Mother Tree Council

Belvie Rooks co-founded Growing a Global Heart with Dedan Gills, a project to inspire the ceremonial planting of trees to honor forgotten individuals and support healing for communities and the earth. Meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a teenager helped shape Belvie’s deep commitment to social justice, which she has carried into classrooms, publications, and films. She was a founding faculty member at SUNY’s College of Social Justice and served on national boards including Bioneers and the Ella Baker Center. Belvie’s published works have appeared in many publications and anthologies. She is an American Book Award winner and founding staff member of Wild Trees Press with Alice Walker, and co-produced the award-winning documentary “The House on Coco Road.” Belvie is co-author with Dedan Gills of the book I Give You the Springtime of My Blushing Heart, which is shared in classrooms with students of all ages through Pseads, where Belvie serves as a Strategic Advisor with focus on community building.

Dr. Brian Thomas Swimme is a mathematical and evolutionary cosmologist, the Director of the Center for the Story of the Universe, and a professor at the California Institute of Integral Studies. He is known for his groundbreaking books, including The Hidden Heart of the Cosmos, The Universe is a Green Dragon, and Cosmogenesis: An Unveiling of an Expanding Universe, among others. He co-wrote and starred in the award-winning film and education series The Journey of the Universe, and lectures widely, including previously at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, UNESCO and the United Nations. He explores humanity’s role in the unfolding story of the cosmos and earth, helping students and audiences see their connection to the universe in new ways. Matt, Elizabeth and Richard studied with Dr. Swimme throughout graduate school and doctoral study. Through Pseads, Dr. Swimme’s teachings and work reach new students every day, inspiring young learners to consider their place in the vast, evolving universe and to feel inspired to see themselves as scientists, explorers, and visionaries.

Dr. Drew Dellinger is an internationally acclaimed poet, speaker, and educator who inspires audiences around the world on justice, ecology, cosmology, and compassion. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Religion and has presented poems and talks at over 1,400 events across the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. His award-winning book of poems, Love Letter to the Milky Way, has resonated with readers on six continents. Drew’s work has appeared in major magazines, anthologies, and in The New York Times. His poems are used and quoted in diverse settings, ranging from prison workshops to U.S. Congressional climate hearings. As a core designer of the Pachamama Alliance’s Awakening the Dreamer Symposium and a member of the organization’s board, he helps promote global environmental awareness. Materials he helped create are now used in 80 countries. Pseads brings Drew’s inspiring poetry into classrooms, where students consistently connect with his messages of hope and care for the planet.

Steve Uzzell is an award-winning photographer, cinematographer, and international speaker whose work has appeared in TIME, Newsweek, Smithsonian, and over 100 other publications. He began his career with National Geographic and has since completed assignments in all 50 states and 30 countries. His creative photography has earned ten Communication Arts awards and led to major advertising and editorial campaigns worldwide. As a sought-after speaker, Steve has shared his acclaimed presentation Open Roads Open Minds: An Exploration of Creative Problem Solving with more than 600,000 people across the globe, using stunning visuals to teach creative problem solving. His work has also aired on ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS. Steve brings his decades of creative leadership to the Pseads Board of Directors, helping inspire the next generation of learners, creators, and storytellers.

SenSaSheri Maasera is a Pseads Institute Fellow focused on community-building and original research in philosophy, somatics, and social and environmental justice. SenSaSheri is a 2025 graduate of Dominican University of California, earning a BFA in Dance with the Alonzo King LINES Ballet contemporary ballet program, and will join a professional dance company in St. Louis, Missouri this July. SenSaSheri was born in Saint Louis and spent part of her childhood in Bermuda. In elementary school, she joined the Organization for Black Struggle's youth program, Youth Undoing Institutional Racism (YUIR). From the Freedom Schools to food justice work, SenSaSheri’s early service in communities across St. Louis, Chicago, and Washington D.C. shaped her passion for equity, environmental healing, and educational transformation. She brings these values into her creative work and advocacy and is interested in pursuing psychology after her dance career.

