Our Team

Board Members

In Memoriam

Staff Members & Project Support

Advisors

Roger Ames
Jerry Bedford
Paul Bube
John Buchanan
Kevin Clark
Philip Clayton
Cliff Cobb
Jim Conn
Roland Faber
Marcus Ford
Bruce Hanson
Joseph Hough
Susan Jain
Carol Johnston
Lynn Juarez
David Korten
Sandra Lubarsky
Jay McDaniel
Bob Mesle
Mary Elizabeth Moore
Roy Morrison
Ronald Phipps
Stephen Rowe
David Schwerin
Marjorie Suchocki
Mary Evelyn Tucker
Karen Torjesen
Tom Tseng
Teresa Wilson
Franklin J. Woo
Jentai Yang
Yih-hsien Yu

Karen Jo Torjesen holds the Margo L. Goldsmith Chair of Women’s Studies in Religion at Claremont Graduate University

where she founded an MA and PhD program in Women’s Studies in Religion in 1990 and collaborated with Jean Schroedel in Political Science in starting an MA in Applied Women’s Studies in 1995. Professor Torjesen’s research interests include constructions of gender and sexuality in early Christianity, authority and institutionalization in the early churches, hermeneutics and rhetoric in late antiquity, and comparative study of Greek and Latin patristic traditions.

Tom Tseng is Pastor of First United Methodist Church of Alhambra. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Harvest Bible University, in Los Angeles, CA.

John H. Buchanan President of the Helios Foundation. He received his master’s degree in humanistic/transpersonal psychology from West Georgia College and his doctorate from the Graduate Institute of the Liberal Arts at Emory University, where he first studied process thought with William Beardslee—then later with David Griffin. He has been trained and certified as a Holotropic Breathwork practitioner by Stan and Christina Grof. His book, Processing Reality: Finding Meaning in Death, Psychedelics, and Sobriety, based upon his continuing interests in process philosophy and transpersonal psychology, was published in the fall of 2022. Buchanan has contributed a number of journal articles and book chapters on similar topics, and in 2020 was contributing co-editor for Rethinking Consciousness: Extraordinary Challenges for Contemporary Science. Dr. Buchanan also serves as president of the Helios Foundation.

Cliff Cobb has spent most of his career working for advocacy-oriented nonprofits.

In the 1990s, he worked for Redefining Progress, a San Francisco think tank, developing alternative indicators, such as the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI), and environmental tax policies. In 1997, he joined the board of the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation, which promotes the ideas of Henry George, a 19th century advocate of an economic system that uses libertarian policies to achieve socialist ends. In 2008, he was an adviser in the production of a film by the foundation, The End of Poverty, a feature-length documentary on the diverse causes of global poverty. From 2014 to 2022, he was the editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Economics and Sociology. From 2003 to 2019, he traveled intermittently to China in conjunction with IPDC to lecture on the economic and social implications of constructive postmodernism.

Meijun Fan, PhD, is former Vice-Chair and Professor of the Philosophy Department at Beijing Normal University, China. She completed doctoral studies at Beijing Normal University, specializing in Chinese traditional aesthetics and aesthetical education. She is the author of six books, and a co-author of six books. Her book, Contemporary Interpretation of Chinese Traditional Aesthetic, was granted the “Excellence Award in Philosophy and Social Science” in China in 1998. As Co-Director of the China Project, Meijun is primarily responsible for Cultural Communication, a newspaper of the China Project. She is also responsible for the Chinese visiting scholar program and works on publicity and web development.

Bruce Hanson is Emeritus Professor of Business at Concordia University. He is a lecturer in the PhD program in Organization Development at Assumption University in Thailand. Over the past 15 years, he has taught in the MBA programs of Wuhan University and Shanghai University. His interest in China began at an early age as his parents met in China, where his mother was a nurse in Kunming and his father was a headmaster in Hong Kong. While his PhD is in Organization Behavior, he holds a Masters Degree in City Planning and worked as a housing and neighborhood planner in St Paul Minnesota. He lives in Ojai California where he practices sustainability at his home and the Ojai Valley.

Sandra Lubarsky, Ph.D. has spent most of her years as a university professor and administrator bringing sustainability into the curriculum and into campus activities.

She founded one of the first graduate programs in sustainability, the M.A. in Sustainable Communities, at Northern Arizona University and chaired the Department of Sustainable Development at Appalachian State University. She has been an innovator in higher education, integrating theory with hands-on education, making the community the classroom, creating transdisciplinary courses, and introducing beauty as a subject of importance. She has written several books and dozens of essays on inter-religious dialogue, higher education, sustainability, and aesthetics. Sandra serves as President of Flagstaff College.

Zhihe Wang, PhD, is a former member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, received his Master’s Degree in Western Philosophy from Peking University, China, his Ph.D. in Philosophy of Religion from Claremont Graduate University, USA, and is a leading figure in constructive postmodern movement in China. He has published numerous books and articles. His recent books include Process and Pluralism: Chinese Thought on the Harmony of Diversity, and Second Enlightenment (with Meijun Fan). He also helped establish more than 20 research institutes on process thought and constructive postmodern studies in China. He is the director of the CPS China Project where his major responsibility is to charge the communication between the Western Process community and the Chinese community by organizing international conferences, arranging lectures, translating process books, and Chinese visiting scholar program.

