World Summit 2011 Presenters

 Presenters:

KAEL ALFORD, Documentary Photographer, Writer and Journalist

Kael takes an immersive and long term approach to the subjects she reports including political conflict, underrepresented communities, cultural identity, and the human relationship to the natural environment. Her photography about the impact of the U.S. - led invasion of Iraq on Iraqi civilians is widely exhibited and included in the book: Unembedded: Four Independent Photojournalists on the War in Iraq.  more>

GUILHERME AZEVEDO, Editor, Jornalirismo 

Guilherme Azevedo was born in São Paulo, Brazil. He graduated in Journalism and Literature and started his career working at Folha de S.Paulo, the biggest newspaper in Brazil, as a newsroom trainee. He has worked at Folha for six years, as a copywriter, reporter and editor. Since 2007, Guilherme has been the Jornalirismo´s organizer and editor. Jornalirismo, as he says, is poetry and risk. It is a humble attempt to combine journalism and literature to report reality with free eyes, generosity and depth. Guilherme has already published four books, such as As aventuras de Alencar Almeida, o repórter ("The adventures of Alencar Almeida, reporter") and Propaganda popular brasileira ("Brazilian popular advertising").

SEKOU ANDREWS, Poet

Sekou Andrews has inspired audiences across America through two national tours, The Underground Poets Railroad - which traveled the route of the Underground Railroad to raise funds for the families of fallen firefighters in 9/11 - and Declare Yourself - which registered over 1 million new voters. Andrews has also won the National Poetry Slam championship twice, has shared the stage with artists including Jay-Z, Steve Wonder, Carlos Santana and Maroon 5 and has been featured on ABC World News, MSNBC, Good Morning America, HBO, Showtime, MTV and BET. more>

ROBERTA BASKIN, Investigative Journalist

Investigative journalist Roberta Baskin has won more than 75 journalism prizes, including three Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Journalism Awards, two George Foster Peabody Awards, the Investigative Reporters and Editors Award, the Radio-Television News Directors Edward R. Murrow Award, and numerous Emmys. But her proudest achievements are righting wrongs, changing laws, and transforming the way companies do business. more>

NICK BUETTNER, Executive Producer & Founder, Quest

Nick Buettner is an explorer and Executive Producer of innovative, cross-media learning experiences that empower people to explore and improve on the world around them. He is co-founder of the nationally acclaimed and ground-breaking Quest educational program, which integrates technology with classrooms, allowing students to interact with scientists and global leaders to build 21st-century skills. Nick's mission is to inspire in students a lifelong passion for learning, discovery, and understanding, while allowing teachers to make the broader world their classroom.

ANN DeMARLE, Associate Professor and Director, Emergent Media Center (EMC), Champlain College

Formerly the founding director of both the Multimedia and Graphic Design and the Electronic Game baccalaureate programs at Champlain College, DeMarle was awarded an endowment to create the EMC. Her current project is BREAKAWAY; an episodic global, online game sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund with the goal of changing behavior around violence against women. more>

HUBERT HAYAUD, Photojournalist and Editor

Hubert Hayaud is a photojournalist and editor based in Montréal. In his editing studio he organizes, transforms, fashions and refashions 24 images per second of feature films and documentaries. This is probably the reason that once he's fixed on his goal he concentrates on simplicity and authenticity. In photography as in life he is curious, demanding, passionate, and sensitive to the world and those around him. His work has been featured in Geo, Ulysse, Leica Photography International and many others.

DANIEL HEIMPEL, Director, Fostering Media Connections

Daniel Heimpel is the Director of Fostering Media Connections, a project of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute. FMC harnesses the power of journalism and media to drive public and political will behind policy and practice that improve the well being of children in foster care. As FMC's project director and founder, Heimpel is working to recruit an "army of journalists" who he hopes will cover foster care with the same intensity as he does. Heimpel has written and produced stories about foster care for the Los Angeles Daily News, Newsweek, the Seattle Times, the Huffington Post, Current TV and the San Jose Mercury News among many other outlets. more>

KEMY JOSEPH, President, U R Awesome

Kemy Joseph aka Mr. U R Awesome is the President of U R Awesome Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to reminding people that they are AWESOME! Brightening days and lifting spirits are part of Mr. U R Awesome's daily routine. In fact, he wears a sign around his neck offing free hugs, high-fives and peaceful-pounds to everyone he comes in contact with. Sharing random acts of kindness in addition to wearing inspirational signs with phrases like "U R Awesome", "Love Who You Are" and "Smiles Go Miles" have helped Kemy touch the hearts of friends and strangers alike for over 5 years! He founded U R Awesome Inc. in the hopes of helping others to do the same on a global scale. "I'm simply trying to help bring love, kindness and awesomeness back to the forefront of our society. The world needs love, now more than ever." Kemy explains.

