Maverick Wisdom Podcast: Recent Episodes
Maverick Girl
Alexander Asseily is the founder and Executive Chairman of State. State is a global opinion network that enables any publisher site to give its visitors a light-touch and expressive way to share opinions that can be instantly networked and aggregated for deeper social engagement and insights.
Alexander is the co-founder of consumer technology company and industry-leading mobile lifestyle wearables company Jawbone, serving as Jawbone’s CEO through 2007 and as Executive Chairman until January 2015. In 2013 he co-founded Chiaro Technology, the women’s technology company behind the award-winning pelvic exercise tracker Elvie launched in 2015.
Alexander grew up in Beirut and London before receiving his BSc in Product Design and MSc in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. He is an investor and advisor to a number of startup companies and charities in the USA and Europe, and in 2015 was appointed to sit on the Council of Google’s Digital News Initiative Fund.
Igor Faletski is CEO and CoFounder of Mobify. He is passionate about making mobile commerce simpler, more effective and truly personal. Together with a fantastic team of engineers, designers, data scientists and marketers, I work on products and services Mobify customers rely on for all their mobile commerce needs.
Today, Mobify is the #1 mobile commerce platform powering Beyond the Rack, Ann Taylor, Crocs, Thinkgeek, Starbucks, Petflow, British Telecom, Expedia, Garmin, Bosch, Siemens, Charles Tyrwhitt, Condé Nast and many more leading retailers around the world.
Pocket is the Founding Partner of SoGal Ventures. Her mission is to close the diversity gap in entrepreneurship within our generation. With that in mind, she founded SoGal, a global community influencing 50,000 diverse entrepreneurs and investors in 20+ countries. We empower, inspire and connect entrepreneurial minds with high-impact communities, digital media, funding resources, networking, and startup advisory.
Pocket was Forbes 2016 30 Under 30 Asia in Venture Capital & Finance and LinkedIn 2015 Top Voices in VC & Entrepreneurship. She has been featured in Forbes, Harper's BAZAAR, BBC World News, The Huffington Post, Inc., The Straits Times, Channel News Asia, The Business Times, Next Shark, e27, DBS Treasures campaign, East West Bank, CLEO Magazine etc and is a Tedx and keynote speaker.
David's newest global venture is The Plastic Bank, the worlds only organization to monetize plastic waste. The Plastic Bank provides incentive to the worlds disadvantaged to collect and trade plastic waste as a currency. The Plastic Bank solves poverty and reduces plastic waste by revealing the value in Ocean Bound Plastic waste. David was recently named one of the world’s most compassionate entrepreneurs by Salt magazine. He is also Founder and Thought Leader at The Core Values Institute, a consulting and Global thought leadership platform. He has also been the President of the Vancouver Chapter of the Entrepreneurs' Organisation.
Mark is Owner of Multiply. He holds a recently awarded doctorate with research specialisms around branding, brand storytelling and organisational culture. His career spans advertising (WPP – Ogilvy Group), integrated marketing as MD of KLP Euro RSCG (part of the worldwide HAVAS Group) and founding partner of Multiply. He is also a fully fledged creative capability, planning and NPD facilitator and in his spare time a lover of the sweet science.
Tarry Giannakos is Co-Creator/Founder of Revolver Coffee. Revolver is about two things: Coffee, and the experience that should go with it. Their coffee program is simple, but precise. All drinks are made fresh to order - after you order it, never before - from a rotating menu of our favourite coffees from world class roasters around North America. It's quite simple: We order what we like, and we don't order what we don't. We like being consistent, so we measure and weigh every variable there is, until there isn't. And we like details, of which coffee is but one of many in a finely tuned life. But it's such an important one, isn't it?
Shubhendu Sharma is Founder and Director of Afforrest a service provider for creating natural, wild, maintenance free, native forests. At Afforestt, we work passionately on and off-site to provide the best solutions at the lowest possible cost.
Shed Simove is a performer, author, entrepreneur and motivational speaker on creativity and innovation. Harnessing a constant stream of ideas from his astonishingly active mind, Shed has learned to transform his unconventional concepts into lucrative new business ventures which form the basis of his completely unique stand-up routines, books and inspirational speeches. Following a degree in Experimental Psychology at Balliol College, Oxford, and two years working in DisneyWorld, Florida (as a Sixteenth Century Gentleman), Shed worked in TV Production, heading up programmes including ‘The Big Breakfast’, ‘Space Cadets’, and ‘Big Brother’. Shed soon became known industry-wide for making innovative, ground-breaking television shows. In 2003, Shed was appointed Commissioning Editor of Channel 4’s ‘Big Brother’ http://www.channel4.com and throughout his TV career was also involved in discovering and launching many stars including Kelly Brook, Tess Daly, and Russell Brand. As well as a successful career in television production, Shed has forged a highly innovative merchandising empire – selling one million novelty gifts, executive toys, best-selling adult sweets, books and greeting cards worldwide. He's even launched his own currency! Shed has won ‘Gift Of The Year’ twice for two of his creations – a range of birthday candles that spelt “You’re Old” and the hugely popular 'Sound Machine'. He also gained worldwide fame as the bestselling author of 'What Every Man Thinks About Apart From Sex', a 200 page book that is completely blank inside. This title reached the top fifty of the Amazon chart and was featured in the Guinness Book Of Records for ‘Most Blank Pages In A Published Book’ He also wrote Ideas Man, Success or your money back and Presents money can’t buy.
Robin is a practitioner of change and transformation who has been doing it, across Free Range, Fair Trade, Renewable Energy, Rainforest protection, poverty eradication and climate change, since 1991. He created the virtual agency HOST UNIVERSAL in 1997, SOHOST in 2013 and SOHO DAIRY in 2015. He continues to work with inspirational ideas and people to tackle serious challenges head on, believing that there is no issue that cannot be flipped to a positive outcome and that we do not have to screw the planet or its inhabitants to earn reward.
Rickie Josen is a Facilitator Business Consultant and Trainer supporting people into Business or into Work who operates with the Fun/Fun balance – fitting business around the life (rather than other way round) and on a mission to encourage everyone to do the same! She is also Business Skills trainer for Crisis the national charity for single homeless people and Learning Manager for The School for Social Entrepreneurs She is also Founder and CoHost for Jelly a co-working space Co Organiser of LikeMind and Founder of Birmingham Favourites.
Raj Singh has been involved in a variety of mobile products over the past 15 years beginning with WAP games in 1999! I’m presently at Salesforce via acquisition of my company Tempo AIfocused on mobile productivity. I’ve worked on a number of apps that have and retained top 100 in their respective App Stores across a range of categories (Utilities, Lifestyle, Photos, Productivity, Video etc). I have angel-invested in mobile, see my AngelList but now am an investor in a mobile Seed fund called ENIAC Ventures. I’m currently tracking mobile ad tech and social graphs. I grew up and live in sunny CA – I’m spending my free time getting better at riding my motorcycle and making time to hit the MMA gym!
Paul Tinari is Chief Technology Officer of Joom3D which researches new concepts in 3D printing and supporting technologies. He is also Director at E-Frac Industrial Services Inc., an organization developing a revolutionary waste water treatment system for the fracking industry and system for economically generating clean, fresh drinking water from salt and brackish water sources and Director for the Pacific Insitute for Advanced Study. Paul is a professional creative thinker and problem solver who has worked for the private sector, NGOs and government clients around the globe. He has been called a visionary and “Renaissance Man” for the 21st century. When asked by a U.S. Senator what his research would do to enhance the national security of the nation, he replied: “Nothing, except to help make it worth defending.” For many years he taught creative thinking skills to executives from Fortune 500 companies. He is the author of several books including Boxing Outside the Think on the art of creative thinking, The JOOM Destiny on the long-term impacts of 3D printing and supporting technologies, The Art & Science of Systems Thinking, and Relativity for the Reluctant, a book for those having difficulties understanding the complexities of Einstein’s famous theory. As Dr. Future, he is host to the long running show on CJSF Radio “Future Talk."
