Andra Akers

Akers, Andra (58)
Noted actress and philanthropist died unexpectedly in Los Angeles on Wednesday, March 20th. Trained as an artist, Ms. Akers appeared on Broadway, in major motion pictures, television and was a founding member of the Mark Taper forum repertory theater company. Ms. Akers was a descendant of William Ellery, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Her grandfather was the well known architect John Russell Pope and her father, Anthony B. Akers, was ambassador to New Zealand during the Kennedy administration. While in New Zealand, Ms. Akers attended Victoria University, followed by her enrollment at Sarah Lawrence College where she majored in theater and political science. After spending time in New York, Ms. Akers toured with Sondheim's "A Little Night Music" winning the Los Angeles Drama Critic's award for her performance as Charlotte. She remained in Los Angeles, establishing a successful career on the stage, television and in film. During this time she began an intense period of study of various scientific disciplines, mathematics, epistemology, systems theory, metaphysics, environmental issues and global politics. As a result of these studies, in 1986 Ms. Akers changed course and founded International Synergy Institute, a non-profit educational foundation that was an interdisciplinary think tank for 21st Century ideas. In her own words, "I wanted to create a place where visionaries in different professions could meet and inherit each others' knowledge in the light of planetary concerns." She followed this by founding Pacific Shift, Inc., where she worked as a media consultant with a diverse group of corporations including The Museum of Civilization, Turner Enterprises, and Disney, as well as organizations in Australia, Finland and Italy. Her fervent desire to raise conciousness and better the planet led her to this work in order to promote new ideas into the mainstream culture. Ms. Akers served on advisory boards as varied as the Center for Partnership Studies, The Mobius Group and the Institute for Penal Reform and Social Change in Budapest, Hungary. She was elected to the Lindesfarne Fellows in New York, an honor which touched her deeply. Because of her boundless generosity and her concern for the suffering of people around the world, Ms. Akers was instrumental in the founding of the Mae-Tao Clinic on the Thailand/Burma border to deal with the tragedy resulting from land mines in the area. She was working on several books at the time of her death. She is survived by her mother, Jane Ridgway; sister, Ellery Akers; and hundreds of beloved friends and admirers. A memorial will be held 11AM, Sunday, April 14th; for information, please email: Joetreasureuk@compuserve.com.