Renna Al-Yassini
Design strategist/consultant
Renna Al-Yassini is a design strategy consultant and adjunct instructor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh PA. Prior to receiving her Masters in Design from CMU, she founded and ran a communication strategy consultancy for non-profits and social justice initiatives in the Bay Area. Al-Yassini’s research and writing focuses on what the field of design can offer and learn in working across cultures during moments of change. She is in contract negotiations to bring her thesis project of a women’s entrepreneurship and innovation center in Qatar to life.
Marc Alt
Principal, Marc Alt + Partners
Marc Alt + Partners is a design, research and strategy agency dedicated to sustainability and social innovation. Alt was founding co-chair of the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design and serves on the advisory boards of The Designers Accord and Design Ignites Change. He is also partner in Opportunity Green Enterprises, a platform to advance social entrepreneurship and accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy through training, education, events and competitions. In 2010, Alt will launch a pilot project to demonstrate and promote sustainable urban vertical farming and food systems in New York City.
Mariana Amatullo
Vice President, Director, Designmatters Department, Art Center College of Design [email protected]
Through Mariana Amatullo’s leadership, Art Center is the first design institution to be affiliated as a non-governmental organization with several United Nations agencies and development organizations. The award-winning and tangible outcomes of the Designmatters portfolio unite educational objectives with advocacy and social innovation outcomes that are disseminated globally by Designmatters partners. Amatullo was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina; she holds an M.A. in Art History and Museum Studies from the University of Southern California and a Licence en Lettres Degree from the Sorbonne University, Paris.
Lynda A. Anderson
Director, Healthy Aging Program at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)
The Healthy Aging Program at the CDC serves as a focal point for programs on older adult health. Anderson is responsible for leading innovative projects to facilitate the translation of research to practice to improve the lives of older adults. She is also an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. Anderson received her doctorate from the University of North Carolina, School of Public Health and a two-year NIA Postdoctoral Fellowship in aging at the Duke University Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development.
Allison Arieff
Writer, Editor, Design Consultant
Allison Arieff writes, lectures and consults on design and sustainability, most recently for the global design and innovation firm IDEO. She writes the “By Design” blog for the New York Times and is a content strategist for Urban Revision. Arieff was the editor-in-chief of Dwell, and was the magazine’s founding senior editor. The magazine won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence under her tenure. She is also author of the books Prefab and Trailer Travel: A Visual History of Mobile America. Arieff received her BA in history from U.C.L.A.; a MA in art history from U.C. Davis; and completed her PhD coursework in American Studies at NYU. She lives in San Francisco.
Ernest Beck
Editorial Director, Aspen Design Summit
Ernest Beck is an award-winning journalist with extensive writing and editing experience at prestigious newspapers, magazines, and web sites. A veteran staff reporter for the Wall Street Journal for almost a decade, he covered politics and economics in Eastern Europe and a corporate beat in London focusing on marketing and advertising, before returning to New York to work as a freelancer. He is also a media consultant, helping companies with editorial content and media relations. Beck has written about design, innovation, business, and sustainability for outlets including Businessweek.com, MSNmoney.com, and The New York Times.
John Bielenberg
Founding Partner of C2, MavLab, and Nada Bicycle Collective
In 2003, John Bielenberg created a program called Project M that is designed to inspire and educate young designers by proving that their work can have a positive and significant impact on the world. Project M has developed initiatives to help a conservation area in Costa Rica, Micro-financing in Ghana, the city of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, the community of East Baltimore and connecting households to fresh water in Hale County, Alabama.
Maggie Breslin
Senior designer/researcher, SPARC Design Studio, Center for Innovation, Mayo Clinic
Maggie Breslin was the first designer/researcher hired into the SPARC Group at Mayo Clinic in 2005. In her role, she has led research, design and development efforts around topics that include patient decision-making, integration and practice models, patient-centered hospital experiences and remote care. Breslin came to her career as a designer through a love for stories. Her early work in film, television, motion graphics and animation shaped her ideas about narrative, dialogue, audience and design. Breslin holds a Masters of Design from Carnegie Mellon University and a BS in Mass Communications, Film and Television, from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.
Gaby Brink
Founder and Principal, Tomorrow Partners; Co-Chair, AIGA Center for Sustainable Design
Gaby Brink is the Founder and Executive Creative Director of Tomorrow Partners, where she leads an interdisciplinary team that designs communications to connect and accelerate progress toward a brighter future. Brink has worked closely with many leading global marketers and non-profits and has a particular passion for using her agency’s talents to help organizations, which have sustainability as a core principle, thrive and move in new directions. Brink is also Co-Chair of AIGA’s Center for Sustainable Design, where she helps chart the organization’s long-term vision and promotes the integration of sustainability strategies to design and business communities.
Tim Brown
CEO, President, IDEO
[email protected]
Tim Brown speaks regularly on the value of design thinking and innovation to business and design audiences around the world. He participates in the World Economic Forum at Davos, and his talk “Serious Play” can be seen on TED.com. Brown advises senior executives of Fortune 500 companies and serves on the Board of Trustees for the California College of the Arts, the Mayo Innovation Advisory Council, and theAdvisory Council of Acumen Fund, a not-for-profit global venture fund focused onimproving the lives of the poor. His recently published book, “Change By Design” (HarperBusiness), explains how design thinking can transform organizations.
[email protected]
Tim Brown speaks regularly on the value of design thinking and innovation to business and design audiences around the world. He participates in the World Economic Forum at Davos, and his talk “Serious Play” can be seen on TED.com. Brown advises senior executives of Fortune 500 companies and serves on the Board of Trustees for the California College of the Arts, the Mayo Innovation Advisory Council, and theAdvisory Council of Acumen Fund, a not-for-profit global venture fund focused onimproving the lives of the poor. His recently published book, “Change By Design” (HarperBusiness), explains how design thinking can transform organizations.
Dan Buchner
Vice President of Organizational Innovation, Continuum [email protected]
Dan Buchner is an award winning designer, entrepreneur, and innovation consultant. For nearly 30 years he has been developing innovative new products, creating compelling new services and helping organizations establish design and innovation capabilities to drive their success. In leading a project to address water and sanitation issues facing rural South African communities, Buchner became convinced that the power of design thinking could have a profound impact on society. His recent work has involved using design thinking as an economic, leadership and social development tool in emerging markets.
Grant Cambridge
Senior Researcher, The Meraka Institute
Grant Cambridge is a senior researcher on the Digital Doorway project, which focuses on deploying ICT systems into rural environments, at the Meraka Institute, an independent research center managed by the CSIR, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Pretoria, South Africa. He has deep experience in design for manufacture, human computer interactions, and building ICT solutions that are robust enough to survive in rural conditions in Africa. Cambridge previously worked for communications and electronics systems companies.
