We are incredibly grateful to our world class Board of Directors for the attention and care they have supported the Foundation with. We could not find better leaders in each of their respective expertises.
Janine Benyus is a biologist, innovation consultant, and author of six books including Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature (1997). Janine is the founder of the Biomimicry Institute which empowers people to create nature-inspired solutions for a healthy planet. In 1998, Janine co-founded the world’s first bio-inspired consultancy, bringing nature’s sustainable designs to 250+ clients including Boeing, Colgate-Palmolive, Nike, General Electric, Herman Miller, HOK architects, IDEO, Interface, Natura, Procter and Gamble, Levi’s, Kohler, and General Mills.
Brian Weinberg
Brian Weinberg is a regenerative strategist and capital innovator with over 15 years of experience at the intersection of philanthropy, social entrepreneurship, and impact investing. A Summa Cum Laude graduate in Finance and Spanish from the University of North Texas, Brian was nominated for the Rhodes Scholarship and honored by fellowships including Ashoka Youth Venture, Clinton Global Initiative U, StartingBloc, REALITY Impact, Sandbox, and Opportunity Collaboration.
His early travels through South America ignited a lifelong commitment to social justice and economic empowerment. Brian went on to help raise funding for microfinance initiatives and worked alongside leaders behind the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. As an investment professional, he managed a $100 million portfolio of debt and equity investments across 11 countries, financing microfinance institutions that serve low-income communities.
Brian later served as Global Director of Operations for NEXUS, the world’s largest network of young wealth holders and social innovators, where he led global convenings at the United Nations, the White House, and Rockefeller Family Office. His work brought together thought leaders and cultural influencers to explore conscious capitalism, impact investing, and regenerative economics.
Today, Brian is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Foundation for Regeneration, where he is applying his global experience to catalyze local change. With a focus on land-based demonstration projects, Brian is committed to proving that regeneration is not just a theory—it’s a practical, inclusive, and necessary path forward for America’s communities.
Bob Berkebile
Bob Berkebile, FAIA, is a nationally acclaimed architect, civic leader, and regenerative design pioneer whose influence has helped shape some of the most impactful sustainability movements of our time. A student of Buckminster Fuller in the 1960s, Bob went on to become a founding force behind the U.S. Green Building Council and a key architect of the LEED certification system—catalyzing the global green building movement.
As Principal Emeritus of the renowned architecture and planning firm BNIM, Bob has spent decades advising U.S. Presidents and working with national agencies including the EPA, DOE, DOD, FEMA, and the National Academy of Sciences. Under President Clinton, he helped “green” the White House and has since played a leading role in resilience and sustainability efforts across the country.
In Kansas City, Bob continues to serve on numerous civic and environmental boards, including the Mayor’s Climate Protection Steering Committee, the Environmental Management Commission, The Nature Conservancy, Bridging the Gap, and the Chamber’s Business Leadership Council.
Today, his focus includes “urban acupuncture” development—transformative projects that repurpose underutilized sites into thriving community anchors. These include redeveloping four abandoned schools and converting a 30-story former bank building into a vertical neighborhood featuring an early learning center, university, health club, and 300 homes.
As co-founder of the Foundation for Regeneration, Bob brings unmatched experience, wisdom, and heart to every project—advancing a future where design restores ecosystems, uplifts the vitality of communities, and reflects the sacredness of life.
Jason Parsons
Tricia Medrano Bridges
Tricia Medrano Bridges’ was Vice President for Development at the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas where she cooordinated with the CEO to raise a $25 million dollar campaign to build new Y’s and renovate others. In August of 2005, she was asked to join the Dallas based nonprofit Chiapas Project as CEO, founded by Dallas Real Estate Developer Lucy Billingsley to fund microfinance to women in Latin America through support to Grameen Foundation. Over the years Chiapas provided funding for Mexico, Bolivia, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Honduras and Colombia securing over $6,000,000 for anti-poverty solutions. In November of 2010, Tricia was awarded Grameen Foundation’s “2010 Lifetime Achievement Award” for her work with Chiapas International and her lifetime commitment to eradicating poverty and improving lives of those in need.
Lawrence Rouse
Mr Rouse grew up in Kansas City and graduated from the University of Kansas with a BS in Industrial Engineering in 1967. He attended Law School at Georgetown University School of Law and worked as a Patent Examiner at the United States Patent office.
