Erin Robbins

Erin serves on the board of directors of Now We’re Talking.  Her work in the field of creative breakthrough and expression spans over thirty years. She has inspired thousands of students throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia and India.  Her paintings have received awards in numerous national juried shows and publications.

Past experience includes talents both in the business world and design. She was founding Executive Director of Satsang Foundation & Press; founder of a successful furniture design company in 1991. Prior to that she spent fifteen years teaching and leading workshops in meditation and creativity around the world.  In 1991 Erin returned to painting once again as a full-time profession.  You can view her collection at erinrobbinsstudio.com.

Erin graduated with honors from University of California, Santa Cruz, with a degree in Arts, Crafts, and their History and received a master's degree in Expressive Arts Therapies from Lesley College, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Barbara Shepard

Barbara Shepard, Secretary of NWT, runs a K-12 school in Dunsmuir, CA.  The style of teaching and values she demonstrates through her work with young people in northern California are in perfect accord with the vision of NWT. Barbara's passion for bringing the message and practice of true democratic communication to the younger generations, our future, makes her a valuable asset to our team.  She applies her knowledge and experience in the nuts and bolts of maintaining accurate records and reports required by law to keep our organization running smoothly.  When approached to join the board of NWT Barbara responded with enthusiasm.

Ellen Tussman

As Now We’re Talking’s board treasurer, Ellen has over 40 years of experience as a business and property owner in the San Francisco/Berkeley bay area. She is a co-founder of Now We’re Talking and has supported its mission of creating a link between wise democracy and creating a world that works for all since its beginning as a San Francisco radio show in 2007.

Past experience includes owner and operator of Savoy Catering Company, President and CEO of Dakota Grill, Inc., food editor for the Berkeley Monthly, President and CEO of Groaning Board Cooking Club, creator and operator of 10,000-member mail-order cooking club.

Ms. Tussman was co-chair of the Alameda County Meals on Wheels Five Start Night for 25 years, event coordinator for the George Mark Children’s House, a hospice house for children and their families, and has served on nonprofit boards.

Graduated with honors from U.C. Berkeley; loves the arts, her friends, and food!

Albie Weiss

Art Educator, Free Lance Artist, Webmaster, Former Director of Technology for 3 Ohio School Districts, Convention Speaker for Arts and Technology, Ohio Emmy Award Winner for Animation.

Tom Atlee

Tom Atlee is founder of the Co-Intelligence Institute, author of three books on wise participatory democracy, and creator of the wise democracy pattern language.  A prolific writer for his blog and numerous alternative journals, he also offers occasional speeches and workshops.  Networking extensively, he is always involved as a thinking partner with efforts to catalyze a wisely regenerative culture.  He played major roles in creating the Core Principles for Public Engagement (for Obama in 2009), creating the GroupWorks pattern language for group process, and inspiring Oregon’s Citizen Initiative Review, among many other initiatives.  His close attention to all possibilities from the most promising to the most dire inform his life’s work, which has evolved over seven decades from peace activism to catalyst for conscious collective evolution.  For the last 18 years his life has centered in a co-op house in Eugene, Oregon, U.S.A.

Rosa Zubizarreta

Rosa Zubizarreta, founder of DiaPraxis, enjoys helping people work productively with conflicting perspectives. She especially enjoys helping others learn this work, and her mission is to help develop organizational, community, and societal capacity in this area.

With a background in Organization Development, Rosa has experience with traditional approaches such as Action Research as well as dialogical approaches including Future Search, Open Space, and World Café. Her book From Conflict to Creative Collaboration is based on her deep content expertise in Dynamic Facilitation, which she began studying and practicing in 2000.

In addition to working with business, community, and non-profit organizations, Rosa's background includes clinical social work and education reform. In the personal development realm, she is a certified Focusing professional, an experienced Heart IQ coach, and has trained in Internal Family Systems therapy. She is presently back in school, earning a PhD in Human and Organizational Systems at Fielding Graduate University.