Charlie Cannon
Associate Professor, Industrial Design, RISD
Director, Research and Design, LOCAL Architecture Research Design
Charlie Cannon co-founded the Innovation Studio at RISD to confront pressing issues of our day through interdisciplinary collaboration, social entrepreneurship and design research. The studio’s projects have been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Rhode Island Renewable Energy Fund, the RISD Research Foundation and the City of Denver. Cannon is also co-founder of LOCAL Architecture Research Design, a design firm in Providence, Rhode Island that focuses on projects that develop and sustain local communities.
Valerie Casey
Executive Director, Designers Accord
Valerie Casey is a globally recognized designer and innovator. She works with startups, governments, and organizations all over the world on challenges ranging from creating new products and services, to transforming organizational processes and behaviors. Casey founded the Designers Accord, a global coalition of designers, educators, and business leaders focused on creating positive social and environmental impact. Her work has been highlighted in multiple publications, and she has been named a “Guru you should know” by Fortune magazine, a “Hero of the Environment” by Time magazine, and a “Master of Design” by Fast Company.
Ted Chen
Director, Learning and Innovation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation
In this position Ted Chen harvests knowledge and learning from the Kellogg Foundation’s grants and social investments, and then designs innovative ways tomake this knowledge and learning valuable to others, both within and outside the Kellogg Foundation. In his previous role, Chen served as a Program Director in Youth and Education where he designed and managed programs that improved learning outcomes for vulnerable children and youth. Before joining the Foundation in 2003, Chen was the executive director of the Big Idea Foundation, the charitable arm of the entertainment company that produces programs for children and families.
Allan Chochinov
Editor, Core77
[email protected]
Allan Chochinov is a partner of Core77, a New York-based design network serving a global community of designers and design enthusiasts. He is the editor-in-chief of Core77.com, the widely read design website, Coroflot.com design job and portfolio site, and DesignDirectory.com, a design firm database. He teaches in the graduate departments of Pratt Institute and the School of Visual Arts in New York City, and writes and lectures widely on the impact of design on contemporary culture.
Editor, Core77
[email protected]
Allan Chochinov is a partner of Core77, a New York-based design network serving a global community of designers and design enthusiasts. He is the editor-in-chief of Core77.com, the widely read design website, Coroflot.com design job and portfolio site, and DesignDirectory.com, a design firm database. He teaches in the graduate departments of Pratt Institute and the School of Visual Arts in New York City, and writes and lectures widely on the impact of design on contemporary culture.
Michael Conard
Assistant Director, Urban Design Lab at the Earth Institute; Adjunct Associate Professor, GSAPP, Columbia University
Michael Conard has directed applied and academic urban design research for overtwenty five years in five continents in both the private and public sectors. His workhas bridged urban and architectural design and environmental sustainability withpublic health, local economic develop and equal access. Conard is a registeredarchitect and is a Fellow of the Institute for Urban Design. His most recent publication The Carbon Studio: Bangkok (2008), addresses urban sustainable redevelopmentin the historic core of Bangkok.
Nathalie Destandau
Partner and Strategist, Tomorrow Partners; Strategy Chair, AIGA Center for
Sustainable Design
Nathalie Destandau is a partner and the lead strategist at Tomorrow, where she directs programs that help clients generate and realize programs for a brighter future. Her work includes integrating sustainability into existing business practices and developing business plans for start-ups with sustainable principles. Destandau also crafts communication and messaging strategies for many of Tomorrow’s green and social impact clients. She is Strategy Committee Chair for AIGA’s Center for Sustainable Design, helping to develop and disseminate the organization’s sustainability vision.
Pam Dorr
Executive Director, Hale Empowerment & Revitalization Organization (HERO)
Dorr founded HERO as a rural grass roots non-profit in Greensboro, Alabama that supports 1,500 underserved families with housing and community resources in Hale, Sumter, Perry, Wilcox and Marengo Counties in Alabama. HERO provides information on homeownership, home repair and rental information; community resources include food pantry, thrift store, and utility assistance. HERO has completed construction of 67 energy effcient, innovative, cost effective homes. Dorr grew up in Half Moon Bay, California and left San Francisco after a successful career in the apparel industry to find a way to contribute more. She is also the founder of Habitat for Humanity, Black Belt.
William Drenttel
Partner, Winterhouse Institute; Editorial Director, Design Observer
William Drenttel is a partner at Winterhouse, a design practice in Falls Village, Connecticut, focused on social innovation, online media, and educational institutions. He is also design director for Teach For All, an international education network. Through the Winterhouse Institute, he is leading a series of initiatives funded by the Rockefeller Foundation to develop models for design and social innovation, including this Aspen Design Summit. Drenttel is president emeritus of AIGA and a senior faculty fellow at the Yale School of Management. He is the editorial editor of Design Observer, a leading website focused on design, social innovation, urbanism and cultural commentary.
Vanessa Eckstein
Principal, Bløk Design
Through Bløk, her design studio headquartered in Mexico City, Vanessa Eckstein brings a passion for dialog and engagement to an increasingly diverse array of projects. Bløk is a space for ideas that is international in character and scope and dedicated to advancing both business and society. Having launched INTENTO 1, a critically acclaimed line of dishware created in collaboration with Canadian industrial designer Davide Tonizzo, Eckstein has recently turned her focus to two new initiatives: a children’s publishing house and a public awareness effort dedicated to global social, political and environmental issues.
Jaan Elias
Director of Case Study Research at the Yale School of Management
Jaan Elias oversees the development of a research team that produces cases for the Yale curriculum, including “raw” cases that draw together Internet links, interactive exhibits, text and video on a multimedia Web platform. Prior to joining the staff at Yale, Elias was an independent consultant providing reports, case studies and written analysis for large national foundations, professional associations and corporations. He received a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior from Harvard University, with a dissertation on the career paths of PhD scientists.
Chappell Ellison
MFA Graduate Student, Design Criticism Program, School of Visual Arts
Chappell Ellison is currently an MFA student in the Design Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. She received her BFA in 2007 at the University of Texas, where she majored in design. While completing her undergraduate studies, Ellison was a participant in the Land Arts of the American West program. After graduating, she worked at web and graphic design companies before moving to Manhattan. Most recently, she was a recipient of the 2009 AIGA Winterhouse Student Award for Design Writing and Criticism.
Christopher Fabian
Communications Officer, UNICEF
Christopher Fabian is the co-lead of UNICEF’s Innovation Unit in New York, which focuses on how strategic innovation can benefit the organization and improve the lives of children. Areas of focus include use of new and existing technologies, new types of partnerships, and development of communities of experts who can advise and take again against some of the major challenges facing children. Prior to joining UNICEF in 2005, Fabian studied philosophy at the American University in Cairo, and philosophy of literature at Trinity College, Dublin. He also founded media, entertainment and online information companies in Tanzania and Egypt.
