Brown Advisory Presents Navigating Our World

Navigating Our World is the podcast where we seek insights about some of the most pressing questions that we face as investors and as a society. We examine the forces shaping our world, moving capital and raising the future—with the thoughtful experts across our network. These conversations help us make better decisions for our clients, and we welcome you to join us.

 



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S5 | Episode 7

A New World Order: The Shifting Geopolitical Landscape (Recorded Live at NOW Austin)

November 20, 2024

In the wake of the U.S. election, Emily Harding, Robin Niblett and James Harding kicked off the NOW conference in Austin by examining the geopolitical risks, alliances and power dynamics that could drive the global order. It was a provocative discussion, reflecting the precarious state of our world. As you'll hear, Emily and Robin offer some unsettling—and quite illuminating—insights.

Past Episodes

S5 | Episode 6 | The Case for Techno-Optimism | A Conversation with Marc Andreessen  

November 8, 2024

Marc Andreessen is one of the most influential Silicon Valley founders and investors, so when he talks about the future of tech, we want to pay attention. In this conversation, recorded live at our NOW conference in June 2024, Brown Advisory's Elise Liberto sat down with Marc to explore: why he's a techno-optimist, innovation in the age of AI, the state of venture capital, and lots more.

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S5 | Episode 5 | Creating Breakthrough Cultures | A Conversation with Dr. Kim Budil  

November 8, 2024

As investors, we are keenly interested in what it takes to create and sustain cultures of excellence. In this conversation, recorded live at our NOW conference in San Francisco in June, Brown Advisory's Karina Funk sat down with Kim Budil, Director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. For Dr. Budil, stewarding a culture designed for transformational technical breakthroughs--such as fusion ignition--is a matter of national security and global stability.

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S5 | Episode 4 | Climate Week Bonus Episode:A Conversation with Dr. Ellen Stofan, The Smithsonian’s Under Secretary for Science and Research  

September 26, 2024

As long-term investors and stewards of our clients’ capital, we seek to uncover and reflect on all kinds of quantitative and qualitative information to optimize our investment decisions. For this special Climate Week episode, Brown Advisory’s Karina Funk sits down with Dr. Ellen Stofan, Under Secretary for Science and Research at the Smithsonian. They discuss the power of information and collaboration—especially in service of big questions around reducing carbon, promoting biodiversity, creating thriving communities, and discovering life beyond our solar system.

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S5 | Episode 3 | The Global Battle for Chips  

August 12, 2024

Two seismic forces that are shaping our world—deglobalization and digitization—are colliding over a single inflection point: semiconductor chips. Chips are the building blocks of the global economy, an irreplaceable enabler of tens of trillions of dollars of annual economic activity. Geopolitically, the stakes could not be higher. 

In this conversation, recorded at the NOW Conference in June 2024, Ben Bayat speaks with Chris Miller, author of Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology. They discuss the true marvel that is semiconductor manufacturing, the remarkably complex supply chain and its risks, the CHIPS act, the state of the global semiconductor industry, and the precarious national security implications of our collective reliance on these diminutive components.

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S5 | Episode 2 | A New World Order: China and the Geopolitical Landscape  

July 2, 2024

Global world order is shifting. The last four decades have seen a marked rise in the economic power of China and a simultaneous weakening in the stability of liberal democracies the world over. The outlook for the 2020s appears rife with uncertainty. We kicked off our NOW conference in San Francisco with two China experts in conversation about the changing geopolitical landscape and the future of U.S.-China relations--covering topics that included Xi Jinping's vision, the rise of national security over economic interests, multinational business engagement in China, Taiwan, and more.

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S5 | Episode 1 | Fault Lines and Frontiers: A New Cold War? 

June 3, 2024

Global world order is shifting. The last four decades have seen a marked rise in the economic power of China, and a simultaneous weakening in the stability of liberal democracies the world over. 

As investors, how should we be thinking about the geopolitical outlook—and what might be on the horizon? 

In the lead-up to Brown Advisory's "Navigating Our World" conference in San Francisco, Meredith Shuey Etherington sat down with leading foreign policy expert Sir Robin Niblett for insights into current hot and cold conflicts and long-term geopolitical risks, and how they may shape the context for our investment decisions.

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S4 | Episode 6 | Energy Transition—Or Energy Expansion? 

May 21, 2024

According to the IEA, one in 10 people around the world lacks access to reliable energy. A third of the world’s population lacks access to clean cooking fuels—a major health risk. At some point, renewable energy sources will likely fill these gaps—but until then, Steve Riney, President and CFO of Apache, argues that we need more of every form of energy to connect people to the global economy. 

As always, we want to listen to and learn from varied perspectives as part of the shift to a lower carbon economy. In this episode, Erika Pagel sits down with Steve to talk about why he thinks in terms of energy expansion rather than energy transition. They cover changes in the energy industry, conventional vs. unconventional production, energy poverty, sustainability, and “doing the right thing” in a politicized environment. 

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S4 | Episode 5 | The Essential Role of Lithium

December 5, 2023

Lithium is the lightest metal, so soft that you can cut it with a knife. Its structure gives it the ability to store large amounts of energy, making it ideal for manufacturing batteries. As the world moves to create a lower-carbon economy, it is not an overstatement to say that the energy transition may hinge on lithium. 
To learn more about lithium, how it is produced, and its role in electrification and the shift to renewable energy sources, Brown Advisory's Erika Pagel sits down with Eric Norris, President of Energy Storage at Albemarle—the largest producer of lithium in the world. 

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S4 | Episode 4 | The Energy Transition: Is "New Nuclear" The Answer?

July 19, 2023

Nuclear power has had a controversial history. Today, however, it is often considered an essential energy source for a lower-carbon future. In a continuation of our NOW series on the energy transition, Erika Pagel sits down with Joe Dominguez, CEO of Constellation, the leading operator of nuclear power plants in the US. Joe and Erika discuss progress in shifting to a lower-carbon economy, where nuclear fits in, promising innovations, and what it will take to get to net zero by 2050. 

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AI

S4 | Episode 3 | The Energy Transition: Why Solar?

November 21, 2022

As investors, we know that climate risk is real—and that we cannot achieve real climate action without a material shift to renewable energy sources. So, as we think about driving toward a lower carbon economy, we want to understand different opportunities and perspectives across the energy landscape. In this episode we are diving into renewables, and specifically into solar power. Brown Advisory's Erika Pagel sits down with Raghu Belur, the Co-founder and Chief Products Officer of Enphase Energy, which has revolutionized the solar industry with its microinverter-based technology. Erika and Raghu explore solar—in terms of economics, job creation, energy security and climate action. 

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nuclear

S4 | Episode 2 | The Energy Transition: What Role Should/Can/Will Traditional Energy Companies Play?

October 25, 2022

In part 1 of our energy transition series, Dr. Atul Arya, Chief Energy Strategist of S&P Global, said, "Energy companies are really good at putting steel in the ground and building stuff." In his mind, they must be part of the solution to create a low-carbon economy. So, in part 2, Brown Advisory's Erika Pagel explores the role of traditional energy companies with Allyson Book, the Chief Sustainability Officer of Baker Hughes, an engineering and technology provider that works with many of the largest global traditional oil and gas companies. How are the companies that built their businesses on fossil fuels facilitating a transition to a more sustainable, lower-carbon future?

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AI

S4 | Episode 1 | The Energy Transition: Is There a Path to Net Zero?

September 23, 2022

In conjunction with Climate Week, we are launching the first episode in our NOW podcast series on the transition to a low-carbon economy. In this first episode, Brown Advisory’s Erika Pagel sits down with Dr. Atul Arya, the Chief Energy Strategist of S&P Global, to discuss the race to net zero. They cover the impact of the war in Ukraine, the role of traditional energy companies, the promise of technology and innovation, and the feasibility of reaching the Paris Agreement’s critical but ambitious targets by 2050.

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AI

S3 | Episode 3 | Getting Ethical AI Right—And Why It Matters to Us as Investors

December 2, 2021

Artificial intelligence appears poised to disrupt industries, improve customer outcomes, and enhance lives, and solutions based on AI are projected to contribute as much as $15 trillion to the global economy in 2030—more than the current output of China and India combined. The problem-solving potential of AI is seemingly limitless, and it may well change the way we work, travel, power our cities, diagnose disease, and organize our society.

And yet there are reasons to be cautious. Information is power, and that power can be used for good or for ill. In this episode, Brown Advisory’s Katherine Kroll explores the investor case for “ethical AI” and why failing to proactively ensure AI is used to help, not harm, is a material and salient risk not only to investment performance but to our society’s ability to thrive. She speaks with three of the foremost experts on ethical AI: Aza Raskin, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology; Arathi Sethumadhavan, Ph.D., Head of User Research for Ethics & Society at Microsoft; and Kay Firth-Butterfield, Head of AI and Machine Learning, World Economic Forum.

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dan schulman

S3 | Episode 2 | Capitalism Needs an Upgrade: A Conversation with Dan Schulman, President & CEO of PayPal

October 28, 2021

Fortune recently ranked Dan Schulman, CEO of PayPal, near the top of its annual World’s Greatest Leaders list, and as long-term shareholders of PayPal, we agree with their assessment. We have watched Dan lead PayPal’s ongoing growth into a digital platform responsible for more than $1 trillion in payments globally last year. In addition, he has been steadfast and outspoken about the role of business in society and the need to modify capitalism.

We were thrilled to have the opportunity to speak with Dan during our latest episode of the NOW Podcast. Brown Advisory's Ken Coe spoke with Dan about how he views his employees as his number one constituency; PayPal's role in providing working capital and creating virtuous cycles in low-income neighborhoods; the future of financial technology; the need for all of us to rise above our own self-interest to drive progress for all, and more.

To wrap up the discussion, Ken brought in Jake Cusack and Efe Braimah from our frontier markets partner, CrossBoundary, to continue the conversation about opportunities in the fintech sector and making a difference.

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trees

S3 | Episode 1 | Investing in Nature-Based Climate Solutions: A Climate Week Conversation with M. Sanjayan, CEO of Conservation International

September 23, 2021

Nature-based factors and challenges have a real impact on our economies, lives and investments. To kick off Season 3 of the NOW podcast, Brown Advisory's Karina Funk sits down with Dr. M. Sanjayan, CEO of Conservation International, for a special Climate Week episode. They discuss the critical need to invest in biodiversity; in the irrecoverable carbon in mangroves, tropical forests and peat lands; and in the indigenous communities that depend on these natural ecosystems to protect commodities, supply chains, public health and the planet.

Later in the podcast, Karina talks with Mike Hankin, Brown Advisory's CEO, about how sustainability can be a powerful tool to create stronger businesses and drive long-term growth.

