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Zoe Newcomb

Senior Manager, Peacebuilding, Humanity United

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About Zoe Newcomb

Zoe Newcomb is a Senior Program Manager, Peacebuilding at Humanity United, where she leads the South Sudan country pillar. In this role, Zoe stewards Humanity United’s long-term commitment to supporting a growing network of youth peacebuilders and activists in South Sudan. Her work emphasizes fostering resilient relationships across social divides and co-creating responses to deeply entrenched polarization. Zoe also plays a key role in HU Peacebuilding’s Healing & Wellbeing thematic work, promoting a greater understanding of individual and collective care within the peacebuilding community. She is a passionate advocate for trust-based philanthropy, focusing on more equitable, responsive grantmaking practices that amplify the leadership of proximate peacebuilders.

With a background in emergent strategy, systems-informed tools, and facilitation, Zoe brings extensive experience in convening global peacebuilders and creating physical spaces that facilitate transformational learning. Zoe holds an M.A. in Human Development from George Washington University, where her research focused on navigating complexity and group sense-making. She also holds a B.A. in Political Science from Westmont College. Zoe lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and daughter and enjoys spending as much time as possible outdoors enjoying the beauty of California.

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Brane Zorman & Irena Pivka

About Brane Zorman & Irena Pivka

Brane Zorman is a composer, sound and intermedia artist, sound manipulator, producer and curator. Besides composing for the theatre, intermedia and dance, he is focused on developing different strategies, techniques, dynamic and interactive models in his work relating to sound and space, recording and reinterpreting soundscapes and creating electronic and acoustic sound sculptures using sophisticated tools.

Irena Pivka is an artist and producer. She works in the areas of new media, sound and performance arts. In recent years, she has been focusing her artistic expressions on the preparations of sound-walk performances, co-authored by Brane Zorman, which, by means of transmission tools and sound pictures, through walking and listening establish space anew and reflect social reality.

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Sarah Elizabeth Charles

Musician and Teaching Artist

Sarah Elizabeth Charles is a vocalist/composer mindfulness scholar based in New York City. She has worked with numerous artists, has led her band, SCOPE, for thirteen years and has recorded four critically acclaimed studio albums under her own name. Charles’ musical output has been described as a “genre of one” by DownBeat Magazine, “soulfully articulate” by the NY Times and “an unmatched sound” by Jay Z’s Life+Times. In addition to her performances, Charles is also an active educator. She currently works as a lead teaching artist with Carnegie Hall at Sing Sing Correctional Facility and two courses called Jazz and Gender and New Narratives: Creating Space for Equity in Music at The New School. In 2019, she was one of five recipients of the Yale School of Music’s Distinguished Teaching Artist Award.

In 2020, she became a selected member of the Joe’s Pub Working Group, a recipient of the NYC Women’s Fund grant for her band’s fourth album, Blank Canvas, and a recipient of Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works grant. In 2023, she was selected by Joe’s Pub to receive the New York Voices Commission for her song cycle set to Maya Angelou’s poetry and debuted her fifth album project Dawn (to be released in October 2025 and inspired by her journey through miscarriage/birth/motherhood). In her duo with pianist Jarrett Cherner, Sarah combines intimate and warm vocals with Jarrett’s expansive piano harmonies to create emotional, melodic songs that touch on themes including selfless love and living with purpose and intention.

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Bowrain

Musician, performer

Bowrain (born Tine Grgurevič) is a Slovenian pianist, composer, and singer-songwriter whose music is a unique fusion of jazz, ambient and electronic music. His compositions are known for their intricate piano melodies, imaginative electronic sound effects, and atmospheric arrangements, which create an engaging and immersive musical experience for listeners, especially during his live concerts. Educated in Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Philadelphia, Bowrain has made a significant impact on the Slovenian music scene over the past decade through his albums and live performances. He has performed across Europe, the US, and South Africa, where he collaborated with the performance art ensemble The Brother Moves On from Johannesburg.

In 2023, he was an artist-in-residence at the Arvo Pärt Centre in Estonia, where he concluded his residency with a solo concert. In September 2024, Bowrain released his album Million Homes, which premiered at Kino Šiška in Ljubljana. This was followed by a Million Homes solo tour in China, with performances in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, and Sanya in February 2025. Bowrain is also involved in charity initiatives, particularly those supporting the pro-Palestine movement. He has taken part in and co-organized several such events in Slovenia. In May 2025, he performed at the event “Make Freedom Ring” in Berlin, a fundraising concert held at Kühlhaus Berlin in support of the Emergency Aid for Gaza Fund.

