CSC Media Center

Dave Nichols is Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Change and a leader in Three Principles-based community development. Immediately preceding his role as the Center’s Executive Director, Dave, with Ami Chen Mills-Naim, co-directed the Center’s W.K. Kellogg Foundation-funded National Community Resiliency Project (NCRP). For over three years he led the NCRP’s on-site work in Charlotte, NC. For nearly 17 years, Dave was Executive Director of the nonprofit Lakewood Community Development Corporation (Lakewood CDC). Under his leadership, over half of all housing units in the inner-city neighborhood of Lakewood were built new or rehabilitated; public infrastructure there was improved dramatically. Dave began introducing Three Principles programming to Lakewood residents in 2008 and witnessed the transformative effects on the neighborhood, including a significant drop in violent crime. Dave is a BA graduate of Wake Forest University, served for two years as a special short-term missionary in Nigeria and Liberia, obtained a Masters of Divinity degree from Andover Newton Theological School, and utilized his carpentry/cabinetry/design skills owning and operating for 15 years a kitchen/bath/home remodeling business. He served as Director of Habitat for Humanity in Orange County (Chapel Hill, NC) and Director of Neighborhood Housing Services of Charlotte. Dave’s focus is on spreading an awareness of the “inside-out” approach to human resiliency among agencies and schools in at-risk communities across the United States. 

Ami is Co-founder and current Education Director of the Center for Sustainable Change and is the author of The Spark Inside: A Special Book for Youth. She has been an international trainer of the Three Principles for over 15 years, as well as a "trainer of trainers." Through her writing, teaching and project leadership, she has made a tremendous impact on spiritual consciousness, globally, and has been instrumental in producing literature and video programs on applications of the Principles with youth, families and in communities across the USA. She is a former Director of the National Community Resiliency Project, funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. In addition, Ami is an award-winning writer and journalist. Her current focus is on spreading an understanding of the Principles, and the truth of our true nature to help end needless suffering. Her current work at the Center is focused on this mission.

Maureen has worked as a communications consultant with a wide range of non-profits, including organizations focused on the environment, indigenous knowledge, and media arts in Canada. Formerly an award-winning community newspaper journalist and a freelance writer prior to the advent of the internet, Ms. Latta now primarily writes for all types of online media, including blogs, websites and newsletters. She received her Master of Fine Arts (Creative Writing) from the University of British Columbia, Canada. Apart from managing grants, which support our non-profit work, Maureen writes about the CSC projects on our blog.

Gabriela has been working in the field of human services since 1991, spending ten years in Santa Clara County’s 3 Principles Services Division where she directed the Practitioner Internship Program. She has taught the Three Principles for 15 years in diverse multicultural settings and has a huge depth of experience working with young people from all backgrounds and circumstances. She developed and delivered effective leadership and work-wellness programs for executive management teams, sales teams, government staff and educators around the globe. Gabriela has a particular passion for working with families of military personnel and police officers. She conducts trainings in both Spanish and English.

Dr. Mills was and will remain the only President of the non-profit Center for Sustainable Change.
He was a husband, father and doting grandfather, a kind and gentle man...

Dr. Mills was one of the pioneers in the development, testing and application of a Principles-based psychology.  His pilot-demonstration projects were funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, the California Wellness Foundation, and several major private foundations.

Dr. Mills’ work with inner city schools and communities plagued with drugs, crime, welfare dependence and abuse resulted in national innovative projects awards, national network and public television coverage, and foundation and corporate produced documentaries on empowerment, resiliency and change, and unleashing the human potential.

Dr. Mills was the author of Realizing Mental Health (1995), and co-authored other books and publications on the Principles. He published numerous professional journal articles and was an international consultant, speaker and trainer.

Watch Roger on video

Click here to read a tribute to Roger's Life.