Robert Fabricant
Vice President, Creative, frog design
Robert Fabricant works with a global team of strategists, interaction designers, industrial designers, technologists and design researchers. He is charged with helping to extend frog’s capabilities into new markets and offerings in areas like healthcare and transportation. Fabricant also leads frog’s Design for Impact initiatives such as Project Masiluleke, which focus on transformative opportunities to use mobile technologies to increase access to information and accelerate positive behavior change. He is on the adjunct faculty at NYU and the School for Visual Arts, and his work has been recognized by organizations including AIGA and IDSA.
Heather Fleming
CEO Catapult Design
[email protected]
Catapult Design is a non-profit product design firm serving developing world markets. Its clients are organizations working in impoverished communities with design and technology needs, including: rural electrification, water purification and transport, food security, and health. Before starting Catapult, Fleming worked as a product design consultant in Silicon Valley for a diverse range of clients. In 2005 she co-founded and led a volunteer group focused on design programs for developing countries through Engineers Without Borders. Heather also teaches Design for Sustainability at Stanford University.
CEO Catapult Design
[email protected]
Catapult Design is a non-profit product design firm serving developing world markets. Its clients are organizations working in impoverished communities with design and technology needs, including: rural electrification, water purification and transport, food security, and health. Before starting Catapult, Fleming worked as a product design consultant in Silicon Valley for a diverse range of clients. In 2005 she co-founded and led a volunteer group focused on design programs for developing countries through Engineers Without Borders. Heather also teaches Design for Sustainability at Stanford University.
Andrew Freear
Professor of Architecture and Director, Rural Studio, Auburn University
[email protected]
Andrew Freear, from Yorkshire, England, is the Wiatt Professor at Auburn University Rural Studio. After the untimely death of Samuel Mockbee, Andrew became the Director of the Rural Studio in 2002. Having moved to Alabama ten years ago, he lives in the small rural community of Newbern, West Alabama where his main role, aside from Directing the Rural Studio, is thesis project advisor to fifth-year undergraduate students and their building projects. The Rural Studio works within a 25 mile radius of Newbern, has been established in Hale County for 17 years and prides itself on being a good neighbor.
Professor of Architecture and Director, Rural Studio, Auburn University
[email protected]
Andrew Freear, from Yorkshire, England, is the Wiatt Professor at Auburn University Rural Studio. After the untimely death of Samuel Mockbee, Andrew became the Director of the Rural Studio in 2002. Having moved to Alabama ten years ago, he lives in the small rural community of Newbern, West Alabama where his main role, aside from Directing the Rural Studio, is thesis project advisor to fifth-year undergraduate students and their building projects. The Rural Studio works within a 25 mile radius of Newbern, has been established in Hale County for 17 years and prides itself on being a good neighbor.
Richard Grefé
Executive Director, AIGA, the professional association for design
[email protected]
Under Ric Grefe’s leadership, AIGA, the professional association for design, has become the leading advocate for the value of designing, as a way of thinking and as a means of creating strategic value for business. Following an early career in urban design and public policy consulting, Grefe’ managed the association responsible for strategic planning and legislative advocacy for public television and led a think tank on the future of public television and radio in Washington. He also wrote for Time magazine on business and the economy and then earned an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Executive Director, AIGA, the professional association for design
[email protected]
Under Ric Grefe’s leadership, AIGA, the professional association for design, has become the leading advocate for the value of designing, as a way of thinking and as a means of creating strategic value for business. Following an early career in urban design and public policy consulting, Grefe’ managed the association responsible for strategic planning and legislative advocacy for public television and led a think tank on the future of public television and radio in Washington. He also wrote for Time magazine on business and the economy and then earned an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Chris Hacker
Chief Design Officer, Global Strategic Design Office, Johnson & Johnson Group of Consumer Companies
[email protected]
Chris Hacker’s role at Johnson & Johnson is to make design a competitive advantage, through strong brand identity and sustainable design practices. In this position, Hacker leads all creative processes for brand identity, packaging design and brand imagery. His passion is bringing awareness to designers of their power in the business world to make sustainable design a key paradigm of design process and therefore make the products and materials produced lighter on the planet.
Chief Design Officer, Global Strategic Design Office, Johnson & Johnson Group of Consumer Companies
[email protected]
Chris Hacker’s role at Johnson & Johnson is to make design a competitive advantage, through strong brand identity and sustainable design practices. In this position, Hacker leads all creative processes for brand identity, packaging design and brand imagery. His passion is bringing awareness to designers of their power in the business world to make sustainable design a key paradigm of design process and therefore make the products and materials produced lighter on the planet.
Daniell Hebert
CEO and Co-Founder, MOTO Development Group
[email protected]
J. Daniell Hebert is the co-founder and CEO of MOTO Development Group, a product strategy, technology and development firm with offices in San Francisco and Hong Kong. Under his leadership, MOTO has developed and shipped high volume consumer electronics products for Virgin, Intel, Logitech, Sirius, Livescribe and many other startup companies. Prior to founding MOTO, Hebert was a researcher in MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and later joined Apple Computer as a researcher of advanced manufacturing systems.
CEO and Co-Founder, MOTO Development Group
[email protected]
J. Daniell Hebert is the co-founder and CEO of MOTO Development Group, a product strategy, technology and development firm with offices in San Francisco and Hong Kong. Under his leadership, MOTO has developed and shipped high volume consumer electronics products for Virgin, Intel, Logitech, Sirius, Livescribe and many other startup companies. Prior to founding MOTO, Hebert was a researcher in MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and later joined Apple Computer as a researcher of advanced manufacturing systems.
Kathryn E. Johnson
Board Member, Friends of the UN World Food Programme
[email protected]
Kathryn E. Johnson served for 25 years as the President/CEO of Health Forum based in San Francisco, California, before retiring from that position in 2002. Prior to the Health Forum, Johnson was the Director of Management Development at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition to the UN World Food Programme, Johnson serves on several boards, including the Health Technology Center, the Global Women’s Leadership Program, and the International Leadership Association and Omni Med. She is the co-founder of the Center for Global Service Currently (CGS) and is an active consultant to healthcare and nonprofit organizations.
Board Member, Friends of the UN World Food Programme
[email protected]
Kathryn E. Johnson served for 25 years as the President/CEO of Health Forum based in San Francisco, California, before retiring from that position in 2002. Prior to the Health Forum, Johnson was the Director of Management Development at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. In addition to the UN World Food Programme, Johnson serves on several boards, including the Health Technology Center, the Global Women’s Leadership Program, and the International Leadership Association and Omni Med. She is the co-founder of the Center for Global Service Currently (CGS) and is an active consultant to healthcare and nonprofit organizations.