Mike Dickson is the Founder and CEO of Rainmaker Foundation, a collaborative charity launched in January 2012. Rainmaker's aims are to 'inspire generosity' - and 'to create a world where what matters most is what we do for others'. The Foundation connects philanthropists and change-makers - 'Rainmakers - to inspirational causes in the UK and globally. Rainmaker also advises companies on developing effective partnerships with charities, which inspire employees and help to create a more intelligent business. Clients include businesses in Private Equity, hedge funds, retail, banking and airlines.
Mike is the author of the thought leadership book on generosity called Please Take One Step. Please Take One which was launched at Ted Global to inspired global movement to encourage generosity.
Mike co-founded the successful children’s charity Whizz-Kidz, which provides mobility equipment for disabled children. Whizz-Kidz is now the largest UK supplier of paediatric mobility aids outside the NHS, and has raised over £75 million to provide equipment for more than 7,500 children and young people. Mike's main role is to inspire people, to help others. Specialties: Philanthropy, Corporate Social Responsibility, NGO's, writing.
Mike Abel is Chief Executive Partner and co-founder of the M&C SAATCHI ABEL Communications Group, South Africa/Africa.which handles some of the country and continents top blue-chip brands be it consulting on business, marketing & communication strategy - all the way through to conceptualization and fulfillment of creative ideas across every relevant customer touch-point. Their orientation as a global network is Brutal Simplicity of Thought and the benefit thereof should manifest in greater top line growth and increased market share for our clients http://www.mcsaatchiabel.co.za Previously Mike was CEO of M&C Saatchi Australia and COO of Oglivy South Africa.
Crazy is...standing still.
Logan Hall is Co-founder and CMO at Movebubble, a disrupter in the property rental space.
Logan has always had a hard time going along with the status quo and has found more solace in mischief and play than toeing the line. From being expelled as a school kid when he was 17 to still being found skating with his homies on a Friday evening after work at 33. He understands business is merely socialising with a purpose, and so believes his leadership role is about finding and uniting people on a common path with a singular goal and in helping them achieve their own personal goals. A self-confessed learning addict he builds a culture that is geared toward personal and organisational learning, freedom to fail, and take risks. In short, Logan likes trouble and will go find it where he can – both professionally and personally. He really does believe that life is a gradual release from ignorance and is happy so long as he is less ignorant today than he was yesterday!
Juan Pablo Gaviria is Founder/CEO [Chief Entertainment Officer] of 360digital. He wanted to be a Doctor, he retired from the university. He wanted to be an anthropologist, he retired from the university. After acting in a couple of plays, and working for over 15 years in the TV industry as Creator, Director and Producer, Juan Pablo still looking for what he wants to do in life. Maybe he will do a little bit of everything. He’s already planted a tree, wrote a book, had 2 children, got married, divorced and remarried (with the same woman). He’s raced cars, on motorcycles, in a rally-raid, flown a helicopter, landed a plane, shot a gun, crashed a car, fell off the bike, broke a bone, invented TV programs, directed actors, produced big prime time reality shows (survivor, the X factor), soap operas, series, met celebrities, appeared in the newspaper, on magazines, and been interviewed on radio and TV. After years of work, he managed to have a super job with assistant, driver and an office with a view. He resigned from this job! He bought the mega car of my dreams, but after he resigned had to sell it to fulfill another dream ... it seems it's never enough.
Jonathan Trimble is CEO/Co-Founder of 18Feet and Rising the fastest growing creative independent in the UK. Jonathan was trained at DDB (Omnicom), where the awards he gleaned across his clients put him on the Board at 30. Creston PLC invested a minority stake in 2015 to help further its expansion cross-discipline and globally. In 2014, Jonathan was named a Debretts 500 People of Today in the Sunday Times, marking him as one of the UK’s most influential people in advertising today.
Jason Smith is CEO and Co Founder of Klue a curated intelligence platform providing companies with a lens into their competitors world. He is a 20-year Internet entrepreneur with experience building enterprise focused technology companies Previously, Jason served as President of Vision Critical, helping grow the customer intelligence SaaS company from start-up to 500+ person market leader with 600+ enterprise clients including Staples, HP, BBC, Nestle and Conde Nast. Prior to Vision Critical, Jason was an active investor in ecommerce custom apparel company GAIA Ultimate, served as Vice President at Electronic Arts, and co-founded Columbus Group, a 100-person digital agency pioneer acquired by TELUS (NYSE: TU). Jason graduated with Honours in Marketing from UBC’s Sauder School of Business, is the recipient of Ernst and Young's Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year, BDC's Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Business in Vancouver's Top 40 under 40, is a founding board member of NewMedia BC, a past board member of the Vancouver Enterprise Forum, and served as an advisor to Mobify (mobile retail commerce), ContentDJ (content marketing & curation), CrowdEmotion (visual market research), Strutta (social engagement platform acquired by LX Ventures), and Garabaldi Capital (growth equity advisors). In 2012, Jason bought four around-the-world plane tickets and travelled through 13 countries with his wife and two daughters.
Greg Malpass is CEO and Founder of Traction on Demand, a cloud technology consultancy and software development firm. He’s the first to admit that his intentions in starting Traction were very simple: to serve a small number of clients and help them better unite their sales and marketing teams. Contrary to his early intentions, and using his unconventional leadership style, Greg has grown Traction into a nationally recognized brand with 200+ Tractionites, and in 2014, Traction was named top 10 best place to work in Canada for the past three consecutive years. While Greg rarely admits to having a plan (or business guess), he is the first to share his hopes for Traction, which are to build a company that plays a positive and purposeful role in the lives of its team members, customers, partners and community.
Gregg Fraley is Co Founder of Kiln a training, consulting and strategic design company that ramps up your creativity and agility. http://kilnco.com He is a serial entrepreneur and international expert in creative problem solving providing consultancy to Fortune 500 corporations. A keynote speaker on company innovation and commercial creativity, Gregg’s business novel Jack’s Notebook features on reading lists from University of California Berkeley’s MBA to Judge Business School and City University in the UK. Always a pioneer, his Emmy-award winning team at Warner Cable’s QUBE earned a cable ACE Award for innovation. As a former board member and current leader for the Creative Problem Solving Institute (CPSI) in the USA from 1995 to 2015, Gregg has trained scores of professionals in Creative Problem Solving (CPS) using the Osborn-Parnes model. He continues this work through KILN, a firm he co-founded in 2010 to create IdeaKeg, a unique subscription service for company teams to generate breakthrough thinking. As a consultant to corporations, his projects span culture assessment, ideation and qualitative research, as well as training scores of professionals in Creative Problem Solving (CPS), idea generation, creative selling and team building.
Fern Adria Gastromic hero, pioneer and illustriously great chef. Ferran’s culinary empire stems around the world, blessing each location with boundary-pushing, gastronomic phenomena that leave its guests dumb-struck and in love. Most popular is the now defunct elBulli, which was voted The World’s Best Restaurant five times in a row from 2002 to 2009, with over 2 million reservation requests every year. Experimenting with ingredients, flavours and techniques, chef Adrià’s culinary career began in a renovated beach shack in Spain, pioneering Molecular Gastronomy. In 1984, upon joining the kitchen staff at ElBulli as a line cook, Ferran was nominated Head Chef only to make it one of the most sought after restaurants showcasing avant-garde cuisine. Today, chef Adrià writes cookbooks, teaches and lectures on cooking, stars in culinary programs and has launched LaBullipedia, a type of culinary Wikipedia and heads up the Elbulli Foundation.
