Our speakers are not trained motivational speakers; they are all everyday people who pave their own path, fulfill their mission fearlessly and serve a purpose much greater than themselves. We can all be inspired by their courage, hearts and passion.
Katharine Daniels/ Moving Forward Through Women's Perspectives
Katharine Daniels Kurz is the founder and Executive Editor of The WIP (www.thewip.net). Her vision is of a world where women and men value and embrace the feminine perspective for global problem solving. Katharine believes that it is through women that solutions to issues from the gravest human rights injustices to the severest effects of climate change, war, and poverty can be found.
Diane Latiker/ Kids Off the Block
Surrounded by gang violence in her Chicago neighborhood, Diane Latiker opened her home to area youth and started a community program called Kids Off the Block. Since 2003, Latiker's nonprofit has taught valuable life skills and provided recreational activities to more than 1,500 young people.
Dick Bolles/ What Color is Your Parachute
Dick Bolles is the author of What Color Is Your Parachute? A Practical Guide For Job-Hunters and Career Changers, the most popular job-hunting book in the world. TIME Magazine chose it last Fall as one of the 100 best nonfiction books written since 1923. The Library of Congress chose it as one of 25 books down through history that have shaped people's lives. It is a New York Times bestseller, appearing on its list for over 5 years. The book has sold 10 million copies, to date, and is revised every year. It has been translated into 20 languages and is used in 26 countries.
Dhaya Lakshminarayanan/ Nerd Nation
I frequently called a "nerd" or "geek" or sometimes just laughed at for being interested in the things I was interested in. So I started asking everyone I knew who I considered smart. "Were you ever called names?" and "Did you ever hide your intelligence to fit in." And the answer was not just "yes" but the answer came within seconds not minutes, of every memory of feeling "uncool" while trying to be in school. I asked this question to Indian immigrants, and rural village children in India "what do you want to be when you grow up?" This idea of "nerd" did not exist. People wanted to grow up to have nerdy jobs!
Fariba Nawa/ Opium Nation
Fariba Nawa, an award-winning Afghan-American journalist, covers a range of issues and specializes in immigrant and Muslim communities in the United States and abroad. She is based in the San Francisco Bay Area but has traveled extensively to the Middle East and South Asia. She lived and reported from Afghanistan from 2002 to 2007, and witnessed the U.S.-led war against the Taliban and al Qaeda. She has also reported from Iraq, Pakistan, Iran, Egypt, and Germany.
Kyle Thiermann/ Surfing for Change
Kyle Thiermann Kyle Theirmann is a 21 year old pro surfer who has created some serious waves around the world. He is the creator and host of the hit youtube series, Surfing For Change. Combining surfing great waves with making a series of short films about current issues, Thiermann focuses on the power you have to create a better world through everyday decisions.
Mark Kabban / Building Community
Mark's family fled Lebanon during its 15-year civil war, a conflict that claimed the lives of his uncle, his aunt and their infant daughter. During primary school, Mark and his family immigrated to California. Starting a new life in a new country, Mark found stability through sports.
Taryn Davis/ American Widows Project
Taryn Davis is helping young military widows find the emotional support they need. Davis was just 21 years old when her husband, an Army corporal, was killed in Iraq. Four months after his death, she created the American Widow Project. The nonprofit has connected more than 900 young military widows through the Internet and weekend retreats since 2007.
Adam Lowy/ Move for Hunger
New Jersey native, Springsteen fan, and ASU Sun Devil for life, Adam founded Move For Hunger in the summer of 2009. Adam’s family has owned a moving company in New Jersey for nearly 90 years (dating back to Great-Grandpa Lowy). After years of seeing so much food wasted when people move, Adam decided to take action. Move For Hunger is a non-profit organization that works with the moving industry to support the efforts of local food banks. When people move, they throw out a lot of “stuff” when they move. Unfortunately, some of this “stuff” is food that could be delivered to a family in need rather than thrown away.
Anonymous / Occupy Wall Street
As we gather together in solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose sight of what brought us together. We write so that all people who feel wronged by the corporate forces of the world can know that we are your allies.
Kelly Hart / Building with Nature
He produced a DVD program "A Sampler of Alternative Homes: Approaching Sustainable Architecture," which explores a wide range of building concepts that are earth friendly. Kelly is knowledgeable about both simple design concepts and more complex technological aspects of home building that enhance sustainable living. He has even designed and built a solar-electric car that he drove around his neighborhood. Kelly, and his wife Zana, lived for many years in an earthbag/papercrete dome home that he designed and built in the mountains of Colorado.
Kaylee Radzyminski / Tunes 4 the Troops
Kaylee Marie Radzyminski proved that all it takes is a great heart when setting out to do something to change lives. Her concern was for American Troops in Iraq and Afghanistan who miss their families and also entertainment from home. That inspired her to donate her CDs and then she encouraged others to donate their CDs. She took the project nationwide and calls it Tunes 4 the Troops. We invited Kaylee to Bonfire Heights to share the power of kindness.