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Vuyo Sotashe

Singer, composer, educator, and theater maker

Vuyo Sotashe is a New York based vocalist, composer, and performer originally from South Africa. Since moving to the United states as a Fulbright Scholar, he has performed with celebrated jazz legends including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jimmy Heath, George Benson, Al Jarreau, Barry Harris, and Winard Harper, to name a few. Recently, he appeared with multi Grammy Award winner and Pulitzer Prize winner Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as a featured artist on their 2018 Winter Tour across the United States. Sotashe has also appeared as a leader and sideman at the internationally acclaimed Montreux Jazz Festival, the Monterey Jazz Festival, Cape Town International Jazz Festival, Newport Jazz Fest, and Joy of Jazz, and Arcevia Jazz Festival. Sotashe is the recipient of the Van Lier Fellowship for Music at Joe’s Pub/Public Theater for 2018-2019. He collaborated and performed in Somi Kakoma’s debut theater work “Dreaming Zenzile”, which was premiered at Joe’s Pub, as well as the Apollo, and made his commercial-off-broadway debut as part of the cast in “Black Light”, created by performance artist Daniel Alexander Jones in February and October of 2018.

Sotashe has gone on to premier a new play, “Cartography” by Kaneza Schaal & Christopher Myres at the Kennedy Center in January of 2019, which will be at the New Victory Theater in January of 2020. Currently he performs as one of the fronting vocalists in the internationally touring, multi-disciplinary band collective Mwenso and the Shakes, while leading his own ensemble appearing on stages across the United States, and around the world. Sotashe continues to create, collaborate, record, and perform as an indelible creative voice both in his home country, New York City, as well as the international scene.

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Bishop Chantel Wright

Bishop and Founder, Songs of Solomon: An Inspirational Ensemble, Inc.

SONGS OF SOLOMON: An Inspirational Ensemble (SOS), founded in 2001 by veteran conductor, Bishop Chantel Renee Wright, remains true to its mission to serve the world community through its music. Bishop Wright is a firm believer that arts education stimulates children spiritually and intellectually and builds the family through its commitment to a child’s development. We endeavor to bridge all ethnicities while maintaining a safe space to grow. For the past twenty-four years, our membership has found acceptance into college, university and mastered various trades. The Songs of Solomon Choral Union of the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses serves young people nationwide who desire to celebrate the Good News through gospel music. Members benefit from leadership training, access to internships at other arts organization, and uncompromised spiritual leadership. As vendors with the New York City Department of Education, Songs of Solomon provides direct student services and professional development to public schools. Our music partners allows young people to be able to express their gifts even in the school setting.

In an environment of rage and outrage, inequality, and intolerance, our divine purpose is to be light in the darkness. Our service is designed to penetrate the noise and usher in the hope and joy that we were all created to experience and share. Now as we celebrate our 24th anniversary, The Ensemble has performed with Earth Wind and Fire, Carol King, Elton John, the late Aretha Franklin, and listed among a Who’s Who in the performing arts industry. Songs of Solomon has participated in the Creative Learning Project, Musical Connections, and Count Me In projects at Carnegie Hall.  Most recently, the Ensemble is a mainstay in community outreach projects in partnership with Carnegie Hall and the New York City Department of Juvenile Justice. Songs of Solomon has recorded Variations of the War Cry, toured major cities in the United States, Africa, and abroad, won numerous competitions in the metropolitan area, and continues to serve in churches, corporations and major performing venues.

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Laura Webber

Consultant, Peacebuilding, Wellbeing, and Care; Humanity United

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About Laura Webber

Laura Webber (she/her) engages in research and practice at the intersection of trauma healing, embodiment, social neuroscience, and peacebuilding. She moves with a healing-based and care-centered approach as she engages in efforts of conflict transformation from the individual to the collective. Laura orients her practice in support of social change practitioners and activists to nurture their resiliency and grow their sustainability. She currently works with peacebuilding and social change organizations in a variety of capacities including research, program design and facilitation, and learning. Laura holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Vassar College, and a Master’s of Arts in Peace and Justice from the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego.