Debbie Landa is CEO of Dealmaker Media a media company and a network of innovators who see the opportunities in building relationships and sharing information about trends and the future. From early-stage startups with an eye for disruption, to some of the most influential companies in the world. She is also an Investor in both Upside Partnership a true seed-stage investment firm building a portfolio of purpose-built founders creating high potential companies and Buddybuild world's first mobile iteration platform for iOS and Android. Debbie is also General Manager & Executive Producer of the Grow Conference – about the future of innovation, growth and entrepreneurship and General Manager and & Executive Producer of Under the Radar Conference, Silicon Valley’s most effective showcase and business development conference.
David Chan is Commercial Director of the Drucker Society London and Director, Information Leadership Network at Cass Business School
As part of a team that created the DSL, I have assumed executive responsibility for commercial activities including revenue generation, sponsorships etc. The Drucker Society London is an affiliate of the Drucker Society Europe, dedicated to putting into action what we have learned from the work of Peter Drucker about management and leadership for the benefit of society as a whole.
Chris is Founder of a movement called The Art of Conformity He is a writer, entrepreneur, and world traveller. Over the past five years he has visited every country in the world (193/193), documenting the quest on his blog. His recent books, The Happiness of Pursuit and The $100 Startup, were New York Times bestsellers. His most recent book is Born for This. Chris produces and hosts the World Domination Summit (WDS), www. WorldDominationSummit.com.a gathering of thousands of remarkable people that takes place each summer in Portland.
Chris Barez Brown is Founder of Upping Your Elvis, an Author, Speaker, Capability Maker, Improving Business Folk's Creative Leadership Chris’s life mission is to re-awaken our minds, take people off auto-pilot and engage them in their everyday working lives. In high demand around the globe, he has spoken on every continent and to all types of audiences from intimate conferences to large scale events. The author of three books and therefore rich in content, Chris loves to shake things up with lots of interaction, energy and hard hitting messages that can easily be incorporated into business and life. Human, simple, entertaining yet provocative; guaranteed to leave audiences inspired and buzzing with creative.
Charles Day helps leaders and their organizations to unlock the economic power of creativity. He works with many of the world's most disruptive companies - from global brands to entrepreneurs - and he is an executive coach to some of the world's most celebrated creative leaders. Charles is an Adjunct Professor at New York’s Columbia University, where he teaches the art and science of building companies that unlock 'Profitable Creativity'.
Brendan Murray is Catalyst Opportunity Development Strategist, a senior member of the Catlysts Department at Shell Oil. In addition Dr Murray is often asked to work closely with joint venture partners and select global customers. In his 22 years at Shell he has been involved in a number of commercial developments in the petrochemical and refiniing fields. His most important contributions have been in zeolite catalysis, novel catalytic processes, surfactants and difficult separations.
Boris is Founding Partner at Full Stack, an angel stage investing firm. Managing Partner at Human which improves & creates products through prototypes, business design, and interaction research. And is an advisor for Mobify and PROXXI Industrial Wearables Inc.
Amal Graafstra, Founder of Dangerous Things www.dangerousthings.com He is pioneer of the DIY RFID implantation movement, Amal has been helping hobbyists and biohackers explore RFID technology since implanting his first tag in 2005. Since then, he has authored the book RFID Toys, spoken at various venues including hacker clubs, TEDx, and a number of universities. He has also co-authored a peer reviewed research paper on the subject of DIY RFID implantee subculture for the ISTAS 2010 symposium on technology and society.
Alex is Co Founder of Intelligent Change Luxy Hair Five Minute Journal and Productivity Planner. He also runs Dreamers & Creators, a creative agency that allows me to pursue and work on new business ideas. He is fortunate enough to share all of my entrepreneurial and life activities with my lovely wife and business partner, Mimi Ikonn. They together are also angel investors and have invested in great companies like Calm, Shyp, Sprig, Tradesy, and others.
Tim Wilson is a Creative Action Man. Amongst his roles right now, he works as a regional coordinator for Code Club, a network of coding clubs for kids aged 9-11. The role is the marriage of many things he loves - as a community manager communicator, facilitator and project manager. He is passionate for working on things that stimulate creativity and helping folks of all ages to unleash their super powers on the universe. He is also a musician with a passion for drumming, singing and composing with my bands Under A Banner and Progoctopus. He wants to pack in as much joy into life as possible and to drink lots of fantastic coffee. Forget work/life balance! How about fun/fun and for working for the things that you truly believe in.
Victoria Sopik, CEO and Co-founder of Kids & Company, (and mother of 8), understands this delicate balancing act. Victoria’s experiences as a working mother and devoted parent have had a profound impact upon her, and they have made her determined to make a difference by helping working parents and concerned employers with work-life challenges.
As CEO, Victoria oversees the company’s strategic direction and provides leadership to the company’s management team to deliver industry leading child care services. Victoria has a long and distinguished career in the child care industry. Kids & Company is the culmination of over 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur and child care and parenting expert. Kids & Company has served over 30,000 children and created thousands of jobs across Canada.
Victoria lends her time, skill and leadership to benefit the child care industry and community by presenting at a variety of events, workshops and conferences across Canada.
Victoria’s professional accomplishments have been recognized with several honours and rewards, some of these include; 2013/14 Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies by Deloitte, 2013 RBC Women Entrepreneur Of The Year Award – Momentum Category, 2012 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year in the Business-to-Business Category, WXN Top100 Most Powerful Women, Passion Capitalist Award for Work Culture and Philosophy - 2012, 2008-2014 Profit Magazine’s – One of Canada’s fastest growing companies, Canadian Top 100 Women Entrepreneurs for the past 7 years, Member of the Young Presidents Organization, and the International Women’s Forum.
Stephen Greene is the CEO and a co-founder of RockCorps, a pro-social production company and global youth movement. RockCorps introduces people to a lifelong relationship with civic engagement by using the power of music to inspire volunteering. RockCorps produces large-scale pop, rock and hip-hop concerts, distributing tickets exclusively to volunteers, who commit four hours of their time at a RockCorps community project in their area. Through music, RockCorps is ‘Moving a Generation to Change the World’. With RockCorps, Stephen has delivered social engagement platforms in 10 countries around the world; including 50 volunteer-exclusive concerts, featuring music artists such as Pharrell, Lady Gaga, Maroon 5, Rihanna and over 100 more. His unique experience combined with a deep understanding of and passion for social action and youth engagement also enables him to provide strategic counsel to a wide range of organisations across the public, not-for-profit and private sectors.
In November 2012, Stephen was appointed by UK Prime Minister, David Cameron to be the founding chair of the NCS Trust. NCS Trust is responsible for the management and delivery of National Citizen Service (to date over 130,000 graduates). Cameron said “I am delighted that Stephen Greene will be supporting this endeavour, as the founding Chairman of a new organisation to help deliver NCS. As the CEO of RockCorps, Stephen brings a wealth of experience in unlocking the power of young people and connecting them to opportunities to do good in their communities.”
Stephen Greene is also a trustee of the Do-it Trust, Good Gym, The Fowler Center and has been an advisor to War Child UK.
