Skye Stephenson, PhD, founded Jade Journeys in 2006 to make available to interested people in the United States and Canada the opportunity to meet some of the amazing individuals and groups from Latin America and the Caribbean who are working at the intersection between the realm of sacred wisdom and contemporary knowledge. She has been blessed to know many such people over more than a quarter century that she has been developing and leading educational programs in the region and writing about the area’s cultural practices and spiritual traditions.
Skye’s area of expertise is the transformational potential of the cross-cultural experience. She is the author of Understanding Spanish-Speaking South Americans: Bridging Hemispheres (Intercultural Press, 2002), which she wrote in order to help people from the English-speaking world better understand the cultural patterns of the Spanish-speaking South Americans. She also undertook the first substantive study of students’ cross-cultural shifts using the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI), coined the increasingly used term “cross-cultural deepening” and was one of the first to explore the impact of sojourners upon members of the host culture. Skye is currently documenting the role of dreams in cross-cultural adjustment and the linkage between transformative travel experiences and peace.
On a more personal note, Skye has undertaken several initiations in the Ifa tradition - in both Cuba and Brazil - and been involved with members of the Rastafari, Garifuna, and various Indian communities and nations. She is currently Chair of the US Donors Board for the Intercultural University Amawtay Wasi of Ecuador.
Skye is also involved with crystal therapy healing and interested in the use of rocks and crystals to promote health and well-being. She is completing her crystal resonance certification. She writes a monthly healing column for a newspaper in her home state of New Hampshire.