Epidemic of health

 

Who We Are

Heather Wood Ion is a cultural anthropologist who works on the transformation of organizations, projects and grassroots initiatives. For the last eight years of his life, Jonas Salk shared with Heather his dreams of establishing a science of hope, and his diaries of reflections. Prior to meeting Dr. Salk, Heather studied cultural recovery and resilience following natural disasters and applied her work to turnarounds in health care and community development. She has taught ethics and medical humanities, and is a frequent keynote speaker on health and care in the future. Heather holds degrees from McGill University, Claremont Graduate University, and Oxford University. Her first novel, Third-class Ticket is being made into feature film. Her latest book, Making Doctors, A Century of Lessons on the Practice of Healing, describes the process by which great doctors are formed.

Lenore T. Ealy currently serves as Director of The Project for New Philanthropy Studies at DonorsTrust and is the founding editor of Conversations on Philanthropy (launched in 2004), an annual journal that explores the role of philanthropy in a free society. For more than 15 years Ealy has sought to understand and promote the transformative work of philanthropy and the voluntary sector, providing support to entrepreneurs and executives in the arenas of philanthropy, education, and public policy. She also provides philanthropic advising services, helping donors assess their giving opportunities and align them with their personal goals and values. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Ealy helped found an organization to provide disaster child care services and has developed a disaster preparedness academy for youth. She serves as a Senior Affiliated Scholar to the Mercatus Center, and is a member of the advisory board for the National Institute for Urban Search and Rescue.

Rev. Gary R. Gunderson, M.Div., D.Min., D.Div. (Hon.) V.P Faith and Health Ministries at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center; Adjunct Faculty, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. Gary's two leadership roles focus on building the capacity of religious institutions to advance health and wholeness. Since the Interfaith Health Program (IHP) began at The Carter Center in 1992, Gunderson has explored the confluence of health and faith by working with an international network of community leaders and multi-disciplinary scholars. He is the author of several books, notably Deeply Woven Roots and Boundary Leaders (Fortress Press, 1997 and 2004), many articles and hundreds of speeches and presentations to religious and science groups. His books, Leading Causes of Life, with Larry Pray, and Religion and the Health of the Public with James R. Cochran re-frame the perspectives and paradigms of health and healthcare.