Kenneth Kaplan
Associate Director, Collaborative Initiatives, MIT
[email protected]
Ken Kaplan became an architect after an earlier career as a psychiatric social worker. These two professions give him a unique perspective on how systems and people work and interact. His experience includes architectural design, teaching, writing, and research; social work; and healthcare system design. Kaplan received his Masters in Psychiatric Social Work from New York University. He later earned a Masters in Architecture and a Masters in Historic Preservation from Columbia University. Kaplan has held professorships at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University as well as the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University.
Associate Director, Collaborative Initiatives, MIT
[email protected]
Ken Kaplan became an architect after an earlier career as a psychiatric social worker. These two professions give him a unique perspective on how systems and people work and interact. His experience includes architectural design, teaching, writing, and research; social work; and healthcare system design. Kaplan received his Masters in Psychiatric Social Work from New York University. He later earned a Masters in Architecture and a Masters in Historic Preservation from Columbia University. Kaplan has held professorships at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University as well as the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University.
Jeremy Kaye
Creative Director, Ziba Design
[email protected]
In his role as creative director, Jeremy Kaye oversees the global brand strategy programs at Ziba. He has led teams to develop innovative solutions for clients in consumer products, healthcare, finance, education, hospitality, and retail. Kaye is especially interested in the intersection of business, design and the social sciences. He has traveled extensively to help establish offices in seven countries and has been instrumental in the execution of corporate strategic initiatives to leverage unrealized market potential.
Creative Director, Ziba Design
[email protected]
In his role as creative director, Jeremy Kaye oversees the global brand strategy programs at Ziba. He has led teams to develop innovative solutions for clients in consumer products, healthcare, finance, education, hospitality, and retail. Kaye is especially interested in the intersection of business, design and the social sciences. He has traveled extensively to help establish offices in seven countries and has been instrumental in the execution of corporate strategic initiatives to leverage unrealized market potential.
Larry Keeley
Partner, Doblin/Monitor
[email protected]
Larry Keeley is a strategist who has worked for thirty years to develop more effective innovation methods. Doblin, an innovation strategy firm he co-founded, is known for pioneering comprehensive innovation systems that materially improve innovation success rates. Doblin is now a member of Monitor Group, Cambridge MA, where Keeley is a Group Leader. Since 1979, Keeley has worked with many global companies on innovation effectiveness. He lectures frequently and publishes regularly on strategic aspects of innovation.
Partner, Doblin/Monitor
[email protected]
Larry Keeley is a strategist who has worked for thirty years to develop more effective innovation methods. Doblin, an innovation strategy firm he co-founded, is known for pioneering comprehensive innovation systems that materially improve innovation success rates. Doblin is now a member of Monitor Group, Cambridge MA, where Keeley is a Group Leader. Since 1979, Keeley has worked with many global companies on innovation effectiveness. He lectures frequently and publishes regularly on strategic aspects of innovation.
Henry King
Global Account Manager, Doblin/Monitor
[email protected]
Henry King is a global relationship manager at Doblin, with responsibility for heading up some of the firm’s most valued accounts and for leading the development of new methods, tools and techniques. Prior to joining Doblin he held the CIO role at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the architecture firm, and earlier at various technology startups, ecommerce dotcoms, and professional services organizations. King previously spent 12 years with Accenture and Deloitte Consulting where he led large scale IT strategy and systems development projects. Henry holds MA and BA degrees in Classical Greek and Latin Studies from Oxford University, England.
Global Account Manager, Doblin/Monitor
[email protected]
Henry King is a global relationship manager at Doblin, with responsibility for heading up some of the firm’s most valued accounts and for leading the development of new methods, tools and techniques. Prior to joining Doblin he held the CIO role at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the architecture firm, and earlier at various technology startups, ecommerce dotcoms, and professional services organizations. King previously spent 12 years with Accenture and Deloitte Consulting where he led large scale IT strategy and systems development projects. Henry holds MA and BA degrees in Classical Greek and Latin Studies from Oxford University, England.
Polly LaBarre
Writer
[email protected]
Polly LaBarre is the co-author of the bestselling book Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win and was a member of the original team at Fast Company magazine, where she was a senior editor. More recently, LaBarre has been and moderates conversations around the ideas and important questions that will shape the future of business and success. LaBarre is at work on her second book and a storytelling platform around sustainable success and social innovation.
Writer
[email protected]
Polly LaBarre is the co-author of the bestselling book Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win and was a member of the original team at Fast Company magazine, where she was a senior editor. More recently, LaBarre has been and moderates conversations around the ideas and important questions that will shape the future of business and success. LaBarre is at work on her second book and a storytelling platform around sustainable success and social innovation.
Nicholas LaRusso
Executive Director, Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation
[email protected]
Dr. Nicholas F. LaRusso, Charles H. Weinman Endowed Professor of Medicine, is Medical Director of the Center for Innovation at Mayo Clinic and a Distinguished Investigator of the Mayo Foundation. Prior to becoming Center Director in 2008, he held positions as Vice Chair for Research of the Department of Medicine, Chair of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, and Chair of the Department of Medicine, all at Mayo Clinic. He received his undergraduate degree (magna cum laude) from Boston College, his M.D. degree from New York Medical College, and his training in internal medicine and gastroenterology at Mayo, the latter as an NIH fellow in the laboratory of Alan Hofmann.
Executive Director, Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation
[email protected]
Dr. Nicholas F. LaRusso, Charles H. Weinman Endowed Professor of Medicine, is Medical Director of the Center for Innovation at Mayo Clinic and a Distinguished Investigator of the Mayo Foundation. Prior to becoming Center Director in 2008, he held positions as Vice Chair for Research of the Department of Medicine, Chair of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, and Chair of the Department of Medicine, all at Mayo Clinic. He received his undergraduate degree (magna cum laude) from Boston College, his M.D. degree from New York Medical College, and his training in internal medicine and gastroenterology at Mayo, the latter as an NIH fellow in the laboratory of Alan Hofmann.
Julie Lasky
Editor, Change Observer
[email protected]
In 2009 Julie Lasky helped launch Change Observer, a web site which focuses on design for social innovation and is a channel of Design Observer. Prior to that position, she was editor-in-chief of I.D., the award-winning magazine of international design, and of Interiors magazine, which she led to several national honors. She was also managing editor of Print magazine. Lasky is a widely published writer and critic, and the author of two books on design, including Some People Can’t Surf: The Graphic Design of Art Chantry. She recently joined the MFA design criticism faculty at New York’s School of Visual Arts.
Editor, Change Observer
[email protected]
In 2009 Julie Lasky helped launch Change Observer, a web site which focuses on design for social innovation and is a channel of Design Observer. Prior to that position, she was editor-in-chief of I.D., the award-winning magazine of international design, and of Interiors magazine, which she led to several national honors. She was also managing editor of Print magazine. Lasky is a widely published writer and critic, and the author of two books on design, including Some People Can’t Surf: The Graphic Design of Art Chantry. She recently joined the MFA design criticism faculty at New York’s School of Visual Arts.