Lee Feldman is founder and partner of the THNK School of Creative Leadership in Vancouver. Prior to this, he founded CycleSpace; co-founded and served as Chief Experience Officer of the digital agency Blast Radius (which went multinational 10 years after its beginnings in his apartment); mentored with Rockstart; was CMO of FITMO; and was a design sales consultant for IKEA Business. The ideas that give Lee the biggest charge are atypical—not solely about communication, but about the power of corporations to drive and benefit from positive social change: “I really do believe that brands, society, individuals, and the environment can all win. It’s possible. But to see and act on that possibility, you’ve got to do some unlearning, orchestrate a blank slate, and start from the beginning again. That’s the purpose of THNK.” Lee has been recognized with gold and silver Clios and mentions in Communication Arts Design Annuals and Marketing Magazine’s Top 100, and has contributed to numerous global design and awards panels. His mission: Think and do things different and better
Kirsten Dickerson is Founder and CEO of Raven and Lily.com a socially conscious lifestyle brand dedicated to empowering women through design. They currently work to empower at-risk women in Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Cambodia, and the US, creating exclusive, fair trade collections include up-cycled, handmade apparel and accessories that utilize materials such as melted bullet casings and textile remnants. In addition to providing employment for over a thousand women through fair trade standards, the company strives to empower consumers to make a difference in the world through their purchasing power.
Prior to this Kirsten spent 15 years doing both styling work in the film industry and working alongside global non-profits. Kirsten has traveled extensively to over 30 countries, starting with her studies in Africa and then living in Estonia shortly after the Soviet Union dissolved. The day after graduating from Baylor University, she headed to India to volunteer with Mother Teresa and Compassion International. Creating this brand has allowed her to unify her passions and capitalize her experience in both the humanitarian and fashion worlds. Motivated by a belief that each person is valuable and uniquely created, Kirsten is dedicated to empowering women to discover their full potential. She is passionate about promoting social business models as a means of providing a dignified way to alleviate poverty, especially among at-risk women.
Kayli Levitan is Co Founder of The Street Store, the world’s first rent-free, premises free, free ‘pop up clothing store’ for the homeless, found entirely on the street and stocked by donations www.thestreetstore.org She is also Creative Group Head/Copywriter at M&C Saatchi Abel http://www.mcsaatchiabel.co.za and Co-owner and writer for The Food Blog Group.
Mark Brand is CEO of MB Inc a company that pushes the envelope and challenges perspectives by constantly striving to improve the lives of others while providing opportunities for growth and social change. Mark is also a member of the council at NationSwell www.nationswell.com Executive Board Member The Presidents Group Province of B.C. http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/about-the-bc-government/accessibility/accessibility-2024-leadership/presidents-group Member of the Board of Directors Ted X and the Board Chair for A Better Life Foundation & Charity http://abetterlifefoundation.ca
Pamela Grossman is Director of Visual Trends at Getty Image www.gettyimages.com She is also an independent curator, writer, and teacher of magical practice and history www.pamgrossman.come. She is the creator of Phantasmaphile, a blog that specializes in art with an esoteric or fantastical bent www.Phantasmaphile.com
Matt Friesen is Co-Founder and CEO of Wantering a better way to search, discover and shop online. www.wantering.com Matt is a part time entrepreneur. Full time dreamer. A Self taught engineer turned entrepreneur. 3 startups. 3 exits. Ready for the next adventure. Previously he was Board Member of the Enspire Foundation Compassionate Community Builders! We are a boutique charity focused on creating endless ENSPIRING moments for individuals to help those less fortunate locally and internationally. Our volunteers, supporters and partners know us personally and experience for themselves the immediate impact and results of their contributions. www.enspireme.org , Co-Founder of Just the bill the easiest way to manage your expenses www.justthebill.com and Founder of Thirdi Software and Volunteer Advisor to Junior Achievement of British Columbia is the world’s largest NGO dedicated to educating young people about business. We strive to inspire and prepare youth to succeed in a global economy www.jabc.ca
Natalia Talkowska is Founder, Director and Chief Visual Storyteller at Natalka Design Ltd, a creative production house where they draw your ideas and bring projects and events to life. Part of which is Doodledo, a movement to inspire everyone to draw. www.doodleledo.com
Bio Rattan Bagga is CEO of New World Natural Foods a natural foods manufacturing facility www.newworldfoods.ca , V.P Marketing at Everland Natural Foods Inc committed to producing the highest quality foods and contributing to local and global community efforts while doing our part to preserve and protect the planet. www.everland.ca General Manager at Jiva Organics a leading distributor of certified organic, kosher, vegetarian and healthy foods www.jivaorganics.ca and Co-Founder of Yell Canada which empowers the next general of Canadian problem solvers www.weyell.org
Named one of the Top 30 under 30 entrepreneurs in B.C. by BC Business magazine in 2014 and one of the Top 20 under 30 entrepreneurs in Canada at Profit magazine's FuEl Awards in 2011, Rattan began his business education at age 16 in Sweet Cherubim. His father felt it was important for him to work as many different jobs as possible to learn the family business.
Catherine Ryan Hyde is author of 30+ book, the best known of which is Pay It Forward that was made into a Hollywood movie. She is President of the Pay It Forward Foundation, www.payitforwardfoundation.org their work focuses on providing copies of the Pay It Forward Young Readers Edition for use by teachers and other educators.
Danae Ringelmann is Co-Founder of Indiegogo www.indiegogo.com which empower peoples around the world to fund what matters to them. She left finance to change finance. Previously she was a consultant for Double Day her parents office and relocation business, Co Chair at the Lester Centre for Entrepreneurship & Innovation http://entrepreneurship.berkeley.edu , University of Berkeley and Volunteer for Wall Street Wizards https://www.facebook.com/Wall-Street-Wizards-132381853466306/
Yanik Silver is Founder and CEO Maverick1000, an invitation only global network of industry transforming entrepreneurs connecting in bold new ways to challenge and collectively support each other's biggest business goals, engage in reinvigorating experiences and co-create a worldwide multiplier impact.www.maverick1000com and author Evolved Enterprise which helps align the true soul of your business with more impact, meaning and happiness – that surprisingly delivers even greater profits.
Noam Kostucki is Founder of Redefine Us that advises senior leaders across a range of charitable, public and private sector industries on strategy and business development through training and coaching. Prior to this Noam was the Founder of Seededucation. Noam believes that everything can be elevated into an art form. He coaches people who create masterpieces and has engaged with over 25,000 people from 40 nationalities. One of his clients raised $500k in 8 weeks One of Noam's three books is required reading at the Fashion Institute of Technology. He has spoken at over 80 international conferences for institutions like Harvard University . His work has been selected to feature in the Coaching Movie .
Paul Helman is CEO/Founder/President of soulfirexp.com that educate, inspires, empowers and evolves humanity through the gift of growth. He is a location independent lifestyle entrepreneur who loves to travel, to connect with thought leaders, like-minded game changers, mavericks who think differently and take action every day to their success. Paul is also Jedi of Awesomeness for Mindvalley http://www.mindvalley.com playing a key role in business development. He is also an Ambassador for www.theincitement.com
Phil Noelting is Founder and President of Qwalify Inc. a SaaS-based HR technology company disrupting the talent engagement and recruitment space. Why? Unfortunately, hiring tends to be a reactive process, and the current benchmarks often leave employers settling for talent to meet deadlines. Proactive recruitment is here, and it's only going to grow. Previously he was Co-Founder of ImpactFULL and Founder of Skilter
Phil loves travelling, and everything that it entails - new cultures, meeting new people, the photography, the food, the opportunities. Phil is devoted to see more of the world every year.
Kevin Lee Royes is Founder / Soulcial-Preneur The Soulcial-Preneurs Club because more passion driven, socially conscious entrepreneurs we have on the planet, the better everything will be. He is CoFounder/Creative Director All In a Day where you Scramble around Vancouver engaging in a series of iconic activities and food that put this town on the map. Founded in 2008 the first year had 4 events (snowboard, mountain bike, golf and dinner). By 2015 the event grew to 10 events in 24 hours (yoga, breakfast, kayak, hike, lunch, bike, beach party, dinner, dancing, sunrise beach bonfire).