JAMES LERAGER, Photographer & Author

James Lerager is a social documentary photographer, author of the book In The Shadow Of The Cloud: Photographs and Histories of America’s Atomic Veterans, and the forthcoming books Nuclear History - Nuclear Destiny and Mexico: Portraits of Complexity.  James has mounted 35 solo photography exhibitions in the United States, Europe, and Latin America, and published in some 30 countries. He holds a Masters in Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley. James received Fulbright Fellowships to teach and photograph in Medellín, Colombia (2004–2005 and 2007). He is currently director of the Documentary Photography and Research Project and photography editor for the academic journal Latin American Perspectives.

ERIC LERESTE, Senior Producer, Le Téléjournal

Eric Le Reste is the Senior Producer for Canadian Public Television's daily show Le Téléjournal. He has been with the CBC for the past 25 years, working as a journalist and producer for national radio and television programs in Edmonton, Calgary and now in Montreal. Many of his documentaries have received prestigious awards, including the CBC National Television Price for best Documentary in 2001. more>

MELISSA LUDTKE, Editor, Nieman Reports

Melissa Ludtke is the editor of Nieman Reports, a quarterly magazine about journalism published by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University, and editor of niemanreports.org, the publication's website. She also is the author of On Our Own: Unmarried Motherhood in America.

As a baseball reporter at Sports Illustrated, she was the plaintiff in a successful 1977 federal lawsuit (Ludtke v. Kuhn) in which women reporters gained equal access that enable them to interview with major league athletes in their locker rooms. This landmark case led to a significant increase in the number of women entering various sports media in the decades since.  more>

MICHAEL FITZPATRICK, Acclaimed Cellist

Michael Fitzpatrick is the recipient of the Prince Charles Award for Outstanding Musicianship conferred by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. An acclaimed acoustic-cellist and 5-string electric-cellist, Fitzpatrick has performed around the world including in the former Soviet Union, Australia, Spain, France, Italy, Jordan, India, Romania and Switzerland. At the forefront of utilizing music as a vehicle for inducing feelings of peace, Fitzpatrick has worked closely with His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama for the past 14 years on the Compassion Rising project.  more>

SIMON MAINWARING, Founder, We First and Author, We First: How Brands and Consumers Use Social Media to Build a Better World

Simon Mainwaring is an award-winning branding consultant, bestselling author, influential blogger and international speaker. He is the founder of We First, a social branding consultancy committed to helping brands build communities, profit and positive impact. He is an Expert Blogger for Fast Company as well as contributing to Huffington Post, Mashable, and GOOD Magazine. Simon's first book, We First was a New York Times, Wall Street Journal,  , Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Publisher's Weekly bestseller. more>

STEPHANIE PACE MARSHALL, Pioneer, Leader, Teacher and Inspiring Speaker and Writer

Stephanie Pace Marshall is internationally recognized as a pioneer and innovative leader and teacher and an inspiring speaker and writer on leadership, learning and schooling, and the design of generative and life-affirming learning organizations. She is the author of The Power to Transform: Leadership That Brings Learning and Schooling to Life as well as over 35 published journal articles. more>

PHILLIP MARTIN, Senior Investigative Reporter, WGBH and Executive Producer, Lifted Veils Productions, Inc.

Phillip Martin is Senior Investigative Reporter for WGBH 89.7 in Boston. He is also Executive Producer for Lifted Veils Productions, Inc., a non-profit public radio journalism company dedicated to exploring issues that divide and unite society. Currently he is heading up the Color Initiative on the BBC/WGBH/PRI program The World, an ongoing radio-journalism project focused on the role of skin color world-wide. He was one of several former senior producers responsible for creating the World national radio program. more>

BARBARA McAFEE, Voice Coach & Singer and Founder, Morning Star Singers

Given her own remarkable recovery from paralyzing stage fright, Barbara is walking (singing) evidence of the transformational power of the voice. In her 20 years as a voice coach, she's been helping leaders, coaches, consultants, physicians, shower singers, and teenagers to "find their voice" - whatever that means to them. She synthesizes her experience in her book Full Voice: The Art & Practice of Vocal Presence, due out in fall of 2011.   more>

DEAN MILLER, Director, Center for News Literacy

Dean Miller was named Director of the Center for News Literacy on August 25, 2009. The center, established in September 2007 and housed at Stony Brook University's School of Journalism, is the nation's first Center for News Literacy designed to educate current and future news consumers on how to judge the credibility and reliability of news.  more>

WU NAN, Neiman Fellow, Harvard University

Wu Nan currently is a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University. She has worked as a journalist and multimedia editor for eight years mostly in Beijing for publications such as the Chinese Edition of the Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe and NetEase portal, the third largest independent online news service in China. Especially her experience at NetEase gives her insight of the future of online media in China. She has a master degree in Journalism from the Graduate School of Journalism at U. C. Berkeley.