Carol J. McCall
Chief Innovation Officer, Tenzing Health
[email protected]
Carol J. McCall leads Tenzing Health’s efforts to create innovations in products, services, technologies and business models, including expanded notions of health, healthcare services, community, sustainability and human-centered design. Tenzing Health, a subsidiary of Vanguard Health Systems, is creating community-based health cooperatives — bottom-up communities of buyers and sellers, healthcare organizations, and community resources — to enhance people’s health, improve the experience of care, and reduce the costs and burdens of today’s healthcare system. Cooperatives link people, organizations and resources, stimulating and facilitating their integration.
Chief Innovation Officer, Tenzing Health
[email protected]
Carol J. McCall leads Tenzing Health’s efforts to create innovations in products, services, technologies and business models, including expanded notions of health, healthcare services, community, sustainability and human-centered design. Tenzing Health, a subsidiary of Vanguard Health Systems, is creating community-based health cooperatives — bottom-up communities of buyers and sellers, healthcare organizations, and community resources — to enhance people’s health, improve the experience of care, and reduce the costs and burdens of today’s healthcare system. Cooperatives link people, organizations and resources, stimulating and facilitating their integration.
Steve McCallion
Executive Creative Director, Ziba Design
[email protected]
Steve McCallion is a skilled innovation architect and brand strategist who balances design sensibility and strategic thinking. At Ziba, his primary charge is to foster the firm’s consumer experience practice. McCallion founded the company’s award-winning Design Research and Planning practice group which has developed many proprietary research and design planning methodologies. Prior to Ziba, he worked for Richard Meier and Partners Architects and started his own furniture company. He holds a Master’s of Science in Architecture and Building Design from Columbia University, and a Bachelor’s in Architecture from California Polytechnic State University.
Executive Creative Director, Ziba Design
[email protected]
Steve McCallion is a skilled innovation architect and brand strategist who balances design sensibility and strategic thinking. At Ziba, his primary charge is to foster the firm’s consumer experience practice. McCallion founded the company’s award-winning Design Research and Planning practice group which has developed many proprietary research and design planning methodologies. Prior to Ziba, he worked for Richard Meier and Partners Architects and started his own furniture company. He holds a Master’s of Science in Architecture and Building Design from Columbia University, and a Bachelor’s in Architecture from California Polytechnic State University.
Jen van der Meer
Strategist; Activist; Chair, 02NYC
[email protected]
Jen van der Meer’s work is focused on developing sustainable relationships between people, products and brands. Formerly a Wall Street analyst, van der Meer has held executive management roles at Organic and Frog Design. She has served as a consultant to companies including Toyota, Target, Nestle, MTV, Interface Inc., Disney, and GE. Presently working on brand collaboration communities with Drillteam, van der Meer is also an Adjunct Professor teaching sustainable interaction design at New York University’s ITP school, and serves on the boards of o2NYC and Designers Accord. She received her BA from Trinity College and her MBA from HEC in Paris.
Strategist; Activist; Chair, 02NYC
[email protected]
Jen van der Meer’s work is focused on developing sustainable relationships between people, products and brands. Formerly a Wall Street analyst, van der Meer has held executive management roles at Organic and Frog Design. She has served as a consultant to companies including Toyota, Target, Nestle, MTV, Interface Inc., Disney, and GE. Presently working on brand collaboration communities with Drillteam, van der Meer is also an Adjunct Professor teaching sustainable interaction design at New York University’s ITP school, and serves on the boards of o2NYC and Designers Accord. She received her BA from Trinity College and her MBA from HEC in Paris.
Nisa Miranda
Director, University Center for Economic Development, The University of Alabama
[email protected]
Nisa Miranda has been the director of UCED since 1995. Her responsibilities include providing technical assistance and applied research to economically distressed areas in the State of Alabama to enhance local economic development efforts that diversify the State’s economy, and ensures sustainable economic growth in Alabama’s rural communities. Prior to this appointment, she served for ten years as the Director of the William R. Bennett Alabama International Trade Center, a premier research and trade development program. A native of Brazil, Miranda holds an M.B.A. from The University of Alabama.
Director, University Center for Economic Development, The University of Alabama
[email protected]
Nisa Miranda has been the director of UCED since 1995. Her responsibilities include providing technical assistance and applied research to economically distressed areas in the State of Alabama to enhance local economic development efforts that diversify the State’s economy, and ensures sustainable economic growth in Alabama’s rural communities. Prior to this appointment, she served for ten years as the Director of the William R. Bennett Alabama International Trade Center, a premier research and trade development program. A native of Brazil, Miranda holds an M.B.A. from The University of Alabama.
Cheryl Morgan
Professor of Architecture and Director, Urban Studio, Auburn University
[email protected]
Cheryl Morgan has over 25 years of teaching experience in architectural programs at Georgia Tech, Oklahoma State and CCAC. As director of the Urban Studio in Birmingham, her Small Town Design Initiative has worked with over 55 small towns in Alabama. Morgan also practiced architecture and urban design in San Francisco for over eight years, working with Environmental Planning & Research, Gensler, the Gruzen Partnership and ELS/Elbasani and Logan. She is a graduate of Auburn University and received a Masters in Architecture from University of Illinois.
Professor of Architecture and Director, Urban Studio, Auburn University
[email protected]
Cheryl Morgan has over 25 years of teaching experience in architectural programs at Georgia Tech, Oklahoma State and CCAC. As director of the Urban Studio in Birmingham, her Small Town Design Initiative has worked with over 55 small towns in Alabama. Morgan also practiced architecture and urban design in San Francisco for over eight years, working with Environmental Planning & Research, Gensler, the Gruzen Partnership and ELS/Elbasani and Logan. She is a graduate of Auburn University and received a Masters in Architecture from University of Illinois.
Anna Muoio
Principal, Design Continuum, Social Innovation
[email protected]
Leading Design Continuum’s Social Innovation initiative since 2007, Muoio focuses on how design thinking can provide transformational and sustainable value to communities of need. Her work at Continuum spans the globe, from projects in India’s microfinance sector to remapping and redesigning the social service system for a city in Rhode Island. Prior to Continuum, Muoio built a consultancy creating Learning Journeys for major companies in which executives were immersed in other business cultures.
Principal, Design Continuum, Social Innovation
[email protected]
Leading Design Continuum’s Social Innovation initiative since 2007, Muoio focuses on how design thinking can provide transformational and sustainable value to communities of need. Her work at Continuum spans the globe, from projects in India’s microfinance sector to remapping and redesigning the social service system for a city in Rhode Island. Prior to Continuum, Muoio built a consultancy creating Learning Journeys for major companies in which executives were immersed in other business cultures.