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blockchain

S2 | Episode 7 | Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrencies: Power, Potential and Pitfalls

June 30, 2021

Blockchain technology offers the promise of a new era of secure, decentralized transfer of value on the internet—a future less reliant on trusted intermediaries and gatekeepers. Some have described blockchain as Web 3.0, unlocking the true vision of what the internet was meant to be, where users of applications are also the owners. Despite their recent—and signature—volatility, digital assets have grown into a $2 trillion market that extends well beyond Bitcoin and is attracting entrepreneurs, investors and corporate support at an accelerating rate. There is clearly a lot of innovation both in digital assets—or cryptocurrencies—as well as with the underlying blockchain technology. But how much is legitimate excitement about this revolutionary technology, and how much is inflated exuberance?

To explore the potential, and examine some of the questions hanging over the industry, Brown Advisory’s Sid Ahl sat down with three crypto experts: Joe Lallouz, Founder and CEO of Bison Trails (acquired by Coinbase); Ash Egan, Partner, Accomplice; and Ria Bhutoria, Principal, Castle Island Ventures.

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golden gate bridge

S2 | Episode 6 | The Future of Cities: What We Can Learn from San Francisco

April 30, 2021

In this episode, Brown Advisory’s Meredith Shuey Etherington, a San Francisco-based portfolio manager, speaks with Fred Blackwell, CEO of the San Francisco Foundation, and Craig Young, Managing Principal of Tidewater Capital, to examine whether the Bay Area and San Francisco can retain and even enhance its identity as the home of the innovation economy.

San Francisco has been a paradox for decades—at once a stunningly beautiful city at the epicenter of high-tech innovation, and a fragile community grappling with various social crises, the highest cost of living in the U.S. and a vast wealth gap. The pandemic intensified many of the city’s problems, and recent headlines have revealed a string of companies moving their headquarters from the Bay Area to Austin, Miami and elsewhere. Our conversation looks at the challenges and opportunities that will shape San Francisco’s future. Later in the podcast, Brown Advisory’s JJ Baylin and Amy Hauter join Meredith to discuss how we are investing in the future of cities for our clients.

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doris pettway mosley

S2 | Episode 5 | Making a Living While Making a Life: The Power of Microbusiness with Etsy and GoDaddy

March 31, 2021

Online platforms--like Etsy and GoDaddy--have transformed parts of the economy and have made it possible for microbusinesses to survive and often thrive during the pandemic. For example, Etsy sellers contributed $13 billion and almost 3 million jobs to the economy last year. These two companies—GoDaddy and Etsy—have an unusual window into the power of microbusiness, so Brown Advisory's Emmy Wachtmeister sat down with Althea Erickson, VP of Global Public Policy & Impact at Etsy, and Alex Rosen, Director of GoDaddy's Venture Forward project, to learn more about these ventures and what they mean for the growth and resilience of our communities.

Then, Emmy sat down with David Powell, co-portfolio manager of Brown Advisory's Large-Cap Sustainable Growth strategy, to discuss the takeaways for investors.

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tomato farm

S2 | Episodes 3 & 4 | Solving World Hunger through Innovation

February 22 & March 1, 2021

Solving world hunger—or “food insecurity”—is really hard. The solutions are not particularly sexy, and they require a very long-term outlook. We wanted to learn more about the problem and the innovators who are working to solve it.

In part 1 of this conversation, Brown Advisory's Emily High Daniels sits down with two leaders at opposite ends of the impact spectrum: Barron Segar, President and CEO of the World Food Program USA (the program was awarded the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize), is driving innovation and progress on a massive global scale. Mira Mehta is the Founder and CEO of Tomato Jos, a for-profit social enterprise whose mission is to make farming profitable and sustainable for smallholder farmers, while moving their communities toward the middle class.

In part 2, we welcome two more entrepreneurs: Ezinne Uzo-Okuro, CEO of Terraformers, is using her background as a NASA scientist to empower people to grow healthy food and create sustainable livelihoods. Manuela Zierau, Global Lead of H2Grow, works with communities to grow food—and well-being—in impossible places. Private Client CIO Sid Ahl and CrossBoundary’s Kirtika Challa join Emily to discuss investment takeaways.

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fracking

S2 | Episode 2 | Exploring the Future of Energy with Daniel Yergin

December 13, 2020

Dr. Daniel Yergin—a leading global authority on energy, economics and geopolitics, and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The New Map—sits down with Brown Advisory’s Jane Korhonen to discuss the future of energy, and how that future may shape innovation, international relations and the economy in the years ahead. The stakes are high: Climate change is creating an urgent need for a lower-carbon economy, and the incoming Biden administration will face the daunting challenge of reigniting the U.S. economy in the wake of the pandemic, and energy may be a critical catalyst of that recovery.

We are grateful to Dr. Yergin for sharing his insights with us. The episode also includes a follow-up conversation between Jane and Brown Advisory’s Chief Investment Officer, Paul Chew, in which they discuss some of the implications for investors.

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radical transparency

S2 | Episode 1 | Alan Jope Discusses the Secrets of Building a Purpose-Driven Business that Does Good and Performs Well

November 29, 2020

Thinking that you have to trade off financial performance and sustainability is a “false dichotomy” and a “ridiculous mindset,” according to Alan Jope, CEO of Unilever, one of the largest consumer goods companies on the planet. Jope wants Unilever to be famous for three things: creating an envied portfolio of purpose-driven brands, proving the link between sustainable business and better financial outcomes, and serving as a beacon for diversity and inclusion—and he believes that radical transparency is the way to get there.

Brown Advisory’s Mick Dillon sat down with Jope to discuss radical transparency, attracting the next generation of consumers and employees, shaping social and environmental change, the power of capitalism and the need to evolve it. And then Mick and Brown Advisory’s Katherine Kroll sat down the next day to consider their takeaways as investors.

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climate week

S1 | Climate Week Special Edition | Fighting Fire: Investing in Climate Resilience

September 26, 2020

With devastating wild fires and floods filling our news feeds, the consequences of a changing climate have rarely felt more acute or urgent. In the midst of Climate Week, Brown Advisory’s Karina Funk sat down with Kate Gordon, who leads climate policy for the state of California and is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the intersection of business and climate.

As investors, we are constantly looking for opportunities to mitigate climate risk and support climate solutions. If we can help improve outcomes for the people impacted by climate change, we can generate returns for all of our stakeholders—our clients, colleagues and communities. With California as an epicenter of both climate-based tragedy and innovation, Karina and Kate talk about the ongoing crisis, investing in solutions, and the state’s announcement this week to move toward selling only zero-emissions vehicles by 2035.

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silicon valley

S1 | Episode 13 | Widening the Aperture in Venture Capital: A Conversation about Expanding Diversity & Inclusion in Silicon Valley and Beyond

July 30, 2020

The data tell the story: Less than 1% of venture capital in the United States is invested in companies led by Black entrepreneurs. Add "female" as a data filter and it drops to 0.2%. Amid reckoning with legacies of racial injustice, we wanted to examine how a lack of representation in the startup ecosystem hinders access to capital for diverse founders. Brown Advisory’s Keith Stone sits down with three thought leaders in the venture industry—Charles Hudson, Richard Kerby and Monique Woodard—to explore paths to a growth economy where an expanded set of innovators and ideas can thrive.

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space station

S1 | Episode 12 | “We're In It Together”: Why partnership is the key to understanding the universe and protecting our shared future

July 7, 2020

Speaking with astrophysicist Jason Kalirai is a lesson in perspective. In this episode, Brown Advisory’s Ken Stuzin sits down with Dr. Kalirai to learn how he collaborates across national boundaries to explore the vastness of the universe and find answers to existential questions. As Dr. Kalirai points out, when you look at our planet from space, you see one world with no borders—just land, ocean, air and life—which provides a great antidote to our often polarized experience on Earth.

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children's hands

S1 | Episode 11 | Children in Crisis: How a Focus on Partnership and Education Can Brighten the Future

June 30, 2020

Caryl Stern, longtime CEO at UNICEF USA and now executive director at the Walton Family Foundation, has spent her career focused on elevating the well-being of children. While Caryl is deeply concerned about the inequities that the pandemic is exacerbating, she is also profoundly energized about the current innovation, partnerships and social justice movements that can deliver quality education and opportunity for our next generation.

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lonely woman

S1 | Episode 10 | "It’s Okay Not To Be Okay": Shining a Spotlight on Our Mental Health in 2020

June 23, 2020

The concurrent crises of the pandemic, economic fallout and racial inequities are creating a recipe for another crisis—in mental health. Brown Advisory’s Bertie Thomson sits down with Dr. Ray DePaulo of Johns Hopkins Medicine, Kristen Roby Dimlow of Microsoft and Dr. Richard Frank of Harvard Medical School to gain a deeper understanding of the stressors, as well as solutions, posed by this challenging time.

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globe

S1 | Episode 9 | Impact Investing: The Importance of Resilience and Engagement in the "Never Normal"

June 16, 2020

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provide a framework for addressing global challenges related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. Achieving them was never going to be straightforward—and that was before we faced a global pandemic, economic crisis, and the manifestation of centuries of racial violence and injustice. Investors have a particular role to play in pulling levers that make a difference.

Brown Advisory’s CIO of Sustainable Investing, Erika Pagel, sits down with Lynelle Cameron of Autodesk and Brian Rice of CalSTRS, who are each focused on creating long-term sustainable impact through resilience and engagement.

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globe

S1 | Episode 8 | Citizens of Cyberspace: Who is in charge?

June 9, 2020

Technology rules the way we communicate, connect, consume and collaborate. For both companies and governments, this provides incredible economic and infrastructure opportunities, but also exposes massive risks to security and privacy.

Brown Advisory’s Lauren Cahalan sits down with David Edelman, director of MIT’s Project on Technology, the Economy & National Security, to discuss the challenges posed by technology’s penetration of all aspects of our lives, the responsibility of organizations to identify misinformation and protect our privacy, and how these issues have been heightened by the pandemic.

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library

S1 | Episode 7 | Freedom to Read: A conversation with Dr. Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress

June 2, 2020

For Dr. Carla Hayden, libraries are freedom in action: Whether physical or online, libraries provide all people access to information, opportunity and education. As the Librarian of Congress, and the first woman and person of color to hold this position, Dr. Hayden leads the oldest federal cultural institution in the U.S.—yet it is anything but stale. Brown Advisory’s Jacob Hodes talks with Dr. Hayden about digitizing millions of items, creating an app for burgeoning hip hop artists, and turbo-charging the Library’s online resources during the pandemic. In the podcast, Dr. Hayden shares her passion for libraries as pivotal elements of our social infrastructure—they link us to the lessons of the past and bring people together to create the future.

