Christine Wamsler is Professor of Sustainability Science and director of the Contemplative Sustainable Futures Program. 

The aim of the Contemplative Sustainable Futures Program is to create space and opportunities for learning, networking and knowledge development on the role of inner dimensions and transformation for sustainability. It consists of three building blocks: education, networking and research activities. The latter also includes research on the interface between the mind, mindfulness and the climate crisis, such as the ActivateChange, Mind4Change and TransVision projects.

Fields of expertise: Christine is an internationally-renowned expert in sustainable development and associated (inner and outer) transformation processes, with more than 25 years of experience. Her work has shaped international debates and increased knowledge on personal, organisational and policy transformations in a context of climate change. She has led many international projects and published more than 200 academic papers, book chapters, and books on these issues. Her publications are regularly cited and used for practice, theory and policy development, including by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Her recent publications on inner-outer transformation for sustainability can be found here (under the heading ‘publications’).

Professional experience: Christine is currently Professor at Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies (LUCSUS) in Sweden. Previously, she worked as co-director of the Societal Resilience Centre and at the Global Development Institute of the University of Manchester, UK. In parallel to her academic research, Christine works on an ongoing basis as a consultant for different governmental and non-governmental organisations. Places where she has worked include Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Germany, Guatemala, India, Kosovo, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, Sweden, Tanzania, Togo and the UK.

Educational background: Christine holds a postdoctoral lecturer qualification (Habilitation) in Sustainability Science (Lund University, Sweden) and a PhD on Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation. Her Master’s degree is in International Humanitarian Assistance (University of Bochum, Germany), and postgraduate training includes Project Evaluation (University of the Saarland, Germany), Emergency Management (Charles Sturt University, Australia), and Community Disaster Risk Management (International Disaster Risk Management Centre IDRM, the Philippines). Christine is trained as an Architect and Urban Planner, with a specialisation in International Urban Development Planning (University of Stuttgart, Germany & Ecole d’Architecture Paris-Belleville, France).

Carolyn Finney, PhD is a storyteller, author and a cultural geographer. The aim of her work is to develop greater cultural competency within environmental organizations and institutions, challenge media outlets on their representation of difference, and increase awareness of how privilege shapes who gets to speak to environmental issues and determine policy and action. Carolyn is grounded in both artistic and intellectual ways of knowing – she pursed an acting career for eleven years, but five years of backpacking trips through Africa and Asia, and living in Nepal changed the course of her life. Motivated by these experiences, Carolyn returned to school after a 15-year absence to complete a B.A., M.A. (both of these degrees focused on gender and environmental issues in Kenya and Nepal, respectively) and Ph.D. (which focused on African Americans and environmental issues in the U.S.) She has been a Fulbright Scholar, a Canon National Parks Science Scholar and received a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship in Environmental Studies.  Carolyn has worked with the media in various capacities including the Tavis Smiley Show, MSNBC, & Vice News Tonight; wrote Op-Eds for Outside Magazine & Newsweek; was a guest editor & contributor for a special section on Race & the National Parks in Orion Magazine; participated in a roundtable conversation with REI and The Atlantic; interviewed with various media outlets including NPR, Sierra Club, Boston Globe & National Geographic; and even filmed a commercial for Toyota that highlighted the importance of African Americans getting out into Nature. Along with public speaking, writing, consulting and teaching (she has held positions at Wellesley College, the University of California, Berkeley & the University of Kentucky), she served on the U.S. National Parks Advisory Board for eight years which assists the National Park Service in engaging in relations of reciprocity with diverse communities. 

Her first book, Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoors was released in 2014 (UNC Press). Recent publications include “The Space Between the Words” (Harvard Design Journal Spring 2018), “A Thousand Oceans” (Geographical Research, Wiley Pub., Fall 2019) “This Moment” (River Rail: Occupy Colby Fall 2019), Self-Evident: Reflections on the Invisibility of Black Bodies in Environmental Histories (BESIDE Magazine, Montreal Spring 2020), and The Perils of Being Black in Public: We are all Christian Cooper and George Floyd (The Guardian, June 3rd 2020).