GAYATRI NARAINE, SPIRITUAL WRITER, EDUCATOR AND SPEAKER

Gayatri Naraine has been a part of Images and Voices of Hope since its inception, working as one of the main organizers of the first IVoH Conversation in New York City in 1999 and helping to facilitate conversations in various locations around the world. Since 1980 she has been the Brahma Kumaris' representative to the United Nations in New York. She recently co-authored Something Beyond Greatness: Conversations with a Man of Science and a Woman of God, a search for what gives rise to acts of heroism and generosity. more>

MARK NEPO, Poet & Philosopher

Mark Nepo is a poet and philosopher who has taught in the fields of poetry and spirituality for over thirty-five years. A New York Times #1 bestselling author, he has published twelve books and recorded six audio projects. Recent work includes a new book of teaching stories, As Far As the Heart Can See, and a book of poetry, Surviving Has Made Me Crazy. As a cancer survivor, Mark devotes his writing and teaching to the journey of inner transformation and the life of relationship.  more>

STEPHEN OLSSON, Producer and Director

Stephen Olsson has produced and directed documentary films and television series throughout the world. His work has shown in festivals and on television networks on all continents, and has won numerous awards, including the National Emmy Award (for Outstanding Director), the Du-Pont-Columbia Award and the George Foster Peabody Award. His documentary work has often focused on the human condition, social issues and character-driven stories.

B.K. MOHINI PANJABI, SPIRITUAL TEACHER

B.K. Mohini Panjabi is a spiritual teacher, a world server. Her natural wisdom and powerful personality have touched and inspired millions of people throughout the world. She is the Brahma Kumaris' coordinator for North and South America, Latin America, and the Caribbean and the main representative to the United Nations in New York.  more>

CHRISTINA CARVALHO PINTO, President & Owner, Full Jazz Communications Group

Christina Carvalho Pinto is President and owner of the Full Jazz Communications Group and the most recognized feminine name in Brazil's advertising history. She is a tireless defender of deep reforms of the content of media in a more ethical and constructive way. She was the first woman to lead a multinational group in Latin America - the Group Young & Rubicam, where she was a partner for seven years.

MICHAEL SKOLER, VICE PRESIDENT, INTERACTIVE MEDIA, PUBLIC RADIO INTERNATIONAL

Michael Skoler brings people, ideas and funding together to launch new media ventures that entice, engage and include the public. Skoler joined PRI after a year studying unconventional business models for news while he was a 2009-10 Reynolds Journalism Institute Fellow at the Missouri School of Journalism. Previously, he was managing director of news for American Public Media/Minnesota Public Radio, were he created Public Insight Journalism, a new model that efficiently brings newsrooms into partnershp with the audience on defining stories, newsgathering and production. more>

SHERRY TURKLE, Author and Director, MIT Initiative on Technology and Self

Sherry Turkle is Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at MIT and the founder (2001) and current director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self. Professor Turkle's most recent book is Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. Professor Turkle writes on the "subjective side" of people's relationships with technology, especially computers. She is an expert on mobile technology, social networking, and sociable robotics. 

SONALI SAMARASINGHE WICKREMATUNGE, Investigative Journalist

Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge is an award-winning investigative journalist and editor from Sri Lanka. She worked for more than a decade to fight for justice, freedom and accountability in her country. Shortly after her husband was murdered by government sponsored assassins as he travelled to work in January 2009, Samarasinghe herself was driven from her country by threats to her own life.  more>

JENNIFFER WEIGEL, Columnist, Chicago Tribune

Jenniffer Weigel's career started in radio, where she did everything from sports, news and traffic reporting. She spent two years as a movie reviewer and entertainment reporter for superstation WGN-TV before moving over to CBS affiliate WBBM where she was a television news anchor/reporter and honored with an Emmy Award for her on-camera reporting. Jenniffer is now a columnist for the Chicago Tribune, where she is the Emcee for Trib University. Her column Lessons for Life can be found at www.tribuniversity.com. She is also a frequent contributor for WGN radio and WGN Television. more>

MARK WOERDE, Co-Founder and Strategy Director, Lemz   Author, How Advertising Will Heal the World and Your Business

Mark Woerde is the co-founder and strategy director of the award-winning Dutch advertising agency Lemz and now on a crusade for Prosocial Marketing. He has worked as a consultant to many notable organizations,including IKEA, Doctors without Borders, Unilever and Sara Lee. After receiving a degree in economics from the University of Amsterdam, Woerde quickly earned a reputation for creating successful and rewarding campaigns that realize both business and social goals. Mark continually ranks high in various Dutch ‘Who is the Best Strategist?' polls. He is a renowned national and international speaker, as well as a contributing author to various marketing trade publications. more>

JOHN YEARWOOD, World Editor, The Miami Herald              Host, World Desk

An award-winning multimedia journalist, John Yearwood is World Editor of The Miami Herald and host of World Desk, which focuses on global issues and newsmakers. Yearwood was a 2011 Pulitzer Prize finalist for his leadership of the paper's Haiti earthquake coverage and has won numerous awards, including two McClatchy Company President's Awards and the Arthur Ross Award for best coverage of Latin America. Yearwood is a regular guest on National Public Radio and WLRN news programs and has been a guest on the nationally televised Tavis Smiley Show, as well as a news commentator on several local television shows. more>