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gen z

S1 | Episode 6 | Click. Connect. Change the World. How Gen Z lives every day on a global scale

May 26, 2020

Gen Z is the future. Born between 1996 and 2012, this generation is the most diverse cohort on the planet, and collectively, they represent over $140 billion in purchasing power. Brown Advisory's Katherine Kroll speaks with Gen Z experts Ziad Ahmed, Joel Flory and Denise Villa to talk about Gen Z's priorities—before and after the pandemic—and how Gen Zers are writing the future through their insistence on authenticity and massive online influence.

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great wall of china

S1 | Episode 5 | The Fire & The Flood: Managing the threats of a global pandemic and changing climate

May 19, 2020

Our house sits next to a river. We see the water slowly rising year after year and threatening to flood the foundation. Then, a house fire erupts. What do we do? If we don’t act against both the fire and flood, our house will be gone.

Doug Baker, Chairman and CEO of Ecolab, believes climate change is a serious business risk that must be addressed even amidst a burning pandemic, as he describes in his house-on-a-river parable. In conversation with Brown Advisory’s Karina Funk, Baker discusses climate risk and lessons of the pandemic from his vantage point at the helm of Ecolab, which provides technology for clean water, safe food and hygienic environments to three million businesses around the world.

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great wall of china

S1 | Episode 4 | Friend or Foe? How the Pandemic is Shaping U.S.-China Relations

May 12, 2020

The coronavirus pandemic raises many questions about the U.S.-China relationship – including how the two countries will address globalization, supply chains, technology and the environment going forward. Porter Schutt talks with two long-time students of China, Andy Rothman, investment strategist at Matthews Asia, and Linda Yueh, economist at the University of Oxford, to delve into the economic, cultural and geopolitical implications of the crisis.

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large crack in a wall

S1 | Episode 3 | Is Polarization Killing Democracy?

May 5, 2020

According to Yascha Mounk, our guest on this week’s episode of Navigating our World, polarization poses an existential threat to democracy. In a conversation with Brown Advisory’s Jordan Wruble, Dr. Mounk examines the forces he feels are undermining our political systems, and discusses how the coronavirus pandemic might have the potential to bring us closer together. Yascha Mounk is the author of The People vs. Democracy: Why Democracy Is in Danger & How to Save It, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, and a leading expert on global politics.

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tunnel of mirrors

S1 | Episode 2 | The Power of Purpose

April 28, 2020

What does it mean to lead with purpose? Tamara Lundgren, Chairman, President and CEO of Schnitzer Steel, and Josh Silverman, CEO of Etsy, have each leveraged the power of purpose to lead significant organizations. Brown Advisory’s Stephanie McCormick sits down with Tamara and Josh to explore the connection between purpose and financial performance, and how being “purpose-driven” helps them navigate this crisis.

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FDR

S1 | Episode 1 | We've Been Here Before (and Made it Through): A Conversation with Jon Meacham

April 21, 2020

In an intimate and candid conversation, CEO Mike Hankin sits down with esteemed Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Jon Meacham to draw historical parallels with the current crisis, and discuss lessons we can take from past leaders about navigating challenging times.

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NOW 2020 logo

Foreword | Why NOW: CEO Mike Hankin Introduces the Podcast

April 21, 2020

To kick off our Navigating Our World podcast, our CEO Mike Hankin shares his thoughts on why NOW is especially important during this crisis, and on the responsibility of business leaders to address the polarization around challenging issues -- including capitalism, climate change and more -- without taking sides.

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Guests

 

andy browne

Ellen Stofan, Ph.D.

Under Secretary for Science and Research Smithsonian

Ellen Stofan is the Under Secretary for Science and Research at the Smithsonian. She oversees its science research centers and the National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of Natural History, and the National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. The Smithsonian Libraries and Archives, Smithsonian Scholarly Press and Scientific Diving Program also report to Stofan. Her focus is on the Smithsonian’s “Our Shared Future: Life on a Sustainable Planet” initiative and collective research, especially in areas of biodiversity, climate change, global health, sustainable communities and environmental justice. Previously, Stofan was the John and Adrienne Mars Director of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum (2018–2021) where she was the first woman to hold that position. Under her leadership, the museum began its seven-year renovation of its flagship building in Washington, D.C., in 2018. Stofan also oversaw the momentous celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing in July 2019 at the museum and on the National Mall. Before joining the Smithsonian, Stofan had more than 25 years’ experience in space-related organizations and a deep research background in planetary geology. She was chief scientist at NASA (2013–2016), serving as the principal advisor to former Administrator Charles Bolden on NASA’s strategic planning and programs. She helped guide the development of a long-range plan to get humans to Mars and worked on strategies for NASA to support commercial activity in low Earth orbit as it transitions from the International Space Station to sending humans to the moon and Mars in the mid-2020s. She earned her bachelor’s degree in geology at the College of William & Mary and her master’s and doctoral degrees at Brown University, both in geological sciences. While finishing her doctoral degree, Stofan joined the Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) as a post-doctoral fellow and became the deputy project scientist for the Magellan Mission to Venus. In 1994, Stofan became JPL’s chief scientist for the New Millennium Program where she managed a team of about 100 scientists working on new technologies. The following year, Stofan moved to London while continuing to work at JPL and was, and continues to be, an honorary professor at University College London. For 13 years (2000–2013), Stofan was vice president and senior scientist at Proxemy Research, a consulting firm in the Washington area specializing in planetary research. Stofan’s research focuses on the geology of Venus, Mars, Saturn’s moon Titan and Earth. Her favorite mission was Cassini, primarily because of her interest in Titan. She has published extensively and received many awards and honors, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and was named one of “CNN’s Extraordinary People of 2014.” She is co-author of the books Planetology: Unlocking the Secrets of the Solar System and Next Earth: What Our World Can Teach Us About Other Planets, both published by National Geographic. Stofan serves on National Geographic Society’s Board of Trustees and the Presidential Committee on the National Medal of Science.  

 

andy browne

Chris Miller

Associate Professor of International History, Tufts University; Author, Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology

Chris Miller's latest book Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology reveals the geopolitical impact of the computer chip. It is a New York Times bestseller and a winner of the Financial Times Business Book of the Year Award and won the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award. It was featured on many “Best of 2022” book lists, including in the New Yorker and the Economist. Dr. Miller is associate professor at the Fletcher School at Tufts University and is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a think-tank in Washington, D.C. He also advises businesses and asset managers at Greenmantle, a consultancy, serves as a member of the Geopolitics Advisory Council at McKinsey & Company, and advises semiconductor and other technology startups and investors. He is frequently featured and quoted in media such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Financial Times, as well as on NPR and CNBC. In addition to Chip War, Dr. Miller’s books include We Shall Be Masters: Russian Pivots to East Asia from Peter the Great to Putin (Harvard University Press, 2021), Putinomics: Power and Money in Resurgent Russia (University of North Carolina Press, 2018), and The Struggle to Save the Soviet Economy: Mikhail Gorbachev and the Collapse of the USSR (University of North Carolina Press, 2016). He has an MA and PhD in history from Yale University and a BA in history from Harvard University.  

andy browne

Andy Browne

China Hub Director, Brunswick Group

Andy leads Brunswick’s China Hub, working closely with colleagues in China and globally, including the firm’s Geopolitical practice, to advise clients on China-related issues. Prior to joining Brunswick, Andy ran the editorial program at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, a platform set up by Michael Bloomberg, the three-term mayor of New York City, to connect CEOs and government leaders from emerging and developed economies. Andy spent 35 years working in Asia, latterly as a China Editor and Columnist for the Wall Street Journal. He started his career in journalism in 1982 at the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, before moving to Reuters News Agency where he spent 20 years running news bureaus in Taipei, Shanghai, Beijing and Seoul, before becoming Asia Pacific News Editor in Singapore. Andy also spent two years as a Partner in Brunswick’s Beijing office between 2007 and 2009. Andy won the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting in 2007 as part of a team of Wall Street Journal reporters in Beijing and shared an Overseas Press Club award for business reporting on China in 2011. Andy was also a guest commentator on NBC’s coverage of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. He received a BA in Chinese Language and Literature from the University of Leeds. 

liz economy

Elizabeth Economy, Ph.D.

Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution

Elizabeth Economy is the Hargrove Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. From 2021–2023, Economy served as a senior foreign advisor (for China) in the Department of Commerce for the current administration. Economy was previously at the Council on Foreign Relations, where she served as the C.V. Starr senior fellow and director for Asia Studies for over a decade. Economy is an acclaimed author and expert on Chinese domestic and foreign policy. Her most recent book is The World According to China (Polity, 2022). She is also the author of The Third Revolution: Xi Jinping and the New Chinese State, (Oxford University Press, 2018; Thai edition, 2018; Chinese (Taiwan) edition, 2019), which was shortlisted for the Lionel Gelber Prize, a prestigious literary award for foreign affairs books. Her other books include By All Means Necessary: How China's Resource Quest is Changing the World (Oxford University Press, 2014; Vietnamese, 2019) with Michael Levi, and The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenge to China's Future (Cornell University Press, 2004; 2nd edition, 2010; Japanese edition, 2005; Chinese edition, 2011). The River Runs Black was named one of the top 50 sustainability books in 2008 by the University of Cambridge, won the 2005 International Convention on Asia Scholars Award for the best social sciences book published on Asia, and was listed as one of the top ten books of 2004 by the Globalist as well as one of the best business books of 2010 by Booz Allen Hamilton's strategy+business magazine. She also coedited China Joins the World: Progress and Prospects (Council on Foreign Relations Press, with Michel Oksenberg, 1999) and The Internationalization of Environmental Protection (Cambridge University Press, with Miranda Schreurs, 1997). She has published articles in foreign policy and scholarly journals including Foreign Affairs, Harvard Business Review, and Foreign Policy, and op-eds in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal, among others. Economy is a frequent guest on nationally broadcast television and radio programs, has testified before Congress on numerous occasions, and regularly consults for U.S. government agencies and companies. In June 2018, Economy was named one of the "10 Names That Matter on China Policy" by Politico Magazine. Economy serves on the board of managers of Swarthmore College and is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group. She was also on the advisory council of Network 20/20 and the science advisory council of the Stockholm Environment Forum. She served as a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF)’s Global Agenda Council on the United States from 2014 to 2016 and served as a member and then vice chair of WEF’s Global Agenda Council on the Future of China from 2008 to 2014. Economy also served on the board of the China-U.S. Center for Sustainable Development. She has taught undergraduate and graduate level courses at Columbia University, Johns Hopkins University's Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and the University of Washington's Jackson School of International Studies. Economy received her BA with honors from Swarthmore College, her AM from Stanford University, and her PhD from the University of Michigan. In 2008, she received an honorary doctor of law degree from Vermont Law School. She lives in New York City with her husband and three children. 

james harding

James Harding

Editor and Founder, Tortoise Media

James Harding is Co-Founder and Editor of Tortoise. Prior to this, James was the Director of News and Current Affairs at the BBC, the world’s largest news organisation, until January 2018. Prior to that he was Editor of The Times of London from 2007-2012, winning the Newspaper of the Year in two of the five years he edited the paper. He was previously The Times’ Business Editor, having joined from The Financial Times, where he worked as Washington Bureau Chief, Media Editor and China correspondent opening the paper’s bureau in Shanghai in 1996. He is the author of Alpha Dogs – How political spin became a global business and he presented On Background on the BBC World Service with Zanny Minton-Beddoes, editor of The Economist.  

