A Word from Randy and Susan


		A Word from Randy and Susan
			Once upon a time two strangers travelled to Europe on separate journeys. Both wanted the challenge of living in and learning from other cultures. Each traveled far, learning how to adapt to different ways of life and entranced by the treasures of history, culture, and natural beauty that they found. And then one warm and enchanted evening in Rome, they discovered one another ...

		Susan and Randy cruise Alaska
	Magic has a habit of happening when you travel. And magic re-doubles when it is shared. After a three-year trans-continental courtship, we married and lived abroad until 1996, working successfully in countries as diverse as Italy, Germany, Sweden, Mongolia, Denmark, and France. This experience taught us much about differences in cultures, and even more about the shared traits and experience that unite people from all nations and walks of life. We believe that effective communication is the key to understanding and enjoying our multi-faceted world to the fullest. Our study of communication techniques has added immeasurably to the joy of our journeys, and we want to share what we have discovered with you. Seaquest Seminars rests on a firm foundation of experience in training, coaching and consulting, as well as on our personal passion for travel and learning. Since 1994, we have partnered in an educational consulting firm to assist individuals, organizations, and communities as they build a healthy future. We have conducted training for a wide range of government, non-profit, community and business organizations, and have developed strategies that help people use resources from all aspects of their lives to identify and reach meaningful goals (You can find more information on our worksite and community courses by visiting www.health-environ.com) Because we know that who you choose to learn from makes a difference in what you learn and how much fun you have while you are doing it, we offer a bit of information about each of us, and the legacy we bring to workshops with you.
Susan E. Berry, MA Susan has developed, delivered, and managed training, facilitation and coaching projects for over 30 years. Before joining Randy in the educational consulting firm of Health and Environment, Susan provided community and adult education services through work with government, universities, and the nonprofit sector. Her roles included: Training Officer for the European Region of the World Health Organization; Training Consultant for the US Office of Personnel Management in Europe; Director of Education and Technical Service for Rural Community Assistance Corporation; Environmental Resources Information Specialist and Youth Agent for the U.W. Cooperative Extension Service; and Curriculum Writer for the Wisconsin Research and Development Center for Cognitive Learning. Each of these roles involved assessment of educational requirements and design of messages, curricula, or information campaigns to reach intended audiences and outcomes. Through Seaquest and Health and Environment, Susan continues to develop workshops that help people communicate and work effectively within cultures that are becoming less hierarchical and more collaborative. Prior experience with staff and organizational development has provided the foundation for this work. As Training Officer for the World Health Organization, for example, Susan developed a comprehensive staff development program assisting over 500 staff at 25 offices in the European region with agency orientation and training on teamwork, project management, communication skills, health promotion, and computer literacy. As a Training Consultant for the US Office of Personnel Management in Europe, she delivered workshops on management and communication topics for the multi-cultural staff who support military operations overseas. Each of these experiences honed her ability to assess needs and resources, and to design programs that maximize staff learning and teamwork within the context of organizational goals. Susan holds an MA from the University of Wisconsin School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and her postgraduate work includes courses in educational administration, assessment techniques, organizational development, systems management, group facilitation, communication and counseling skills, health promotion, and human resource development. She is certified in facilitative leadership, advanced meeting facilitation and interactive conference design by Interaction Associates, and as an NLP Practitioner by NLP Comprehensive and Advance NeuroDynamics. She has also received certification in mediation skills. Susan can say “Welcome aboard!” in Danish, German, Italian, and French. She is working on Spanish. Randall W. Thomas, Ph.D. Randy received a multi-disciplinary University of California education, emphasizing science, resource management, economics, and quantitative methods. As he applied scientific methods to project management, he became increasingly curious about how to encourage collaboration and high-performance in teams and among cooperating organizations. This led to further training in personal and group development, collaboration, and productivity skills, including in-depth study and certification as an NLP Practitioner. Randy has held research or teaching appointments at institutions including the University of California at Berkeley, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, the Université Louis Pasteur, France, the International Space University, USA and France, as well as UN assignments in Asia and Europe. His experience includes administration and project leader positions on numerous research and development projects in America and abroad. Collaboration among project teams, user agencies, and sponsors has been an important feature of many projects which Dr. Thomas has managed, co-led, or facilitated. Over a 30 year period, Randy has co-developed and delivered a variety of college and adult-learner classes and workshops, counseled students, and coached course or research participants as they engaged in learning assignments. He has also produced a variety of educational materials for public distribution. Today, he draws on his experience and education to offer training and coaching that fosters effective teamwork and leadership in businesses and agencies that want to increase collaboration, productivity, and achievement. A key element of his work with organizations and staff is clearly identifying current conditions, desired outcomes and measures of success, available resources, current barriers to success, and action steps. Randy teams with Susan to teach these skills in workshops, and in individual and group consultations. Randy also brings a deep love of nature and knowledge of land resources to Seaquest. During his years at U.C. Berkeley, he was a principal member of a pioneering team linking statistical methods, mapping, and GIS for assessment of natural systems, land management, and associated change. Subsequently he was invited to teach and develop programs in many international contexts where such techniques could be used for public benefit. These experiences have opened the door to discovery of special places like Baja and the Sea of Cortez, which offer a miraculous abundance of natural (as well as cultural) resources for the Seaquest experience. Both of us look forward to meeting and journeying with you! To book. Back to Top of Page Seminar Description Business and Work Place Professionals Unless otherwise noted, all website materials © 2005 Seaquest Seminars, and Health and Environment. You may use these materials to inform others about Seaquest Seminars and to make decisions regarding participation with Seaquest.