We're finalizing the Enrichment Sessions for the Amazon Expedition Enrichment Voyage. The following speakers are confirmed for the voyage, and more will be announced soon..

Dan Everett - Linguistics & Culture -- Dan Everett is currently Professor of Linguistics, Anthropology, and Biological Sciences at Illinois State University. He has also held tenured professorships at the University of Manchester, England, the University of Pittsburgh, and the State University of Campinas (Brazil). He has worked in the Amazon for more than thirty years, having lived among the Piraha people for some 84 months. Everett has conducted field research on more than a dozen Amazonian Indian groups in addition to the Pirahas. He is the author of more than 75 scientific articles and six books. His most recent book, Don't Sleep, There are Snakes: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle, will be released on November 11, 2008 by Pantheon Books in the US, Profile Books in the UK, and publishers in several other countries and languages. He is one of the world's leading authorities on Amazonian Indians and his research has been reported in New Scientist, The New Yorker magazine, Scientific American, Der Spiegel, BBC Radio, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, National Public Radio, CNN, and many newspapers around the world. His enrichment sessions will include the Piraha People, Languages of the Amazon Today, Culture of the Amazonian River Dwellers, and Brazilian Culture.

Manuel Aguilar - Maya Art & Culture -- Dr. Aguilar is Assistant Professor of Art History at California State University, Los Angeles. He is an expert on Maya culture and Maya hieroglyphics. He has extensive research experience in Latin and South America. Manuel has delighted passengers on past Enrichment Voyages and has also sailed as a professor on the Fall 2003 voyage of Semester at Sea. He teaches Latin American (Pre-Columbian, Colonial and Modern) art history; as well as early Christian, Byzantine, Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassic art history. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. His enrichment sessions will include The History of Decipherment of the Maya Hieroglyphic Writing, Maya Art and Culture and History of Mariachi Music.




Martha Madden - Enviornmental Issues / Retirement Planning -- Dr. Martha A. Madden is president of mMadden Associates, with offices in New Orleans and Washington, D.C., she is a consultant in environmental, energy, education and economic development arenas. She was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters in 2007. Madden packs a portfolio of accolades as a former- Legislative Assistant in D.C.; Secretary of Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality; Coordinator of Louisiana's Office of Permits and a Special Assistant at the US Dept. of Energy. Her academic achievements include - former teacher, counselor, Dean of Women, Dean of Students on Semester at Sea, and a Clinical Associate Professor at Tulane University Medical School in the School of Public Health teaching Environmental Polices. She has a B.S. and M.A. from S.M.U. with advanced studies at Stanford University. Dr. Madden's Enrichment Sessions will include Global Environmental Issues of the Caribbean, Amazon Environmental Concerns, and "Wake Up, it's GAP-TIME," a guided tour to transitioning and planning for your retirement dreams (based on her new book).


Richard Lozinsky - Geology of Caribbean and Amazon -- Richard Lozinsky is a Professor of Earth Sciences at Fullerton College in Orange County, California. He received a B.S. (Geology) and a B.A. (Geography) from Humboldt State University, and a M.S. (Geology) from the University of New Mexico and Ph.D. (Geology) from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. Dr. Lozinsky teaches a variety of courses in geology and oceanography specializing in natural disasters and field studies. He has written several natural history field guides on portions of New Mexico and Southern California. His most recent publication is a geological guide of the Orange County area. With extensive worldwide traveling experience including two Semester at Sea voyages (Spring, 1999 and Fall, 2003), Dr. Lozinsky greatly enjoys working closely with individuals to have geology come alive for them. One of his major teaching themes is that "geology goes wherever you go." His enrichment sessions will focus on the amazing Amazon River Basin, earthquake and volcanic hazards in the area, and weather and ocean patterns.


Allan Schoenherr - Biological & Environmental Science -- Allan Schoenherr is a retired Professor of Ecology at Fullerton College in southern California. He also has taught a variety of ecology classes at the University of California, Irvine, and California State University at Fullerton. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Southern California, and his Ph.D. from Arizona State University. He was honored as Teacher of the Year (2000) at Fullerton College. A recognized authority on California, he is the author of two major books on the state. A Natural History of California (University of California Press, 1992) is a 772-page compendium on the plants, animals, and geology of California. His more recent publication, Natural History of the Islands of California (University of California Press, 1999), is a 491 page discussion of all the islands of California including those in San Francisco Bay. He is coauthor of the third edition of The Terrestrial Vegetation of California. An accomplished nature photographer, he has provided the photographs to illustrate his books and he has received two awards for his images of California Gray Whales. His academic interests are in ecology, evolution, biogeography, and endangered species. His enrichment sessions will include Whales and Other Marine Mammals, Wildlife of Tropical Forests, Island Wildlife, and Environmental/Ecology Issues in the Caribbean and Amazon.

Louis Patler - Business and Economic Development in Brazil and the Caribbean -- Award-winning author, speaker and consultant, Louis Patler is President of The B.I.T. Consulting Group, a strategic and organizational development company. He is co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of Near Bridge, Inc., a generational trend analysis company. Louis brings pioneering technologies for identifying emerging business and consumer trends, organization culture/integration solutions, and strategic initiatives to Fortune 500 companies, multi-national corporations, and foreign governments. England's BBC-TV, SKY-TV and Canada's CBC-Radio praised him as one of America's new breed of business thought leaders. Louis' books include: The Consistent Consumer/Predicting Customer Behavior Through Lasting Values (Chicago: Dearborn/Kaplan, May, 2005) which offers fresh research into market segmentation viewed through the lens of the core values held by various age groups and TrendSmart / The 21 Trends That Will Change the Way You Do Business (Chicago: Sourcebooks, 2004), which pinpoints business trends affecting leaders/managers, consumers and employees. He is co-author of the New York Times best seller, If it ain't broke. . . BREAK IT! / Unconventional Wisdom for a Changing Business World (Warner Books, 1992) which was the second best-selling business book of 1992. His Enrichment Session topics will include Legacy Leadership: African Influences on Brazil and Brazil's Current Economic Development, Innovating for Results, and Generational Values by Age Groups and Nations.

Ciel Duke - Artist in Residence -- Ciel Duke will be the Artist-in-Residence for this Enrichment Voyage. She will provide art workshops such as sketching, water colors, and copper tooling. Ms. Duke will also provide Enrichment Sessions on the artists, Frida Kahlo and Earl Bailly. Recently retired from 25 years of teaching high school Art and Math, Ms. Duke has launched an active painting career, with recent one-woman shows in Nova Scotia, where she spends several months each year, and gallery showings in Alaska and Arizona. Ciel Duke has shared her art with many audiences, and she has often remarked, "Anyone can learn to draw." After participating in Ciel's workshops, many participants have come away with a big boost in their artistic confidence and with the feeling that Ciel's statement just might be true!