 

Steve Riney

Sir Robin Niblett

Distinguished Fellow, Chatham House

Sir Robin is a distinguished fellow at Chatham House after spending 15 years as its director and chief executive until 2022. He is also a distinguished fellow of the Asia Society Policy Institute and senior adviser to the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) in Washington DC. He is also principal of Ledwell Advisory, a risk advisory company. From 2001-06, Robin was executive vice president at CSIS, the largest foreign policy think tank in Washington D.C. During his time there, he also served as director of the CSIS Europe programme and its Initiative for a Renewed Transatlantic Partnership. Robin is co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Futures Council on Geopolitics and has served as chair and member of other WEF Councils since 2012. He is a member of the FCDO’s Expert Group and was a special adviser to the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee (2015-17). He was chairman of the experts group for the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales and chair of the British Academy’s steering committee for its Languages for Security Project (2013). From January 2010–May 2020, he was a non-executive director of Fidelity European Values Investment Trust. Robin is the author of numerous reports on British, European and US foreign policy and his commentary and analysis have appeared in the world’s leading journals and newspapers such as Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Financial Times, The Washington Post, The Times, and The Guardian. He is a regular commentator on Bloomberg and CNN International and a speaker at major international conferences. He has testified to committees of the UK House of Commons, US Senate, and House of Representatives, and regularly briefs the senior executives and boards of global companies, financial institutions, and private foundations. He received his BA in Modern Languages and MPhil and DPhil in International Relations from New College, Oxford.  

Steve Riney

Stephen J. Riney

President and Chief Financial Officer, APA Corporation

Stephen J. Riney was appointed president effective Jan. 1, 2024, and chief financial officer on March 3, 2015. Prior to joining the company, he served as chief financial officer for BP Exploration and Production from July 2012 to January 2015, and global head of mergers and acquisitions for BP plc from January 2007 to June 2012. Mr. Riney holds a Master of Business Administration from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from the University of Notre Dame.  

Eric Norris

Eric Norris

President, Energy Storage, Albemarle

Eric Norris joined Albemarle in January 2018 as Chief Strategy Officer. In this role, he managed the company’s strategic planning, M-A, and corporate business development programs as well as its investor relations efforts. In August 2018, he was appointed President of the Lithium global business unit. Prior to joining Albemarle, Norris served as President of Health and Nutrition for FMC Corporation. Following FMC’s announcement to acquire DuPont Agricultural Chemical assets, he led the divestiture of FMC Health and Nutrition to DuPont. Previously, Norris served as Vice President and Global Business Director for FMC Health and Nutrition, and Vice President and Global Business Director for FMC Lithium. During his 16-year FMC career, he served in additional leadership roles including Investor Relations, Corporate Development and Director of FMC Healthcare Ventures. Prior to FMC, Norris founded and led an internet-based firm offering formulation and design tools to the chemical industry. He started his career in a range of leadership roles with the Rohm and Haas Company. Norris earned a Master of Business Administration from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and German from Colgate University. Norris is a member of the board of directors of Communities in Schools of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and is a member of the board of advisors of The Zero Emission Transportation Association (ZETA). 

Atul Arya, Ph.D.

Atul Arya, Ph.D.

Senior Vice President and Chief Energy Strategist, S&P Global

Dr. Atul Arya is Senior Vice President and Chief Energy Strategist at S&P Global Commodity Insights. He is responsible for integrating energy content, analysis and insights across the entire energy value chain and for c-suite client engagements. His areas of expertise include business strategy, commercial analysis, oil markets, energy technologies, climate change and renewables. He has previously led Energy Insight, Research and Analysis and Energy Research teams at IHS Markit (Now a part of S&P Global). Dr. Atul previously worked for BP for over 20 years in a number of operational, business, technical and strategic positions around the world. His career includes international leadership experience in a diverse array of energy fields spanning strategy development, business planning, field operations and technology commercialization. His experience includes leadership in solar energy development as well as oil and gas. Dr. Atul has previously served on boards of several companies and institutions and is member of the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Advanced Energy Technologies and is 25+ year member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. He is a sought-after speaker and moderator at public conferences, company boards and industry events and a member of the CERAWeek leadership team. He holds B.S., M.S. and Ph. D. degrees in engineering. 

 

allyson book

Allyson Book

Chief Sustainability Officer, Baker Hughes

Allyson Anderson Book is the Chief Sustainability Officer for Baker Hughes. In this role she oversees Baker Hughes’ energy-transition strategy by driving sustainable operations, supporting commercial energy transition solutions for customers and ensuring market creation of these solutions via stakeholder engagement and policy development. In 2021 alone, she was recognized by Petroleum Economist as among Top 10 Women Leading Energy Transition in Sustainability, by Oil & Gas Investor as among 25 Influential Women in Energy, and by Hart Energy for its ESG Champion of Year Award. Before joining Baker Hughes she served as the executive director of the American Geosciences Institute, which represents more than 250,000 geoscientists and focuses on increasing public awareness of the role geosciences play in society’s use of resources. Prior to that, she held a number of academic, policy and senior government positions, including teaching at Georgetown University, working for the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and serving as the associate director of strategic engagement of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) at the U.S. Department of the Interior. She began her career as a geoscientist for ExxonMobil. She holds bachelor’s degrees in geology and music from the University of Northern Iowa, and a master’s degree in geology from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. 

Joseph Dominguez

Joseph Dominguez

President and Chief Executive Officer, Constellation

Joseph Dominguez is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Constellation, which employs 13,000 workers, has generating capacity of more than 32,400 megawatts and serves more than 20 million homes and businesses with clean energy. With revenues of more than $17 billion and total assets of $49 billion, Constellation comprises both the nation's lowest-carbon fleet among large power producers and the largest competitive energy supplier. Together, they are America's clean energy leader, producing over 10% of the nation's clean energy and helping America transition to a clean, sustainable future. 

Raghu Belur

Raghu Belur

Co-founder and Chief Products Officer, Enphase

Raghu co-founded Enphase Energy with Martin Fornage in 2006. He has more than 25 years of experience in the clean energy and high technology industries, and has been at the forefront of developing Enphase’s leading integrated energy system—with solar generation, storage, monitoring, and control. Prior to Enphase, Raghu developed high-speed optical communication technology for Cerent, which was later acquired by Cisco Systems. Before Cerent, Raghu was an engineer at the Indian Institute of Science, where he played a key role in the development of an alternative energy gasification system. Raghu received an MSEE from Texas A&M University and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at U.C. Berkeley. 

Kay Firth-Butterfield

Kay Firth-Butterfield

Head AI and Machine Learning, World Economic Forum

Head of Artificial Intelligence and a Member of the Executive Committee at the World Economic Forum; one of the foremost experts in the world on the governance of artificial intelligence (AI). Barrister, former Judge and Professor, technologist and entrepreneur who has an abiding interest in how humanity can equitably benefit from new technologies, especially AI. Associate Barrister (Doughty Street Chambers), Master of the Inner Temple, London and serves on the Lord Chief Justice’s Advisory Panel on AI and Law. Co-founded AI Global and was the world’s first Chief AI Ethics officer in 2014 and created the AIEthics twitter hashtag. Vice-Chair of The IEEE Global Initiative for Ethical Considerations in Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems and was part of the group that met at Asilomar to create the Asilomar AI Ethical Principles. On the Polaris Council for the Government Accountability Office (USA), the Advisory Board for UNESCO International Research Centre on AI and AI4All. Advanced degrees in Law and International Relations and regularly speaks to international audiences addressing many aspects of the beneficial and challenging technical, economic and social changes arising from the use of AI. 

 

Aza Raskin

Aza Raskin

Co-Founder, The Center for Humane Technology

Trained as a mathematician and dark matter physicist, Aza is also the co-founder of Earth Species Project, an open-source collaborative nonprofit dedicated to decoding animal communication. He has taken three companies from founding to acquisition, is a co-chairing member of the World Economic Forum’s Global AI Counsel, helped found Mozilla Labs, was named FastCompany’s Master of Design, and listed on Forbes and Inc Magazines 30-under-30. For Aza, the problem is especially personal: his father, Jef Raskin, created the Macintosh project at Apple with the vision that 'humane' technology should help, not harm, humans. 

Arathi Sethumadhavan, Ph.D.

Arathi Sethumadhavan, Ph.D.

Head of User Reseach for Ethics & Society, Microsoft

Dr. Arathi Sethumadhavan is a seasoned research leader, with 18 years of experience studying human-technology interaction. Currently, she leads a user research team for Microsoft’s Ethics and Society, that is focused on privacy and consent, fairness, inclusion, accountability, and transparency - as it relates to AI experiences. During the course of her career, she has led user research for several novel and complex applications (e.g., Microsoft's custom neural voice, facial recognition, Medtronic's Micra pacemaker). Arathi had been cited by the American Psychological Association and the Economist. She wear many hats, including research leader, strategist, author, mentor, editor, keynote speaker, and sometimes adjunct professor. She has a PhD in Experimental Psychology (specialization in human factors and ergonomics) and an undergraduate degree in Computer Science. 

dan schulman

Dan Schulman

President and CEO, PayPal

M. Sanjayan is a global conservation scientist whose work spans from genetics to wildlife migration to nature’s impacts on human well-being. He has served as Conservation International’s chief executive officer since 2017. Sanjayan joined Conservation International in 2014, overseeing its successful $1.1 billion capital campaign and its critically acclaimed brand campaign, “Nature Is Speaking,” along with its push into virtual-reality filmmaking. Sanjayan holds a master’s degree from the University of Oregon and a doctorate from the University of California-Santa Cruz, and his peer-reviewed scientific work has been published in journals including Science, Nature and Conservation Biology. He is a visiting researcher at UCLA and a distinguished professor of practice at Arizona State University. He is also a Catto Fellow at the Aspen Institute. Raised in Southeast Asia and West Africa, Sanjayan’s unique background has informed his work and he has attracted widespread media coverage, from The New York Times, Outside Magazine and CNN International. His media appearances include NBC’s “Today Show,” “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “CBS This Morning,” and “CBS Evening News,” and he has hosted more than a dozen documentaries from PBS, BBC, National Geographic, Discovery and Showtime. Most recently, he hosted the University of California and Vox Media’s Climate Lab series, which has garnered over 20 million views. Sanjayan lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and daughter. When able, he spends time in Montana fly-fishing, or birding and diving around the world. 

