The Harmony Institute

The mission of The Harmony Institute is to promote human health and well being through the interaction of people, animals and the environment.

Scientific Advisory Board

The Harmony Institute's Center Advisory Board (HICAB) consists of leading experts from some of the nation's most prestigious universities, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the ASPCA and the Humane Society of the United States and has provided Harmony's developers with advice on building the community environment in such areas as land use, habitat protection, support facilities and amenities for companion animals, energy conservation, lighting controls and homeowner documents relating to animals and the environment. HICAB will also act to assist in:

Promotion of health care and work place facility design and operation that facilitates contact with nature and animals;
Development of a variety of model services and educational programs that reach beyond Harmony's borders;
Consultation in other day to day activities of the Harmony Institute.

HICAB members have also conducted activities at Harmony that are consistent with the Institute's mission and which advance the members' individual research interests.

Current members of the Harmony Institute Center Advisory Board (HICAB) and their current professional affiliations are:

Alan M. Beck, Sc.D., Dorothy N. McAllister Professor of Animal Ecology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Director, Center for the Human-Animal Bond, Purdue University.
Nancy Edwards, Ph.D., R.N.C., Associate Professor of Nursing and Coordinator of the Adult Nurse Practitioner track, Purdue University.
Howard Frumkin, M.D., Dr.PH, Director, National Center for Environmental Health/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (NCEH/ATSDR), U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
John Hadidian, Ph.D., Director, Urban Wildlife Programs, The Human Society of the United States.
Mark Hostetler, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Department, University of Florida.
Pierce Jones, Ph.D., Professor and Director, Program for Resource Efficient Communities, University of Florida.
Peter H. Kahn, Jr. Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Washington.
Mary Beth Kenkel, Ph.D., Dean and Professor, College of Psychology and Liberal Arts, Florida Institute of Technology.
Clyde B. McCoy, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Miami.
Renee Oscarson, PhD., R.D., L.N., Associate Professor, College of Family and Consumer Sciences and Gerontology Minor Coordinator in the Human Development and Family Studies Program, South Dakota State University.
Anthony G. Rud, Jr., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Educational Studies, College of Education, Purdue University.
James A. Serpell, Ph.D., Marie A. Moore Professor of Humane Ethics and Animal Welfare and Director, Center for the Interaction of Animals and Society, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania.
Roger S. Ulrich, Ph.D., Director and Julie and Craig Beale Endowed Professorship in Health Facilities Design, Department of Architecture, Texas A&M University.
Jennifer R. Wolch, Ph.D., Professor of Geography and Urban Planning, and Dean of Graduate Programs, College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, and Director of the USC Center for Sustainable Cities, University of Southern California.
Stephen L. Zawistowski, Ph.D., CAAB, Executive Vice President, National Programs Director and Science Advisor, The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Long Term programs of the Harmony Institute that are receiving guidance from HICAB include:

Albert Schweitzer Center

The Albert Schweitzer Center (ASC) will be the center for multi-disciplinary, ecumenical studies related to the values and implementation of human interaction with animals and nature within a community also built to include technologically environmental initiatives. The name has been approved by Dr. Schweitzer's daughter Rheena Schweitzer Miller who has visited Harmony on numerous occasions and remains excited about the project honoring her father's life and philosophy, "Reverence for Life."

Camp Spirit

Camp Spirit is a place where children can develop life enriching bonds with the soil, plants, animals and the environment, as well as with each other and supportive adults, through a hands-on learning and therapeutic experience. Not a petting farm, the Camp is a place where youth organizations and classes can enhance or expand their programs by taking advantage of the experiences that can only come from a small farm setting.

Camp Spirits provides Harmony residents with regular volunteer opportunities that range from working with the menagerie of miniature agricultural animals to gardening and leading children’s activities around the Indian teepees and campfire site.