Colin Bishopp is a writer, up and coming filmmaker and advocate for expanded access to clean energy. His creative projects include the satirical website Poolitzer.org and the forthcoming short film Snaggletooth.

Colin spent much of his career working in politics and government, first for members of Congress and most recently as a White House appointee in the Obama Administration. In 2016, Colin received a Fulbright to lead a seminar on clean energy finance at the University of Cape Town. Colin previously taught courses in philosophy and American culture at Wilbur Wright College and Benedictine University.

In addition to his creative pursuits, Colin serves as chair of the National Energy and Water Trust, a non-profit organization he co-founded to help state and local governments expand access to clean energy and clean drinking water, especially for low income families. Colin earned his master's degree at the University of Chicago and his bachelor's degree at the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in San Francisco. 

Robert Clancy is a gifted technology entrepreneur, #1 international bestselling author, spiritual teacher, inspirational speaker and minister from New York. At age nineteen, Robert had a divine spiritual experience that greatly altered his life. In 2012 he started “Robert Clancy – Guide to the Soul” Facebook fan page (facebook: GuideToTheSoul) where he shares his divinely inspired thoughts, now followed by over 600,000 people worldwide.

Robert is also a regular contributor and weekly guest on Los Angeles KABC Radio's syndicated Late Night Health Radio Show. Through his passion for exceptional design & innovative technology, he co-founded Spiral Design Studio over 28 years ago to lead an award winning creative team in the evolution of major corporate brands, marketing & web development.

Robert’s first published work is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Soul, an evocative collection of inspirational stories and transcendental journeys that will transform the way you think about community service while bringing deeper meaning to your career path and your life. His latest book Soul Cyphers: Decoding a Life of Hope and Happiness released October 3, 2017 is already a #1 international bestseller

Robert is a husband, father and 5th degree master black belt martial arts instructor. He is also a dedicated volunteer who completely embodies the spirit of service—a selfless commitment to helping others make a positive difference in the world.

Maria Felipe is the author of Live Your Happy. A Cuban-American born in Miami, she is 5’9” with a towering personality to match.  After experiencing success as a model and actress, including hosting World Wrestling Federation TV shows, she felt called inward and studied to become a reverend at Pathways of Light, an accredited religious school inspired by A Course in Miracles. She leads monthly services in both Spanish and English at Unity Church in Burbank, CA. 

Judy Hoberman, President of Selling In A Skirt- International Speaker, Trainer, Coach
and Mentor. Her 30 years in sales has given her both the knowledge and sense of humor about how men and women sell, work and live differently will enlighten you in learning how both genders can support each other’s successes in a more productive way.

Her audiences, from 10 to 10,000 are engaged with details wrapped in memorable
stories that are easily implemented that same day. In 2016 she was a TEDx speaker
talking about pre-judging people, something we all do without even thinking. She is the author of “Selling In A Skirt”, “Famous Isn’t Enough”, “Pure Wealth” and her latest book on Women Who Lead will be released shortly.

Judy’s mission…to help her clients live the S.K.I.R.T. philosophy-Standing Out, Keys to Success, Inspiring Others, Results Oriented and Time Management…while having fun.

A proud native Washingtonian, Anise Jenkins is a two-time graduate of Howard University (BA in political science and Masters in Business Administration) and currently resides in the Shaw neighborhood in the District of Columbia.

Jenkins is the executive director of Stand Up! for Democracy in DC (Free DC).  Since its inception, Stand Up! / Free DC was the only grassroots organization in the District of Columbia focused primarily on the pursuit of statehood.  Recognizing that only through being admitted to the Union as a state, will DC residents be able to rise above the ongoing oppression by members of Congress.  This year, Stand Up!  is celebrating two decades of agitating, educating, organizing and mobilizing for DC statehood. 

Anise is passionately committed to all forms of equal civil and human rights causes.  She was named one of the 50 most influential people in Washington, DC in 2013 by The Washington Informer, received a Trailblazer Award in 2005 from the National Congress of Black Women, is a 2002 recipient of a Human Rights Community Award from the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area and is a member of DC Area Phi Beta Kappa Association.

Follow Anise Jenkins on Twitter at @MsFreeDC and Stand Up! at @StandUp_Free DC.

Dr. Madison is the first to hold this position. Madison has over 20 years of experience in evidence-based research and management, especially in the design and implementation of clinical trials both in the U.S. and globally. Throughout her career, Madison has shown a strong ability to manage multidisciplinary, multicultural teams in various challenging settings and has consistently engaged with social justice issues.