M. Sanjayan, Ph.D.

M. Sanjayan, Ph.D.

CEO, Conservation International

M. Sanjayan is a global conservation scientist whose work spans from genetics to wildlife migration to nature’s impacts on human well-being. He has served as Conservation International’s chief executive officer since 2017. Sanjayan joined Conservation International in 2014, overseeing its successful $1.1 billion capital campaign and its critically acclaimed brand campaign, “Nature Is Speaking,” along with its push into virtual-reality filmmaking. Sanjayan holds a master’s degree from the University of Oregon and a doctorate from the University of California-Santa Cruz, and his peer-reviewed scientific work has been published in journals including Science, Nature and Conservation Biology. He is a visiting researcher at UCLA and a distinguished professor of practice at Arizona State University. He is also a Catto Fellow at the Aspen Institute. Raised in Southeast Asia and West Africa, Sanjayan’s unique background has informed his work and he has attracted widespread media coverage, from The New York Times, Outside Magazine and CNN International. His media appearances include NBC’s “Today Show,” “The Late Show with David Letterman,” “CBS This Morning,” and “CBS Evening News,” and he has hosted more than a dozen documentaries from PBS, BBC, National Geographic, Discovery and Showtime. Most recently, he hosted the University of California and Vox Media’s Climate Lab series, which has garnered over 20 million views. Sanjayan lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and daughter. When able, he spends time in Montana fly-fishing, or birding and diving around the world. 

 

joe lallouz

Mrinalini "Ria" Bhutoria

Principal, Castle Island Ventures

Prior to joining Castle Island Ventures, Ria was Director of Research at Fidelity Digital Assets where she worked on bitcoin and digital asset research. Before joining Fidelity, Ria held the role of Senior Research Analyst at Circle, where she built out the Circle Research platform. Ria started her career as an Equity Research Associate on the Fintech and Payments team at Credit Suisse. She holds a BS in Finance from the New York University Stern School of Business. 

joe lallouz

Ash Egan

Partner, Accomplice

Ash Egan is a Partner at Accomplice focusing on early stage blockchain and crypto investments. Previously, he was a founding Principal on the venture team at ConsenSys and began his career in venture at Converge VC. Ash has been investing in blockchain/crypto companies since 2015, leading investments in Balancer, BlockFi, Bison Trails, Chainalysis, FalconX, Near and dozens of others. Ash was selected as Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2020 for Venture Capital and received his AB in American Politics from Princeton University. 

joe lallouz

Joe Lallouz

CEO, Bison Trails; Partner, Ambush Capital

After extensive corporate and start-up experience in fintech, e-commerce, and infrastructure Joe Lallouz co-founded Bison Trails, a blockchain infrastructure company helping democratize access to blockchain networks. Lallouz is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor in New York City, as well as the founder and CEO of Ambush Labs and a partner at Ambush Capital. He was the Business Head for Etsy’s Innovation Group where he was responsible for new ventures such as Pattern, Etsy’s website building suite service, and Fund on Etsy, crowdfunding for Etsy sellers. Joe was a co-founder of Grand St., an online marketplace for creative technology, acquired by Etsy in 2014. During his time at Grand St, Lallouz led engineering, product, and strategy. Lallouz holds a dual BS from RPI concentrating in Electrical Computer Systems Engineering and Economics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. 

Fred Blackwell

Fred Blackwell

CEO, San Francisco Foundation

Fred Blackwell is the CEO of the San Francisco Foundation, one of the largest community foundations in the country. The San Francisco Foundation works hand-in-hand with donors, community leaders, and both public and private partners to create thriving communities throughout the Bay Area. Since joining the foundation in 2014, Blackwell has led it in a renewed commitment to social justice through an equity agenda focused on racial and economic inclusion. Blackwell, an Oakland native, is a nationally recognized community leader with a longstanding career in the Bay Area. Prior to joining the foundation, he served as interim city administrator for the city of Oakland, where he previously served as the assistant city administrator. He was the executive director of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and director of the Mayor’s Office of Community Development in San Francisco; he served as the director of the Making Connections Initiative for the Annie E. Casey Foundation in the Lower San Antonio neighborhood of Oakland; he was a Multicultural Fellow in Neighborhood and Community Development at The San Francisco Foundation; and he subsequently managed a multiyear comprehensive community initiative for the San Francisco Foundation in West Oakland. Blackwell serves on the board of the Independent Sector, Northern California Grantmakers, the Bridgespan Group, the dean’s advisory council for UC Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design, and the community advisory council of the San Francisco Federal Reserve. He previously served on the boards of the California Redevelopment Association, Urban Habitat Program, LeaderSpring and Leadership Excellence. He is a visiting professor in the department of City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley and the Co-Chair of CASA — The Committee to House the Bay Area. He holds a master’s degree in city planning from UC Berkeley and a bachelor’s degree in urban studies from Morehouse College. 

 

craig young

Craig Young

Managing Principal, Tidewater Capital

Craig Young is the Managing Principal of Tidewater Capital. Mr. Young is responsible for long range planning and spearheading growth initiatives for the business. On a day-to-day basis, Mr. Young oversees the firm’s investment, development, asset management, and organizational functions. Since the company’s inception in 2013, Mr. Young has grown the firm’s portfolio by investing in and/or developing more than twenty projects throughout the Bay Area. These projects include vertical developmentand repositioning existing assets across a range of product typesincluding market rate, affordable, and rent-controlled housing, as well as office, retail, hotel, industrial and self-storage assets.Mr. Young also leadsthe firm’s investor relations effortsand has organized a series of discretionaryinvestment vehiclesalongside endowment, foundation, and family office partners.Before establishing Tidewater, Mr. Young was a leader within the investments group at The JBG Companies (now JBG Smith) in Washington, D.C. His previous work experience includes roles at CIM Group and Deutsche Bank. Equipped with a strong entrepreneurial zeal, Mr. Young has gained significant experience across a broad range of business building endeavors throughout his career.Mr. Young is activelyinvolvedin various philanthropic efforts aimed at promoting economic opportunityand the artsthroughout theBay Area. In 2014, Mr. Young received the Golden Brick Award;a recognition presented annually to an individual who has made an outstanding impact in their community. In 2015, Mr. Young was recognized as one of the San Francisco Business Times’40 Under 40honorees. Mr. Young has spoken on at Harvard and the Milken Institute as well as at industry events including ULI and NAIOP. A native of Central Florida with deep family roots in Northern California, Mr. Young received hisBachelor of Arts from Brown University and his MBA from Harvard Business School. Mr. Young enjoys spending his free time outdoors. 

althea erickson

Althea Erickson

VP, Global Public Policy & Impact, Etsy

Althea Erickson is the head advocacy and impact at Etsy, the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. Althea leads Etsy's efforts to advance public policies that make it easier for Etsy sellers to start and grow their creative businesses. She is responsible for developing and advancing Etsy’s position on portable benefits and economic security for the self-employed, tax and regulatory simplification, content moderation, net neutrality, and global trade, among others. Althea also guides the execution of Etsy’s broader impact strategy, including delivering on its economic, social, and environmental impact commitments and its internal and external accountability strategy. Prior to joining Etsy, Althea was the advocacy and policy director at Freelancers Union, where she led its successful campaign to repeal unfair tax laws, promoted legislation to protect freelancers from unpaid wages, and advocated for member-driven health insurance. Previously, Althea worked at the Rockefeller Foundation, where she focused on strategies to build economic security within the US workforce. She has a B.A in government and public policy from Wesleyan University. 

alex rosen

Alex Rosen

Director of Venture Forward, GoDaddy

Alexandra Rosen is Director of Venture Forward at GoDaddy, an initiative that helps advocate on behalf of microbusiness entrepreneurs by quantifying and communicating their impact on the economy. Alexandra has helped companies from Fortune 500 to startups bring value to customers and the market through new endeavors, authentic presence and unique programs. Prior to GoDaddy, she managed several global partnerships for Cisco, including strategy, research, and programs for the Rio 2016 Olympics and Live Nation. She began her career at Google in the early days of online marketing. Passionate about empowering people and businesses through technology and creativity, Alexandra is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the UCLA Anderson Venture Accelerator. She completed her undergraduate degree at Stanford University and her MBA at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. 

mira mehta

Mira Mehta

Founder and CEO, Tomato Jos

Mira Mehta is the CEO and founder of Tomato Jos Farming and Processing Limited. She started Tomato Jos in 2014 on a 3-hectare farm located in Panda Development Area, Nasarawa State. She moved to Kaduna State in the second half of 2017 in order to scale her business. Prior to Tomato Jos, Mira was a staff of the Clinton Health Access Initiative in Nigeria, where she had the opportunity to travel to rural areas across the country to ensure the people had access to HIV-AIDS healthcare services. During one of her trips up north, she noticed large volumes of tomatoes spread on the roadside and wondered why this was so. After conducting some research, she realized this was a result of a seasonal tomato market glut in Nigeria - the farmers could not sell everything they had produced. This experience was a major trigger of the idea to start Tomato Jos. As she delved deeper, Ms. Mehta realized that tomatoes and tomato paste are a staple products in every Nigerian home; both are used to prepare stew, Jollof rice, and other popular foods. She decided to start a business that would provide farmers with a guaranteed market, enabling them to invest in more productive and profitable farming practices, and simultaneously reduce the country's dependence on imported tomato paste by creating her own local brand. Ms. Mehta is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Business School. 

