Local Keynote Speakers in San Diego, California

Shaun White is one of the most versatile athletes in the planet, going professional in two different sports. He has won multiple snowboarding and skateboarding competitions and his high flying antics have earned him the nickname, "The Flying Tomato". After the winter olympics he became one of the most endorsed athletes in the world and is continuing to ride the momentum from his back to back gold medals in 2008 and 2012.

Leading financial expert and popular author, Todd Buchholz is an economist and has served as White House director of economic policy under George H.W. Bush and a managing director of the Tiger hedge fund. As a frequent commentator on the state of the markets, Todd Buchholz brings his experience as a former White House director of economic policy, a managing director of the $15 billion Tiger hedge fund, and a Harvard economics teacher to the cutting edge of economics, fiscal politics, finance, and business strategy.

Klyn was born with the life threatening genetic disease, Cystic Fibrosis. Over the years, she has battled the disease as well as big pharma to lower the price of a life saving drug. She reminds us all to live authentically, love deeply, and to recognize adversity as an advantage. After all, “Life isn’t measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the number of moments we create, that take our breath away.”

Brian Souza is the founder and president of ProductivityDrivers, an innovative corporate training company specializing in improving employee performance and organizational productivity. As a respected thought leader in leadership development, organizational productivity, and sales, he works with leading companies worldwide as a keynote speaking and management consultant.

Basketball legend Bill Walton is one of sports’ most recognizable and beloved figures. His success on the court is well-documented; the nation’s top college basketball star at UCLA under legendary coach John Wooden, he then played for two NBA Championship teams – the Portland Trail Blazers and Boston Celtics. But Bill’s nightmarish challenges off the court are less known. He stuttered so badly he couldn’t say a simple “thank you” until he was 28 years old. And a foot disorder led to 38 surgeries on his feet, legs, and back – keeping him sidelined over half of his NBA career. Armed with grit and a positive outlook, Bill improbably overcame it all. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame and named to the “50 Greatest NBA Players of All-Time” list. After his playing career, Bill pursued broadcasting; he is currently covering Pac-12 games on ESPN. Bill Walton has led a life of humility in service of inspiring others. His autobiography, Back from the Dead, was a New York Times bestseller and he is perhaps the best-known Deadhead, having seen over 1,000 shows.

Robert Richman is a culture strategist and was the co-creator of Zappos Insights, an innovative program focused on educating companies on the secrets behind Zappos’ amazing employee culture. Robert built Zappos Insights from a small website to a thriving multi-million dollar business teaching over 25,000 students per year. Through his work, Robert has been helpful for improving the employee culture at hundreds of companies. As one of the world’s authorities on employee culture and customer experience, Robert is a sought-after keynote speaker at conferences around the world and has been hired to teach culture in person at companies like Google, Toyota, and Eli Lilly.

As an internationally recognized graffiti artist, author and entrepreneur, Erik redefines the term “keynote speaker.” Pulling from his history as both a businessman and an artist, he has grown to become one of the most sought-after corporate speakers available today. Erik’s on-stage painting seamlessly becomes a visual metaphor to the core of his message, encouraging organizations toward profitability through innovations and superior levels of performance. His list of clients includes AT&T, Disney, London School of Business, Microsoft, FedEx, Exxon Mobil, Ernst & Young, and XPrize; Erik has even been featured as a TED presenter. The responses received have been nothing short of incredible, with standing ovations to prove it.

In her 15-year career as a professional adventure racer, Robyn Benincasa has competed in close to 40 expedition-length events, biked through jungles in Borneo, climbed Himalayan giants in Nepal, trekked across lava fields in Fiji, rafted rapids in Chile, and racked up multiple world championship titles along the way. In her spare time, Robyn, is a full-time firefighter in San Diego, on the nation's first all-female crew, and has been revered as one of “California’s Fittest Women”.

Jon Cohen is a widely published magazine writer and author of four nonfiction books on scientific topics. Cohen is a senior correspondent with Science, and also has written for the New Yorker, the New York Times Magazine, BuzzFeed, Smithsonian, Technology Review, Slate, and many other publications. Cohen specializes in biomedicine, and is widely known for his coverage of epidemics (HIV/AIDS, COVID-19, Ebola, influenza), immunology, vaccines, and global health. He also has reported extensively on genetics, primate research, evolution, bioterrorism, research funding, ethics, reproductive biology, credit battles, and the media itself. Cohen’s books have covered a wide range of topics for a lay audience, including the search for an AIDS vaccine, the science of miscarriage, the scientific differences between humans and chimpanzees, and a critical analysis of Tijuana, Mexico’s faltering response to its HIV/AIDS epidemic.