Lauren Conrow is an urbanist, activist, and scholar working to mainstream communal perspectives within community development practice and policy. She first began learning and working with Pseads as a high school student, an experience that helped shape her commitment to youth voice, collaboration, and community-centered approaches to learning and development. After college, she served as a U.S. Peace Corps Community Economic Development Facilitator, living and working within a highly communal, Indigenous Fijian village, where she supported women’s economic empowerment initiatives. Lauren is currently a Master’s candidate in Sustainable Urban Development at the University of Oxford, where her research examines the role of social capital in building community resilience. She has also worked at the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) in Nairobi, Kenya, and will begin a Henry Luce Fellowship in Indonesia in Summer 2026. Lauren is passionate about developing spaces that foster interconnection and open-hearted dialogue between people, place, and planet.

Jelani Rooks is a three-time Emmy Award-winning producer for CBS Sports and the Coordinating Producer for CBS Sports Soccer. He has produced over 100 live UEFA, Serie A, NFL, and NCAAB games, as well as Super Bowls 50 and 53 and the 2017 NCAA Final Four. Jelani’s most recent project with CBS, Kickin’ It, was nominated for a Sports Emmy for “Outstanding Hosted Edited Series” in its first year. Each episode showcases a more “personal and relatable side of the biggest stars and celebrities in and around soccer through unfiltered, organic conversation.” Jelani was recognized as a 2023 “Rising Star” by the North American Soccer Business and Media Awards. He holds a degree in Black Studies from Amherst College, where he also played collegiate soccer, and currently lives in New York City. He brings his love of storytelling, creativity, and connection to his role as a Pseads board member.

Kari Kapadia is a Senior Aerospace Engineer at NASA’s Langley Research Center, where she supports projects within the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. She holds degrees in Aerospace Engineering, Space Systems Engineering, and Philosophy and Cosmology. Kari began her career at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, helping design future satellite missions to better understand Earth. She honors her multi-ethnic heritage and roots in both Indian and European traditions. Her family legacy also has deep roots in science, spirituality, and service. With a lifelong passion for exploring the universe, Kari brings technical expertise and a curious, expansive perspective to all she does. She is especially interested in how science and human creativity can inspire and engage the next generation of explorers. She’s also a musician and the proud parent of a teenage son.

Landon Gellert is an Industrial Designer and Creative Director with a passion for how things work and are made. He holds a BFA in Industrial and Product Design from California College of the Arts and has led everything from commercial remodels to creative startups. After college, he managed multiple residential and commercial remodeling projects and worked in general construction until he gained the experience to earn his contractor’s license. Landon brings a hands-on, inventive, and thoughtful approach to everything he does, blending design, structure, art, architecture, and creative collaboration. He is also interested in media and film and is especially drawn to projects that spark imagination and highlight curiosity and adventurous creative choices. Landon is the father of two girls, and lives with his family in Tiburon, California. He loves mountain biking and spending time in nature.

Dedan Gills (1945–2015) was a passionate “soulutionary” — a poet, writer, and dedicated advocate for social justice and environmental healing. He was the co-founder with Belvie Rooks of Growing a Global Heart. He was also a founding member of the Los Angeles Permaculture Guild and an active participant in one of the country’s first urban eco-communities. Through his work with Growing a Global Heart, and with the Permaculture Guild, Dedan blended his commitment to sustainability with his lifelong work for human rights, rooted in his early activism with the Black Student Alliance Movement and Black Panther Party. He pioneered the idea of “Green Recovery,” integrating permaculture principles with inner healing and growth. He worked as a recovery counselor and dedicated mentor, particularly to young people in urban environments. Dedan’s poetry, shared widely in community gatherings and published internationally, continues to inspire all ages, especially through his book with Belvie Rooks, I Give You the Springtime of My Blushing Heart: A Poetic Love Song. He is a beloved mentor and founding board member of Pseads. Dedan and Belvie helped inspire Hope on the Rize.