 

barron segar

Barron Segar

CEO, World Food Program USA

Barron Segar is the President and CEO of WFP USA. Barron brings over 20 years of experience in growing philanthropic and cause marketing platforms. Prior to WFP USA, Barron served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer at UNICEF USA where his responsibilities included serving as an Executive Management Team member with organization-wide responsibility and decision-making authority for strategy, budget, critical operational priorities, and leading the Development Division teams’ strategic direction for $500 million in annual revenue. Prior to UNICEF USA, Barron served as the Director of Development for Georgia Public Broadcasting, where he and his team were nationally recognized for record breaking fundraising performance. Barron also has experience in the private sector working in financial services. Along with a distinguished career, Barron has held positions on multiple boards, he is a founding and current Board Member at the Elton John AIDS Foundation and he received a bachelor’s degree in history at Hampden-Sydney College. 

ezinne uzo-okuro

Ezinne Uzo-Okuro

CEO, Terraformers

Ezinne Uzo-Okoro has built, managed, reviewed 60 spaceflight programs in over 16 years representing $9.2 billion in total program value to NASA. She managed a $300M program, led national and international teams (including expeditions to Svalbard) and last served as the chief of the Small Spacecraft Mission Design Division. Observing how food innovations on earth could serve as inspiration for nutrition solutions on the Moon, she founded Terraformers.com to help people eat nutritious food at low cost through productive and networked backyard gardening. She holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and two M.S. in Space Systems and Space Robotics from Johns Hopkins University (APL) and the MIT Media Lab respectively. She was a 2018 Presidential Leadership Scholar. She is currently a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, an MIT Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship Fellow and a Harvard Kennedy School Dubin Fellow. 

manuela zierau

Manuela Zierau

Global Lead, H2Grow

Manuela is the Global Project Lead of H2Grow, a World Food Programme (WFP) innovation. Based in Munich, Germany, Manuela joined the WFP Innovation Accelerator 1.5 years ago and has since focused on scaling the hydroponics venture to 21 countries and working on new ways of financing. Prior to joining WFP, Manuela was working for 3 years in Rwanda for One Acre Fund, a social enterprise based in East Africa that provides farmers with training and asset-based loans, where she built a discovery & research branch for new ideas and designed and tested service innovations for farmers. 

daniel yergin

Daniel Yergin, Ph.D.

Pulitzer Prize-winning Author and Vice Chair, IHS Markit

The Pulitzer prize-winning author of The New Map, The Prize and The Quest, Dr. Yergin is vice chairman of IHS Markit and founded IHS CERA (now part of IHS Markit). He is an authority on energy, international politics and economics. His awards include Lifetime Achievement from the Prime Minister of India and the United States Energy Award for lifelong achievements in energy and the promotion of international understanding. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Yale University and a Ph.D. from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar. 

 

Charles Hudson

Alan Jope

CEO, Unilever

Alan Jope was appointed Chief Executive Officer in January 2019. As CEO of Unilever, Jope is responsible for leading one of the world’s largest and most geographically diverse consumer goods businesses, with presence in 190 countries. Jope joined Unilever in the UK in 1985. Before being appointed as CEO, he served as President of Unilever’s Beauty & Personal Care Division from 2014. He also worked in leadership roles in North America for 14 years and Asia for 13 years. When leading Unilever's business in China, Alan doubled its size and laid important foundations for future success. Jope is a Vice Chair of the WBCSD Executive Committee, a member of the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council, and on the Board of Directors of the Consumer Goods Forum and FCLT Global (Focusing Capital on the Long Term). He is Chair of the Generation Unlimited Board of Trustees, a Vice Chair of the Unstereotype Alliance and a private sector Steering Committee member of the UN’s Generation Equality campaign. Jope holds a BA Hons in Commerce from Edinburgh University and graduated from Harvard Business School's General Management Program in 2001. Jope is married and has three adult children. 

kate gordon

Kate Gordon

CEO, California Forward

Kate Gordon is the CEO of California Forward, a statewide organization dedicated to a more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive economy across every region of the state. Kate Gordon has spent the past two decades working at the intersection of climate change, energy policy, and equitable economic development. Most recently, Gordon served as Senior Advisor to U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, where she led a variety of place-based initiatives to help drive a more sustainable and resilient energy transition, including creating the agency’s “Community Benefits Plan” requirement for funding applicants. Gordon continues to serve on the Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board (SEAB). Prior to her time in the Biden-Harris administration, Gordon served for several years in California state government as the Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and Senior Climate Policy Advisor to Governor Gavin Newsom. In this role, Gordon launched or led several initiatives to better integrate climate and economic development strategy across the state. Gordon’s policy work in California earned her California Forward’s 2022 California Steward Leader Award. Before entering public service, Gordon served in senior leadership positions at several nonpartisan think tanks including the Henry M. Paulson Institute, the Center for the Next Generation, the Center for American Progress, and the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University. Gordon got her start on energy and climate issues working at the national Apollo Alliance, where she ultimately served as co-Executive Director until the merger with the Blue-Green Alliance in 2011. Gordon earned a J.D. and a Masters in City and Regional Planning from the University of California-Berkeley, and an undergraduate degree from Wesleyan University. 

Charles Hudson

Charles Hudson

Founder and Managing Partner, Precursor Ventures

Charles Hudson is the Managing Partner and Founder of Precursor Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm focused on investing in the first institutional round of investment for the most promising software and hardware companies. Prior to founding Precursor Ventures, Charles was a Partner at SoftTech VC. In this role, he focused on identifying investment opportunities in mobile infrastructure.

Richard Kerby

Richard Kerby

Co-founder and General Partner, Equal Ventures

Richard is Co-Founder and General Partner at Equal Ventures. Prior to co-founding Equal Ventures, Richard was an investor at Venrock, where he led seed-stage and Series A stage investments in 6Sense, Amino Apps, Beckon, Burner, Luxe Valet, and Salsify. Prior to joining Venrock, Richard was an investor at Institutional Venture Partners (IVP), where he focused on identifying and evaluating later-stage investments. While at IVP, Richard worked with IVP portfolio companies such as Dropbox, FleetMatics, PopSugar, Shazam, and Yext. Prior to joining IVP, Richard worked in the Investment Banking Division of Credit Suisse. Richard is a proud Georgetown alum and is a rabid Hoyas basketball fan. Richard is also the founder of Stealth Mode, a community of more than 1,500 African American founders, operators and investors.

 

Monique Woodard

Monique Woodard

Founder, Cake Ventures

Monique Woodard is the Managing Director at Cake Ventures, a venture capital fund that invests in the future of technology being driven by major demographic trends. Her investments as a venture capital and angel investor include Blavity, Encantos, Silvernest, Court Buddy, Gemist, and many others. Previously, Monique was a Venture Partner at 500 Startups where she invested in the US and Africa, a Venture Scout at Lightspeed Venture Partners, and has been a trusted advisor to foundations and venture capital firms like SoftBank. Before moving onto the investor side of the table, Monique spent 15+ years in the tech industry and she has been a startup founder, product-focused operator, and started a national community of tech entrepreneurs. Monique invests in companies with global ambitions who are creating technology products that meet the needs of tomorrow’s internet users.

Jason Kalirai, Ph.D.

Jason Kalirai, Ph.D.

Mission Area Executive for Civil Space, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

Dr. Jason Kalirai is the Mission Area Executive for Civil Space in the Space Exploration Sector. He joined APL in November 2018 and is leading the implementation of innovative and cost-effective solutions to critical civil space challenges by developing space science missions, instruments, and research programs. Prior to joining APL, Dr. Kalirai served as the multi-mission project scientist at NASA’s Space Telescope Science Institute. He has published over 100 research papers on topics related to stellar and galactic evolution and was won numerous awards for his achievements. Dr. Kalirai earned his Bachelor of Science in physics and astronomy, his Master of Science in astrophysics, and his PhD in astrophysics from the University of British Columbia. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship as a Hubble Fellow at the University of California at Santa Cruz. 

Kristen Roby Dimlow

Caryl Stern

Executive Director, Walton Family Foundation

Caryl M. Stern is the executive director of the Walton Family Foundation. Previously, she was president and CEO of UNICEF USA. A dynamic change-maker, Caryl has dedicated her career to helping others through education, compassion, advocacy and rolling up her sleeves. Since 2007, she has served as president and CEO of UNICEF USA, an organization that supports UNICEF’s lifesaving work to put children first. Caryl has traveled to more than 30 countries in support of UNICEF’s work and has spearheaded UNICEF USA’s emergency relief efforts for children affected by disasters, including the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the 2011 East Africa drought, the Ebola and Zika epidemics and the ongoing global refugee and migrant crisis. A sought-after public speaker on the topics of Kids Helping Kids, children and philanthropy, anti-bullying and international development, Caryl was invited to present at the White House’s inaugural summit on The United State of Women and was named one of "25 Women Changing the World in 2017" by People Magazine, “20 Most Influential Moms of 2017” by Family Circle, “25 Moms We Love” by Working Mother Magazine and “Ten Women to Watch” by Jewish Women International. She serves on the boards of directors of The Container Store and the We Are Family Foundation. In addition, Caryl is a member of the Advisory Board of Chime for Change and a trustee of The World’s Big Sleep Out. Prior to joining UNICEF USA, Caryl was an executive at the Anti-Defamation League, the founding director of its A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute, and the Dean of Students at Polytechnic University. Caryl is an activist, author, executive, public speaker, mother of three and grandmother of two. 

Kristen Roby Dimlow

J. Raymond DePaulo Jr., M.D.

Co-director, Mood Disorders Center, Johns Hopkins Medicine

J. Raymond DePaulo, Jr., M.D. is a University Distinguished Service Professor and co-director of the Mood Disorder Center in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He has been an active clinician, teacher and researcher throughout his 39 years on the Johns Hopkins faculty. He founded the Hopkins Affective Disorders Clinic in 1977 and grew it into a multifaceted program that led patient care, teaching and research on depression and bipolar disorder at Johns Hopkins. Dr. DePaulo was the Henry Phipps Professor, director of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and psychiatrist-in-chief at the Johns Hopkins Hospital from 2002 until 2016. Dr. DePaulo’s research interests focus on clinical assessment, diagnosis, causes and treatments of mood disorders. His research group led several early genetic studies of bipolar disorder and unipolar depression. He has authored over 140 peer-reviewed scientific articles and mentored outstanding clinician scientists. Dr. DePaulo worked with Dr. Karen Swartz, who leads the Adolescent Depression Awareness Program, which developed, teaches and studies a model curriculum on depression for high schools. He has partnered with Dr. Kay Jamison in research, education and advocacy efforts for patients and families. Dr. DePaulo is now the chair of the board of directors of the National Network of Depression Centers. He has served on several foundation boards of directors and scientific advisory boards related to mood disorders. Dr. DePaulo has authored two books on depressive illnesses for patients and families (Understanding Depression and How to Cope with Depression). He has won a number of national awards for clinical leadership, teaching and research in depression and bipolar disorder. He has twice been named a Forum Fellow at the World Economic Forum, held annually in Davos, Switzerland. 

 

Kristen Roby Dimlow

Kristen Roby Dimlow

Corporate Vice President, Human Resources, Microsoft

Kristen Roby Dimlow is responsible for Total Rewards, Performance and HR Business Insights at Microsoft, which includes broad-based global compensation, executive compensation, U.S. benefits, international benefits strategy and philosophy, global mobility and relocation, performance management, stock design and administration, M&A, and HR Business Insights which is Microsoft’s people analytics function. Roby Dimlow is a 20-plus year Microsoft veteran who spent the first half of her Microsoft career in corporate finance controller positions, including for Office, Windows, Server and Xbox. She moved to HR in 2002, leading university recruiting, and transitioned to engineering line leader roles in Windows, Platforms and Services Division, Online Services and Devices. In September 2016, Roby Dimlow returned to Microsoft after serving as chief human resources officer of F5 Networks, where she led all HR functions, including compensation and benefits, working regularly with its compensation committee and board. Prior to her first Microsoft tour, Roby Dimlow held finance leadership roles at Walt Disney Studios, most recently as VP finance for Disney TeleVentures. Prior to Disney, Roby Dimlow was a financial analyst at GE and completed the Financial Management Program. Roby Dimlow holds a B.B.A. in management from the College of William and Mary. 

