In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

The 'Quin House
217 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts, 02116
United States

Carl Streed

"Dr. Carl Streed Jr is an Assistant Professor at Boston University School of Medicine and the Research Lead for the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Boston Medical Center. After attending medical school and residency in Internal Medicine at Johns Hopkins he completed fellowship in General Internal Medicine at Brigham & Women’s. Nationally, he has chaired the American Medical Association Advisory Committee on LGBTQ Issues, served on the board of GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ Equality, and currently serves as the President-Elect of the US Professional Association for Transgender Health. To achieve equity in healthcare access, health, and community well-being, Dr. Streed actively incorporate the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into his work as a clinician-investigator. As such, his personal and professional pursuit for a more equitable and inclusive society is focused on elevating voices often ignored and redistributing power. His clinical, training, advocacy, and research initiatives regarding the health and well-being of marginalized persons, particularly sexual and gender minority (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer [LGBTQ] persons) populations, have been used to influence and inform institutional, state, and federal policy as well as clinical care, academic research, and scholarship. Dr. Streed’s efforts to improve the health and well-being of sexual and gender minority individuals and communities have earned him several awards, notably from the University of Chicago and Johns Hopkins University Alumni Associations, the American Medical Association Foundation, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, as well as recognition from the Obama White House. As the Research Lead for the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Boston Medical Center he collaborates with researchers, clinicians, and communities to assess and address the health and well-being of transgender and gender diverse individuals."

Cassidy Lichtman

Cassidy is the Director of Volleyball for Athletes Unlimited where she was previously a professional volleyball player and Chairperson of the Player Executive Committee. She is also the founder of P/ATH, an organization that harnesses the power of professional athletes to teach the next generation skills around empathy, equity and empowerment. Cassidy is a former member of the USA Volleyball Women’s National Team and was a two-time All-American and an Academic All-American at Stanford. She previously worked at shift7 with former Chief Technology Officer of the United States, Megan Smith, on projects focusing on inclusion and economic inequality. Cassidy currently sits on the Board of Directors for Athletes Unlimited and USA Volleyball.

Charlene Wheeless

"Charlene Wheeless is a successful business executive, leadership coach/advisor, keynote speaker, and author. With more than three decades of experience in corporate affairs, communications, and operations, Wheeless leads her namesake firm, Charlene Wheeless LLC, where leaders and teams turn to strengthen their performance and leadership capability, communications, executive presence, and influence. Additionally, she is a unique resource to help C-suite leaders, teams, and companies turn DE&I intention into DE&I impact. Wheeless also serves as the senior advisor for equity and justice for APCO Worldwide, a global communications, and advocacy firm. Amplify Publishing released Wheeless's debut book, "You Are Enough! Reclaiming Your Life and Career with Purpose, Passion and Unapologetic Authenticity", in mid-2021. The book has achieved bestseller status and won two independent book awards for best non-fiction and inspirational books of 2021. "You are Enough!" chronicles Wheeless's experience as a Black female executive, her courageous fight with cancer, and takes readers on a journey of reclaiming their lives with purpose and passion. It has been considered a blueprint for a saner way for people of color, especially women to win at work and in life.

Chris Nowinski

Chris Nowinski, PhD, is co-founder and CEO of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, a non-profit organization leading the fight against concussions and CTE and dedicated to improving the lives of those impacted. An All-Ivy Harvard football player-turned WWE professional wrestler-turned neuroscientist, Chris discovered the concussion crisis the hard way. A 2003 kick to the chin in a WWE match ended his career, causing Post-Concussion Syndrome and sending him to the office of his eventual CLF co-founder Dr. Robert Cantu. Through Dr. Cantu, Chris was first exposed to medical research that revealed to him that concussions and brain trauma were misunderstood in the sports world. Chris realized this lack of awareness among athletes, coaches, and even medical professionals not only cost him his career, but also threatened the health and well-being of athletes of all ages. The lessons Chris learned from Dr. Cantu lit a spark that inspired him to commit his life to serving patients and families affected by brain trauma. You can watch his TED Talk about this journey here. Chris wrote the investigative book Head Games: Football’s Concussion Crisis in 2006, co-founded CLF in 2007, co-founded the VA-BU-CLF Brain Bank in 2008, and served as a co-director of the Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy in from 2008 to 2014. Today he serves as an Outreach, Recruitment, Education, and Public Policy Leader for the BU CTE Center. Chris’ journey has been profiled in media outlets like HBO Real Sports, ESPN Outside the Lines, and the New York Times, and he was the subject of the award-winning documentary Head Games: The Global Concussion Crisis by celebrated director Steve James. Dr. Nowinski earned his doctorate in Behavioral Neuroscience from Boston University School of Medicine and has authored more than 30 scientific publications. VICE Sports called him “the man most responsible for making CTE part of the national conversation,” and Sports Illustrated said, “It is Nowinski's figure which looms behind the doctors and the headlines and the debate roiling over sports' newfound commitment to minimizing head trauma.” Nowinski serves on the NFL Players Association Mackey-White Health & Safety Committee, the Ivy League Concussion Committee, the Positive Coaching Alliance National Advisory Board, and as an advisor to All-Elite Wrestling. Chris has received multiple awards for his advocacy. In 2019, the United States Sports Academy presented him with the Ernst Jokl Sports Medicine Award for his contributions to the growth and development of sport medicine through practice and/or scholarly activity. Chris has been the recipient of the Dr. Alan Ashare Safety Award from Massachusetts Hockey, the Impact Award from HealthSpottr, the Zach Lydstedt Angel Award from the Sarah Jane Brain Foundation, the Distinguished Service Award from the United States Sports Academy, the Sport at its Best Award-Player Safety Advocate from Ralph Nader’s League of Fans, the CoBI Award from the Council on Brain Injury, the Patrick Brady Award from the Brain Injury Association of Illinois, a Compassionate Action Award from PETA, and the Presidential Medallion from Western New England College, the school’s highest honor. