Susan Classen, Nerinx, Kentucky, is the director of Cedars of Peace, a small retreat center on the grounds of the Sisters of Loretto Motherhouse in central Kentucky. She worked with the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Bolivia, El Salvador, and Nicaragua from 1981 to 2003. Susan’s passion for peacemaking and for issues related to ecology grew out of her years in Latin America. She writes for a variety of publications and is the author of two books, Vultures and Butterflies: Living the Contradictions and Dewdrops on Spiderwebs: Connections Made Visible. Peter Dula, Harrisonburg, Virginia, is Assistant Professor of Religion and Culture at Eastern Mennonite University. He has served Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Burundi, Jordan, and Iraq. He taught for one year at Meserete Kristos College in Ethiopia. He earned his Ph.D. in theology and ethics from Duke University in 2004 and has authored several academic articles. Roy Hange, Charlottesville, Virginia, served under Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Egypt, Syria, and Iran for ten years. He is currently co-pastor with his wife Maren of Charlottesville Mennonite Church and Overseer of the Harrisonburg District of Virginia Mennonite Conference. He regularly writes and speaks on religious peacemaking. Bob Herr and Judy Zimmerman Herr, Akron, Pennsylvania, are co-directors for Mennonite Central Committee's Program Development Department. They previously served as co-directors for MCC's International Peace Office and as administrators for MCC programs in South Africa. Together they edited Transforming Violence: Linking Local and Global Peacemaking. Jeanne Zimmerly Jantzi, Indonesia, serves as Mennonite Central Committee Representative to Indonesia along with her husband, Daniel. They follow in the footsteps of her parents, who were also MCC workers in Indonesia. The family, which includes sons Ben, David, and Paul, previously served with MCC in Congo and Nigeria. Jeanne is a graduate of Eastern University with a master’s degree in International Economic Development. Chantal Logan, Harrisonburg, Virginia, was born in Paris, France. She earned a B.A. and an M.A. with a focus in linguistics from the University of Paris-Nanterre and a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Limoges, France. Her other fields of study include psychotherapy, Islamic studies, and conflict resolution. She served with her husband under Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) and then in a joint appointment through EMM and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) from 1995 to 2003 in East Africa, relating and working with Somali people. Presently, she teaches French, Spanish, and African literature at Eastern Mennonite University. Edgar Metzler, Goshen, Indiana, did interdisciplinary studies as an undergraduate at Goshen College and graduate work in theology at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, psychology at the University of Pittsburgh, and international relations at American University. He has worked in a variety of roles. In addition to serving as a pastor, he directed Peace Corps programs in Iran, Thailand, Nepal, and India. He worked as Executive Director of the United Mission to Nepal and in a variety of capacities with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), most recently as its International Program director. Randall Puljek-Shank is currently the co-director of Mennonite Central Committee's program for Southeast Europe, together with his wife, Amela. He lives in Sarajevo and is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University's MA in Conflict Transformation. He co-wrote the chapter "Journey of Healing" in Positive Approaches to Peacebuilding: A Resource for Innovators. He has also taught courses on social movements and worked as an organizational consultant and facilitator with NGOs. Jon Rudy, Mindanao, the Philippines, has been Mennonite Central Committee’s Asia Peace Resource Person since 2001. Living in the Philippine Island of Mindanao, he has worked with MCC volunteers, partners, and programs throughout Asia on peace programs. He is a management committee member and facilitator at the annual Mindanao Peacebuilding Institute. A 2001 graduate of Eastern Mennonite Seminary and University, Rudy has worked with MCC since 1987 in Somalia, Swaziland, and Asia. Gopar Tapkida, Jos, Nigeria, has served as the coordinator of Mennonite Central Committee peace work in Nigeria since 2001. He began the regional coordination of MCC peace work in West Africa in January 2007. Gopar currently leads multi-faith and inter-denominational peace and conflict transformation in Nigeria. He is the lead adjunct instructor in religious and identity-based conflict in three seminaries (ECWA Theological Seminary Jos, Apostolic Theological Seminary Jos, and Evengal Theological Seminary Jos) in Nigeria, and at the African Peace Institute at Mindolo, Zambia. He received his first degree in pastoral theology in Jos, Nigeria and a graduate degree in conflict analysis and transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Virginia, USA. He is married to Monica and has three daughters. Eldon Wagler and Jane Emile-Wagler, Partridge, Kansas, worked for Mennonite Central Committee in Egypt and Syria from the early 1990s until 2007, most recently as Country Representatives for Syria. They have two children, Anthony and Mary. Alain Epp Weaver, Chicago, Illinois, worked in a variety of capacities with the Middle East program of Mennonite Central Committee for eleven years, most recently as co-representative for Palestine, Jordan, and Iraq. Among other edited and authored books, he is the editor of Under Vine and Fig Tree: Biblical Theologies of Land and the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict (Cascadia 2007) and the author of numerous articles, both academic and popular.
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