Douglas Carlton Abrams is the coauthor with Archbishop Desmond Tutu of God Has a Dream: A Vision of Hope for Our Time. He is also the cofounder of Idea Architects, a book and media development agency working with visionary authors to create a wiser, healthier, and more just world. He lives with his family in California.

Desmond Tutu. The first black Archbishop of Cape Town, Tutu has won the Nobel Peace Prize for his leadership of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and today is Chair of a group of former world leaders, The Elders, which aims to tackle some of the world's most intractable problems.

He has helped calm the political crisis in Kenya and regularly speaks out against Mugabe, Israel, the Iraq War and the Burmese junta, but is also noted for his irrepressible sense of humour and deep spirituality. He lives in South Africa but travels widely.

Dalai Lama. His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the spiritual and political leader of Tibet.

Today, he lives in exile in Northern India and works tirelessly on behalf of the Tibetan people, as well as travelling the world to give spiritual teachings to sell-out audiences.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.