Trainer Bios

Bios and Contact Information for the Trainers. 

Edwin Rutsch

Edwin Rutsch is the founding director of the Center for Building a Culture of Empathy. The center’s website, CultureOfEmpathy.com, is the internet’s most comprehensive portal for empathy-related material, including interviews with over 300 experts on the topic. He is a world traveler, a “seeker,” a documentary filmmaker and has worked in the computer technology field.

In his travels, he has interacted with a wide variety of cultures and peoples from all walks of life and learned to see and feel the common humanity of all people on the planet. Edwin started the Empathy Tent, and developed the Empathy Circle practice as a simple way to teach and practice listening and empathy skills and way of being.  See a more extensive bio.

Email: EdwinRutsch@gmail.com

Social Media: Facebook - Linked In - Website

Lou Zweier

Lou Zweier is an educator and filmmaker. He has taught communication, conflict resolution, and leadership skills to individuals and groups for over 25 years. He is a former Director of Academic Technology for the California State University System where I led multi-university teams in new-media educational software projects, and professional development programs. He is currently spreading small group listening practices with the Center for Building a Culture of Empathy.

Email: lou.zweier@gmail.com

Bill Filler

Hi everyone, my name is Bill Filler. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I’ve been working with Edwin and others on building a culture of Empathy for about three years. I’ve been on many Zoom calls, protests (initiated by both the Left and the Right), farmer’s markets, and political gatherings to help foster empathic dialogues. I’ve helped develop this training in collaboration with Lou Zweier, and Edwin Rutsch. We’ve been doing the training for about four months as of this writing.

I’m a retired Special Education teacher, having worked with students who have profound emotional challenges, intellectual challenges, and those on the autistic spectrum. I have a master’s degree in Education. In my professional life, I experienced the life changing affects that occur when someone feels heard, and I hope to bring that experience to the wider world.

I’m an avid kayaker, scuba diver, and hiker. I love getting out into nature, and through these activities I’ve found that our natural world is in desperate need of being heard as well. When I’m in nature, and listening, I learn so many wonderful things, and I hope more people will learn to listen to nature as well.

Email: paddlinman@yahoo.com

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Marta Neto

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Email: martacostaneto@gmail.com

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Karolina Kubiak

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Email: karolina.L.kubiak@gmail.com

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Dave Gottfried

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Email: davegottfried@empathytent.com

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Ann Jordan

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Dean Bowles

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Rita Bee

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Email:  BeRegenPro@gmail.com

Leona Dawson

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Email: leonadawson@icloud.com

Sue Dean

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Email:  Suzanne.Dean@uts.edu.au