Kevin is a passionate, lifelong soulcial-preneur who started his first business in high school at the age of 16. Sometimes called an inventor-preneur, Kevin holds several patents and has brought over 200 products to market in the snowboard, toy and hand tool sectors. His designs have been distributed in over 35 countries with retail customers ranging from boutique shops in Japan to the Museum of Modern Art in NY as well as Costco, Canadian Tire and Home Depot. Other customers include powerhouse global brands such as Nike, Energizer, Toyota, The Matrix, Lord of the Rings, Manchester United, and the list goes on.
His inventions have been featured in major media such as Maxim, STUFF, The Today Show and the Oprah magazine. With his urban multi-tool invention, kelvin.23, he appeared on the reality TV show, Dragons' Den where he shook hands on one of the most historic episodes recorded and was called, "... the most successful business EVER...", on the show.
Founder/Executive Director - I TALK TO STRANGERS Foundation, Inc https://www.facebook.com/ITTSFoundation/ A registered United States 501(c)3 organization, ITTS Foundation has created international and multi-cultural imprints with over 5,000 global volunteers and over 20,000 hours of community service worldwide. Growing a larger community of social organisations will increase the volunteer: community hour ratio towards social peace, environmental protection, cultural preservation, and technological advancements starting in your home community! In 2012, Robbie decided to follow his dreams and founded "I Talk To Strangers® (ITTS) Foundation", a social corporation and movement whose philosophy encourages and challenges individuals to create genuine relationships through meeting new people. The motive is to push a new idea, that meeting new people increases personal and professional opportunities, experiences, and lessons learned.
Since founding this movement, Robbie has travelled meeting over 3% of the global population while documenting his journey through a soon-to-be-released documentary and book, along with participating as a speaker in numerous engagements around the world. Robbie is also the Global Volunteer Coordinator Plenumigo a multinational organisation that provides individuals with opportunities to fulfil their potential and life purpose by following their passion. http://plenumigo.com Previously Robbie was Congressional Events CoOrdinator U.S. House of Representatives http://www.house.gov
Robbie is a highly motivated, business savvy individual with sophisticated computer technology background. Sound, practical and analytical reasoning skills with the ability to manage, execute, and meet arduous deadlines under minimal supervision. Strong leadership and teamwork skills within the contexts of IT project management, organizational structures, and event coordination.
Louis Barnett is Managing Director Louis Barnett Chocolates Ltd www.louisbarnettchocolates.com and Louis Barnett Ltd. He started his business at 12 years old, now 21. Entrepreneur, dyslexic & dyspraxic. A world Chocolate ambassador, speaker & published author. He was awarded the Lord Carter award for his outstanding contribution to the food and drinks industry.
El Chico is a DJ and Musician http://dirtycheeks.com . ‘As long as I’m still here, it's very hard to write my own bio, if I'm 'creative' and/or 'open-minded' then I'll always learn, always grow, and thus 'what I do' or have done constantly changes. I am a son, a brother, an uncle, a friend, a lover, a neighbour, a DJ, an enthusiast yes just an enthusiast, if I like it and I feel aligned with the vibrational frequency, I too sing on that frequency. You can't define feelings with words, they were here before, you can't describe you 'being' it has to be experienced, that’s why we are all so wonderful, all powerful and unique’. He is a member of For Boarders By Boarders a non-profit skate, snow, music, art and media community.https://www.facebook.com/Forboardersbyboarders
Daniel de Gruijter is the cofounder and CEO of Incitement; the next-generation social business - powered through inspirational talks - connecting proactive youths, social causes, and sponsors, to contribute to tackling global issues together.
Incitement was founded late 2011 and today its events are being organized in 43 countries. Nominated ‘Most Inspirational Movement’ by FACES Magazine, ‘Fastest Growing Global Movement’ by MasterPeace, listed as a Forbes 30 Under 30 company, and recognized by Richard Branson’s Talent Unleashed Awards 2014, Incitement is slowly but surely becoming one of largest and most influential youth organizations on the planet.
Daniel was born and raised in The Netherlands, he graduated in both Tourism & Leisure Management, and Marketing & Economics. During his time as a university student he started his first business, developing and implementing online strategies for startup companies - this business was highly profitable within 3 months with zero investment. However, early 2011 he felt it was time for a bigger challenge and decided to move to Malaysia.
In Malaysia he worked for the world’s largest publishing company in the personal growth industry. As head of the Conversions Team he was responsible for the growing several multi-million dollar businesses, launching what is currently the #1 US grossing iPad app in the Health & Fitness category, managing the company’s 1.5 million subscriber base, and he was involved in several high-level key tech projects.
Richard Loat is Founder and CEO of Sport for Food www.sportforfood.com which aims to tackle hunger across the world using grass-roots, street sports as a vehicle for social change that transcends borders, languages, and distance bringing fans together. As one of the world's quickest growing social movements, we mobilize and engage socially conscious individuals by harnessing their passions for either street hockey, basketball or football to bring local communities together in the name of a great cause. He Business Develop for Laureus https://www.laureus.com and is a Shelter Box Response Team Member http://shelterbox.org
Shilen is Co-Founder of Independents United, an innovation agency which helps companies create disruptive growth through an entrepreneurial approach. He is also CEO of Distill Ventures, the world’s first accelerator dedicated to supporting and growing the next generation of startup spirits entrepreneurs and a partnership with Diageo. He is an investor in, and mentor to, numerous technology startups such as Osper. He has a passion for fabulous food, delightful drinks and scary skiing.
Darius Norrell is a Leadership Consultant who believes and is attracted to 'Brilliance' as an area of work, both in the literal sense of seeing more people shining more of the time, and in the idea of Brilliance as 'The capacity to create extraordinary value with integrity'. He is deeply committed to developing this in himself and others http://www.dariusnorell.com Darius is Trustee of The 100 Hours Foundation which brings wise and compassionate living and leadership to the heart of every child's education http://www.100hours.org Previously he was CoFounder of The Spring Project a social enterprise that expands people's capacity to create extra-ordinary value with integrity, in their life and work. It was created by the founders of Elemental Practice in response to the global mass youth unemployment crisis http://www.springproject.co.uk
Darren is Founder of DRArete Ltd a boutique advisory, consultancy coaching and mentoring organization http://www.darrenrobson.com, Chief Storyteller/Firestarter for the Ministry of Entrepreneurship, a philanthropic venture that provides entrepreneurial services and mentoring opportunities to young people from less privileged backgrounds and communities http://www.moefoundation.com He is also Director of Strategy, Innovation & Partnerships & Global Social Innovation Leader for the Association for Coaching as part of the Global Board overseeing the growth and development of the AC teams in 40+ countries http://www.associationforcoaching.com Darren is a serial purposeful entrepreneur and social innovator who loves working with senior clients in complex, agile and challenging environments.
Heather Sparks is an Immersive Installation Artist, Sculptor and Set Designer. Her art emphasizes the transformation of ordinary and discarded objects into immersive works of art. She began to develop her unique style in her final year of the B.F.A. program at Emily Carr University, working with ephemera and salvaged wood to build architectural cabinets. From these small beginnings she quickly began to work big, building large scale architectural sets for The Dusty Flowerpot Cabaret including The Village Project—a village built from pallets and inhabited by artists—the immersive 1930s-esque set for Hard Times Hit Parade. As of late, Heather has been dedicating her time to the development of a 50-acre international artist residency and performing arts centre, “The Lookout Arts Quarry” located in Bellingham, WA http://www.lookoutarts.com . She lives in a hand built patchwork house on wheels, drives backhoes, builds large scale engineered artist facilities, builds wooden art installations including her favourite little lean-to church atop the hill, creates graphic design promotions, produces festivals, and organizes artist residencies. She spends her free time expanding her skills as an artist into the realm of performance, shadow puppetry, dance, and experimental sound.