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Sandesh Kadur

Wildlife Filmmaker; National Geographic Fellow & Explorer; Board of Trustees, National Geographic Society; Founder and Director, Felis Creations; Founder, Conservania

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About Sandesh Kadur

Sandesh V. Kadur is a BAFTA Award-winning filmmaker, National Geographic Fellow & Explorer, and was recently named the second-ever Explorer Trustee of the National Geographic Society Board of Trustees. His groundbreaking documentaries have aired globally on networks like National Geographic, BBC, Netflix, Apple,Discovery Channel, and Animal Planet. His work spans from the elusive snow leopard in the Himalaya to the Okavango Delta in Botswana & the endangered Kemp’s Ridley turtles in Mexico. Sandesh is the producer of a 3-part docuseries for National Geographic titled ‘Wild Cats of India’ & ‘India’s Wild Leopards’. His first documentary, Sahyadris: Mountains of the Monsoon (2002), which was accompanied by his first book, earned critical acclaim while drawing attention to one of the world’s top biodiversity hotspots, and helped convince UNESCO to name the Western Ghats a World Heritage Site in 2012.

He is also the co-author of two books, Sahyadris: India’s Western Ghats – A Vanishing Heritage (2005) and Himalaya – Mountains of Life (2013). His work has won a slew of prestigious international awards, including a 2017 EMMY nomination and the 2017 BAFTA award for his work on BBC Planet Earth II and was nominated twice for a Green Oscar at the Wildscreen Film Festival, among many other awards and nominations. Sandesh hopes that his photographs and documentaries will reveal places and species people rarely see and will inspire new passion to protect them. “I help people connect emotionally with the beauty of the wilderness, bring conservation issues to light, and raise awareness in a way that fosters respect and concern. I also try to make powerful graphic images that expose how much we are losing.” He is the founder and director of Felis Creations and co-founder of Conservania.

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Dobet Gnahoré

Artist, City Zen Music

About Dobet Gnahoré

Dobet Gnahoré is a renowned African singer, dancer, songwriter, and percussionist known for her dynamic performances and ability to blend various musical styles from across the African continent. Her work emphasizes cultural preservation and advocacy for women’s rights and empowerment.

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Slovenski Oktet

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The date 27 September 1951 represents an important milestone for Slovenian vocal music. At the initiative of Slovenian immigrants living in North America, eight male singers were chosen at a demanding audition in a small hall at the Slovenian Philharmonic building. Thus, the Slovene Octet was founded. From the very beginning, the Slovene Octet’s main aim was to nurture and ennoble vocal music, from the Renaissance to the contemporary period. In addition, Slovenian folk music represented a very important part of their repertoire, and was brought to many different parts of the world. In its 60 years of existence, the Slovene Octet has performed on all important stages around the world, never neglecting their fellow countrymen.

Many singers have been members of the group, but all of them sharing a strong bond with the Slovenian nation. With its enchanting singing and performances, the Slovene Octet has served as a shining example for many groups. During all these years, over 100 hundred octets have been founded in Slovenia. More than 40 singers have been a part of the Slovene Octet, some of them top-flight musicians, performing in the biggest concerts and opera houses across Europe.

The Slovene Octet has received several awards: the Prešeren Award in 1957, the Prešeren Foundation Award in 1964, the National Certificate of Merit in 1966, an award from the Association of Slovene Composers in 1971, the Drabosnjakova Award in 1975, the Orlando Di Lasso Award in 1984 and the Golden Order of Freedom of the Republic of Slovenia in 1996. Another important milestone for the Slovene Octet was reached in 1996 when the entire group of singers was changed. The Slovene Octet was rejuvenated and began down a new path to musical perfection, remaining faithful to its tradition. The group’s 50th anniversary concert included its best-known songs, which brought the Slovene Octet its worldwide fame. The group has published three CDs with the most beautiful Slovenian songs.

In 2007, the book Slovenski oktet (Slovene Octet) by Boris Pangerc, which summarised the group’s activities over the years, was published. The Slovene Octet performs at all major music festivals and encourages young groups across Slovenia to cherish Slovenian folk and artistic music. Band Andrej Oder, Rok Ferenčak – 1st Tenor David Jagodic, Janez Triler – 2nd Tenor Jože Vidic, Darko Vidic – Baritone Janko Volčanšek, Miha Bole – Bass Artistic director: JOŽE VIDIC