Beth Beloff is founder and President of BRIDGES to Sustainability, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster the implementation of sustainable development through development of approaches, methods and tools supporting management decision-making. In 1992, Ms. Beloff founded and directed the Institute for Corporate Environmental Management in the business school at the University of Houston (UH).

Ms. Beloff lectures and writes on issues of corporate sustainability, including sustainability performance and accounting, integrated decision support tools and sustainability education. She is co-editing "Sustainable Development in the Chemical Industry: A Practical Approach," to be published by John Wiley & Sons in 2005. She has been principal investigator / research coordinator on projects funded by numerous sources, including NSF, EPA, DOE, TCEQ, UNDP, Gulf Coast Hazardous Substance Research Center and Business Council for Sustainable Development-Gulf of Mexico. While at UH she received the Shell Interdisciplinary Scholars Grant Award for four consecutive years. She serves on numerous committees / boards, including: City of West University Place Zoning & Planning Commissioner, US Green Building Council Houston Chapter Board, Environmental Quality Management Journal Editorial Advisory Board, Texas Council on Environmental Quality's Clean Texas Team, The Nature Conservancy's Houston Advisory Board, and is a member of the US Business Council for Sustainable Development. She has served for several years on the Society of Petroleum Engineers' Environment Committee of the international EHS conference.

Ms. Beloff is a full member of American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and received an MBA from the University of Houston, M. Arch. from UCLA, and a BA from University of California Berkeley.

Dr. Jan Hamrin is the President of the Center for Resource Solutions, a non-profit corporation located at the Presidio in San Francisco, California. CRS is dedicated to encouraging the transfer of sustainable technologies and to fostering international leadership in sustainability by building the human capacity to meet environmental, economic and cultural needs.

Dr. Hamrin has served as advisor to the G-8 Renewable Energy Task Force as well as to numerous legislatures and regulatory commissions both in the US and internationally. She has co-authored three books for NARUC: Regulator's Handbook on Tradable Renewable Certificates, 2003; Affected with the Public Interest: Electric Industry Restructuring in an Era of Competition, 1994; and Investing in the Future: A Regulator's Guide to Renewables, 1993. She is presently working on the development of WREGIS (a western TRC tracking system) and the development of an association of tracking systems in North America. In addition to her other tasks, Jan works with the Chinese Government on renewable policies in that country.

Dr. Hamrin founded and served nine years as Executive Director of the Independent Energy Producers' Association (IEP) in California and played a key role in the implementation of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) in California and elsewhere.

Dr. Hamrin received her Ph.D. in Ecology, with emphasis on public policy evaluation of environmental and energy programs, from the University of California, Davis. She also holds Masters degrees in Public Administration and Consumer Science from U.C. Davis as well as a B.S. from the University of New Mexico.

In addition to his role as President of the Adventure Council, Costas Christ serves as Chairman of the Adventures in Travel Expo Conferences and also writes a monthly travel column for National Geographic Adventure magazine. His desire for exploration has led him to more than 100 countries including expeditions to some of the world's most remote wilderness regions and archeological sites. Along the way, he has worked for Dr. Richard Leakey in Africa, joined National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, Dr. Sylvia Earle, in helping to establish a new marine reserve in Belize, and got to know legendary British explorer, Wilfred Thesiger, to name a few of the extraordinary people he has met in his life.

An internationally recognized expert on sustainable tourism, Costas also serves as the Chairman of the World Travel and Tourism Council's Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, which recognizes leading examples from around the world of environmentally and socially responsible travel. He is a founding member and former Chairman of the Board of The International Ecotourism Society and was appointed the Peace Corps Director in Uganda where he worked on community-based tourism as an economic development strategy. As the Senior Director for Ecotourism at Conservation International, Costas supervised projects in 18 countries.

In addition to his monthly travel column in National Geographic Adventure, Costas' articles and essays on travel and tourism have appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Boston Globe and Sunday Times of London. He is the lead author of Tourism and Biodiversity: Mapping Tourism’s Global Footprint and a contributing author in Wilderness: Earth's Last Wild Places. Costas has appeared many times on television and radio, including CNN, BBC, National Public Radio, ABC News, and PBS to talk about adventure travel.

Duncan has spent over thirty-five years in travel industry sales, marketing and senior management capacities. His first ten years were with Young and Rubicam, Inc. Advertising during which time he handled the advertising for P&O Lines. He joined that company which soon acquired Princess Cruises which was a prime player in the growing cruise industry.

In the mid-seventies he one of the first employees at Royal Cruise Line which initiated the marriage of a 747 and a the 450 passenger Golden Odyssey. During fifteen years at Royal Cruise line he served as Marketing Director and later Executive Vice President. In 1990 he served as President of Seabourn Cruise Line, one of the industry's highest rated products.