Margeigh Novotny
Vice President, Strategy and Experience, MOTO Development Group
[email protected]
Margeigh Novotny is Vice President and leader of the MOTO Strategy & Experience Group, a cross-disciplinary team of design and technology professionals that develop next generation product/service platforms for entrepreneurs and Fortune 100 companies. Margeigh began her professional life as an architect with a focus on digital information and physical interaction with the environment. Prior to joining MOTO, Margeigh founded the interaction design practice at Smart Design, where she lead the development of a wide range of user-focused products from housewares, mobile devices and media servers to interfaces for automobiles, airplanes and buildings. She is currently working on initiatives around mass behavior modification and patient advocacy.
Vice President, Strategy and Experience, MOTO Development Group
[email protected]
Margeigh Novotny is Vice President and leader of the MOTO Strategy & Experience Group, a cross-disciplinary team of design and technology professionals that develop next generation product/service platforms for entrepreneurs and Fortune 100 companies. Margeigh began her professional life as an architect with a focus on digital information and physical interaction with the environment. Prior to joining MOTO, Margeigh founded the interaction design practice at Smart Design, where she lead the development of a wide range of user-focused products from housewares, mobile devices and media servers to interfaces for automobiles, airplanes and buildings. She is currently working on initiatives around mass behavior modification and patient advocacy.
Jay Parkinson
Pediatrician
[email protected]
Dr. Parkinson is a preventive-medicine specialist turned health care designer. He creates smart products, processes and services that meet the needs of patients, doctors, and the public health. In 2007 Parkinson started a practice in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which evolved into Hello Health, a Facebook-like platform that uses technology — including instant messaging and video chat — to restore the traditional doctor-patient relationship updated for today’s lifestyle.
Pediatrician
[email protected]
Dr. Parkinson is a preventive-medicine specialist turned health care designer. He creates smart products, processes and services that meet the needs of patients, doctors, and the public health. In 2007 Parkinson started a practice in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which evolved into Hello Health, a Facebook-like platform that uses technology — including instant messaging and video chat — to restore the traditional doctor-patient relationship updated for today’s lifestyle.
Hane Bak Pedersen
Deputy Director, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
Hanne Bak Pedersen is a health and pharmaceutical sector development specialist with broad international experience. At UNICEF, she is responsible for coordination of policy and strategy for procurement and supply management of strategic, essential products (vaccines, medicines, nutri-food); integration of supply into UNICEF supported programs; and oversees the work of four departments with a procurement portfolio covering vaccines, medicines, medical equipment and supplies, water and sanitation, and education related supplies.
Deputy Director, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
Hanne Bak Pedersen is a health and pharmaceutical sector development specialist with broad international experience. At UNICEF, she is responsible for coordination of policy and strategy for procurement and supply management of strategic, essential products (vaccines, medicines, nutri-food); integration of supply into UNICEF supported programs; and oversees the work of four departments with a procurement portfolio covering vaccines, medicines, medical equipment and supplies, water and sanitation, and education related supplies.
John Peterson
Founder and President, Public Architecture
[email protected]
John Peterson, AIA, created Public Architecture in 2002 and joined its staff fulltime in October 2008. He serves as the chief spokesperson and strategist for Public Architecture as well as design director and a member of the board of directors. His small private architectural practice, Peterson Architects, has dedicated an extraordinary amount of pro bono work for over 15 years, serving arts institutions, city agencies, community development corporations, nonprofit organizations, and social service agencies. Peterson earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design.
Founder and President, Public Architecture
[email protected]
John Peterson, AIA, created Public Architecture in 2002 and joined its staff fulltime in October 2008. He serves as the chief spokesperson and strategist for Public Architecture as well as design director and a member of the board of directors. His small private architectural practice, Peterson Architects, has dedicated an extraordinary amount of pro bono work for over 15 years, serving arts institutions, city agencies, community development corporations, nonprofit organizations, and social service agencies. Peterson earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design.
Pornprapha Phatanateacha
Assistant Professor, Graphic Design, School of the Arts, VCU Qatar
[email protected]
Originally from Thailand, Pornprapha Phatanateacha has been teaching at Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar since 2002. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Utah and Master of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia. In addition to her academic career she has worked on numerous international design projects in the U.S.A, London, Japan and Thailand. Her professional design work spans a variety of disciplines including environmental design, exhibition design, branding, publication design and design strategy development.
Assistant Professor, Graphic Design, School of the Arts, VCU Qatar
[email protected]
Originally from Thailand, Pornprapha Phatanateacha has been teaching at Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar since 2002. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Utah and Master of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia. In addition to her academic career she has worked on numerous international design projects in the U.S.A, London, Japan and Thailand. Her professional design work spans a variety of disciplines including environmental design, exhibition design, branding, publication design and design strategy development.
Doug Powell
Co-founder, Schwartz Powell; Consulting Creative Director, HealthSimple
[email protected]
Doug Powell is a designer, entrepreneur, and business strategist. Together with his wife Lisa Powell, Doug founded the Minneapolis-based Schwartz Powell Design. In 2004, following their daughter Maya’s diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes, the couple launched Type1Tools to bring well-designed, kid-friendly tools to the daily experience of managing this complex disease. The success of Type1Tools led to the expansion of the business into HealthSimple® with a vision to help the millions of people living with chronic health problems. HealthSimple was acquired by McNeil Nutritionals, a division of Johnson & Johnson, in 2007.
Co-founder, Schwartz Powell; Consulting Creative Director, HealthSimple
[email protected]
Doug Powell is a designer, entrepreneur, and business strategist. Together with his wife Lisa Powell, Doug founded the Minneapolis-based Schwartz Powell Design. In 2004, following their daughter Maya’s diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes, the couple launched Type1Tools to bring well-designed, kid-friendly tools to the daily experience of managing this complex disease. The success of Type1Tools led to the expansion of the business into HealthSimple® with a vision to help the millions of people living with chronic health problems. HealthSimple was acquired by McNeil Nutritionals, a division of Johnson & Johnson, in 2007.
Rick Robinson
Research Fellow, Continuum
[email protected]
Rick Robinson is an interdisciplinary social scientist with a Ph.D. in Human Development from the University of Chicago. He was a co-founder of E.Lab, a research and design consultancy, and then Chief Experience Officer at Sapient. Both firms pioneered development and application of ethnographic and observational research approaches for clients such as BMW, Ford Motor, General Mills, General Motors, McDonald’s, Sony, and Warner-Lambert. Robinson is the co-author of The Art of Seeing, as well as numerous articles on design and research. He is currently an independent consultant.