Rick Falkvinge is a Political Evangelist and Founder of the first Pirate Party http://www.piratpartiet.se/english/ and a campaigner for next-generation civil liberties. In particular, he stresses how the copyright industry works with security hawks to erode the parts of Internet that guarantee civil liberties. On this platform, one of privacy and digital rights, his party became the largest in the below-30 demographic in the 2009 European Elections, and his nascent party has now spread to 70 countries. He has been named a Top Global Thinker by Foreign Policy magazine http://foreignpolicy.com and shortlisted as one of the world’s most influential people by TIME Magazine http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2107952_2107953_2110143,00.html . Previously Rick was Head of Development at Cypak and Release Manager et al at Microsoft. He is author of Swarmwise: The tactical manual to changing the world and Co Author of The Case for Copyright Reform http://falkvinge.net/books/
Crazy is as crazy innovates and disrupts, not really crazy at all.
Founder/CEO of Ombrae an Optical TileTM technology born of his passion for art, architecture, photography, science, and technology. It started as a physical, conceptual sculpture and 3D computer model in 1993 www.ombrae.com
“...as a Sculptor I sought a way to carve light...in the end; I found my chisel to be a shadow and the computer my hammer....”
Crazy is what we do today against all logic that others think is completely logical tomorrow.
Joseph Nakhla is a technologist with a passion for solving real life problems. He is Founder and CEO of Bazinga!, the world's first cloud-based platform designed to solve many of the problems people experience in living in cities and bring harmony back to communities www.mybazinga.com . Joseph has spent his professional life in startups and loves mavericks. Previously Joseph spent almost two decades as an entrepreneur overseeing sales, marketing, product development, support and more for products that touched hundreds of millions of people's daily lives. He believes that it takes guts to build something from scratch but it takes your soul to see it through.
Crazy is not having compassion and an ability to forgive.
Nik Badminton is a world-respected futurist speaker that provides keynote speeches about the future of work, the sharing economy, and how the world is evolving http://nikolasbadminton.com Nik is CEO and Principal Growth Consultant of Design Culture Mind which helps grow tech companies and make them famous. He is a Guest Blogger for Forbes http://www.forbes.com where he contributes to the Entrepreneur blog http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/#2715e4857a0b5ac60f536ce7 The Huffington Post writing about human behaviour in relation to mobile, digital and social influences http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/nikolas-badminton/ He is a Contributing Writer for both Vancity Buzz http://www.vancitybuzz.com and Momentum Magazine Ltd contributing to the Bike and Innovation column https://momentummag.com As a Futurist he is Curator and Executive Producer of Dark Futures a conference that speaks about the hidden systems that affect our daily lives [whether we are aware of it or not]. Nik is also Advisor at Timely Network Inc which profoundly improves how people promote, discover and share events http://time.ly
Crazy is what we don’t understand. We’re very poor judges of what we don’t understand, but everything new comes from what we don’t understand. So we’ve got to get a bit comfortable with crazy.
Pablos Holman is a Futurist, inventor and Notorious Hacker. Pablos works on invention and design projects that assimilate new technologies - making wild ideas a bit more practical and vice versa. He helped create the world's smallest PC; 3D printers at Makerbot http://www.makerbot.com ; spaceships with Jeff Bezos; artificial intelligence agent systems; and the Hackerbot, a Wi-Fi seeking robot. Currently, Pablos is working for Nathan Myhrvold at the Intellectual Ventures Laboratory http://intellectualventureslab.com where a wide variety of futuristic invention projects are underway including a fission reactor powered by nuclear waste; a machine to suppress hurricanes; a system to reverse global warming; and a device that can shoot mosquitoes out of the sky with lasers to help eradicate malaria. He is Founder of Bombsheller a clothing company of the future. We make the one good thing you need, not the ten shitty things you don't. Everything is manufactured on demand in Seattle, radically changing what is possible. http://bombsheller.com And is Advisor at Glowforge http://glowforge.com which is creating a new class of 3D printers that are more useful and delightful than anything you've seen.Pablos is a respected and dynamic speaker with an incredible ability to explain complex technology to any audience. He has informed and entertained audiences at world-renowned technology summits including United Nations, the World Economic Forum at Davos, The CIA, TEDx, BIL and DEFCON on invention, innovation and the future of technology.
Crazy is believing in and designing possibilities for the future, whilst everyone tells you you’re just damn nuts
Chris Forrest is Innovation Project Manager in Doblin’s Toronto, Canada office. Doblin is the innovation arm of Deloitte which believes that change is inevitable and increasing at an exponential rate so works with you to move beyond this seemingly chaotic landscape and seize the opportunities available. Chris specializes in leading large scale innovation transformation programs, working with clients to define their innovation strategy, build capabilities and conceive their breakthrough innovation concepts. As a member of Deloitte Canada’s Innovation Program, Chris worked on establishing an innovation ecosystem and foresight function for the firm, developing thought leadership on disruptive forces impacting professional services, building design thinking capabilities and inspiring the development of new innovation systems and services.
Crazy is seeing something that no one else can see and the willingness to jump in with both feet to make it happen, because you just know it will make the world a better place. And when you turn out to be right, then they call you brilliant!
Judi Neal is Chairman and CEO of Edgewalkers International http://edgewalkers.org Previously she was Director of the Tyson Center for Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace at the Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas, and is currently She is recognized as an expert on spirituality in the workplace and speaks and consults internationally. Her research focuses on business leaders who have a strong commitment to their faith and spirituality, and began studying how they bridged the spiritual world and the material world of business. She is author of Edgewalkers: People and Organizations that Take Risks, Build Bridges and Break New Ground; co-authored The Spirit of Project Management with Alan Harpham; and is editor of the Handbook of Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace. She recently published her fourth book titled Creating Enlightened Organizations: Four Gateways to Spirit at Work. Her next book is The Handbook of Personal and Organizational Transformation. She has published widely in academic journals and has created an international community of Edgewalkers.
Crazy is living someone else's life.
Marc Winn is Husband. Father. Owned by Dog. Mischief Maker. Lover of Changing the World. These days I am a full time social revolutionary spending much of my time focused on making the world a better place. I would struggle to look my son in the eye if I didn't at least have a go. Marc is Former Lone Nut of The Dandelion Project a community project aimed to inspire Guernsey to become the best place to live on earth by 2020. It is so crazy it might just work http://dandelion.gg He helps entrepreneurs to build sustainable life enhancing businesses that matter www.marcwinn.com . He is Ambassador for The World Fix, an organisation designed to articulate, celebrate and facilitate greater institutional experimentation* on a global scale, in order to accelerate systemic change. Co Founder of Born Limitless, his bold passion project that wants to transform the peak of what education so far achieves for children. Marc is Curator of TEDx St Peter Port.
Crazy is how GREAT things change the world!
Dirk Beverage is Founder and CEO of UnleashWD, an industry event for wholesalers, distributors, and their channel partners. It is unlike any other event the industry has seen in that it is an industry event with no industry speakers www.dirkbeveridge.com . William Taylor, Co-Founder of Fast Company magazine said of Dirk: “Every field has its rabble rousers, change agents, thought leaders-people with the wisdom to understand the past, and the creativity to conjure up a new vision for the future. In the field of wholesale distribution, Dirk Beveridge is that thought leader.” Dirk is author of Innovate, How Successful Distributors Lead Change in Disruptive Times and a number of Dirk Beveridge White Papers.
