Suvas Vajracharya — Chair and Co-Founder
WellKind was inspired by Suvas’ long term interest in personal development and meditation. After retiring as the CEO of Lightning Bolt, where he ran a successful startup for 17 years, he wanted to create an organization that would create environmental and social impact through health and a care for the environment. Having led a team of 55 employees helping hospitals and physicians solve the most complex medical staff scheduling problems with advanced, AI-optimized technology and leading in the field of burnout prevention in physicians, he brings a mindfulness based approach to health and wellbeing. He advises on WellKind’s board of directors and facilitates trainings and workshops.
Julia Forest — Co-Founder and Board Member
For Julia, WellKind grew from her interest in how personal growth and care for the earth interrelate. She brings with her 16 years of facilitation and curriculum development experience and a passion for cross disciplinary change work. Julia is an avid permaculturalist and the founding director of Awakened Spirit Yoga, an organization that blends yoga and mindfulness with regenerative change to support the wellness of communities. Julia advises on programming and is on the board of directors.
Shad Qudsi — Executive Director, WellKind Guatemala
Shad is a passionate farmer, designer, and permaculturalist. He has lived and worked in Tzununa, Guatemala, for the past 12 years, where he and his wife founded Atitlan Organics, a permaculture-inspired organic farm. He believes that humans can live harmoniously on the planet and meet all their needs while actually enhancing the local and global ecology. After spending years practicing regenerative food production, Shad began partnering with a wide range of local farmers and community members. Shad's current role as Program Director of WellKind Guatemala enables him to build community-driven, permaculture-inspired solutions to food security, climate change, and economic disparity.
Kyle Weinstein, Program Director, WellKind Guatemala
Kyle is the Program Director and works closely with the team in the village of Tzununa to make sure that goals are met and they are having a lasting impact in the communities. He has a background in ecotourism and has worked with several nonprofits over the years focusing on sustainable development. It is inspiring to work at Wellkind because he gets to see the impact we are having on the indigenous communities that he calls home. Talking to beneficiaries of our programs and seeing the impact motivates him more than anything. His favorite project is the reforestation program that has already planted over 20,000 trees. (Status August 2022)
Michael Collins — Grant Writer
As a grant writer, Michael communicates with the team and stays current with WellKind’s ongoing evolution. The role allows Michael to champion the mission by putting down in words a complete picture of all the work being done.
Michael has a passion for writing and the outdoors, and as a grant writer, he is able to combine the two, working for a better tomorrow. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in American Civilization from Middlebury College in 1999 and went on to the Master’s in English program at Seton Hall University. Michael is passionate about writing of all kinds, creating an equitable world where young people spend more time outside, reading great literature, and savoring the winter months.
Laura Honda, Master Teacher, Garden Program
When Laura teaches about birds, bees, fish, plants, predators, and amphibians, she doesn’t stop after teaching about life cycles, habitats and the needs of these living things; she then teaches about the problems they face mostly due to humans. But she doesn’t leave the children hanging there. They then brainstorm solutions, and they take action. Her life’s work is to teach children to look beyond themselves, to care so much that they want to help, and to make them feel empowered so they know they can make a positive difference in the world.
“To be truly effective and last a lifetime, environmental education must come from the hearts of teachers and reach the hearts of the children.” - Laura