experience Rebecca’s replies, “Let’s get on with it!”
Rebecca holds two Master’s in Spiritual Counseling and Spiritual Scientist. Published author of the book, You Can Make It Heaven: How to Enrich Your Life with Abundance and Loving and the professional course: Becoming a Spiritual Scientist: A Course for Cocreators.
John Goekler
John specializes in ‘imagination and agitation’ which he has applied to children’s advocacy, community organization, land use planning, affordable housing, sustainable agriculture, non-profit capacity building, and classroom and community education.
John created Facing the Future: People and the Planet, an educational non-profit through which he published several award winning books and developed curricula used today by Redefining Progress, Green Teacher and others. John also founded Regime Change USA.
Over the past 15 years, he has delivered hundreds of workshops, trainings and keynotes across North America. He emphasizes ‘organic’ organizational models and decision-making processes based on emerging discoveries in physics, neuroscience, biomimetics and complexity science, all grounded in a spiritual worldview. He believes the world, and this work, are all about vision, intention, relationship and process.
Jeremy Harris
Mayor Jeremy Harris served for more than ten years as the Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, the 12 th largest city in the United States . He retired from politics in January of 2005. Prior to becoming Mayor, Harris was Honolulu’s longest serving Managing Director, a position he held for nine years.
Under Mayor Harris’ leadership Honolulu achieved worldwide recognition.
- 1 st Place Gold Award for Large Cities-International Award for Livable Cities 2004
- Best City Government Website in the United States, 2003
- Special Achievement Award in Geographic Information System Technology, 2003
- #1 City in U.S. - Use of Technology in Delivering Government Services, 2002
- America’s Best Transit System, American Public Transportation Assoc., 2000 & 1994
During his three terms as Mayor, Honolulu was recognized as one of the best managed cities in the United States. In addition to the hundreds of awards the City received during his tenure, Mayor Harris also earned national and international acclaim. Several of his awards include:
- Keystone Award, American Architectural Foundation, 2005
- Outstanding Achievement Award for Sustainability, U.S. Conference of Mayors, 2004
- Lifetime Achievement Award in GIS Systems, ESRI, 2004
- Lifetime Achievement Award for Support of Information Technology, CDG, 2004
- City Livability Award for Exemplary Leadership, U.S. Conference of Mayors, 2003
- Distinguished Leadership Award in Planning, American Planning Association, 2002.
- Mayor Harris is the only individual to receive the award of Public Administrator of the Year for two consecutive years from the Hawaii branch of the American Association of Public Administrators.
He has served as the Public Director on the National Board of Directors of the American Institute of Architects, and he is currently a senior visiting faculty member in energy and environment at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.
Mayor Harris holds a Masters of Science degree in Population and Environmental Biology, specializing in urban ecosystems, from the University of California, Irvine, and is the author of a new book, The Renaissance of Honolulu, The Sustainable Rebirth of an American City.
