Leadership Team

Dr. Gail Y. B. Lash believes that we are all in one human family, and one with the Earth and its creatures. We express and see this oneness when we travel and get to know each other -- in our homes, work, and in leisure times & natural places.

Since 1991, Dr. Lash has worked with rural communities, assessing social and economic development issues related to community-based ecotourism in and around parks and protected areas. Her work in Ecuador, Belize, Indonesia, and the United States, has covered such topics as local perceptions of benefits from protected areas and/or endangered species, landowner rights, women's craft groups, guide training, conservation education, and building equitable partnerships.

Since 1996, Dr. Lash has also been on a spiritual journey, learning and developing her intuitive skills. By getting in touch with the Creator, and the Divine-within, she has been able to balance her logical and intuitive knowing, and purposefully create her life. She is blessed with opportunities to teach these principles of inner-knowing: how to be centered, grounded, detached from outcomes, and passionately creative! Also, she has learned how to access Divine healing, and is a Spiritual healer, as well as teaching healing classes.

Dr. Lash is Founder and CEO of Tourism For Peace (TFP), promoting the teaching of peace through travelers and their hosts. She is Co-founder and Principal of Ursa International, a design firm that specializes in creating parks and visitor spaces worldwide, primarily zoological parks and animal sanctuaries. She is Coordinator of the Spirituality in Tourism Network for the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT), an Associate with Community Conservation, Inc. (CC), and Teacher and Board of Directors member at Horizon Center for Intuitive Awareness. Dr. Lash also serves on the Board of Directors of The Forest Foundation (TFF), which supports local producer artisan groups in several developing countries; and on the Board of the International Environment Forum (IEF), an internet-based organization that promotes spiritual principles for finding solutions to environmental problems.

Dr. Lash has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Zoology from Duke University, a Masters of Science Degree in Technology and Science Policy from Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia.

In her play time, Gail loves to solve mysteries, play with her dogs, hike in the mountains with her husband Nevin, travel to diverse countries and cultures, photograph animals, attend live theater, be a clown, do intuitive readings and healings, and walk labyrinths.

Mary Katherine (MK) Williams grew up in a very spiritual, social and community oriented family. As a young girl during the 1960s, she experienced the Civil Rights, Peace/Anti-Viet Nam, and Women's Rights Movements as powerful expressions of and vehicles for the need to transform previously restrictive social and political tenets to freer, more embracing ones. Through the music, art and spiritual shifts of that time, she grew with an appreciation for creative ways of communicating and addressing issues.

The most meaningful work Ms. Williams has experienced has been with organizations which address social and environmental issues both locally and globally. She worked with organizations that provided direct services to women experiencing sexual abuse and domestic violence. Her work focused on crisis intervention, recruiting, training and supervising volunteers, and maintaining a 24-hour crisis program. After a total of 8 years learning and understanding these specific issues, she wanted to shift into learning and understanding issues that were coming to her attention regarding the environment and ecology.

Since 1998, Ms. Williams has been working as a manager with Forests of the World, an organization which imports/wholesales hand-made, fairly traded crafts made primarily by women, and is dedicated to promoting biodiversity conservation, and sustainable rural economic development in and around threatened parks and protected areas. Additionally, since 2002, she has helped to start The Forest Foundation, a non-profit, sister organization to Forests of the World, which, through educational programs and green business development services, focuses on addressing the connection between environmental issues and consumer decisions.

MK continues to spiritually explore and learn, on her journey in life.

Kalin Thomas is a freelance travel and lifestyles producer, reporter, writer, photographer and speaker with more than 25 years media experience. Before starting her multimedia company, See the World Productions, she spent 17 years with CNN where she learned to meet tight deadlines in a high-stress environment, think creatively, be flexible, cover breaking news, field produce international trips, and produce quality programming for a diverse audience.

During her career at CNN, she executive produced an in-house video on diversity for company employees, and won several awards for her work as a producer/correspondent for the weekly travel program, "CNN Travel Now"; Thomas helped broaden the program's appeal to a multicultural audience with stories that included: African American travel trends, tourism in the new South Africa, travel laws & trends for the physically challenged, gay travel hot spots, and the colorful culture and cuisine of various countries. Her travels have taken her to six continents, including Antarctica.

Thomas sits on the advisory board of the International Association of Black Travel Writers and a member of the North American Travel Journalists Association, Travel Professionals of Color, the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Atlanta Press Club. She is currently the Senior Southeast Correspondent for SoulofAmerica.com, the leading Website geared toward African-American travelers. Thomas is native of Baltimore, Maryland and received her BA in Broadcast Journalism at Howard University in Washington, D.C. And though her home base is Atlanta, Georgia, she feels at home wherever she travels.

Pamela Black is a nationwide trainer & coach, teaching life skills, energy, and intuition tools. She is principal trainer for Radical Forgiveness Institute & on the Board of Together-We-Heal & Georgia CancerHelp. She spent 15 years in corporate roles including sales and training, she now loves producing CDs, books and enriched clients!

Hilda Willis has spent her entire life playing with the Arts. She is a producer, writer, actor, and facilitator with youth, adults, and elders. Her ministry is healing the world through the performance arts. She is Executive Director of PAPY - Performing Arts Programs for Youth, and it is in this capacity that she links with Tourism For Peace by bringing her curriculum and knowledge of youth training in drama, dance, and music to TFP travelers and host community members.

Dennis works with Rotary International and is putting together a peace project with youth in the West End of Atlanta. He is an avid peacebuilder, and we benefit from his great knowledge and wisdom. More about Dennis (and his photo) to come!

Alison Austin has over 20 years experience specializing in sustainable tourism development in rural communities as a tourism communication specialist with the Organization of American States (OAS) and as Vice President of Rainforest Media and Tourism Consulting Inc. During her career, she has lived and worked extensively throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, where she is best known for designing and implementing national environmental and tourism awareness programs. Her work with rural under-developed communities and non-governmental organizations was to create community development action plans, assist with institutional strengthening, promoting ecotourism and integrating community activities with tourism development projects.

Ms. Austin has taught Ecotourism Planning and Management for Florida International University, Miami Florida, and is presently the Director of Communications and Community Outreach for the National Audubon Society in their Florida office.

Ms. Austin has a Bachelor's Degree in Communications/Public Relations and a Masters of Science Degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management.

We welcome interns to participate with us in each of our in-country projects, doing research and training, working with partner organizations, and in our TFP offices. We welcome people from diverse cultures & backgrounds on our staff, and hire mostly for specific projects.