Madison is an educator, and currently holds an adjunct faculty position at the University for Global Health Equity in Kigali, Rwanda. She is also the founder and president of the Robbins House, Inc., a historic home and nonprofit organization focused on raising awareness of African-American history in Concord, Mass. 

Madison earned both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in environmental policy and public health from Tufts University, and an ScD in population and international health from Harvard University’s School of Public Health.

Dr. Madison is the founder of The Robbins House, Concord’s African American History museum site in Concord Massachusetts. 

Do you know how important you are as a leader? What if you could learn your natural style of leadership and learn how to shift your leadership for the people you serve, which would result in improved productivity and gain greater profits? Dr. Janet “JJ” Sawyer, for the past twelve years, has worked with over 2,530 leaders throughout the United States, providing leadership training and coaching services all focused on leaders understanding and applying leadership strategies to improve their POWER as a leader. Dr. Sawyer’s consulting business, JJ Sawyer Consulting, LLC, has an emphasis on LEADING with POWER for Positive Performance. The POWER comes from becoming a Self-Aware, Intentional, and Mindful Leader. This leadership coaching involves leaders in Collaborative Conversational Coaching Workshops that includes The POWER of:

• Becoming a Self-Aware and Intentional Leader.

• Creating a Collaborative and Cohesive Team.

• Managing the Effect of Change.

All of these leadership workshops are aimed at helping leaders understand how to plan for their leadership in order to successfully work collaboratively with the people they lead while implementing change initiatives in their business and personal lives.

We will be discussing upcoming events with the Tony Ferrell All Star Band.  And believe me, the musicians in this band are truly allstars!

You won’t want to miss meeting Tony, hearing his incredible story, listening to some amazing music, and calling in for some free tickets to the upcoming concert!

Being a trouble maker from the womb, Alexander hails from the ultra conservative Orange County. Glad to break free with strong wings given to him by his mother (a.k.a. Momma Rose), he is happy to find a home for his voice with the UBN family. He has enjoyed a varied career in the theatre, music and even banking. No stranger to UBN, he recently finished three succesful years with “Happy Hour with Ben & Alexander”.  In his free time, he enjoys hang gliding with the Dali Lama, feeding the lepers in Calcutta and going shopping with the Housewives of Beverly Hills. He currently performs in venues around Southern California and most recently performed his one man show, “I’ll Drink To That” at Rockwell Table & Stage.  He will be touring with Jill in their duet show, “Musical Madness” in the coming year.  He longs for the day when Patti Lupone will retract that restraining order.

Bentinho Massaro is a different kind of being. You could say he is Extra-Ordinary—having integrated the "extra”—or non-physical—levels of his being into his human experience. He calls this True Simultaneity, and he claims we can all learn to expand and live in this way.

Since his first profound enlightenment experience at age 14, Bentinho has been riding the waves of an intensely awakened life. He started teaching at age 18 and today, at 28, he is an internationally recognized spiritual teacher and empowerment speaker who holds frequent retreats in major US and European cities. 

On a personal level, he embodies the fully passionate lifestyle that he teaches—including “free-solo” rock-climbing (no ropes) and free-diving to depths over 30 meters on a single breath. Currently he is exploring new roles as entrepreneur, CEO, inventor, and investor, adding to previous skills as Reiki master, yogi, and telekinetic. He also occasionally enjoys a fine whiskey with a Cuban cigar!  

Even as a child, growing up in Holland, he had a sense of the unlimited possibilities within human consciousness. As a teenager, frustrated with the “unconscious” behavior of society, he made a commitment to search for the “ultimate answer” and to discover the actual workings of life that would liberate humanity from conflict and suffering.

He began a relentless quest, exploring all kinds of teachers, philosophies, and methods, including studies in India. He stayed with each practice only long enough to digest what was useful to his goal. Eventually exhausted, he realized that all the spiritual “authorities” were no more enlightened than himself, and he made a radical decision: to seek only within his own being, following his own resonance and trusting his intuition without hesitation. There he discovered that the “ultimate answer” was to be found in the presence of Existence itself—in all its infinite potential.

Kevin Bulmer is a professional Speaker, Certified Life & Executive Coach & Host of “Journeys with the No Schedule Man,” a weekly podcast featuring conversations on personal and professional growth, available worldwide on iTunes, Stitcher, YouTube and at NoScheduleManPodcast.com. 