For thirteen years Duncan has been involved with educational travel serving as Director of the Travel/Study program for the Stanford Alumni Association for ten years and recently managing Generosity in Action, a foundation structured to support travelers' philanthropy. The Stanford Alumni program, the largest and most highly respected educational travel program in the world, offers over 70 programs per year generating over $22 million sales. The success coming from involving knowledgeable faculty with specially designed itineraries.

Generosity in Action was created out of the enthusiasm of travelers to "give back" to villages and people in countries they visit and the need for a structure to allow donations to be tax deductible. Since his retirement from Stanford, Duncan has expanded Generosity in Action for other travel marketers, serves on the Board of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation and assists travel operators in marketing their products.

Duncan attended Stanford and graduated from University of California School of Business. He and his wife have two grown daughters and seven grandchildren.

Pat Long is Director of the Center for Sustainable Tourism and Professor of Business at East Carolina University . The Center supports research, community outreach, and education on issues of effective planning and management of tourism-dependent communities seeking long-term socio-cultural, environmental and economic benefits.  He founded the first such center at the University of Colorado at Boulder where he served as Center Director and faculty member in the Leeds School of Business with a co-rostered appointment in the Environmental Studies Program. He has served as President/CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Rural Tourism Foundation authorized by Congress (Public Law 102-372) to support tourism development in rural America and was recently elected President of the America Leisure Academy.

His current research focuses on sustainable practices in tourism, tourism planning strategies, and host community adjustments to tourism development. He is fully engaged in a long-term study of the economic and social impacts of second homes in resort communities. Dr. Long serves on the editorial boards of both the Journal of Sustainable Tourism and the Interamerican Journal of Environment and Tourism as well as on the faculty of the Environmental and Ecotourism Management Graduate Program, College of the Americas. He is the recipient of the University of Colorado President's Public Service Award, Procter and Gamble Teaching Excellence Award, CU Alumni SOAR Teaching Recognition, Joseph L. Frascona Teaching Excellence Award and Susan C. Wright Communication of Research Award.

Jamie Sweeting is the new Vice President for Environmental Stewardship for Royal Caribbean Cruises and is the former Senior Director of the Travel & Leisure program at The Center for Environmental Leadership in Business (CELB), engaging leading tourism corporations to limit their environmental footprint and maximize their contribution to conservation. Prior to joining CELB, Jamie was Manager of the Ecotourism Program in Conservation International's (CI) Conservation Enterprise Department, where his work involved close collaboration with CI's field offices to develop and implement over 35 ecotourism projects in more than 17 countries. Jamie has a B.A. in Leisure and Business Management from Manchester University, U.K. and a M.T.A. from The George Washington University School.

Keith Sproule's areas of expertise include tourism planning, investment facilitation and community enterprise development. Mr. Sproule has worked and traveled to over 100 countries, with regions of extended experience in Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, Middle East, North and Southern Africa. His hybrid career includes positions in the public, private and NGO sectors. He has managed large land acquisition and tourism development projects in the US and the Caribbean and served as a senior policy advisor to government ministries, including three years with the Belize Ministry of Tourism, two years with the Egyptian Tourism Development Authority and three years as the Ecotourism Advisor to the Supreme Commission for Tourism in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He is a past two-term Chairman of The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) and a current member of the board of the Charture Institute. He is the founder and managing director of The Bentwood Inn, a luxury lodge in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Keith currently lives with his family in Windhoek, Namibia, where he manages the tourism portfolio of the World Wildlife Fund Namibia Program, focusing on joint-venture lodges with communal conservancies.

Robin Tauck is the President of Tauck World Discovery, a third-generation, family-owned and operated escorted travel company.  During her 25-year career at Tauck, Robin has held a number of positions within the company.  As President, she has led new growth initiatives, including expansions into international and exotic destinations, “Tauck at Sea” ocean cruising, European river cruising, Tauck Bridges family programs, and premier events. 

A proponent of one-to-one marketing in the upscale market, Robin has fostered Tauck's customer-focused direction and brand loyalty efforts, including strategic agent partnerships and the development of Tauck’s online “E-Tauck” initiatives.  She has also chaired the company’s Executive Group, led its Strategic Planning efforts, and instituted Brand Steering and “World of Giving” Advisory Boards. 

In 2000, Robin began Tauck’s “World of Giving” through the Tauck Foundation with philanthropic, volunteerism and heritage grants.  Robin has also led Tauck’s support of the U.S. National Parks, and those efforts were recognized in 2006 with the nation’s highest honor for historic preservation, the “Preserve America Presidential Award,” in an Oval Office ceremony with the President and Mrs. Bush.  Tauck’s support of the National Parks has also been honored with the U.S. Interior Department’s 2005 “Take Pride In America Award” and TIA’s 2004 “Public & Community Service Odyssey Award.”