From 1971-1973, he served as Judicial Law Clerk to the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama (Mobile) and thereafter joined the Kansas City law firm of Stinson, Mag & Fizz ell. In 1992, he became a founding member of the law firm of Rouse Hendricks German May, where he practiced trial law until he retired in 2015. Mr Rouse is married to the former June Harper Barnes and they have three children and three grandchildren
Mr Rouse grew up in Kansas City and graduated from the University of Kansas with a BS in Industrial Engineering in 1967. He attended Law School at Georgetown University School of Law and worked as a Patent Examiner at the United States Patent office.
From 1971-1973, he served as Judicial Law Clerk to the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama (Mobile) and thereafter joined the Kansas City law firm of Stinson, Mag & Fizz ell. In 1992, he became a founding member of the law firm of Rouse Hendricks German May, where he practiced trial law until he retired in 2015. Mr Rouse is married to the former June Harper Barnes and they have three children and three grandchildren
Majora Carter is a real estate developer, urban revitalization strategy consultant, MacArthur Fellow and Peabody Award winning broadcaster. She is responsible for the creation and successful implementation of numerous economic developments, technology & green-infrastructure projects, policies and job training & placement systems. This work has garnered her 8 honorary PhD’s and awards such as: 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs by Goldman Sachs, Silicon Alley 100 by Business Insider, Liberty Medal for Lifetime Achievement by News Corp, and other honors from the National Building Museum, International Interior Design Association, Center for American Progress, as well as her TEDtalk (one of six to launch that site in 2006). She has served on the boards of the US Green Building Council, Ceres, The Wilderness Society, and the Andrew Goodman Foundation.
Tom Chi is perhaps one of the greatest minds in business innovation, social change innovation, and prototyping thinking. He started out doing astrophysical research at 15 and now business pedigree includes executive roles at Yahoo, being a key influencer in the design of Microsoft Outlook, and shaping Google X, self driving cars, and Google Glasses. He teaches a course on Prototype Thinking tools for hyper-learning to empower purpose-driven leaders worldwide and recently launched a new investment fund At One Ventures which finds, funds, and grows teams to catalyze a world where humanity is a net positive to nature. Think drones planting trees and robots repairing coral reefs.
Dr. Reverend Gerald Durley
Dr. Reverend Gerald Durley is a living legend who marched with Martin Luther King Jr. In 2011, Rev. Durley was inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame for his contributions during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. He believes that climate change, global warming, and environmental justice are moral imperatives, which he sees as a contemporary civil rights issue. Rev. Durley is the former Pastor of the historic Providence Missionary Baptist Church of Atlanta, where he served for nearly 25 years. He believes that God created a perfect ecologically balanced world for humans to care for, but we are destroying it at an alarming rate. He asserts that for the environment to be saved, the educational, scientific, business, political, and faith communities must seek common solutions.
Paul Hawken is an environmentalist, entrepreneur, author and activist who has dedicated his life to environmental sustainability and changing the relationship between business and the environment. He is one of the environmental movement’s leading voices, and a pioneering architect of corporate reform with respect to ecological practices. Paul is Founder of Project Drawdown, a non-profit dedicated to researching when and how global warming can be reversed. The organization maps and models the scaling of one hundred substantive technological, social, and ecological solutions to global warming. Paul authors articles, op-eds, and peer-reviewed papers, and has written eight books including five national bestsellers and has been profiled or featured in hundreds of articles including the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Washington Post, Business Week, Esquire.
Wes Jackson
Wes Jackson, founder and president emeritus of The Land Institute, earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Kansas Wesleyan University; a master’s degree in botany from the University of Kansas, and a doctorate in genetics from North Carolina State University. Wes is the author of several books, including New Roots for Agriculture, Becoming Native to This Place, Consulting the Genius of the Place, and most recently Nature as Measure. Wes is widely recognized as a leader in the international movement for a more sustainable agriculture as a Pew Conservation Scholar in 1990, a MacArthur Fellow in 1992, and received the Right Livelihood Award in 2000.
For Talia Arnow, living a purposeful life is her mission. Her experiences studying ecology, building a social enterprise, and investing money towards social good have compelled her to challenge our inherited operating models that perpetuate siloed, unconscious and ego-centered solutions that are responsible for the existing inequality and environmental destruction. She is dedicated to creating spaces that refine our perceptions of ourselves and tools that enable trust, integrity, and cooperation. She is here to inspire living an authentic life and building a new path toward a caring economy.