Kevin’s signature keynote presentation, “Rise Like a Phoenix, Race Like a Turtle,” helps people proactively respond to change and rediscover themselves through times of adversity. The enthusiastic response has led to the creation of Kevin’s online coaching community, “The Turtle Tribe” 

David Dachinger and Tamara Green, are the co-founders of Loving Meditations. David is a featured author and Grammy-nominated composer who has scored inspiring music for America’s most celebrated sporting events and television shows. Over 1.5 billion people have heard his music on CBS broadcasts of the Super Bowl, The Masters, and NFL games. David is a survivor of stage IV head, neck, and lymphatic cancer. Tamara is an author, speaker, and trainer, whom Elle magazine referred to as “the soul-centered psychotherapist and meditation facilitator.” Tamara combines her many years of professional training and her life experience as a caregiver to create powerfully effective guided meditations that have helped thousands to achieve peace, love, and well-being. Together, this married couple has created transformative mindfulness programs that help patients and caregivers to dramatically reduce stress, anxiety, pain, and discomfort throughout their medical ordeal.  "Living Calm with Cancer" book is sold on Amazon. Download their free Loving Meditations app, and enjoy the Loving Meditations Waiting Room TV.

DR. HEIKE and JONATHAN HUDSON

A Divine Union with a big promise and an even bigger purpose

Let’s start with the miracle, the unthinkable, and yet unavoidable…

Before Heike and Jonathan met they both had made a secret vow to never again commit to a relationship yet marriage. They both had come out of a very intense and painful marriage and years later they were not only happy singles but were simply done with the experience of pain and suffering in the name of “love”.

Well, fate had a different plan for them. When they met they fought the extremely palpable sexual attraction and deep love they instantly felt, they resisted the concept of relationship and would only commit if there was a complete new and working structure in place. Each step, each word, each action became a conscious choice and exploration of what works and what doesn’t work.

It became very clear right from the beginning that Jonathan and Heike were not only meant for each other but also to be the inspiration, the living example, and the key holders of changing the way men and women experience relationships and sexuality today.

Dr. Heike and Jonathan Hudson have committed their lives to creating a new paradigm of relationships and sexuality. This couple is passionate about throwing outdated concepts overboard and create new working systems. They are striving to be a living example of what a deep loving and conscious relationship can look like. Heike and Jonathan’s passion is to guide and educate men and women in releasing anything that is in the way of experiencing the closeness and depth we all desire in relationships. What they have named, “Sextraordinary Living”, is the modern and healthy blueprint to live a truly turned on life, in and outside the bedroom, without the past experience of pain or drama.

As San Diego’s preeminent sex educators and somatic sexual healers, Dr. Heike and Jonathon are the creators of Sex and Love Unplugged Meetup, and The Pleasure on Purpose™ Healing System used in their signature programs for men and women.

Together, they have created a master blend of spirituality and sexuality that they teach and embody in their own lives. With over 25 years of combined expertise in Human Sexuality, Somatic Bodywork, Naturopathy, Spiritual Counseling, Energy Healing, Explosive Sexual Healing, and Neuro-Linguistic Programming, clients from around the world experience extraordinary shifts in their relationships, sex and love lives, businesses, and health.

Heike and Jonathan promise that you CAN be fully sexually expressed, have deep connection and authentic communication, and finally find true lasting love without ever attracting the wrong partner again, or feeling sexually frustrated and pleasure deprived.

Together they create Sextraordinary Lives and Relationships!

MARINA V

Marina V is an award-winning Russian-American recording pop artist, singer and songwriter with a “hauntingly beautiful” voice (LA TIMES) and “melodic and passionate” music (The Washington Post). A self-described “musical lovechild of The Beatles, Tori Amos and Tchaikovsky”, Marina grew up in Moscow and has been singing and writing songs since a very young age.

Raised by a communist nuclear physicist father & a psychologist mother during the difficult times just after the Soviet Union collapse, Marina attended a school of music every evening after regular school.

After being rewarded a prestigious scholarship, Marina came to America at the age of 15, by herself. It wasn’t easy, and somewhere between visa issues, crazy odd jobs, missing her family, playing ice hockey and attending a university in Illinois, she worked hard and has quickly blossomed into an international voice. She self-released several albums and, together with her husband/co-writer, Nick Baker, has played over 900 shows worldwide.