Robin has been active in USTOA, ETOA, ASTA, NTA and has served on a number of industry boards including the Board and Executive Committee of the Travel Industry of America (TIA).  She has also been named one of the “Most Powerful Women in Travel” by Travel Agent magazine on multiple occasions.

Prior to joining the family business, Robin worked for Westin Hotels and Ocean Voyages, an international yacht company.  She graduated from the University of Vermont and Stanford University ’s Executive Program.  Robin and her family live in Weston , CT.  Her daughter Colleen became the first of Tauck’s fourth generation to join the company when she worked as a Student Tauck Director in 2005.

Randy Durband is the President of Travcoa, past President of INTRAV/Clipper Cruise Lines, and past Executive Vice President of Tauck World Discovery. He has spent his entire 25+ year career in tour operations, working in and leading all facets of the tour business. Throughout his career Randy has developed a strong network by serving on various travel industry boards and committees and has served as a panelist or speaker at many industry events. His board involvement has included several years with the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA), Global Exchange, and the US Travel Market Advisory Board to the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC).

Randy has long held personal interests in anthropology, linguistics, history, and international affairs. His academic background, including an advanced degree, was in international affairs and history and included many positions as a teaching assistant and leader in academic travel programs. He has combined those personal passions and knowledge with his global tourism experience to create a talent for supporting sustainable tourist practices at environmental and cultural sites throughout the world.

During the last 5 years of work in tourism development, Chris Seek has provided marketing and consulting services to over 300 tourism micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and tourism associations in over 17 countries. Services included business planning, website development, graphic design, Internet marketing, photography, virtual tours, video production, international representation, cluster development, business development training, sustainable tourism certification, cross promotion advertising campaigns, and travel trade seminars.

Prior to founding Solimar, Chris worked in the corporate marketing field, helping multinational companies develop national and international marketing programs. He has worked and lived in Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil, and Spain, while also traveling extensively through more then 30 countries. He speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

Chris also serves on the board of the nonprofit organization The SAVE Travel Alliance, an organization dedicated to helping emerging tourism destinations connect with the Scientific, Academic, Volunteer, and Educational (SAVE) travel market.

Julie Klein is currently the Director of Environmental, Health and Safety for the Grand Teton Lodge Company, a subsidiary of Vail Resorts, Inc. She has the privilege of working in and living nearby Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. As the largest concessioner in the Park, her work has included championing cross-functional environmental protection programs framed within an ISO 14001 certified environmental management system. Prior to working with the Grand Teton Lodge Company, she served as the recycling coordinator for Denver Recycles/City and County of Denver where she guided the City's municipal recycling program.

Before shifting into the discipline of environmental policy and management, she held several marketing communications positions within the ski and tourism industry including work with Colorado Ski Country USA and Winter Park Resort in Colorado.

Her passion for outdoor recreation and tourism and a life long commitment to environmental conservation, led her back into tourism where her work could focus on efforts to balance the impacts of mass tourism and protecting our Country's beautiful natural places.

In her efforts to support the greater community surrounding Grand Teton National Park, Julie also serves on the boards of Jackson Community Recycling, Greater Yellowstone Teton Clean Energy Coalition, and is technical advisor to Yellowstone Business Partnership - Uncommon Sense, a regional peer-to-peer sustainable business leadership program. Julie has a Bachelor's Degree in Speech Communications and Journalism from Colorado State University and a Masters Degree in Environmental Policy and Management with a certification in Ecotourism from the University of Denver.

Richard Weiss is an active/adventure travel industry veteran with over 30 years experience in the field. Originally a New Yorker with an undergraduate degree from Stanford, he moved to Canada in the late 1960s after a disagreement with the US government over his role in foreign policy, particularly in Southeast Asia. He stayed in Toronto for twenty years where he received an MA from the University of Toronto in Classical Chinese Poetry. Richard began his career in the adventure travel business leading wilderness trips for the Sierra Club in the late 1960s canoeing and backpacking throughout Canada and Europe. After a couple of failed but interesting careers (college academic, professional chef, et al.), he quickly got more comfortable and better fed by leading bike trips for Toronto-based Butterfield & Robinson in France and Italy, becoming their Director of European Operations in the mid-1980s. He returned to the US in 1988 to head the international division of Vermont Country Cyclers.

Richard's shift back to more adventurous travel started when he became CEO of Mountain Travel Sobek in 1995. Since then he has held senior executive positions with Backroads and Grand Expeditions, where he had responsibility for five GrandEx companies from Vermont to Boca Raton as President of the Eco/Adventure platform. Most recently Richard spent two years setting up Adventures by Disney, The Walt Disney Company's™ entry in the (so-called) active travel space. Richard supports a variety of non-profit ventures by sitting on a number of boards of directors over the years. These include: The International Ecotourism Society, Environmental Traveling Companions (offering rafting and seakayaking to disabled children), Sustainable Travel International, Global Service Corps, Travelers'™ Philanthropy Fund and others. He currently heads Strategic Travel Consulting, an Oakland-based consulting firm, where he offers all levels of travel-related consulting, and manages his executive and life coaching practices.

