Advisory Board

As an international network INEX is working with a great amount of different organizations and people, all bringing in different information and points of view. We greatly appreciate the diversity and would not want to compromise on it. However, when it comes to defining strategy – and when heavy decision making becomes necessary in order to contribute to the functioning of this lively organization – INEX key staff might find itself in the delicate situation of facing a crossroad. Even the most well-selected INEX staff member may encounter situations of perplexity, when striking new information comes in, when getting involved with new partners, evaluating project offers, selecting topics and faculty members, reviewing syllabi, choosing panel contributors or overcoming certain gate keepers.

For a network to grow at reasonable speed, no one can be left alone in the dark looking for answers. As a benefit of our structure there shall always be someone at hand who knows the matter and can offer support with her/his own knowledge and experience. Therefore our routines suggest consultation of the Advisory Board – in order to support the executive staff, to bring in ideas and opinions, to counsel on possible side effects and to understand the different outcome scenarios.

Herewith we would like to proudly introduce you to those important figures of the INEX network: the members of the INEX Advisory Board.

Thomas Bauer

…is President of the European Society for Education and Communication (ESEC) and full University Professor for Communication Studies at the University of Vienna. Apart from that he has been Chair of the Austrian Society for Education and Communication for many years. Being a global citizen and highly valued Visiting Professor in Europe, the Americas, Asia and far beyond Professor Bauer has not only held lectures and courses around the world – he has also been Program Coordinator for degree programs and academic courses across continents. Among many other things Thomas Bauer has been the founder of radio stations, is Chair Member of a regional TV station, President of the Austrian Association for Health Communication and Scientific Advisor for selected projects in Austria and abroad. Last but not least Dr. Bauer is a highly valued and committed member of the INEX Advisory Board.

Rolain Borel

…heads the Department of Natural Resources and Peace at the United Nations-mandated Graduate School of Peace and Conflict Studies (UPEACE). He is the director of the Dual Master Program in Natural Resources and Sustainable development and coordinates the research program Conflict and Collaboration in the Management of Natural Resources in Latin America and the Caribbean. Dr. Borel teaches at the postgraduate level in the field of environmental conflict management and environmental ethics. He maintains a number of assignments as consultant for bilateral cooperation agencies on subjects of rural development, social forestry and institutional strengthening, and he occasionally provides facilitation/mediation services to ongoing dialogue processes. Previous to his 15 years at UPEACE he has worked in international research centres in Africa and Central America for 12 years. Dr. Borel was raised in Switzerland. He joined the INEX Advisory Board in 2008.

Peter Blaze Corcoran

… is Professor of Environmental Studies and Environmental Education at Florida Gulf Coast University, where he serves as Director of the Center for Environmental and Sustainability Education. He has been a Faculty Member at College of the Atlantic, Swarthmore College, and Bates College, and a visiting professor in Australia, The Netherlands, and Fiji. He works extensively on international environmental education, with special interest in the South Pacific Island Nations. He is among the founders of the Global Higher Education for Sustainability Partnership and has conducted their consultations with stakeholders in tertiary education in many regions of the world. He is Past President of the North American Association for Environmental Education. He serves as Senior Fellow in Education for Sustainability at University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, and is Senior Advisor to Earth Charter International in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Harald Hutterer

…is member of the Austrian Chapter of the Club of Rome and member of the Board of B.A.U.M. – Austrian Network for Sustainable Management. He is also founding member of the Austrian Society for Quality of Life Research. He is co-author of „Sozialkapital. Neue Zugänge zu gesellschaftlichen Kräften“ (Social capital. New approaches to societal forces) and co-author and co-publisher of „Welches Wachstum ist nachhaltig?“ (What kind of growth is sustainable?). As Karuna Consult he works as consultant for ethics, sustainable development, quality of life, happiness and social capital. As a researcher he is mainly interested in the fields of quality of life, happiness and social capital. His main activities are coaching, consulting and accompaniment of processes in the areas of individual coaching, regional development, support and training of jobless people, team development and in the educational system.

Ira Mollay

…has a background in business administration and is a certified business consultant, personal coach and trainer for soft skills. Her working record ranges from banking to international organisations to an assignment as Executive Director of Greenpeace Austria and Trustee of Greenpeace International for Austria. Her current activities include lecturing at the Vienna University for Applied Sciences (Department of Entrepreneurship and Management) and business consulting and coaching for SMEs. She is a board member of VCÖ, an Austrian association advocating sustainable mobility concepts. Her passion is to promote an empowered, joyful, autonomous and “futurable” lifestyle for everybody.

Anna Pissarek

…has a background in Catholic Theology. Her professional experiences include working as a teacher, as assistant at the University of Innsbruck (Dept of Old Testament Studies) and as the educational co-director at the retreat and conference center St. Arbogast in Vorarlberg, that has a focus on sustainability. After a sabbatical mainly spent in the powerful land of the American Southwest she joined the Starbucks Coffee Company in Vienna for 7 years, first as a barista, then as Training Specialist. Her involvement in CSR activities and her lively passion for ethical standards in doing business and growing and buying coffee in a sustainable way brought her in contact with INEX. At the moment she is developing her own portfolio how to contribute to a changing world.

Lorena San Roman

…is Vice President of Institutional Development and Director of the Latin American School of Protected Areas at the University for International Cooperation. She is Director of the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) in Costa Rica as well as President of the Latin American Institute of Museology Foundation (ILAM). Among many other responsibilities and leading positions in the areas of sustainability she was Regional Coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean for the Earth Council, where she created 25 National Councils for Sustainable Development (CNDS) and several Local Councils for Sustainable Development (CLDS); she was Global Environmental Citizenship Project Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); Coordinator of the Bolivar Program of the Inter-American Development Bank; Director of the National Museum of Costa Rica for ten years. Ms San Roman joined the INEX Advisory Board in 2008.

Mirian Vileila

…is the Executive Director of the Earth Charter Initiative and has been managing the organization internationally since 1996. She initiated the Earth Charter process in over 50 countries including Nepal, Paraguay, Costa Rica, and Niger. Prior to her work there Mirian worked for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) for two years in preparation of the 1992 UN Earth Summit. Originally from Brazil she moved from Geneva to Costa Rica in 1993 to join in the establishment of the Earth Council. Ms. Vilela speaks and writes in Portuguese, Spanish, French, and English and has lived in different countries including the Czech Republic, England, and Switzerland, which enabled her to advance the multicultural dialogue essential to the worldwide participatory processes of the Earth Charter Initiative. She holds a B. Sc. in International Trade and a Master Degree in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where she was an Edward Mason Fellow.