Research Fellow, Continuum
[email protected]
Rick Robinson is an interdisciplinary social scientist with a Ph.D. in Human Development from the University of Chicago. He was a co-founder of E.Lab, a research and design consultancy, and then Chief Experience Officer at Sapient. Both firms pioneered development and application of ethnographic and observational research approaches for clients such as BMW, Ford Motor, General Mills, General Motors, McDonald’s, Sony, and Warner-Lambert. Robinson is the co-author of The Art of Seeing, as well as numerous articles on design and research. He is currently an independent consultant.
Elizabeth Scharpf
Founder, Chief Instigator, Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE)
[email protected]
Elizabeth Scharpf is an entrepreneur who creates start up ventures and advises businesses on growth strategies in the health care industry. She is the Founder and Chief Instigating Officer of Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), a social venture that uses market-based approaches to address the world’s most pressing social problems. SHE’s first spin-out business is sanitary pad franchising to address the significant costs of girls and women lacking access to affordable sanitary pads. Harvard Business School named Scharpf their first Social Enterprise Fellow.
Founder, Chief Instigator, Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE)
[email protected]
Elizabeth Scharpf is an entrepreneur who creates start up ventures and advises businesses on growth strategies in the health care industry. She is the Founder and Chief Instigating Officer of Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), a social venture that uses market-based approaches to address the world’s most pressing social problems. SHE’s first spin-out business is sanitary pad franchising to address the significant costs of girls and women lacking access to affordable sanitary pads. Harvard Business School named Scharpf their first Social Enterprise Fellow.
Edgard M. Seikaly
Technical Specialist, Education Unit, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
Originally from Lebanon, Edgard Seikaly has had a diverse international experience in the field of manufacturing and social-standard setting. He joined UNICEF in 2004 as a production control specialist in the Private Fundraising and Partnerships division and has been a key player in setting social and environmental compliance standards for UNICEF vendors world wide. His passion for the mission of UNICEF and his experience brings a unique perspective to this year’s education challenge. He is currently based in Copenhagen.
Technical Specialist, Education Unit, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
Originally from Lebanon, Edgard Seikaly has had a diverse international experience in the field of manufacturing and social-standard setting. He joined UNICEF in 2004 as a production control specialist in the Private Fundraising and Partnerships division and has been a key player in setting social and environmental compliance standards for UNICEF vendors world wide. His passion for the mission of UNICEF and his experience brings a unique perspective to this year’s education challenge. He is currently based in Copenhagen.
Sam Shelton
Principal, Kinetik Communications
[email protected]
Sam Shelton is a Founding Partner of KINETIK, Inc., a design firm in Washington, D.C. He is a past AIGA National Board member as well as a past Board member and Past President of the Washington, DC Chapter of AIGA. Shelton is also an adjunct faculty member at the Corcoran Museum College of Art and Design, a former adjunct faculty member at The American University, and a member of the design curriculum advisory committee for Communication Design at the Alexandria campus of the Northern Virginia Community College. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Arts and Design from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Principal, Kinetik Communications
[email protected]
Sam Shelton is a Founding Partner of KINETIK, Inc., a design firm in Washington, D.C. He is a past AIGA National Board member as well as a past Board member and Past President of the Washington, DC Chapter of AIGA. Shelton is also an adjunct faculty member at the Corcoran Museum College of Art and Design, a former adjunct faculty member at The American University, and a member of the design curriculum advisory committee for Communication Design at the Alexandria campus of the Northern Virginia Community College. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Arts and Design from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Fabio Sergio
Creative Director, Frog Design Milano
Fabio Sergio is Creative Director at frog design in Milan, Italy, where he has led tactical and strategic innovation programs for clients such as Vodafone, HP, BBC, Telecom Italia and J&J’s Lifescan. He is happiest working with clients at the intersection of design, technology and (social) connectivity, wrapping business scenarios around people’s desires and dreams. Sergio is a visiting professor at the Politecnico di Milano, Domus Academy and Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design, and was an Associate Professor of Interaction Design at Interaction Design Institute Ivrea.
Creative Director, Frog Design Milano
Fabio Sergio is Creative Director at frog design in Milan, Italy, where he has led tactical and strategic innovation programs for clients such as Vodafone, HP, BBC, Telecom Italia and J&J’s Lifescan. He is happiest working with clients at the intersection of design, technology and (social) connectivity, wrapping business scenarios around people’s desires and dreams. Sergio is a visiting professor at the Politecnico di Milano, Domus Academy and Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design, and was an Associate Professor of Interaction Design at Interaction Design Institute Ivrea.
Douglas Shenson
Co-founder and President, SPARC
(Sickness Prevention Achieved through Regional Collaboration)
[email protected]
SPARC is CDC-supported organization focused on broadening access to preventive medical services such as vaccinations, cancer screening, and the prevention of heart disease and stroke. Dr. Shenson is also a director of Vote and Vax, a national SPARC initiative funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and designed to expand access to influenza vaccinations at polling places on Election Day. Dr. Shenson is an Associate Clinical Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health at Yale University School of Medicine, and an Associate Director of the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center.
Co-founder and President, SPARC
(Sickness Prevention Achieved through Regional Collaboration)
[email protected]
SPARC is CDC-supported organization focused on broadening access to preventive medical services such as vaccinations, cancer screening, and the prevention of heart disease and stroke. Dr. Shenson is also a director of Vote and Vax, a national SPARC initiative funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and designed to expand access to influenza vaccinations at polling places on Election Day. Dr. Shenson is an Associate Clinical Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health at Yale University School of Medicine, and an Associate Director of the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center.
Amy B. Slonim
CDC-AARP Liaison, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[email protected]
Amy Slonim is CDC-AARP Liaison functioning as a conduit for CDC and AARP to work collaboratively on an array of health and prevention issues and activities. From 1999 to 2007, she was Director of Programs and Senior Public Health Advisor at the Michigan Public Health Institute, acting as a special assistant to the Michigan Chief Administrator for Public Health and providing administrative oversight to all MPHI Programs. Slonim received her Ph.D. in Nutrition from Michigan State University. Throughout her career, she has had extensive experience in program management, national and international policy development, applied research, program development and evaluation.
CDC-AARP Liaison, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[email protected]
Amy Slonim is CDC-AARP Liaison functioning as a conduit for CDC and AARP to work collaboratively on an array of health and prevention issues and activities. From 1999 to 2007, she was Director of Programs and Senior Public Health Advisor at the Michigan Public Health Institute, acting as a special assistant to the Michigan Chief Administrator for Public Health and providing administrative oversight to all MPHI Programs. Slonim received her Ph.D. in Nutrition from Michigan State University. Throughout her career, she has had extensive experience in program management, national and international policy development, applied research, program development and evaluation.
