Chairman & Board Members

Felix currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Blue Ridge Bonsai Society and on the Society Board of Directors of the North Carolina Arboretum.  He also currently serves as Legal Consultant to the World Bonsai Friendship Federation (“WBFF”).

Felix was President of NBF from 1996 to 2018, and Co-President with Jack Sustic from 2018 to 2020 (www.bonsai-nbf.org).  From 2001 to 2005, Felix served as Chairman of WBFF.    

He used to be the director of the Bonsai Research Office of the Shanghai Botanical Garden, the director of the Shanghai Garden Bureau, the vice chairman of the Bonsai Branch of the Chinese Society of Landscape Architecture, and the chairman of WBFF (2009—2013).

 He is now WBFF Honorary Chairman and has five Bonsai-published books,

His 4-year term as Chairman of WBFF beginning in 2017 was extended by one year because of the Covid epidemic and he subsequently Co-Chaired the first Virtual World Bonsai Convention.

Lindsay has been providing voluntary service to the bonsai community nationally and internationally, continuously for 52 years, and is still active in helping individuals and organizations around the world.

Lindsay currently serves as Patron of the National Bonsai & Penjing Collection of Australia.

Kim Sae Won’s legacy is one of tireless dedication, innovation, and fostering global camaraderie through the beauty of bonsai and floriculture. His profound impact on the international bonsai community, coupled with his extensive knowledge and artistic prowess, has solidified his position as a respected and influential figure in the horticultural world.

Naemi has been involved with WBFF since her late husband Mr. Daizo Iwasaki joined WBFF. She has been serving at WBFF as a Vice Chairman  since 2009.

Jack Sustic drives about an hour from his Swartz Creek home west of Flint to Ann Arbor and back twice a week to continue a passion he cultivated nearly four decades ago.

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His current stint as Matthaei’s bonsai boss comes after 20 years of curating the trees at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum in Washington, D.C., and about a decade of training before that. After South Korea, Sustic was stationed at Fort McClellan in Alabama, where he joined the Alabama Bonsai Society and trained at workshops with bonsai experts.

Christian Vos has been a member of Bonsai Association Belgium since 2005 and he became a member of the board a few years later. His major input for the club is public relations: especially to other bonsai clubs, associations, professionals and enthusiasts. He speaks several languages including Dutch, French, Italian, a little German and Spanish and his English is pretty good too!

Christian became president of the Federation of Belgian Bonsai Clubs in 2016. In that position, he is the official representative for Belgium in EBA.

Christian still works professionally full time and Bonsai takes up most of his free time, his enthusiasm for his club and The Noelanders Trophy is infectious.

He was the founding Chairman of South Africa's local bonsai club. he visited the 1st Chinese Penjing Exhibition in China. In the same year attended the first WBFF AGM as a consultant to the African Region, In 2013 he was appointed as Director of the Africa Region and attended the WBFF AGM in Taiwan.

Frank Journey has established affiliations with numerous local and international Bonsai organizations including life member of BCI and a Secretary position at the Association of Australian Bonsai Clubs Ltd. He generously volunteers his time and expertise to the World Bonsai Friendship Federation (WBFF) as the Director of the Australia-New Zealand region and holds the Honorary Treasurer position at WBFF.

Chris Baker has been studying and working on bonsai for more than 16 years. Like so many, he started out as an enthusiast with a true love of horticulture, nature, and natural trees.  Baker is the President of the North American Bonsai Federation and a board member of the World Bonsai Friendship Federation. Since his arrival in Chicago, the collection has more than doubled its display of quality trees, increased display times and locations in the Garden as well and promoted bonsai in the Midwest.

WBFF Director - China Region

Director for China Region of Bonsai Clubs International (BCI)
Board Chairman of the Flowers, Penjing and Viewing Stones Section of the Chinese Society of Landscape Architecture
Lifetime Honorary President of Guangzhou Penjing Association

Currently, he is the president of Bonsai Tropical de Mexico, President of FELAB, Director of BCI, and Past Director of ABS.  He is active in the education of bonsai Arts as well as a full professor at the scientific research center in Merida. During the years he has obtained several bonsai awards and recognitions from WBFF, BCI, FELAB, CBA, IST, etc, has been an Editor for KBA and ABP, and has published several articles and a book on bonsai botany.

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Marc is one of the finest bonsai artists worldwide, he is also the President of European Bonsai Association, he learned Bonsai arts under Master Masahiko Kimura, as well as Saburo Kato. John Naka was another mentor who spoke so well of his ability. Marc established the Neolanders Trophy known as the best and most well-known trophy Bonsai Exhibition in Europe currently.

The Kerala Bonsai Association has had Ravindran as its President for the past 25 years. All of Kerala's main cities now have their own bonsai clubs because to his efforts as president of the KBA. Many bonsai clubs in India invite him to teach their members and attend his workshops and demos. His own Nikki Bonsai Garden not far from his hometown is where he often holds training classes.

he was appointed as ABFF president in year 2015 before he passes the baton down to the followingpresident of MBSS in 2017, subsequently in year 2020, Dato’ Pui again being invited to return back as president holding the fort as Malaysia Bonsai icon and development until today, where MBSS successfully bid for the 10th World Bonsai Convention (WBC) 2026.