Leading Conversations

Cheryl welcomes Jerilyn Brusseau, a cook, baker, restaurateur, businesswoman, humanitarian and cultural diplomat. She is founder of PeaceTable and co-founder of PeaceTrees Vietnam. Her story begins in her grandmother’s kitchen and takes her globetrotting in the spirit of peace and diplomacy. Jerilyn passionately advocates warm-hearted, soul-connected food as the most common language spoken around the world. She founded PeaceTable to create shared culinary experiences between people of the United States and the former Soviet Republics as a tool for building cultural understanding. Her citizen diplomacy did not stop there. In 1995, she co-founded PeaceTrees Vietnam, a humanitarian organization that sponsors the removal of land mines and sends volunteers to plant trees and build homes in their place. To date, there have been 13,000 bombs removed and 32,000 trees planted. Jerilyn can imagine…all the people…living life in peace… Join us for a beautiful conversation with Jerilyn Brusseau!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Shelly Lefkoe, co-founder of Lefkoe Institute; co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Guide to Effective Parenting and founder & President of the Possibilities of Parenting Center. Shelly helps businesspeople increase their personal productivity while reducing stress, improve their relationships with colleagues, and transform their family lives with The Lefkoe Method. She says it is our beliefs about people, life, and ourselves that drive our behaviors – whether we are thirteen or thirty and beyond. Some underlying beliefs may be so subtle, we may not even be aware that we have them. How does this impact leadership? As adults we can re-shape the beliefs we hold that do not serve us. Shaping the leaders of tomorrow, parents can build healthy self-esteem (the experience of being able and worthy) and a positive attitude toward life in their kids. Join us as Shelly shares this practical approach to transforming our beliefs into success in life!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Dr. Michael Kimmel, researcher & leading expert in the field of men & masculinity; Professor of Sociology at SUNY, & author of Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. Michael Kimmel says he is a feminist- he believes in gender equality and social justice. “What so few men understand is that if women win, men win because gender equality is just as good for men as it is for women.” Michael’s book, Guyland, is based on interviews with university students, young adults, and families across the US. He found that at an age when young men were once prepping for a life of serious work & grown-up relationships, many now bide their time in Guyland with extreme distractions: binge drinking, fleeting sexual relationships & hazing their peers on campus. Redefining what it means to be a man and creating alliances rather than battles can be the new right of passage for all. Battle of the sexes? Join Cheryl Esposito and Michael Kimmel for a new take on the conversation.