Barbara Spurrier
Administrative Director, Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation
[email protected]
Barbara Spurrier joined Mayo Clinic in Rochester in 1997 and served as an Operations Administrator of the Divisions of Rheumatology, Hematology, and Cardiovascular Diseases and hospital operations in the Department of Medicine. She was named Vice Chair of the Department of Medicine at Mayo Clinic in 2003 and served in this capacity until 2008, when she was named to her current position. Spurrier received a B.A. in Economics from St. Olaf College and a Masters in Health Care Administration (MHA) from the University of Minnesota.
Administrative Director, Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation
[email protected]
Barbara Spurrier joined Mayo Clinic in Rochester in 1997 and served as an Operations Administrator of the Divisions of Rheumatology, Hematology, and Cardiovascular Diseases and hospital operations in the Department of Medicine. She was named Vice Chair of the Department of Medicine at Mayo Clinic in 2003 and served in this capacity until 2008, when she was named to her current position. Spurrier received a B.A. in Economics from St. Olaf College and a Masters in Health Care Administration (MHA) from the University of Minnesota.
Gong Szeto
CEO, YourOwnDemocracy.com
[email protected]
Gong Szeto was formerly director of design at PEAK6 Investments, LP; chief creative officer of Rare Medium Inc.; and Principal at i/o 360 digital design. He has lectured worldwide, and is a recipient of numerous international design awards, including I.D. Magazine’s Top 40 Designers in U.S. and Europe. His work is in the permanent collections of SFMoMA and Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum. Szeto holds a BA in architecture and has studied business, finance, economics, and intellectual property law at NYU and Harvard. He lives in Santa Fe, NM.
CEO, YourOwnDemocracy.com
[email protected]
Gong Szeto was formerly director of design at PEAK6 Investments, LP; chief creative officer of Rare Medium Inc.; and Principal at i/o 360 digital design. He has lectured worldwide, and is a recipient of numerous international design awards, including I.D. Magazine’s Top 40 Designers in U.S. and Europe. His work is in the permanent collections of SFMoMA and Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum. Szeto holds a BA in architecture and has studied business, finance, economics, and intellectual property law at NYU and Harvard. He lives in Santa Fe, NM.
Manuel Toscano
Principal, Zago
[email protected]
For the past 12 years, Manuel Toscano has helped his clients bridge business and design by combining a deep expertise in developing and implementing communication strategies with an unmatched ability to craft compelling visual story-telling. In 1998, he joined Zago and helped shape the design consultancy into a world-class Corporate Identity and Visual Communication practice. Under his leadership the studio broadened its scope of services, industry reach and its creative vision, reaching clients including Fortune 500 companies, international non-profits, start-ups and global brands.
Principal, Zago
[email protected]
For the past 12 years, Manuel Toscano has helped his clients bridge business and design by combining a deep expertise in developing and implementing communication strategies with an unmatched ability to craft compelling visual story-telling. In 1998, he joined Zago and helped shape the design consultancy into a world-class Corporate Identity and Visual Communication practice. Under his leadership the studio broadened its scope of services, industry reach and its creative vision, reaching clients including Fortune 500 companies, international non-profits, start-ups and global brands.
Inga Treitler
Independent research consultant, Anthropology Imagination
[email protected]
Inga Treitler works internationally as an independent research consultant under the name Anthropology Imagination (www.anthropologyimagination.com). She consults on consumer products, environment, communications, and healthcare. Treitler brings anthropology into design and decision making in a way which is respectful of the long view of the environment. She works in areas including consumption, food, energy, and clothing — the basics of survival. Treitler has long been active in the National Association for the Practice of Anthropology, a section of the American Anthropological Association for which currently she chairs the Ethics Committee.
Independent research consultant, Anthropology Imagination
[email protected]
Inga Treitler works internationally as an independent research consultant under the name Anthropology Imagination (www.anthropologyimagination.com). She consults on consumer products, environment, communications, and healthcare. Treitler brings anthropology into design and decision making in a way which is respectful of the long view of the environment. She works in areas including consumption, food, energy, and clothing — the basics of survival. Treitler has long been active in the National Association for the Practice of Anthropology, a section of the American Anthropological Association for which currently she chairs the Ethics Committee.
Diana Velasco
Innovation Officer, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
In her role as Innovation Officer at UNICEF Supply Division, Diana Velasco focuses on social innovation by building an efficient process for identifying challenges from the field and creating sustainable solutions in collaboration with industry and academia — with high impact and that benefits children. She has an academic background in anthropology and communication and has worked as an independent consultant for different international companies including Lego, and as a Design Anthropologist at Microsoft.
Innovation Officer, UNICEF Supply Division
[email protected]
In her role as Innovation Officer at UNICEF Supply Division, Diana Velasco focuses on social innovation by building an efficient process for identifying challenges from the field and creating sustainable solutions in collaboration with industry and academia — with high impact and that benefits children. She has an academic background in anthropology and communication and has worked as an independent consultant for different international companies including Lego, and as a Design Anthropologist at Microsoft.
Helen Walters
Editor, Innovation and Design, BusinessWeek
[email protected]
Helen Walters writes about the intersection of design and business. She oversees the Innovation channel of the magazine’s Web site, chronicling new tools for creativity and collaboration and documenting new ideas that have the power to change the way things are done. Walters is also a contributing editor to the design magazine Creative Review and the author of several books, including a survey of experimental animation short films, a monograph of a Brooklyn design agency, and a series of titles featuring contemporary T-shirt graphics. Helen is from Sheffield in northern England, but now calls Brooklyn her home.
Editor, Innovation and Design, BusinessWeek
[email protected]
Helen Walters writes about the intersection of design and business. She oversees the Innovation channel of the magazine’s Web site, chronicling new tools for creativity and collaboration and documenting new ideas that have the power to change the way things are done. Walters is also a contributing editor to the design magazine Creative Review and the author of several books, including a survey of experimental animation short films, a monograph of a Brooklyn design agency, and a series of titles featuring contemporary T-shirt graphics. Helen is from Sheffield in northern England, but now calls Brooklyn her home.
Jocelyn Wyatt
Leader of Social Innovation, IDEO
[email protected]
Jocelyn Wyatt brings a business perspective to a variety of social innovation projects with clients including social enterprises, foundations, NGOs, and multinationals. She also teaches social enterprise at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. Prior to joining IDEO, Wyatt worked in Kenya as an Acumen Fund fellow, and served as VisionSpring’s Interim Country Director in India. She received an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management and a BA in Anthropology from Grinnell College.
Leader of Social Innovation, IDEO
[email protected]
Jocelyn Wyatt brings a business perspective to a variety of social innovation projects with clients including social enterprises, foundations, NGOs, and multinationals. She also teaches social enterprise at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. Prior to joining IDEO, Wyatt worked in Kenya as an Acumen Fund fellow, and served as VisionSpring’s Interim Country Director in India. She received an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management and a BA in Anthropology from Grinnell College.
