SUMMER RAYNE OAKES CONVERSATIONS

Cameron Sinclair currently works for the Jolie-Pitt Foundation.Previously Sinclair co-founded and ran Architecture for Humanity, a charitable organization which builds architecture and design solutions to humanitarian crises. During his 14 year tenure the organization worked in forty eight countries and raised over $50M for humanitarian initiatives. Projects ranged from schools, health clinics, affordable housing and long term sustainable reconstruction after natural and man-made disasters. Sinclair and Architecture for Humanity co-founder Kate Stohr compiled the bestselling books Design Like You Give A Damn 1 and 2. As a teacher and visiting professor is heavily involved in bringing socially relevant design into academia and holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Westminster. Sinclair was a recipient of the TED prize and a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum. In 2008 Sinclair and Stohr were named as recipients of the National Design Awards and the following year jointly awarded the Bicentenary Medal by the Royal Society of Arts for increasing people’s resourcefulness. In 2011 Sinclair was made a Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council and took an advisory role at USAID. This year he and Stohr received the Currystone Vision Award and the Building Peace award.

Not everyone dreams of being a farmer when they grow up but Sarah Bellos has combined her knowledge of farming with entrepreneurship to found the company Stony Creek Colors, based in Nashville, TN—a company that produces US grown natural colorants that are a cleaner and safer replacement for synthetic dyes used in the textile and fashion industry.Using knowledge, skills and connections from 9 years’ experience in the textile and dye industry, Sarah developed Stony Creek Colors to help lead the sustainable transformation of the textile dye industry.  Drawing from her background as a farmer and sustainable agriculture advocate, Sarah and her team have created an innovative, small farmer-based supply chain for natural dyes that meeting the technical and volume requirements of major fashion brands.  Prior to launching Stony Creek Colors, Sarah operated Artisan Natural Dyeworks, a textile dye house focused on garment and piece dyeing for independent fashion designers seeking plant-based dyes at a commercial scale. She has been a leader in research efforts to bring bio-based colorant production to farmers in the Southeastern U.S., including through a Value-Added Producers Grant (VAPG) and a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant.  Sarah is a participant in Tennessee's NextFarm Ag Accelerator and she is a Senior Fellow in the Environmental Leadership Program, Wild Gift, and the PERC Enviropreneur Institute. Sarah lives on a small farm in Whites Creek, Tennessee and graduated cum laude from the College of Agriculture at Cornell University.Tune in to all SRO Conversations at www.summerrayne.net/podcast. Follow @sroakes and Stony Creek Colors @southerhues.

Since 2006, Zoë Tryon has lived and worked with the Achuar, Shuar, Kichwa and Waorani peoples in the Ecuadorian Amazon and Andes. "Living in a tribal community, there is no "I" in team. You're accountable there," she says. "Every behavior that I do there can affect another person."Given her privileged upbringing in Wiltshire, England, she admits that she "still feels like an outsider" in the Amazon. Of course, she says, there are "always amusing moments when I feel a really part of it and connected…and then I'm like, 'Noooo. Not at all.'" That being said, she comments that, "At the end of the day, we are one tribe, we are one species."Tune into this podcast to hear her explorations through the Amazon; her fight for the people of the area; and her charming stories -- from her fashion faux pas in the Amazon to her run-in with a crocodile.To view more Conversations, visit www.summerrayne.net and follow @sroakes on Twitter.(This episode will be the third of five final podcasts before a major revamp of SRO Conversations. Stay tuned for more details).

Lawrence Blair has been an explorer for the past 35 years and is best known for his highly acclaimed TV series, Ring of Fire, which documented he and his late brother's 10-year odyssey throughout the Indonesian Islands-- an exploration that has made the annals of history. In the 35th episode of SRO Conversations, Lawrence gives us an intimate view of his travels -- including his encounters with the Asmat peoples, who he says are given both the "distinction of cannibals and head hunters"; the discovery of Homo floresiensis on the island of Flores; the discovery of novel species-- from a venomous bird to a vampire moth; and how the loss of animist religions and imposition other religions has led to the destruction of the Indonesia ecosystems. When asked if he feels as if he has sufficiently explored Indonesia he remarks, "I've only been exploring for 35 years. It would take lifetimes!" Listen to his tales of Indonesia and where he wants Richard Branson to travel to.To see more podcasts, visit www.summerrayne.net or follow on Twitter @sroakes.(This episode will be the second of five final podcasts before a major revamp of SRO Conversations. Stay tuned for more details).

On the 34th episode of SRO Conversations, Noella Coursaris, a successful model discusses the path that led her to the foundation of the Georges Malaika School in her homeland; The Democratic Republic of Congo. A self-styled humanitarian Noella proudly declares that her focus is now "On my family and my school". Listen in to hear why.To view more Conversations, visit www.summerrayne.net and follow @sroakes on Twitter. (This episode will be the first of five final podcasts before a major revamp of SRO Conversations. Stay tuned for more details).