Arlene Birt (BS, Minneapolis College of Art and Design; MDes, Design Academy Eindhoven) is an information designer whose work has been featured in BusinessWeek, the Dutch publication Morf, and the U.K. based magazine Creative Review. A former Fulbright scholar who speaks internationally about her approach to visual storytelling, Arlene joined the PR agency Haberman & Associates in 2006 where she leads visual storytelling efforts in graphic design, Web site development and visual identity development.

Stefan Doering (MBA/Pace University) is an instructor at Columbia University with CERC (Center for Environmental Research and Conservation) teaching Environmental Intrapreneurism and Environmental Entrepreneurism. After having started one of the first green retail businesses in the country and growing it to one of the largest, Doering now works with Fortune 500 Executives, entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs helping them define and achieve their sustainability goals as a master coach. He has been featured on the CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg TV, and dozens more.

Jeremy Faludi (MEng/Stanford University) is a freelance product designer and engineer specializing in eco-design. He has worked for Rocky Mountain Institute, The Biomimicry Institute and Lawrence Berkeley National Labs, among others. In addition to his design work, he is a senior contributor to Worldchanging.com and is one of the many authors of Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century. He has also spoken on green design and biomimicry at conferences, schools and businesses around the world. His work was featured in the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum's exhibit "Design for the Other 90%". Originally trained as a physicist at Reed College, Jeremy spent some time in the semiconductor industry before getting his masters degree in product design.

Terry Gips (MPM/Yale University; MS/University of California-Davis) is a widely published ecologist, sustainability business consultant, speaker and author. He is president of Sustainability Associates, where he works with organizations to reduce costs, improve performance and achieve ecological soundness. Previously, he served as Aveda Corporation's director of ecological affairs and sustainability and also helped develop the CERES Principles for Corporate Environmental Responsibility, which have been signed by 80 companies. He was a White House aide to President Jimmy Carter and was also co-founder of the International Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture (now the Alliance for Sustainability).

Daniel Halsey is a certified permaculture designer and workshop presenter, a member of the Institute of Packaging Professionals and a 25-year independent advertising creative in the Twin Cities. He is presently working on a degree in the area of Ecosystem Design at the University of Minnesota.

Garth T. Hickle (MA/Hamline University) is the product stewardship team leader with the Minnesota Office of Environmental Assistance (OEA). He has been with the OEA since 1996 working on product stewardship for products including packaging, electronics and carpet. Prior to his position with the OEA, he worked for the Minnesota Public Interest Research Group (MPIRG) and at the Minnesota Senate. He was named a Bush Foundation Leadership Fellow in 2001 to pursue research in international product stewardship policy. He has published articles in Corporate Environmental Strategy, Pollution Prevention Review, Environmental Quality Management, Resource Recycling and The Environmental Forum. He holds graduate degrees from Vermont Law School and Hamline University.

Wendy Jedlicka (BS/University of Bridgeport, MIM/University of St. Thomas), an IoPP Certified Packaging Professional, is president Jedlicka Design Ltd. (jedlicka.com), national Co-chair for the o2 International Network for Sustainable Design in the US (o2.org o2- usa.org), and is student advisor for the Sustainable Design Certificate Program (mcad.edu/sustainable). A national caliber speaker on sustainable design and business, Ms. Jedlicka writes the regular "Sustainability Update" feature column for Package Design Magazine, and was contributing editor for two books from Wiley Publishing - Packaging Sustainability: Tools, Systems and Strategies for Innovative Package Design, and, Sustainable Graphic Design: Tools, Systems and Strategies for Innovative Print Design (PackagingSustainability.info).

Krista Leraas (MA/New College of California) has worked in the emerging field of sustainability for over eight years, with experience ranging from organic farming to nonprofit programming. In 2001, Krista co-founded the Living Green Expo, an annual sustainability resource event held in St. Paul. She has recently returned to her native Minnesota from a year spent in California's Sonoma County completing her Master's degree in Culture, Ecology and Sustainable Community.

