Conference Speakers
Haiping Guo
Haiping GUO (b. 1962, Nanjing, China) is a contemporary artist and a leading figure in the development of “Outsider Art in China”. He is the founder of the Nanjing Outsider Art Center, a pioneering platform integrating artistic practice with mental health support and community-based rehabilitation. GUO’s work sits at the intersection of psychology, art, and social practice. For nearly two decades, he has explored creative expression as a channel for emotional processing, identity reconstruction, and social connection among individuals with mental health conditions. His practice draws on concepts including non-verbal expression, trauma-in- formed care, and strengths-based approaches to mental health. Central to his work is the concept of Outsider Art—art created by individuals without formal artistic training, including those with psychiatric or developmental conditions. GUO views these works not as clinical artifacts, but as authentic expressions of inner experience, emphasizing creativity, agency, and meaning-making beyond diagnosis. His methodology was shaped by his experience in 2006, when he spent extended periods living and creating alongside psychiatric patients in institutional settings. This experience led to a practice grounded in presence, co-creation, and the suspension of hierarchical roles between “therapist” and “patient,” offering a practice-based approach that resonates with expressive therapies and community psychology.
Jolie Gutentag, DBA
Dr. Gutentag is a former C suite executive and seasoned international business executive from various companies including Procter & Gamble in Europe. Her business career spanned over 25 years of experience in the areas of general management, product development, marketing, and consulting. She received her BA in Economics and International Relations at Tufts University and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management. After completing a Doctor of Business Administration from Pepperdine Graziadio Business School in 2021, she became a Visiting Assistant Professor at Seaver College. She is currently a Professor at Sofia University in their DBA program. Dr. Gutentag’s research focuses on the circular economy including communication strategies to foster sustainable consumption. Her work has been recognized at top academic conferences and was published in the International Journal of Advertising in 2025. She is part of a team that received two National Science Foundation grants to identify strategies to change the public’s acceptance of circular sanitation, enabling the recovery and reuse of valuable resources from human waste. She advises companies and organizations active in circular sanitation in the US and Europe and is a board member at Phlush, a non-profit organization helping municipalities and citizens address the shortage of public restrooms and prepare for natural disasters that disrupt sanitation systems.
Regina U. Hess, PhD
Dr. Regina U. Hess holds a Ph.D. in Transpersonal Psychology and is a transpersonal psychotherapist, shamanic practitioner, clinical psychologist from Germany, and Professor at Alef Trust in the UK. For more than two decades, she has contributed to the international transpersonal field through leadership in organizations including EUROTAS, the International Transpersonal Association, and the European Transpersonal Psychology Association, where she has served in research and leadership roles. She is also a co-founder of the Transpersonal Research Network and the World Transpersonal Multidisciplinary Federation. Regina is the Founder and Director of Birthing an Ancient Future – Multidisciplinary Council of Peace-Builders, creating global learning spaces where Indigenous knowledge, body-centered transformation, alchemical ceremony, and psychedelic science converge. Guided by Indigenous principles of Respect, Reciprocity, and Responsibility, her work advances transpersonal education, planetary healing, and transcultural peace. An international speaker and author, she is committed to the evolution of sacred planetary consciousness and the wellbeing of all relations.
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