Crazy is not doing something together about all the scary stuff that's happening in the world.
Ivo Gormley is the Founder of GoodGym, a growing movement of runners who run to do good www.goodgym.org Previously, Ivo consulted and advised on user participation for technology startups and public services in the UK and US. Ivo directed the documentary film Us Now, an exploration of participatory culture. The film has been broadcast around the world, including Channel 4 in the UK, translated into 24 languages and watched by millions online. He has presented his work to governments worldwide including the French National Assembly, The Hague, the European Union, The Houses of Parliament (UK) and Washington DC.
"Crazy is ....
Bruce Poon Tip is a Business Leader, Entrepreneur, Social Innovator, Author, Honey Badger and Captain of G Adventures the Great Adventure People that create adventures that a meaningful and memorable to experience something unexpected and extraordinary https://www.gadventures.com It started with Bruce’s passion and vision for authentic sustainable travels and today Bruce and G Adventures is recognised and awarded for leadership and outstanding business practices, such as Top 100 Employers and 50 Best Managed Companies, plus Canada's Top 40 Under 40, Entrepreneur of the Year, 100 Leaders of Tomorrow and Top 10 Entrepreneurs in Canada, Ethics in Action award
"Crazy is not being crazy enough to follow a dream."
Trevor Davis is the Consumer Products Industry Expert, Member of the IBM Academy, Distinguished Engineer [advising fast-moving consumer goods and agribusiness clients on how to use new and emerging technologies to transform their businesses for the better] and Global Expert New Product Development and Introduction [providing insights and advise on how consumer products companies can develop breakthrough products and get them quickly to market] at IBM the technology and consulting corporation www.IBM.com. Previously he was Associate Partner Strategy and Change at IBM where he assisted international clients to develop and execute strategies for creating value from new technology markets and capabilities and has been a Director at PwC Consulting, the multinational professional services network pwc.com. Trevor also wrote a chapter entitled Innovation Collaboration Change Future Frontier in The Future of Innovation Edited by Bettina Von Stamm, an original and visionary thinker in the field of innovation and Anna Trifilova, Research Fellow at Exeter University.
"Crazy is being stubborn enough to ignore advise - but smart enough to know when to listen."
Hugo Spowers is Company Architect as Riversimple Engineering. Their purpose is to pursue, systematically, the elimination of the environmental impact of personal transport. Previously Hugo was Owner of OsCar Automotive Ltd which developed a business strategy to bring hydrogen fuel cell cars to market and Owner of Prowess Racing Ltd which designed and manufactured single seat racing cars, restored historic racing cars and and fielded racing teams.
"Crazy is what success looks like in the future."
Ian Soloman-Kawall aka KMT is a Freedom Teacher Guide who uses art [hip-hop] for social awareness and social cohesion. He is Co-Founder of the May Project Gardens which brings communities together to act collectively Previously he was Project Manager for Pan Intercultural Arts a company using intercultural performance work to help facilitate self expression and promote deeper understanding of our changing cultural identities. They word with a diverse range of communities across London and internationally, empowering people to use the arts as a tool for change in their lives.
"Crazy is thinking you can change the world."
Brian Scudamore is Founder and CEO of O2E [Ordinary 2 Exceptional] brands : 1-800-GOT-JUNK? which helps residents and businesses remove junk, WOW 1 DAY PAINTING promises one day completion and high quality work with a spotless clean-up You Move Me, who mission is to move people not just their boxes www.youmoveme.com , and Shack Shine which cleans interior & exterior windows, gutter cleaning, power washing, exterior house washing & house detailing.
"Crazy is doing something that makes no sense but you feel compelled to do it."
Andres Amador is a man wanting to bring beauty and awakening to the world. He is an Earthscape Artist who creates art installations in varied ways, of which one is facilitating team bonding. He is Founder and Artist at Andres Amador Arts.
"Crazy is not listening to your inner guidance."
Tom Chudleigh is Inventor and Manager at Free Spirit Spheres which brings new ideas from conception to creation and play with them and has explored new technologies for living in harmony with the forest. He has designed, engineered and built handcrafted spheres that are suspended like pendants from a web of rope. They occupy a truly unique place in the world while providing a habitat for the un-tamed spirit that exists in us all . Previously Tom was Shore Manager for Continental ME Ltd where he managed the affairs of an offshore seismic survey in foreign countries.
"Crazy is one who can see what others can't."
Jari Kuosma is the original developer of modern and commercial wingsuit and wingsuit flying. He is a professional skydiver, entrepreneur and designer and Founder of BIRDMAN International. Previously he was Project Manager at TeliaSonera which brings the world closer by providing leading communication services to millions of customers every day in the Nordic and Baltic countries, Eurasia and Spain.
"Crazy is as crazy does."
Redg Snodgrass is CEO of Wearable World a media accelerator and events company which is home for the people, ideas, and things that change the world He is also CEO of ReadWrite one of the most widely read tech news sites in the world He is a Consultant at GWGSD Consulting and Advisor for Skout, the world’s largest app for meeting new people. With millions of users all over the world, Skout gives you the ability to connect with people no matter where you are. Redg is also Co-Founder of the Internet of Humanity [IOH] with Billie Carn aka Crazy Girl. IOH’s mission is to explore the internet through the lens of humanity, thereby striving to create a better society and push humanity forward Previously Redg was CEO/Co Founder of The Taploid, the Facebook app and VP of Open Innovation at Alcatel-Lucent which provides products and innovations in IP and cloud networking, as well as ultra-broadband fixed and wireless access.
"Crazy is thinking you know all the answers. The more I listen, the more I understand that we need to be guided to solutions by the people experiencing the problem we're trying to solve."
Jane is an innovator with a global reputation for inspiring individuals and organisations to work together for positive social change. She is ever-curious and drawn to the humanity and courage of people doing it tough. To date, Jane has founded five charities, all of which are flourishing today the most recent being Igniting Change, a purposely tiny organisation based in Australia She is known for lateral thinking and creative initiatives including Comic Relief (Red Nose Day) in the UK, which has raised over a billion pounds and best-selling books including Dying to Know – bringing death to life.
Jane has sat on a number of not-for-profit boards including Oxfam UK, The St James Ethics Centre, The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Committee and is currently a Director of Virgin Unite, which unites people and entrepreneurial ideas to create opportunities for a better world. and The Reichstein Foundation, which works for social justice and environmental sustainability by investing strategically in inspirational people, projects and organisations. It is a catalyst for more effective philanthropy in Australia.
"Crazy is doing totally irrational things just to see what interesting and different results ensue."
Marty Cooper is an engineer, pioneer and visionary in the wireless industry and is known as the Father of the Cell Phone, for having invented the hand held cell phone. He and his wife Arlene are Co Founders of Dyna LLC which supports and inspires the advancement of insightful, innovative, and relevant technology solutions that benefit society. Marty has won numerous awards for his work, the latest being ITU50 award in Geneva, Switzerland. The awards recognize individuals that have contributed to improving the lives of world citizens through ICT innovations developed, promoted or implemented by ITU.
"Crazy is I hate copycat world."
Arunachalam Murganantham is a social entrepreneur and inventor of the low cost sanitary napkin making machine whose vision is to make India a 100% napkin-using country. He is Founder of Jayaashree Industries. Muruganantham re-engineered a sanitary machine, and in 2006 it won the award for the best innovation for the betterment of society from the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai. He also received an Indian presidential award for innovation. Arunachalam was voted one of Time Magazines 100 most influential people of 2014 and has recently been nominated to receive the Padama Shree Award by the Government of India.