As Vice President of Air and Specialty Products for Virtuoso, Jim Osborne oversees agreements with more than 40 airlines that provide services for the world's leading luxury travel network. In addition, Jim is responsible for specialty products, which include ground transportation, private jet, insurance, GDS and event tickets as well as sustainable environment practices.

Under Virtuoso's sustainability program, its annual event, which recently hosted some 3,100 attendees from 102 countries, was certified carbon neutral for both accommodations/facilities and air travel for two consecutive years. Jim is working with all categories of Virtuoso preferred suppliers to develop a green rating system to promote sustainable travel among all supplier types.

Jim joined Virtuoso in 2001 as Director of Air and Specialty Products, and was promoted to Managing Director in 2005. He has been instrumental in conceiving, negotiating and implementing numerous alliances with third party businesses. Prior to joining Virtuoso, Jim worked in the airline industry in both operations and sales for several companies including Austrian Airlines, Swissair and Capitol Airways. He holds a bachelor's degree in German and Russian Language from State University of New York at Oswego.

Faith Taylor currently oversees Wyndham’s worldwide sustainability program across all divisions which includes 30,000 employees and +7,000 sites. She oversees the development of the company’s corporate policy, strategies and key initiatives and has overseen Wyndham’s Green council since 2007. She also co-developed Clear Air by Pure, an allergy free program for Wyndham as well as the first to market green uniform program with Cintas. She is Vice Chair of the American Hotel and Lodging Association’s Environmental and Engineering Committee in Washington D.C. and frequently speaks on innovation and sustainability around the country.

As Vice President of Innovation and Product development she worked with the architectural firm of Michael Graves & Associates to develop their new brand positioning, interior designs, in-room products and hotel prototype initiatives that have been launched for the Wyndham hotel and resorts brand worldwide. She also worked with Wolfgang Puck to develop a new coffee program, DMI to launch a new Wyn-tune music concept and co-developed Wyndham’s Café called Eat. Refresh. Live. to distinguish their brand. She led the development and launch of Wyndham’s Worldwide Blue Harmony TM, a turn-key spa and fitness program that incorporates a green strategy to promote environmental awareness.

She joined the company in January 2003 as senior director of marketing for the Ramada® brand, responsible for its strategic planning and repositioning programs, marketing budgets and advertising and media commitments.

From 1997 to 2003, she served as a marketing consultant for International Home Foods Inc. in Parsippany and Idamar Enterprise, a spa and travel network company in Newark and was a founding member of Hookt.com Inc., an e-commerce company in New York.

Taylor worked for Avon Products Inc. in New York for 10 years in a variety of global brand marketing and management positions and was a recipient of their Chairman’s award for continued outstanding performance. She led the development of several new profitable businesses that generated over $60 million in annual sales. She began her career with Time Warner Inc. in New York as a marketing executive for People and Sports Illustrated magazines.

Taylor was named one of the top African American executives in the lodging industry by Black Meetings and Tourism magazine in 2008. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif., and her master’s degree in business administration from the Wharton School of Business, Philadelphia.

Eric Brodnax is a Vice President with Orbitz Worldwide where he serves as General Manager of The Away Network, a group of travel information websites that includes Away.com, Trip.com, GORP.com, Outside Online, and Lodging.com. He joined Away as part of the founding management team in April of 1999, was SVP of Marketing & Operations during the company's formative years, and assumed his current role after Orbitz's acquisition of the company in January of 2005. As General Manager, Eric is responsible for setting the overall strategy and vision for the company including high level editorial direction.

Eric has a long standing interest in outdoor and active pursuits. He serves on the board of the Adventure Travel Trade Association, and grew up on St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands where he spent his early years riding horses, sailing, and scuba diving. He competed in the 1988 Olympic Games held in Seoul, Korea, and has a strong personal interest in whitewater kayaking, biking, hiking, skiing, and off the beaten path travel.

In addition to growing up in the Caribbean and living/working in Prague in 1992, he has had the good fortune to visit more than fifty countries. Personal favorites among these experiences include exploring the jungles of Belize, observing wildlife at Waterburg Plateau and Skeleton Coast National Parks in Namibia, meandering through the wine country of South Africa’s Cape Province, and hitchhiking through the Sahara desert in Algeria.

Eric has thirteen years of total online business experience, and has held positions prior to Away that include being President and Co-founder of a wine importing company focused on South African brands, working as a management consultant in Czechoslovakia, and running marketing and business development for an online market research company. He holds an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA from Princeton University.

Eric is married and lives in Washington, DC with his wife Leigh and children Sarah and Anders.