Curt McNamara (BS/University of Minnesota) is a practicing designer with 20 years' experience in commercial and industrial markets. He is a scholar of R. Buckminster Fuller and authored the entry on Fuller in the UNESCO Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems. An active Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers member, Curt received the IEEE Millennium Medal in 2000 for his ongoing work in education.

Jacquelyn Ottman (BA/Smith College) is president of J. Ottman Consulting, a marketing consulting and new products firm that she founded in 1989 to advise businesses on strategies for developing and marketing environmentally sustainable products. She is the author of Green Marketing: Opportunity for Innovation, Second Edition, which has been called "the definitive text on the subject" by the American Marketing Association and is translated into six languages. Jacquelyn is the driving spirit and principal organizer of Design: Green, a pioneering educational initiative in eco-design launched in 2004 that delivers workshops to businesses looking to think in new ways, drive efficiency, boost marketability and create sustainable value. Workshop attendees have included designers and business managers from IBM, Aveda, Herman Miller, and IDEO.

Douglas D. Pierce, AIA, LEED(c) AP (BArch/Kansas State University) is a practicing architect with 35 years of experience in the design and construction of residential and commercial projects. He leads the Sustainable Design Initiative at the Minneapolis office of Perkins+Will and has trained more than 100 LEED accredited professionals. As a consultant, Doug helped Target Corporation earn its first LEED Certified store, and he currently leads the sustainability efforts for more than 500,000 square feet of LEED Certified Silver, Gold and Platinum projects. Doug chairs the board of the Clean Water Action Alliance of Minnesota and the AIA Minnesota Committee on the Environment. He serves on the Sustainable Building Products Committee of the Institute for Market Transformation to Sustainability (MTS).

Holly Robbins (BFA/University of Wisconsin-Stout) is a creative manager for Target Corporation and is a representative to the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. In addition to receiving a cum laude graphic design degree, Holly studied graphic design and art metals in Hildesheim, Germany, at the Fachhochschule Hildesheim/Holzminden. For nearly six years, Holly and her partner, John Moes, operated Studio Flux, a boutique design firm focused on ecologically sustainable design and quality, award-winning work. Her work has appeared in PRINT magazine, American Corporate Identity, American Graphic Design Awards, Graphic Design USA, HOW magazine, The Big Book of Logos, Creativity Annual and local and national AIGA shows. She has written articles and lectured on the subject of eco-design and helped develop guidelines for designing sustainably.

Megan Schuknecht (BA/Grinnell College, MS/University of Montana-Missoula) is a Biologist at the Design Table and has worked on sustainability issues related to public health, the built environment, and agriculture for over 15 years. Most recently, she worked as a consultant for the Biomimicry Guild, helping global companies look to nature for inspiration to develop sustainable and innovative technologies. In her current role at The Biomimicry Institute, Megan teaches Biomimicry & Design classes and workshops, lectures on biomimicry to university audiences, and works with faculty and administrators to incorporate biomimicry teaching into university classrooms and curricula.

Dion Zuess (BA/Humboldt State University) has over a decade of design experience in eco design and visual communications. She is a green advocate who believes designers have a unique opportunity to integrate talent, communication strategies, and social responsibility. Her studio, ecoLingo, is dedicated to green design, blending design ecology, style, and sustainability. The award-winning studio (ecolingo.com) is an approved member of Green America's Green Business Network, charter member of the Phoenix Green Chamber of Commerce, as well as a member of 1% for the Planet, Design Can Change, the Designers Accord, and the o2 International Network for Sustainable Design.

Her work has been published in a variety of publications, and she is frequently invited to be a guest speaker, guest teacher, mentor, and consultant. In 2006, Zuess received an American Graphic Design Award for excellence in communication from Graphic Design: USA. In 2007, she was nominated as a candidate for a Communications Design Award as part of the prestigious Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum's National Design Awards program.