Jeremy Ferguson is the placemaking director in Santa Monica’s Downtown. He is deeply involved in professional and community activities centered around placemaking, including general, creative, and tactical placemaking projects. Jeremy is also on the Board of Directors for the Santa Monica History Museum and works closely with children’s programs such as the YMCA, PAL, and the Boys and Girls Clubs. As an Ambassador for the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce, he actively participates in various initiatives to promote community engagement and development.

Jeremy’s interest in Route 66, especially its terminus in Santa Monica, ties into his professional expertise in civil infrastructure. He is focused on the history and placemaking elements along Route 66 as it approaches its centennial in 2026.

He is committed to equity and supports LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, and Women’s rights communities. Jeremy’s dedication to sustainability, community building, and high-quality, locally sourced foods aligns with his health choices. He aims to establish his professional brand to spearhead discussions on placemaking and community building while generating revenue to support nonprofits such as Heal the Bay and the Santa Monica History Museum.

Alan is a contemporary violinist hailing from Washington, DC., who at the age of 5 announced to his parents that he wanted to learn to play the violin after visiting a music “petting zoo.” After attending the Duke Ellington School of the Arts he continued his education at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, and Valencia, Spain.

Alan toured in Spain and he has traveled to Bolivia where he performed the Bolivian National Anthem with other musicians on the Salarde Uyuni, (world’s largest Salt Flat). He has performed at the White House for former first Lady Michelle Obama and led Patti Labelle’s orchestra as concert- master at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D. C.

Alan has interest in film and has arranged and played strings for a major film. Presently Alan is enjoying performing throughout Los Angeles,California and is recording his first solo album.

Versed in classical, hip-hop, river dance and jazz. Alan brings his background in violin training and skills in music production to create a unique music style whether performing solo or with a group.

Alan is grateful for all of his teachers/mentors. Music is inspiring for Ala and he enjoys bringing happiness to others thru his music, and envisions his future working with big names in the music industry and performing his original compositions internationally.

In his spare time he enjoys hiking, traveling, cooking, holistic living, listening to music and spending time with family and friends.

Bob Ramirez, DBA, MBA, DACFP | Faculty Chair, Academic Excellence/Professor of Business and Management, Author and Speaker

Dr. Robert Ramirez is an investing and business expert, author, educator, and speaker. He has dedicated his career to helping people achieve financial security. 

Through his books, speeches, and podcast interviews, Dr. Ramirez shares valuable insights on investment options and discusses important topics in today's financial marketplace. 

His commitment to financial education has helped many people take control of their financial futures.

Alan H McGowan, selected as 2019’s Top Science and Technical Expert by the International Association of Top Professionals, also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Marquis Who’s Who that same year. Now a Lecturer at The New School, he served first as chair of the Science, Technology, and Society Program (now called the Interdisciplinary Science Program) then as chair of the Environmental Studies Program, where he developed several new initiatives, including a newsletter going to four hundred leaders in global environmental studies, and an internal “Friday Letter” going to interested staff and faculty.

After graduating Yale University with an engineering degree, and a two-year stint at American Electric Power, a public utility, Mr. McGowan left to pursue graduate work in physics, then taught science and mathematics at private schools for ten years, winning the Teacher Recognition Award from the American Association of Physics Teachers in 1968. Following that, after serving for five years as Scientific Administrator of the Center for the Biology of Natural Systems, an interdisciplinary environmental research, and training program at Washington University in St. Louis, he became president of the Scientists’ Institute for Public Information (SIPI), which under his leadership became a major bridge between the scientific and journalist communities. Board Chairs of SIPI included such people as Margaret Mead, Lewis Thomas, and David Baltimore. SIPI’s Media Resource Service, its signature program of which Walter Cronkite was the Honorary Chair, fielded up to fifty calls a day from journalists connecting them to expert sources. Another important program was “TV News: The Cutting Edge,” weekend gatherings of local and national television news directors and leading scientists, including Nobel Laureates.

When changing foundation priorities forced SIPI to close, he founded and ran The Gene Media Forum, part of the Newhouse School of Journalism of Syracuse University, which served as a bridge among geneticists, ethicists, and journalists. Highlights of the program included a major conference in South Africa on genetically modified organisms funded by the Rockefeller Foundation, a session on race, genes, and intelligence which aired on ABC News, and a session on genetics and injuries featuring Christopher Reeves.

Mr. McGowan was a member of both the New York State and the New York City Advisory Committees on Energy Policy and was for twenty years the scientist member of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. He has served on many boards and advisory committees, including the Center for the Advancement of Health, the Organization of Tropical Studies, and the Metcalf Institute of the Oceanography School of the University of Rhode Island. He chaired the board of Student Pugwash, USA, an offshoot of the Pugwash Conference on Science and Public Affairs; the organization focuses on ethical issues in science and technology. He currently serves on the board and executive committee of the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, where he chairs the Legal and Governance Committee. He is also one of six Executive Editors of Environment magazine, now published by Taylor and Francis.

He is the author of over one hundred articles focusing on the interconnections among science, society, and technology, both in peer-reviewed journals and the popular press. They have appeared in Jewish Currents, Christian Science Monitor, PTA Magazine, Think magazine, World Book Encyclopedia, and many others. He has presented his research on Franz Boas, ethical issues in science and innovative course in science at scientific and education conferences around the world, and in seminars at Columbia and Princeton Universities as well as at The New School. In addition, he has written over one hundred editorials for Environment magazine over a forty-year period, including one in 1978 warning of the perils of global climate change.

My guest, Freddy Silva is a bestselling author, and leading researcher of ancient civilizations, restricted history, sacred sites and their interaction with consciousness. He has published nine books in six languages and produced fifteen documentaries. Freddy’s most recent book is Portals: Energetic Doorways to Mystical Experiences Between Worlds. Described by one CEO as "perhaps the best metaphysical speaker in the world right now,” he leads sell-out tours to sacred sites worldwide, and for two decades he has been an international keynote speaker, in addition to appearances on Gaia TV, History Channel, BBC, and countless radio shows.