Richard Frank, Ph.D.

Richard Frank, Ph.D.

Professor of Health Economics, Harvard Medical School

Richard Frank, Ph.D., is the Margaret T. Morris Professor of Health Economics. His research is focused on the economics of mental health and substance abuse care, long-term care financing policy, health care competition and implementation of health reform and disability policy. He served as the deputy assistant secretary for planning and evaluation at the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), directing the Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy from 2009 to 2011. From 2014 to 2016, he served as the DHHS assistant secretary for planning and evaluation. Dr. Frank served as an editor for the Journal of Health Economics for nine years. He was awarded the Carl A. Taube Award from the American Public Health Association and the John Eisenberg Mentorship Award from the National Research Service Awards. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. He received the AcademyHealth Distinguished Investigator Award in June 2018. He is co-author with Sherry Glied of the book Better but Not Well. Dr. Frank received his BA in economics from Bard University and his Ph.D. in economics from Boston University. 

lynelle cameron

Lynelle Cameron

Vice President, Sustainability; CEO, Autodesk Foundation

Lynelle Cameron has over 20 years of experience helping large and small companies capitalize on market opportunities related to sustainability and climate change. Her career reflects a demonstrated track record leading large-scale transformative work spanning the nonprofit, public and private sectors. Cameron is currently Vice President of Sustainability at Autodesk and CEO of the Autodesk Foundation. She leads a team transforming the design, manufacturing and construction industries to capitalize on the business opportunities of a low-carbon economy. Through the Autodesk Foundation, she has invested over $40 million in entrepreneurs and innovators who are designing solutions to climate change and inequality. Under her leadership, Autodesk has won numerous awards for sustainability, climate leadership and philanthropy. Cameron is proving that companies can do well by doing good – in ways that strengthen brand reputation, recruit and retain the next generation of employees, and deliver financial results to shareholders. This year, Autodesk was ranked #5 most sustainable company in the world by Corporate Knights and #10 by Barron's. A cultural anthropologist by training, Cameron has lived and worked in many parts of the world at the intersection of conservation and economic development with WWF, TMI, and NOLS. Cameron brings her expertise in strategy, governance and management to the Boards of Innovators International, CEH, UC Berkeley CRB, Biomimicry 3.0. She is also the Executive Sponsor of the Autodesk Women’s Network, an organization that aims to bring gender diversity to every decision-making table. 

R. David Edelman, Ph.D.

Brian Rice

Portfolio Manager, CalSTRS

Brian Rice is a portfolio manager in the CalSTRS Sustainable Investment and Stewardship Strategies unit and has been leading sustainability efforts at CalSTRS for over 15 years. He is responsible for the CalSTRS sustainable manager portfolio, a $2.2 billion externally managed public equity strategy that employs fund managers incorporating ESG factors into their investment portfolio construction and management. Rice also leads the CalSTRS Transition to a Low Carbon Economy initiative, a cross-asset class effort focused on managing physical and transitional investment risks, and implementing investment opportunities associated with climate change. Rice serves on the advisory board of the Climate Bonds Initiative and the Strategic Investor Initiative, and on the advisory committee of the Ceres Water Hub. He received an M.B.A. from the U.C. Davis Graduate School of Management and a bachelor’s degree in economics-business from UCLA. 

 

R. David Edelman, Ph.D.

R. David Edelman, Ph.D.

MIT Scholar and Former White House Tech Adviser

MIT scholar, Presidential advisor, and leading technologist R. David Edelman is one of the nation's foremost authorities on how new innovations are changing life and business around the globe. Dubbed the nation’s “Chief Cyber Diplomat,” his insights on issues like artificial intelligence (A.I.), cybersecurity, data ethics, and the geopolitics of technology have shaped national and international policy at the highest levels. Dr. Edelman served in the Bush and Obama Administrations, rising to become the youngest­ever Director named to the U.S. National Security Council. As Special Assistant to the President, he led the White House economic team’s work on technology, media, and telecom policy. He currently teaches at MIT and leads its Project on Technology, the Economy, & National Security. A sought­after counselor to CEOs and Boards on managing technological disruption, Dr. Edelman has a unique ability to clearly communicate these complex topics, making them both accessible and engaging. His insights and analysis have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, WIRED, Forbes, Fortune, and on CNBC, MSNBC, and numerous international outlets. At MIT, Dr. Edelman leads an interdisciplinary team of researchers, students, and policymakers to address the challenges created by technological disruption – from the international concern of cyberattacks to the economic and regulatory consequences of A.I. and autonomous vehicles. He holds joint appointments in the Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL) and the Center for International Studies (CIS). At the White House, Dr. Edelman led the development of and co­authored over a dozen legislative proposals, national strategies, Executive Orders, and Presidential policy reviews. As Director for Cybersecurity and International Cyber Policy at the National Security Council, he penned the government’s principal doctrine on cybersecurity and Internet issues within U.S. foreign policy. As chief architect of the President’s ConnectED initiative, Edelman managed the $10 billion effort that brought broadband to over 30 million American students in their classrooms. As Special Assistant to the President, he led White House engagement with top executives at over 100 companies in the technology, media, and telecom sectors and managed the Administration’s policy development on issues like net neutrality, consumer privacy, and patent reform. Prior to his time at the White House, Edelman served at the State Department’s Office of Cyber Affairs, and as the United States’ lead negotiator on Internet issues at the United Nations, where he received the Department’s Superior Honor Award and twice received its Meritorious Honor Award. He was named one of Forbes’ “30 Under 30” leaders in Law & Policy. He holds a B.A. from Yale University in History, and a Master’s and Doctorate in International Relations at Oxford University. His groundbreaking dissertation, “Cyberattacks in International Relations,” examined which forces might restrain state use of cyberattacks.

doug baker

Carla Hayden, Ph.D.

Librarian of Congress

Carla Hayden, Ph.D., was sworn in as the 14th librarian of Congress on September 14, 2016. Dr. Hayden, the first woman and the first African American to lead the national library, was nominated to the position by President Obama on February 24, 2016, and her nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 13. Prior to her latest post, she served, since 1993, as CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Hayden was nominated by President Obama to be a member of the National Museum and Library Services Board in January 2010 and was confirmed to that post by the Senate in June 2010. Prior to joining the Pratt Library, Dr. Hayden was deputy commissioner and chief librarian of the Chicago Public Library from 1991 to 1993. She was an assistant professor for library and information science at the University of Pittsburgh from 1987 to 1991. Dr. Hayden was library services coordinator for the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago from 1982 to 1987. She began her career with the Chicago Public Library as the young adult services coordinator from 1979 to 1982 and as a library associate and children’s librarian from 1973 to 1979. Dr. Hayden was president of the American Library Association from 2003 to 2004. In 1995, she was the first African American to receive Library Journal’s Librarian of the Year Award in recognition of her outreach services at the Pratt Library, which included an after-school center for Baltimore teens offering homework assistance and college and career counseling. Dr. Hayden received a B.A. from Roosevelt University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the Graduate Library School of the University of Chicago.

doug baker

Ziad Ahmed

Founder and CEO, JUV Consulting

Ziad Ahmed is an 20-year-old junior at Yale University. He is an unapologetic American-Muslim-Bangladeshi student activist, entrepreneur, and speaker. He is the CEO/Co-founder of JUV Consulting (www.juvconsulting.com), a Generation Z consultancy that works with clients to help them reach young people. The company has worked with over 20 Fortune 500 companies, has been profiled by The New York Times, and has established full-time offices in Times Square. As a result of JUV, Ahmed was named to the 2019 Forbes #30Under30 list at 19-years-old. Ahmed started the company in 2016 (while in high school), and JUV keeps growing as the need to better understand young folks is just getting greater. Ahmed also founded a nonproift, Redefy (www.redefy.org), committed to furthering equality in 2013. Redefy has reached hundreds of thousands of young people digitally, has established chapters in 10+ countries around the world, and has been honored as a part of the Facebook Community Leadership Program. Through Redefy, Ahmed has been recognized as a 2017 Global Teen Leader, a High School Trailblazer by MTV, and a Top 15 Young Prodigy Changing the World by Business Insider. Additionally, he has given four TEDxTalks, has spoken at forums such as the Council on Foreign Relations, has commentated for networks such as CNN, has written for publications such as Teen Vogue, and serves on boards such as the Marketing Advisory Board for DoSomething.org. He tries to use his voice wherever helpful to push the envelope -- and tries to pass the mic as often as possible.

doug baker

Joel Flory

Co-founder and CEO, VSCO

As the co-founder and CEO of VSCO, Joel Flory leads the company on its mission to help everybody fall in love with their own creativity. Flory and his co-founder, Greg Lutze, combined their passions for photography and technology to build VSCO in 2011. Prior to founding VSCO, Flory was a successful commercial and wedding photographer. A Bay Area native, Flory is deeply involved in the local Oakland community. He graduated from California Polytechnic State University with a degree in industrial technology.

 

doug baker

Denise Villa, Ph.D.

CEO, Center for Generational Kinetics

Denise Villa, Ph.D., is the CEO of The Center for Generational Kinetics. She leads CGK's global research, speaking, and consulting services, which now serves over 700 clients worldwide. Dr. Villa has delivered CGK’s research findings to audiences across the U.S., from HR Summits to global media companies. She has served as a Gen Z and Millennial expert on corporate panels and presented research at SXSW Interactive and at events in industries including student housing, real estate, technology, and financial services. Her Gen Z research led to a feature story in The Washington Post, and she’s been quoted as a generational expert in The Wall Street Journal. Dr. Villa has led several organizations, served on non-profit boards, actively advises startups, and was recognized as a Profiles of Power and Women’s Way finalist. Dr. Villa began her career as a middle school science teacher before becoming a middle school and high school administrator. She worked in urban, rural, and suburban schools. She continues to follower her passion for education by serving on the Women @ Austin Advisory Council, Philanthropitch Advisory Board, and as the incoming President of Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) Austin. A first-generation college student, Dr. Villa completed her undergraduate work at The University of Texas at Austin and her graduate work at Texas State University. She enjoys running marathons, adventure races, and attending sporting events, especially UT football. Dr. Villa is passionate about Gen Z and how they will change the world. Her forthcoming book, Zconomy: How Gen Z Will Change the Future of Business—and What To Do About It, will be released by HarperCollins in September 2020.

doug baker

Doug Baker

Chairman and CEO, Ecolab Inc.