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Terces & Matthew Engelhart, restaurateurs, organic farmers, teachers, & authors of Sacred Commerce: Business As A Path of Awakening. The Engelhart’s are known for their raw foods eateries, Café Gratitude, as their experiment in a business model called Sacred Commerce. They don’t see themselves as in the restaurant business, but in the transformation business. They believe & practice that “…every business is an opportunity to make a lasting impact on the lives of both clients and employees.” Sacred Commerce is a practice in how life transforms when community focuses on Love, Spirit, The Divine. Each day, they & employees of the Cafés & their farm, practice shifting attention to love & acceptance, gratitude, generosity, abundance, & the privilege of serving others. “Life is an inside job. We encourage focus & attention on qualities that inspire & empower, not just at work, but in all areas of life.” Join the conversation and expand your attitude of gratitude!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Howard Martin, EVP of HeartMath, & co-author of The HeartMath Solution: The Institute of HeartMath’s Revolutionary Program for Engaging the Power of the Heart’s Intelligence. Who knew…our heart has a brain. Doc Childre, founder of Institute of HeartMath, sees it this way: Heart: we think of the physical heart, & qualities such as wisdom, love, compassion, courage & strength - higher aspects of all human beings. Math: a system of equations, formulas & ways of understanding the world. In HeartMath, the word math refers to stepping-stones for systematically unfolding the qualities of the heart. The HeartMath approach is based on research in physiology of stress & emotions, & the importance of coherent communication between heart & brain. You can learn to engage the power of the heart’s intent to transform the stress of change & uncertainty. Join Cheryl Esposito & Howard Martin & learn to engage the power of your heart’s intent!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Lynne Twist — global activist, fundraiser, consultant & author. She is Founder of Soul of Money Institute, author of The Soul of Money & co-founder of Pachamama Alliance. Rooted in a profound encounter with the Achuar people in a remote region of the Ecuadorian Amazon, Pachamama Alliance seeks to change the dream of the modern world & bring forth an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling, socially just human presence on this planet. FOUR YEARS. GO. is a campaign to catalyze & empower a fundamental shift in the direction of humanity. Pachamama Alliance is creating a global rallying cry to inspire urgency to shift humanity’s trajectory by 2014, before our destructive trends make that shift impossible. Individuals & organizations set & reach goals that will cause a positive global tipping point, setting humanity on a new path. Think this is impossible? Join Cheryl Esposito & Lynne Twist as they reveal a remarkable journey & the future it is creating!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Morty Lefkoe, President & Founder of The Lefkoe Institute, & author of Re-create Your Life: Transforming Yourself and Your World. Twenty-five years ago Morty discovered a way to help people make permanent changes in their emotions and behavior. He created a series of psychological processes (The Lefkoe Method) resulting in profound personal & organizational change, quickly & permanently. Different from most forms of psychotherapy, its principles can be applied to parenting, health, business, & social change. Morty discovered that beliefs created when we were children were at the core of problems such as procrastination, fear of public speaking, depression, eating disorders, etc. The Lefkoe Method guides us to discover the meaning you attributed to specific experiences in your life, and how that often becomes a self-limiting belief - shaping behaviors and emotions. Want to know more? Join Cheryl Esposito & Morty Lefkoe to change your beliefs & transform your life!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Gary Hirshberg, Chairman, President, & CE-Yo of Stonyfield Farm, the world’s leading organic yogurt producer & author of Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Save the World. Since 1983, Gary has overseen Stonyfield’s phenomenal growth, from its infancy as a seven-cow organic farming school to its current $366 million in annual sales. Consistently producing great-tasting products, using innovative marketing techniques that blend the company’s social, environmental, & financial missions, Stonyfield’s annual growth rate has been over 23% for more than 18 years. Gary is more than passionate about this “new” economic model, and shows us how profitable it is with his own company. “If we can make radical changes in how we think about our relationship to nature & economic growth, we will see restored, vibrant ecosystems & healthy, prosperous farmers, cows, consumers, employees, investors & future children.” Join Cheryl Esposito & Gary Hirshberg as they stir things up!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Anthony Cortese, ScD, President & Co-founder (with Senator John Kerry & Teresa Heinz Kerry) of Second Nature, a nonprofit organization with a mission to make healthy, just, & sustainable action a foundation of all learning & practice in higher education. Anthony implores us to imagine a future where all generations achieve good health, economic security, social fairness & stability while restoring & sustaining the Earth's life support systems. That’s right – the earth is OUR life support system. This requires a new leadership and a new framework for higher education. Students today are demanding to learn about Sustainable Systems, and that educational institutions are Practicing Sustainability. The work of Second Nature is to promote a learning environment that provides the awareness, knowledge, skills & values to achieve this vision. Join Cheryl Esposito & Anthony Cortese to learn how higher education is shaping the future!

Cheryl Esposito welcomes Anat Baniel, founder of the Anat Baniel Method.(sm) Anat, a clinical psychologist, dancer, author, healer & teacher has established an international reputation as one of the world's leading authorities on human vitality. Her book, Move Into Life: The Nine Essentials For Lifelong Vitality, offers a revolutionary approach to accessing the power of our brains to create new patterns and transform our lives. Neuroscience expert Dr. Michael Merzenich describes her work as “powerful, practical strategies for improving your abilities & your brain that are strongly supported by the neuroscience of brain plasticity.” As a clinical psychologist Anat worked for an Israeli Army program that addressed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She worked with Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, an Israeli physicist, founder of the Feldenkrais Method, designed to improve human functioning by increasing self-awareness through movement. Join Cheryl Esposito & Anat Baniel to learn how to keep vitality in your leadership!