Marina has worked with Grammy & Emmy winners, platinum-selling artists and legends like Jack Douglas (John Lennon, Aerosmith), received many awards (such as The Los Angeles Music Critic Award, a Hollywood International Entertainment Award and one from Sir Bob Geldof) and has been praised for her work as a cultural ambassador by Senator Bill Bradley.

She has written multiple songs for films, video games, ads such as PEPSI, has had her songs on NBC, CBS, SONY, Oprah Winfrey Network, Lifetime and The National Geographic, among many others. She’s also written several songs for NBC’s Days of Our Lives and even appeared singing on screen.

Marina’s songs have timeless quality that transcends boundaries and touches fans from all walks of life. So much in fact that her fans have played an instrumental part in her success, sponsoring the creation of all of her albums, including her newest ones: INNER SUPERHERO and BORN TO THE STARS (coming fall 2017).

Marina is getting more and more recognition each day. The environmentally- conscious artist loves touring, connecting with her fans and inspiring people with her amazing music, her story & beautiful spirit.

Based in Los Angeles, Marina is always creating: whether recording for her 2 SONGS A MONTH CLUB, writing or painting.

TOM GOSS

Tom has been compared to Brett Dennen and Mat Kearney — but with a distinct voice shaped by his identity as a gay man and his unusual history. A college wrestler turned Catholic seminarian turned touring musician, Tom weaves his story throughout a powerhouse live set that moves between touching love songs and high-energy anthems. 

Known for his love songs, Tom’s music has been called “moving” and “incredible” (Huffington Post), “beautifully composed” (The Daily Beast), and “hauntingly beautiful” (Out). His songs have been heard on ABC, HBO, in several films, and his inventive music videos (Son of a Preacher Man, Breath and Sound, Bears, Click), have been viewed more than nine million times. Tom has shared a stage with performers as diverse as Andy Grammer, Martha Wash, Taylor Dane, Steve Grand, Adrianne Gonzalez, Matt Alber, and Catie Curtis, and he enjoys a particularly strong following in the LGBT community. 

A native of Kenosha, Wisconsin, Tom went to college in Missouri on a wrestling scholarship with plans to become a schoolteacher. A semester of substitute teaching in Illinois changed his mind, but still wanting to make a difference in the world, he decided to become a Catholic priest, moving to Washington DC to enter seminary. Disillusioned by his experiences there, and with a growing awareness that he was gay, Tom found himself in music and began a career as a touring performer. 

Currently based in Los Angeles, Tom will be touring the US this spring and summer with a new multimedia show that incorporates guitar, storytelling, and video. 

JJ FLIZANES

JJ Flizanes is a Holistic Fitness & Lifestyle Coach, Empowerment Strategist, author, and the host of The Fit 2 Love Podcast. She is on a mission to transform the meaning of the word “fitness” to include not just the state of a person’s physical body, but the emotional, mental and spiritual states as well.  She is the author of Fit 2 Love: How to Get Physically, Emotionally, and Spiritually Fit to Attract the Love of Your Life and most recently The Invisible Fitness Formula: 5 Secrets to Release Weight and End Body Shame which is coupled with a robust online coaching program. She was named Best Personal Trainer in Los Angeles for 2007 by Elite Traveler Magazine and has since been featured in many national magazines, as well as appeared on NBC, CBS, Fox 11 and KTLA. JJ advocates against “dieting” and uses customized coaching programs that harmonize all facets of internal and external fitness to provide lasting results.

Dr. Dale Bredesen is internationally recognized as an expert in the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. He graduated from Caltech, then earned his MD from Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC. He served as Chief Resident in Neurology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) before joining Nobel laureate Stanley Prusiner’s laboratory at UCSF as an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow. He held faculty positions at UCSF, UCLA and the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Bredesen directed the Program on Aging at the Burnham Institute before coming to the Buck Institute in 1998 as its founding President and CEO.  Dr Bredesen has mentored many, many physicians and PhD learners in his lab, presented over 300 papers, written over 200 peer reviewed papers written numerous book chapters and abstracts,, written several books including his recent the End of Alzheimer’s: The first program to prevent and reverse cognitive decline, received numerous patents and honors. In addition, recently he has been interviewed on many television  and radio shows including Dr Oz. 