"Crazy is making impossible things possible."
Steve Curtis is Founder and Chief Vision Officer for Zag Global a consumer products company with the purpose of innovating to enhance the way people enjoy their lives. Managing Director for Evergreen Capital Corporation a seed stage venture capital firm that invests in, and mentors, entrepreneurs with vision, passion, intelligence and some level of experience. In 2005, Steve was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer for which there was no treatment, cure or survivors past a few years. Steve traveled the world in pursuit of a cure and building a team of top researchers and clinicians from universities, such as Yale, Stanford, and Harvard, he formed the TLC Foundation He has just written his book: OVERCOMING THE IMPOSSIBLE: From Death-Sentence Diagnosis to the Healing Power of Perception Medicine.
"Crazy is the love of money and power over others as opposed to compassion and generosity. What could be more fucked up!"
Patch Adams is a Doctor, but above all else is an activist for peace, justice and care for all people. He is Founder of The Gesundheit Institute a non-profit health care organization whose mission is to re frame and reclaim the concept of ‘hospital.’ They are a model of holistic medical care based on the belief that the health of the individual cannot be separated from the health of the family, community, the society and the world Patch is author of Gesundheit!: Bringing Good Health to You, the Medical System, and Society through Physician Service,Complementary Therapies, Humor and Joy and House Calls: How We Can All Heal the World One Visit at a Time. His video documentary Clown’in Kabul documents the 5-week medical and laughter-relief mission of more than 20 clown-doctors in Afghanistan following the 2001 U.S. lead war. An incredible ‘Smile Mission’ to help the children of war-ravaged Afghanistan. Patch Adams the Hollywood movie with Robin Williams playing the role of Patch, is his story.
"Crazy is a special place. Crazy is a smile on your face. Crazy is leaping from great heights into dark pools. Crazy is entering the mind of my kids and playing the fool. Crazy is the love I feel when I hug you at night. Crazy is how I feel when we've had a fight. Crazy is when we push to the edge to jump over the top. Crazy is the unreasonable mind that just won't stop."
Dave Allan is Founding Partner at ?What If! who partner with organizations hungry for growth, inventing new products, brands, services, and business models, and helping their partners build their in-house innovation capabilities. Their style is provocative and passionate. Their mission is lasting impact. Prior to this Dave was Innovation Manager at Unilever the British-Dutch multinational consumer goods company where he helped create Unilever’s first major innovation group. Dave is Co-Author of Sticky Wisdom: How to start a creative revolution at work.
"Crazy is thinking you will achieve things without an element of risk."
Vanessa Vallely is Managing Director at We Are The City which provides information to women who wish to progress in their careers via networking and events. Vanessa is a Public Speaker and Facilitator and has delivered numerous keynotes. She is Founder and Co-Chair of The Network of Networks [THON] a collaboration of corporate internal diversity network heads/committee members from 100 multinational firms across sectors in the UK. She is Board Member for Cancer Research UK and Board Member for Tech UK representing the companies and technologies that are defining today the world we will live in tomorrow. She is Ambassador for Future First, engaging alumni to help current students, Girls out Loud a UK based social enterprise, and Inspiring the Future a free service where professionals go into state schools. Vanessa is the author of Heels of Steel which tracks the trials and tribulations of the most networked woman in the City.
"Crazy is what they call it when your bold plan fails. Bold is what they call it when your crazy plan succeeds."
Michael is Director of New Products at Hootsuite [his role when interviewed]. A 2 time Emmy nominee who has founded and managed several early-stage tech companies in New York and Vancouver. He is Founder of Wantoo which uses mobile technology to predict what’s next. Micheal is Co-Founder of Startland helping Syrians get connected to the local startup scene by providing technical training, equipment, and access to startups. Founder of Tippett.org. He is Advisor at the School of Journalism [Digital Media] at the University of British Columbia and a Board Member of The Upside Foundation of Canada an exciting venture that lets Canadian startups give back to our society.
"Crazy is when it suddenly snows in July."
Soren Holm is Head of Experience LEGO House and Vice President of LEGO Future Labs. He is part of the team that has made LEGO into the successful company it is today. Soren is a LEGO Lifer, someone who’s here to stay.
"Crazy is thinking that you can predict what's next. Just get on and create it."
Bruce Davis is Co Founder and Joint Managing Director at Abundance Generation who offer peer-to-peer investments that are accessible to everyone and offer the chance to match financial returns with ethical values. Bruce is also a Visiting Research Fellow at the Bauman Institute of Leeds University, School of Sociology and Social Policy.
"Crazy is what the rest of the world would be if they weren't so afraid of what other people think."
Cindy Gallop is Founder and CEO of IfWeRanTheWorld a radically simple web-meets-world platform designed to turn good intentions into action; one microaction at a time and Founder of MakeLoveNotPorn a non judgemental open forum that encourages everyone to decide for themselves what they like doing because there is no ‘norm.’ Cindy is Board Advisor at Behance, the world’s leading platform for creative professionals across all industries to showcase and discover creative work and Founder at Cindy Gallop LLC consulting for clients and brands who want to change the game in their particular sector. She does radical, innovative, groundbreaking, transformative; she doesn’t do status quo. She likes to blow shit up and is the Michael Bay of business.
"Crazy is walking into a boardroom with a crazy idea knowing initially they will roll their eyes and silently wonder when they are going to replace this guy with someone normal."
Chad Wasilenkoff is Founder and CEO of Fortress Paper a world leading manufacturer of security and speciality pulp. He is a proven leader in several sectors including forestry, manufacturing, mining and gas, and other technology based enterprises. Previously Chad was CEO and Director at Titanium Uranium Exploration Inc. In 2010 Ernst and Young honored Chad with Entrepreneur of the Year [Pacific region and Manufacturing division].
"Crazy is sticking in a job you don't love, moaning about your life when you never do anything differently, not taking risks, not making the most of the precious time we have on this planet."
Emma Morley is Founder and Project Director of Trifle Creative a fresh and creative commercial interior design company. She is a Creative Doer whose passion is to create inspiring environments that make working lives and experiences brilliant. Previously she worked freelance in Project Management, design, consultancy, creative doer. She has held a variety of positions: Creative Coordinator, Manager of Creative Coordination Team, New Ventures Assistant, Internal Special Projects at What If! The innovation company that has dared companies to be different since 1992.
"Crazy is not trying. There are people who imagine things and work to make them real - often surrounded by people who say it can't be done."
Meik Wiking is CEO of The Happiness Research Institute an independent think tank focusing on life satisfaction, happiness and quality of life. Their mission is to inform decision makers of the causes and effects of human happiness, make subjective well-being part of the public policy debate, and improve the quality of life for citizens across the world by exploring why some countries, cities, organizations and people are happier than others. It’s all about evaluating and measuring progress in society in a completely different way. Previously Meik has been Project Director at Monday Morning Scandanavia’s leading independent think tank english and also worked at The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Denmark and The Danish Red Cross Youth . Meik is currently working his book The Anatomy of Happiness due to be published on 20th March 2016 International Day of Happiness.
"Crazy is being a free thinker and acting on it."
Hermione is CMO & Co-Founder Vibease the world's first smart vibrator bringing fantasies to life with an immersive pleasure experience, CEO & Founder of Way Media a media, marketing, and PR company that used her seven years experience crafting exciting stories for a social age for clients such as the BBC, Facebook, the UK Parliament. She hosts the world's largest technology conference the Next Web in Amsterdam annually. Hermione is an unabashed and successful people hacker, established journalist, serial entrepreneur, tech startup celeb, and a personal friend of Richard Branson.