Danjin Zhu is Acquisitions Manager at School of Medicine at Lane Medical Library. From Peking University, and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, to Stanford University, the places she lived, studied, and worked has provided her with opportunities to witness abundant contrasting life expressions. And, at the same time, they have also nurtured her appreciation for the interconnectedness of all existence.

Besides her full-time work in the library, she has also been taking time to explore the art of tea, and have volunteered at Zen monastery kitchen, educational farm, and with Service Space where the upcoming pod happens to be a “21-Day Climate Action Challenge” starting on Earth Day. Many have helped shaping her life path, with Nan Huai-Chin/南懷瑾, Krishnamurti, and Zen Buddhism being the major influences.

Even though she has not studied Process philosophy, she resonates with all of the writings that she has come across thus far from Whitehead, Dr. Cobb, and Dr. Wang. She is open to learning more.

John B. Cobb. Jr. is an American theologian, philosopher, and environmentalist known for his work across multiple disciplines and sectors of society.

Author of more than 50 books, his work For the Common Good: Redirecting the Economy Toward Community, Environment, and a Sustainable Future, co-authored with Herman Daly, won the Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order. In 2014, Cobb was elected to the prestigious Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In honor of Dr. David R. Griffin, our esteemed board member who has passed away, we will preserve his profile on the committee’s official website as a symbol of mourning and a tribute to his legacy.

David Ray Griffin, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy of Religion and Theology at the Claremont School of Theology. His has published more than 34 books, primarily in theology, philosophy, and philosophy of religion, with special emphases on the problem of evil and the relation between science and religion, and is also editor of the SUNY series in Constructive Postmodern Thought.

Dr. John Becker received his B.A. and M.A. from Cal Poly Pomona in History and his Ph.D. in Comparative Theology and Philosophy from Claremont School of Theology. In 2017, he received the International Process Network’s Young Scholar Award. He is a member of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies and a Research Fellow for The Institute for Postmodern Development of China, USA. His research interests include contemporary religious thought, comparative religions (with particular attention to Mahayana Buddhism-Christianity), religions and ecology, and religious pluralism.

Dr. Paul Bube joined the Lyon College faculty in 2001 after serving as professor of religion and philosophy and chair of the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts at Kansas Wesleyan University. Dr. Bube was honored in 1999 with the Kansas Wesleyan University Exemplary Teaching Award. Dr. Bube is the former president of Habitat for Humanity of Independence County and a former board member of Batesville Help and Hope. He’s currently vice president of the Faculty Assembly and faculty sponsor for the Wesley Fellowship. In 2009, Dr. Bube received Lyon’s Lamar Williamson Prize for Excellence in Teaching.

Justin Heinzekehr, PhD is Director of Institutional Research and Assessment Assistant Professor of Bible and Religion at Goshen College.

Jay McDaniel is Willis Holmes Professor of Religious Studies at Hendrix College in Arkansas, and founder of the website Jesus, Jazz, and Buddhism: Process Thinking for a More Hospitable World. Active in the development of process thought in China, he is a consultant to the China Project of the Center for Process Studies in Claremont, California and a member of the advisory board of the Institute for Postmodern Development of China. His books include With Roots and Wings: Christianity in an Age of Ecology and Dialogue; Living from the Center: Spirituality in an Age of Consumerism; and Gandhi’s Hope: Learning from Other Religions as a Path to Peace. His primary areas of interest include process philosophy, holistic community, inter-religious dialogue, ecological spirituality, and music.

C. Robert (“Bob”) Mesle is a process philosopher and theologian and is currently a professor of philosophy and religion at Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa. After earning a B.A. in religion at Graceland University (1972), and an M.A. in Christian theology at the University of Chicago Divinity School (1975), Mesle received a Ph.D. in philosophy and religion from Northwestern University (1980).

Xinlin (Vivian) Song is an educator, writer, and program director at Yunhe Centre, a place-based learning center in China’s Sichuan Province. Her work focuses on forming cross-sector Glocal collaborations to create meaningful dialogues that ignite social change. At Yunhe Center, her work focuses on developing pedagogy and programs that engage locals and visitors with meaningful dialogues towards cultural appreciation, self-development and ecological restoration. Xinlin writes bilingually about regeneration and worldview change, pedagogy of indigenous ecological wisdom, and re-valuing the countryside for various publications within China and beyond. She works with various cultural institutions on developing exhibitions, publications and cultural programs, including the Guggenheim Museum, Museum of Chinese in America, Hethem Museum, Hongkong University Shanghai Centre. Beijing Design week, and Shenzhen/Hongkong Biennale.

Our Team

Board Members

Karen Torjesen

Tom Tseng

John Buchanan

Cliff Cobb

Meijun Fan

Bruce Hanson

Sandra Lubarsky

Zhihe Wang

Danjin Zhu

In Memoriam

John B. Cobb, Jr.

David Ray Griffin

Staff Members & Project Support

John Becker

Paul Bube

Justin Heinzekehr

Jay McDaniel

Bob Mesle

Xinling (Vivian) Song

Advisors