The uniform failure of recent drug trials in Alzheimer’s disease has highlighted the critical need for a more accurate understanding of the fundamental nature of Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Bredesen’s research has led to new insight that explains the erosion of memory seen in Alzheimer’s disease, and has opened the door to a new therapeutic approach. He has found evidence that Alzheimer’s disease stems from an imbalance in nerve cell signaling: in the normal brain, specific signals foster nerve connections and memory making, while balancing signals support memory breaking, allowing irrelevant information to be forgotten. But in Alzheimer’s disease, the balance of these opposing signals is disturbed, nerve connections are suppressed, and memories are lost. This model is contrary to popular dogma that Alzheimer’s is a disease of toxicity, caused by the accumulation of sticky plaques in the brain. Bredesen believes the amyloid beta peptide, the source of the plaques, has a normal function in the brain — promoting signals that allow some of the nerve connections to lapse. Thus the increase in the peptide that occurs in Alzheimer’s disease shifts the memory-making vs. memory-breaking balance in favor of memory loss. This work has led to the identification of several new therapeutic candidates that are currently in pre-clinical trials.

Dr. Bredesen’s novel insights into the fundamental nature of Alzheimer’s disease recently attracted an investment of $3.5 million toward a $10 million goal for initial clinical trials of these new therapeutics. This generous support came from the private venture capitalist Douglas Rosenberg, who is helping to fund the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Network, centered at the Buck Institute. The unit is screening drug candidates to find those that can preserve a healthy balance in the signaling pathways that support memory. Dr. Bredesen’s work on nerve cell signaling is also the focus of a collaboration between the Buck Institute and BioMarin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which is seeking treatments for a rare form of Alzheimer’s disease, early onset Familial Alzheimer’s Disease (eFAD), which may develop in people as young as 30 years of age.

In the 1960s I was heavily involved in the Civil Rights Movement as second vice chair of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) under our leader at the time, the legendary James Farmer.  I later went on the become chairman of Bronx CORE, following in the footsteps of the chapter's first chairman, Herb Calendar, who was an original Freedom Rider.

I share this with you so you'll understand why more often than not I am stirring the pot and unwilling to tolerate the status quo when it comes to opportunities for wealth building and empowerment in our African-American community.  By us pushing the envelope and not settling for things as usual, we served as catalysts for change.  

That being said, this Publisher's Message is directed mainly at our meeting, incentive and event planner audience.  I'm the first to admit that the days when overt racism was rampant are thankfully behind us for the most part.  But unless you have been wearing blinders, it's hard for you to deny that we continue to experience and live with the vestiges of Jim Crow, which are evident wherever you look in this industry. Our efforts moved our community, and our country, in the right direction.  We won many battles, though certainly not all of them.  And while we accomplished much, in 2017 few can argue that we don't still have a long way to go.

That being said, this Publisher's Message is directed mainly at our meeting, incentive and event planner audience.  I'm the first to admit that the days when overt racism was rampant are thankfully behind us for the most part.  But unless you have been wearing blinders, it's hard for you to deny that we continue to experience and live with the vestiges of Jim Crow, which are evident wherever you look in this industry.

In fact BM&T regularly runs feature articles in our magazine presenting an array of outstanding and highly qualified individuals who are more than competent to fill some of the many opportunities that exist under the broader umbrella of Tourism as well as highlighting hundreds of African American Tourist sites that would be of interest to everyone nationwide.

Shirlene Reeves: one of only 253 Certified Financial Educators in the US, a web TV show host and a syndicated radio host on BBS Radio, publisher of Wealthy Woman Magazine and the author of Selling Through Your Heart - Empowering You To Build Relationships For Financial Freedom.

Shirlene is an in-demand international keynote speaker specializing in educating coaches, authors and entrepreneurs with answers for transforming their businesses by selling with heart, developing confidence, and stepping onto stages, web TV, podcasts and radio for massive, marketing visibility.

Radhaa is an intuitive teacher, international coach, healer, forward thinking leader and speaker on feminine empowerment. Radhaa is Creatress behind the original healing modality

The Goddess Activations™. 

This healing method is used to Awaken and ActivateGoddess Codes™ which help clear beliefs, blockages and lineage wounds and awaken the feminine gifts. 

Radhaa stems from a direct lineage of Shamans, working with women to heal their heart and soul wounds.

As the Founder of Goddess Code Academy™ a mystical school for the divine feminine. Her mission and vision of serving women through holistic education and empowerment. Radhaa leads online programs, international retreats and Goddess Activations™ trainings.

Radhaa has a deep connection Mother Gaia and nature. She thrives on creativity, art and love for honest story-telling has lead her to support others following their life path, higher purpose and ultimate dreams.