Founders

A long time vegan, lover of animals, nature and passionate about human ecology. As an eternal optimist, she is focused on increasing the number of people worldwide who understand the powerful impact of their food choices. She has been an active advocate of a wholefood plant-based diet and vegan life for decades.

A high profiled and dedicated health counsellor and teacher with over 40 years’ experience in the wellness industry. She has designed and presented corporate and personal programs covering most aspects of nutrition and wellbeing.

She is a graduate of T. Colin Campbell Centre for Nutrition Studies and an expert in her field on plant-based nutrition. Aside from nutritional science her approach draws from the fields of Macrobiotic Nutrition, ecological sustainability, and her studies in Traditional Chinese Medicine.  She is the author of Macrobiotics for all Seasons and her most recent book Go Vegan, with a forward by T Colin Campbell.

Marlene has worked with clients in the UK, U.S.A., Europe and Australia designing bespoke nutritional programs and training private chefs in plant-based nutrition. Her clients have included business leaders and royalty. Marlene and her husband Bill Tara teach on-line training programs and have graduates of their Macrobiotic Vegan Health Coach Programme in 27 countries.

In 2003 Bill and Marlene first outlined their vision to create the Human Ecology Project to serve their shared vision of a healthy world for humans and non-humans alike. The charity was born in 2021 and will produce educational videos and material for schools, colleges, and universities as well as the general public.

Since 1967 Bill Tara has been an active advocate for natural heath care, macrobiotic nutrition and human ecology. He was the Vice President of Erewhon Trading Company, one of America’s first distributors of natural organic foods, and was a co-founder of Sunwheel Natural Foods in London, England.

COMMUNITY HEALTH EDUCATION

Bill established health education centers in Chicago, Los Angeles and London England. In 1975 he founded the Community Health Foundation in London England, a Charitable Trust that was the largest natural health education center in the world. Together with Michio and Aveline Kushi, he was a founder of the Kushi Institute and served as Executive Director of the institute programs in London, England and Boston, USA.

Bill served on the Macrobiotic Teachers Review Boards in both America and Europe and was the Chairman of the European Macrobiotic Assembly for four years and was Chairman of the American Macrobiotic Congress for two years.

He has been invited to present seminars on Natural Health Care, Human Ecology, Body Psychology and Macrobiotic Philosophy in 27 countries. Bill has served on the faculty of the International Macrobiotic Institute, Switzerland, Institute Macrobiotic Portugal, Naropa University, Colorado, U.S.A., The Academy of Healing Nutrition, New York, London and San Francisco and the Kushi Institute, U.S.A., and U.K. He also served for two years as the Director of Natural Therapies at the SHA Wellness Clinic in Albir, Spain. He has been awarded a life-time achievement award from the Kushi Institutefor his 55years of service to a healthy and peaceful world.

BOOKS

In 1975 Bill edited and published, Your Face Never Lies, based on the teachings of Michio Kushi, which continues to be one of the most popular books on Oriental Diagnosis. In 1985 he published Macrobiotics and Human Behavior, the first book by a Westerner on the Chinese theory of the Body/Mind connection. Natural Body Natural Mind was published in 2008 and his first novel, Portal of Dreams was published in 2011. In 2019 his book he published How To Eat Right And Save The Planet.