Noshene Ranjbar, MD is originally from Iran and migrated to the US as an adolescent. Dr. Ranjbar now lives in Tucson, Arizona, the homelands of the Tohono O'odham Nation and of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. Informed by the intersection of her life experience, education, and personal healing journey, Dr. Ranjbar is motivated to support the health and wellbeing of traumatized, marginalized, and underserved persons and communities. Since 2010, she has been working to develop trauma-informed programs using a train-the-trainer model of mind-body medicine for Indigenous communities across the Americas, as well as in the Middle East. Dr. Ranjbar is devoted to teaching health care professionals how to deliver decolonized approaches to health care that closely consider the sociocultural determinants of health and wellbeing. Dr. Ranjbar completed undergraduate studies and medical school at University of Virginia, followed by Family Medicine Internship at Middlessex Hospital in Connecticut. She went on to complete psychiatry residency at the University of Arizona, child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and Integrative Medicine Fellowship at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. She currently serves as Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Integrative Psychiatry Program at the University of Arizona, Faculty and Initiative Advisor with The Center for Mind-Body Medicine, Faculty with Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine and Integrative Psychiatry Institute, and is a Robert Wood Johnson’s Culture of Health Leader. Dr. Ranjbar is Co-Founder and Executive Director of EARTH: Empowering All Relatives To Heal.

Emily Shoteen Si’al (Tlingit & Haida) is the grandchild of the Eagle Frog Kuus Gaa Dii and a descendant of the Shangukeidí. A founding board member of Empowering All Relatives to Heal (EARTH), she is an advocate for traditional ways of life, which she sees as the bedrock for community well-being, encompassing communal, spiritual, ecological, and physical health. Emily currently serves as Research Program Coordinator for the University of Arizona’s Indigenous Nursing (INCATS) program, where she supports Native healthcare pathways, facilitates culturally grounded mind-body medicine groups, and collaborates with tribal partners to strengthen Tribal workforce capacity, resiliency, and economic sovereignty. She contributes to community-based research in Traditional Food Sovereignty with the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and culturally-centered wellness research through the American Indian Youth Energy and Mental Health Balance project. As a Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Delegate and board member of the San Francisco Community Council, Emily advocates for self-determination through the restoration of traditional lifeways. She is committed to uplifting Indigenous youth to move forward on their paths with love and confidence, strongly grounded in their community and cultural values. Emily holds a B.S. in Neuroscience (Integrative Neuropsychiatry emphasis) and a double B.A. in Russian and Creative Writing from the University of Arizona.

Kimber Olson (Enrolled member of the Chiricahua Apache Mimbres Band Nation with Cayuga and Northern European heritage), PhD, has been a Head Start and Child Care programs director and a manager for Workforce Development and Tribal Vocational Rehabilitation programs. She has also worked in the substance abuse and child welfare fields and has been an adjunct instructor for Northwest Indian College and the Kachemak Bay Branch of the University of Alaska, Anchorage. Kimber's current position serves as a Tribal Early Childhood Program Specialist with the Tribal Early Childhood Division of the Administration of Children and Families focuses on early childhood systems building within Tribal communities. Her doctoral dissertation (2025) focused on Re-Storying Indigenous Mind-Body Medicine. Kimber also holds an Addictions Psychology certificate and a Wholistic Healing Practices and Decolonizing Trauma Certificate from Wilfred Laurier University.

Alta Begay (Diné) carries over 30 years of experience as a school psychologist, counselor, and special education administrator, primarily within Indigenous communities in Arizona and New Mexico, Alta is a leader in addressing historical traumas impacting the Navajo people. A retired school psychologist and counselor, today she is the Founder and Chairperson of the Hozho Voices of Healing Center, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to the education and healing of Dine’ communities. Under Alta’s guidance, the Hozho Voices of Healing Center was established to decolonize historical traumas and foster traditional Dine’ practices. This center creates a dedicated space for healing and cultural revitalization, aiming to restore balance and harmony within Dine’ communities for a healthier and more resilient future. She also serves as Faculty and Supervisor for the Indigenous Initiative at The Center for Mind-Body Medicine. Alta earned her Doctorate in Native American Supervision and Leadership from Arizona State University, in addition to degrees and certifications in counseling, psychology, and Indigenous studies. She is a Dine’ (Navajo) Zuni Edgewater clan member. Fluent in Dine’, Alta integrates traditional healing methods with modern therapies, including mind-body medicine, in her professional practice.

Certified in Mind-Body Medicine, Dr. Riegert (Ojibwe) shares the wisdom of her ancestors and perspectives of Native American communities with CMBM. JoAnne is of the Crane Clan from the White Earth Indian Reservation, and her spirit name is Lead White Cloud Woman. She facilitates Mind-Body Skills Groups both online and in-person on several first nations reservations in Northwest Minnesota. Dr. Riegert is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor. She educates and trains new clinicians, following the principles of the Seven Grandfather Teachings of the Anishinaabe. She is professionally trained in indigenous trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, indigenous restorative justice circle processes, suicide prevention and intervention, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, grief and loss, and men’s domestic violence re-education. Dr. Riegert is also adjunct faculty at North Dakota State University. Dr. Riegert received her PhD from North Dakota State University, where she wrote her dissertation on the impact of a Mind-Body Skills Group in a rural community. In her leisure time, she enjoys spending time with her family, especially her grandson. She enjoys participating in cultural activities, gardening, canning, and home improvement projects.

Matt is passionate about sharing the science of mind-body medicine, stress, trauma, and integrative wellness. Matt, who is of Celtic descent, is a lifelong Indigenous Ally having been culturally adopted into the Oglala Lakota and White Earth Ojibwe communities. Matt works as an integrative physiotherapist, coach, educator, and scholar. Matt has served numerous roles with The Center for Mind-Body Medicine and co-founded their Indigenous Initiative. Matt also serves as guest lecturer at the University of Arizona physician residency programs (psychiatry and family medicine); instructor for the University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine; Faculty for Integrative Psychiatry Institute. He has previously served as an Advisor with Sharing Culture, an organization devoted to increasing awareness around historical trauma in minoritized, aboriginal, and indigenous populations.

Kenneth G. White Jr (Diné) is the founder of the Calling Upon the Warrior Spirit to Heal Historical Trauma Conference series. Mr. White holds a Masters degree in Social Work and Certificate in Gerontology from Arizona State University. Over his career he was the Director of the Navajo Foster Grandparent/Senior Companion Program; the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System's Legislative Liaison with Tribal Nations; and the Policy Advisor for the National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA). He has been the Executive Director, Policy Advisory and Business Manager of various aging, health care, and tribal programs for many years. He is particularly interested in developing reimbursement systems for traditional healing services with western medicine in tribal and urban settings to benefit our Native populations. Ken's family carries a long legacy of healing initiatives for the Navajo Nation and Indigenous Persons across the Americas.

Ryan Moreno Si'al (Tohono O'odham) works as a visual artist and has been featured in Arizona Luminaria, My Herald Review, and the Desert Leaf; he has exhibited at the Amerind Museum and the Center for Creative Photography. He is currently studying Tohono O’odham Studies and Engineering and plans to work in Architectural Engineering using traditional, sustainable architecture practices. He served as a Building Communities of Hope Fellow in 2024 with the Center for Native Youth, a role through which he partnered with the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Law Center and New Mexico Child Advocacy Networks to raise awareness and advocate for youth in foster care and its impact on tribal communities. He focuses on promoting resiliency, mental health transformation, and access to traditional community, culture, and ways of life as a vital aspect of healing for Native youth.