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  • Walter Cronkite (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009), the former managing editor of the *CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite*, has been called "the most trusted man in America." Born in St. Joseph, Missouri, Mr. Cronkite began his career as a news writer and editor for Scripps-Howard and United Press. He was a war correspondent for United Press and, after the war, reopened news bureaus for UP in Amsterdam and Brussels. Mr. Cronkite was the chief correspondent covering the Nuremberg trials and also served as bureau manager in Moscow. In 1950 he joined CBS as a television correspondent. Mr. Cronkite is the recipient of a Peabody Award, the William White Award for Journalistic Merit, an Emmy Award from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the George Polk Journalism Award, and a Gold Medal from the International Radio and Television Society. He is a long-time member of the Society of Professional Journalists. His 1996 autobiography, *A Reporter's Life*, was a bestseller. An avid sailor, Mr. Cronkite wrote the text for South by Southeast, a record of his impressions sailing the waterways from Chesapeake Bay to Key West. A sequel, *North by Northeast*, was also published.
  • Lisa Madigan has brought a high level of activism to the Office of Illinois Attorney General. From her first days in office, she has demonstrated principled leadership, putting policy before politics and focusing her work as the state's top legal advocate on protecting the people and communities of Illinois. Madigan has dedicated the energy and resources of her office to protecting women and children from the dangers of predators on our streets and on the Internet.
  • Charles Osgood, often referred to as *CBS News*' poet-in-residence, has been anchor of *CBS News Sunday Morning* since 1994. He also anchors and writes "The Osgood File," his daily news commentary broadcast on the CBS Radio Network. Osgood was recognized with the 2008 National Association of Broadcasters Distinguished Service Award. He was the recipient of the 2005 Paul White Award, presented by the Radio-Television News Directors Association, for lifetime contribution to electronic journalism. In 2005, Osgood received the Walter Cronkite Excellence in Journalism Award from Arizona State University. He was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame in 2000 and joined the ranks of the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1990. Osgood was born in New York. He was graduated from Fordham University in 1954 with a B.S. degree in economics and holds honorary doctorates from 11 institutions of higher learning. He has served as a trustee for Fordham University and St. Bonaventure, is an overseer at Colby College and is a trustee at the School of Strings in Manhattan. Osgood has performed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and played the piano and banjo with the New York Pops and Boston Pops Orchestras.
  • Peter Smith is the Clerk on the board of Communities Without Borders, was formerly the Co-chair of the Coalition for a Strong United Nations and currently is a member of their board of directors and sits on their executive committee. He is on the Advisory Council of the United Nations Association of Greater Boston and served as a Delegate to the National Summit on Africa in Washington, D.C. Peter has been active with the First Unitarian Society in Newton having served for three years as Co-chair of the Social Action Committee and three years on the Board of Trustees. He is the Massachusetts Bay District Envoy to the Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office. He was active in his neighborhood association and is the Past President and a member of the Board of Directors of the Green Decade Coalition/Newton, a grassroots environmental group. He is the Coordinator of the core group for 20/20 Vision in the Fourth Congressional District in Massachusetts, a national environmental and peace legislative lobbying organization. Smith has also been active with the Architects for Social Responsibility Committee of the Boston Society of Architects. He has attended the United Nations Habitat for Humanity Conference in Istanbul in 1996 representing the Boston Society of Architects. He was active with Beyond War, and served on the Bioregional Council of the Foundation for Global Community and on the Administrative Team for Peace Child Boston.
  • Larissa Brown PhD, AICP provides leadership and management for public and private clients in a broad range of communities, including city comprehensive and strategic plans, visioning, neighborhood and downtown revitalization plans, and open space plans. She has served as chief planner for a regional council of governments and as director of community planning for a municipal government. She is also a founding member of the Massachusetts Smart Growth Alliance, a statewide smart growth advocacy collaborative.