Doug Baker is chairman of the board and CEO of Ecolab Inc., the global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services that protect people and vital resources. Ecolab recently ranked #2 on Newsweek's annual Green Rankings list, #8 on Corporate Responsibility's list of Best Corporate Citizens and #26 on Barron's list of Most Sustainable Companies. The company regularly appears on Fortune's list of the World's Most Admired Companies and has been named to Ethisphere's list of the World's Most Ethical Companies for 13 consecutive years. Baker joined Ecolab in 1989, following seven years in brand management at Procter & Gamble. At Ecolab, he held a number of marketing and general management roles in the U.S. and Europe before becoming president and CEO in July 2004. In May 2006, Baker added chairman of the board to his duties. In addition to his Ecolab responsibilities, Baker serves on the board of directors of Target Corporation. He is trustee emeritus of the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation and, a member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, and is involved in a number of community initiatives in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Baker received a bachelor's degree in English from College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, and serves on the college's board of trustees.

Jon Meacham

Andy Rothman

Investment Strategist, Matthews Asia

Andy Rothman is an investment strategist at Matthews Asia. He is principally responsible for developing research focused on China’s ongoing economic and political developments while also complementing the broader investment team with in-depth analysis on Asia. In addition, Rothman plays a key role in communicating to clients and the media the firm’s perspectives and latest insights into China and the greater Asia region. Prior to joining Matthews Asia in 2014, Rothman spent 14 years as CLSA’s China macroeconomic strategist, where he conducted analysis into China and delivered his insights to its clients. Previously, Rothman spent 17 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, with a diplomatic career focused on China, including as head of the macroeconomics and domestic policy office of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. In total, Rothman has lived and worked in China for more than 20 years. He earned an M.A. in public administration from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and a B.A. from Colgate University. He is a proficient Mandarin speaker.

linda yueh

Linda Yueh, Ph.D.

Fellow in Economics, St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford; Adjunct Professor of Economics, London Business School

Dr. Yueh is Fellow in Economics at St Edmund Hall, Oxford University and Adjunct Professor of Economics at London Business School. She is Visiting Professor at LSE IDEAS, London School of Economics and Political Science's foreign policy centre, and Associate Fellow (Global Economy and Finance Department & U.S. and the Americas Programme) at Chatham House. Professor Yueh is Chair of the LSE Economic Diplomacy Commission. She was Visiting Professor of Economics at Peking University. She is a TV and radio presenter, including for BBC Radio 4 and the World Service, as well as having fronted BBC TV series, such as The New Middle Class, Next Billionaires, and Working Lives. Dr. Yueh is Chair of the Royal Commonwealth Society and Trustee of the Coutts Foundation and Malaria No More UK. She is a Non-Executive Director of the following publicly listed companies on the London Stock Exchange: Rentokil Initial, a FTSE 100 company, Fidelity China Special Situations PLC, a FTSE 250 investment trust, and Chair of Baillie Gifford's The Schiehallion Fund, listed on the Specialist Fund Segment of the Main Market. She serves on the Advisory Board of LSE IDEAS and on the Policy Committee of the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP), both at the London School of Economics. She is a Fellow (FRSA) of the Royal Society of Arts. She is a widely published author and Editor of the Routledge Economic Growth and Development book series. Her latest book, The Great Economists: How Their Ideas Can Help Us Today is published by Viking/ Penguin Random House (The Times's Best Business Books of the Year) and What Would the Great Economists Do? How Twelve Brilliant Minds Would Solve Today's Biggest Problems (Newsweek's Best Books of the Year) published by Picador/ Macmillan in the U.S. She is represented by Janklow & Nesbit. She was Chief Business Correspondent for BBC News and presenter of Talking Business with Linda Yueh for BBC World TV and BBC News Channel based in Singapore. She had been Economics Editor and anchor at Bloomberg TV in London. Previously, she was an attorney at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in New York. Professor Yueh has advised the World Bank, European Commission, Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum in Davos, among others. She was a Non-Executive Director of the LSE-listed companies: JPMorgan Asian Investment Trust and Baillie Gifford's Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust. She was previously Co-Chair of the Global Cities Business Alliance (GCBA) of London First; Board Member of London & Partners; Advisory Board Member of The Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF); advisor to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC); and Advisory Board member of the Huxley Summit 2019.

 

Jon Meacham

Yascha Mounk, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Practice, International Affairs, Johns Hopkins University

Yascha Mounk, Ph.D., is a writer, academic and public speaker known for his work on the rise of populism and the crisis of liberal democracy. Born in Germany to Polish parents, Dr. Mounk received his B.A. in history from Trinity College, Cambridge, and his Ph.D. in government from Harvard University. He is now an associate professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University, where he holds appointments in both the School of Advanced International Studies and the Agora Institute. Dr. Mounk is also a senior advisor at Protect Democracy, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, a senior fellow at Harvard's Ash Center for Democratic Governance, a senior fellow at New York University's Reiss Center on Law and Security, and a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Mounk has written three books: Stranger in My Own Country: A Jewish Family in Modern Germany, a memoir about Germany’s fraught attempts to deal with its past; The Age of Responsibility: Luck, Choice and the Welfare State, which argues that a growing obsession with the concept of individual responsibility has transformed Western welfare states; and The People versus Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It, which explains the causes of the populist rise and investigates how to renew liberal democracy. His latest book has been translated into 11 languages and hailed as one of 2018's best books of the year by multiple publications, including the Financial Times. A contributing editor at The Atlantic, Dr. Mounk regularly writes for newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, The New Yorker and Foreign Affairs. He is also is also a regular columnist or contributor for major international publications, including Die Zeit, La Repubblica l'Express, Folha de Sao Paolo, Kultura Liberalna and Letras Libres.

Jon Meacham

Josh Silverman

CEO, Etsy

Josh Silverman is Etsy's Chief Executive Officer, leading the company as it builds a platform that empowers creative entrepreneurs around the world. He is also a member of Etsy's board of directors. Silverman’s two decades of leadership experience include growing consumer technology companies and scaling global marketplaces. He previously served as president of Consumer Products and Services at American Express, CEO of Skype, and CEO of shopping.com, and he held various executive roles at eBay. Earlier in his career, Josh co-founded Evite, Inc. where he also served as the company's CEO. He is currently on the board of directors of Shake Shack. Silverman has a deep commitment to community and civic engagement. He currently serves as Chairman of Code Nation, a nonprofit that equips students in under-resourced schools with both fundamental coding skills and professional experiences. He's also a member of the Stanford Business School Management board and was previously on the board of the Lincoln Center Theater.

Jon Meacham

Tamara Lundgren

Chairman, President and CEO,
Schnitzer Steel

Tamara Lundgren is the chairman, president and CEO of Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. SSI is one of the largest publicly traded (Nasdaq: SCHN) manufacturers and exporters of recycled metals in North America, operating 100 facilities throughout North America, including seven deep-water ports located on both coasts of the U.S. and Puerto Rico and a retail auto parts business with over five million annual retail visits. SSI’s vertically integrated operating platform also includes its steel manufacturing business, which manufactures finished steel products used in infrastructure and commercial projects. Lundgren joined SSI in 2005 as chief strategy officer and held positions of increasing responsibility, including executive vice president and COO. Lundgren was appointed president and CEO in 2008. Prior to joining SSI, Lundgren was an investment banker and lawyer with 25 years of experience in the U.S. and Europe. Lundgren was a managing director at JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank in London and New York. Earlier, she was a partner in the Washington, D.C., law firm of Hogan Lovells (then Hogan & Hartson, LLP). Lundgren is a member of the board of directors of Ryder System Inc., Parsons Corporation and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, and the executive committee of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. She has served as the chair of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber and has been a frequent speaker on infrastructure and trade policy. Lundgren serves on the president’s Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, having been appointed by President Obama in 2016 and reappointed by President Trump. Lundgren is also a member of the Business Roundtable and the President’s Advisory Council of Wellesley College. Lundgren earned a B.A. from Wellesley College and a J.D. from the Northwestern University School of Law.

Jon Meacham

Jon Meacham

Historian and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author

Jon Meacham is one of Americas most prominent public intellectuals. A contributor to TIME and The New York Times Book Review, Meacham is a highly sought-after commentator, regularly appearing on CNN and MSNBC. Known as a skilled orator with a depth of knowledge about politics, religion, and current affairs, Meacham brings historical context to the issues and events impacting our daily lives. His latest #1 New York Times best-seller, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels, examines the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in U.S. history when hope overcame division and fear. Meacham is a co-author of the recently released book Impeachment: An American History, which reveals the complicated motives behind the three impeachments in U.S. history. Meacham’s presidential biography, Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush, debuted at #1 on the New York Times' best-sellers list. The New York Times said, “Destiny and Power reflects the qualities of both subject and biographer: judicious, balanced, deliberative, with a deep appreciation of history and the personalities who shape it.” Meacham delivered eulogies for both President George H.W. Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush. Meacham's #1 New York Times best-seller, Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, was hailed as "masterful and intimate" by Fortune magazine. His other national bestsellers include Franklin and Winston, American Gospel, and American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2009. A contributing editor at TIME, Meacham writes for the magazine’s Ideas section. He also pens “The Long View” column in The New York Times Book Review, in which he “looks back at books that speak to our current historical and cultural moment.” He served as Newsweek's managing editor from 1998 to 2006 and editor from 2006 to 2010. The New York Times called him “one of the most influential editors in the news magazine business.” Meacham is a frequent guest on Morning Joe, Real Time with Bill Maher and The 11th Hour, and was featured in Ken Burns’ documentary series The Roosevelts: An Intimate History. Fox News produced an hour long special about Meacham’s Destiny and Power in November 2015. Named a “Global Leader for Tomorrow” by the World Economic Forum, he is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a fellow of the Society of American Historians and chairs the National Advisory Board of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University. Meacham is a distinguished visiting professor of history at The University of the South and a visiting distinguished professor at Vanderbilt. He is currently at work on a biography of James and Dolley Madison.

 

 

About NOW

We launched Navigating Our World in 2008 to mark our 10th anniversary as an independent firm. Each NOW conference is meant to embody our commitment to seeking fresh and diverse views, learning from experts across disciplines, and challenging conventional assumptions. While we have shifted our conference format to a podcast series due to the pandemic, we remain steadfast in our belief that thoughtful inquiry, encompassing varied perspectives, helps us make better decisions for clients and makes us more effective contributors to our communities. As a firm, we aspire to raise the future—and NOW helps us get there.

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