Global Good News: Excellence in Action

Alex Cequea—Marketing Sustainability and Consciousness
Alexander Cequea, was raised in Venezuela and attended the University of Houston. But in Spring of 2006, he visited M.U.M. [Maharishi University of Management] during the first David Lynch Weekend and enrolled that fall. 'I was looking for an education that would bring more personal growth,' he says. 'When I started meeting the students and faculty I immediately knew I was in the right place.'

'What we're doing at M.U.M., creating collective peace and radiating it to the world, is truly revolutionary. I feel blessed to have found this university, an oasis of consciousness.'

Along with M.U.M. students Troy van Beek and Robbie Gongwer, Alex formed a green consulting and media company called The Tidal Wave Group, with the motto: Navigating environmental sustainability and consciousness.

Tidal Wave offers businesses consultations on sustainability. Using marketing techniques, such as networking and blogging, the firm helps businesses tap into the areas of the Internet where consumers interact with each other and create a buzz about their product.

Alex is editor-in-chief of Conscious Times, M.U.M.'s student newspaper. He will graduate this year and plans to enroll in M.U.M.'s MBA in Sustainability.

Elisabet Humble—From Law to Permaculture
Elisabet Humble was on her way to a paralegal degree in Texas when she found out about Maharishi University of Management. Intrigued by the University's holistic approach to education and the deeper element of consciousness, Elisabet attended a Visitors Weekend in July of 2007 and three weeks later her she enrolled.

Elisabet was interested in permaculture so she enrolled in the Sustainable Living program. "This program has us learn actively, not just from books," she says. "The hands-on projects make learning more concrete for us so we get an idea what it is like in real life."

In her first year, Elisabet became the student organizer for the Eco Fair. She booked the speakers, secured the venue for the event, and oversaw marketing. Since then she started two student clubs: the Bee Collective, for students interested in bee keeping, and the Guild of Herbalists, for students who want to learn the identification of herbs and make medicinal preparations.

Elisabet has a lot more in store for the future: 'I want to start a business that will provide financial backing to create sustainable communities.'

Todd Ashelman—Living the busiest, yet most relaxing life
Todd Ashelman had lived in an earth house in West Virginia, watched his father build solar-powered electric cars in Hawaii, and even worked as a massage therapist. He was drawn to M.U.M. for three reasons, "Family, sustainability, and consciousness."

Todd contributes to the M.U.M. community in so many ways. As Sustainable Living President of the Global Student Council of M.U.M. he acts as a liaison between the University's sustainable administration and the student body.

As head of the Bike Club, Todd offers instruction on how to fix bikes and he is preparing to collect donated bicycles for students to use. He is also active in Green Screen, a weekly environmental movie night and helps organize the annual Eco Fair. "I enjoy the challenge of testing how much I can do and still remain rested," he says.

Somehow, Todd has room for more projects in his calendar, including assisting in the installation of wind generators and solar collectors on campus. "These projects should be examples for other universities to be sustainable and profitable," he says.

For more information about the Maharishi University of Management Sustainability Program, please visit: http://www.mum.edu/sustainability.html

"The potential of every student is infinite. The time of student life should serve to unfold that infinite potential so that every individual becomes a vibrant centre of Total Knowledge."—Maharishi