In an era of unparalleled polarization in politics and society, April Ryan represents an increasingly rare middle ground committed to upholding the integrity of fact-based journalism. With more than 25 years as a seasoned White House correspondent and political analyst, Ryan has the unique vantage point as the only Black female reporter covering urban issues from the White House — a position she has held since the Clinton era and spanning five presidential administrations. Her historic tenure as the longest-serving Black female White House correspondent has afforded her with incredible familiarity with the racial sensitivities, issues, and attendant political struggles of our nation’s past presidents.

Warm and engaging, Deborah Rosado Shaw shares her climb from the tough inner-city to becoming an advisor to Fortune 100 CEOs while discussing diversity, marketing, entrepreneurship, and business strategy. She encourages others to dream big and offers advice on personal empowerment.

The honorable Juan Carlos Pinzón is widely recognized as a pivotal player in upholding the strong diplomatic ties between the United States and Colombia and furthering the relationship between the two nations. Having served two terms as Ambassador of Colombia to the United States, Pinzón is counted among the most influential voices in shaping the priorities of the partnership and was the linking presence between American and Colombian leaders in collaborating to address the most important political, economic, and societal challenges in both countries, and across the globe.

Sam Rapoport is the Senior Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion with the National Football League with over 19 seasons working in football. Rapoport has dedicated her career to creating innovative business models aimed at enfranchising marginalized populations in sport. With this focus, she has worked to shift and progress diversity hiring in football. Rapoport is also a retired quarterback who played in the women’s professional football league. Rapoport catalyzed a movement for women in sports by creating a new diversity platform for the NFL, that has since been replicated by other professional sports leagues. Through this effort, 190+ female coaching, scouting and operations candidates have been hired since its inception in 2017; a record number. Rapoport was recently named one of Sports Illustrated Most Powerful, Most Influential and Most Outstanding Women in Sports and was included in The Athletic’s NFL 40-under 40. She was also awarded the NFL Commissioner’s Award selected by Commissioner Roger Goodell, Fortune 40 Under 40, Outsports’ Hero of the Year, and was recently named one of People Magazine’s 25 Women Changing the World.

With more questions than answers in today’s economic landscape, Dana Peterson, chief economist for the Conference Board, has established herself as a visionary, and the go to expert providing insightful analysis and predictions to corporations, associations, and government organizations looking for clarity and foresight into how economic drivers might impact their businesses in the short- and long-term. With over a decade of experience in the field, she serves as the globally recognized think tank’s public face and primary spokesperson on all things related to the economy.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest thinkers and problem solvers in the world of information security, Peiter “Mudge” Zatko is a cybersecurity leader, open-source programmer, writer, and ethical hacker who has been among the most influential figures in shaping the modern field of cybersecurity as we know it. From pioneering work on offensive techniques and information security methods and tools, to his famous 1998 testimony to U.S. Congress on systemic flaws in the architecture of the Internet where he described how to “take down the entire Internet in 30 minutes,” he has left his mark on many parts of modern infosec technology. Zatko’s experiences within senior management are no less interesting and impressive. He has held leadership roles at the U.S. Department of Defense and fintech companies currently valued at $100 billion, as well as one of the most well-known social media companies in the world. In all of his roles, he has upheld his commitment to ethics and lawful disclosure. He has been described by his contemporaries as “a principled technologist with a knack for making complex concepts accessible and an earnest desire to fix problems.” His talks are designed to help any organization understand the differences between real security risks and fear, uncertainty, and doubt.

Dr. Leana Wen is an emergency physician and professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. A nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, she is also a contributing columnist for The Washington Post, writing on health policy and public health, and an on-air commentator for CNN as a medical analyst. The author of the critically-acclaimed book on patient advocacy, When Doctors Don’t Listen: How to Avoid Misdiagnoses and Unnecessary Tests (St. Martin’s Press, 2013), she has a forthcoming memoir to be published July 27th, Lifelines: A Doctor’s Journey in the Fight for Public Health (Metropolitan Books, 2021). Previously, she served as health commissioner for the city of Baltimore, where she led the nation’s oldest continuously operating health department to combat the opioid epidemic and improve maternal and child health. She has also worked as director of patient-centered care research in the department of emergency medicine at George Washington University; president of Planned Parenthood; global health fellow at the World Health Organization; consultant to the China Medical Board; and distinguished fellow at the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity.

Dr. Anil Gupta and Haiyan Wang are world-revered experts on global trends and business strategy, and co-authors of the new book The Silk Road Rediscovered: How Indian and Chinese Companies Are Becoming Globally Stronger by Winning in Each Other’s Markets. A roadmap for understanding the business challenges and opportunities in China, Dr. Gupta and Wang’s new book breaks down how businesses should view and respond to shifting power centers and foreign policy strategies, as well as how organizations can prime themselves for global expansion and benefit from emerging markets.

In a time of historic uncertainty, it's not easy to be enthusiastic about looking forward to the future. Many of us feel like we're doing so much just to keep our lips above the water, and feel powerless with what's happening around us. In Humble The Poet's talks, he shows that we don't have to wait around, and we can do more than simply survive. The new normal isn't something we have to accept, it's something we have the power to create. Reminding us that our purpose and passions come from the problems we're excited to tackle. Humble both explores and shows how to make lemons from lemonade, and encourages us to, instead of avoiding the curveballs life throws, practice our swing. Through sharing videos of his ice plunges, to describing his own adaptations and adjustments during the pandemic, as well as the 2008 financial crisis. Humble's talks aren't designed simply to get through the most challenging times, it serves as a catalyst for us to dive into more discomfort and uncertainty; because that's where all the growth the resilience lie.

With a distinguished and highly decorated career spanning more than three decades of service to his country, Lieutenant General Scott Dingle stands as an embodiment of resolute leadership and an unyielding commitment to excellence. In 2019, Dingle was appointed as the 45th Army Surgeon General and Commanding General of US Army Medical Command (USAMEDCOM), becoming the first African American male to serve in these roles, and spearheading the development and execution of the Army’s medical programs while leading complex teams through even more complex environments and advancing military healthcare infrastructure for the millions of people who depend on it.

Linda Clemons from Indianapolis, Indiana is the CEO of Sisterpreneur® Inc. Linda is an award-winning and record-setting sales producer as well as one of the top sales trainers in the world in the resort/timeshare industry where clients have generated over two billion in sales. A Body Language Expert trained and certified in Analytic Interviewing and Statement Analysis ™ which is a process used to detect deception.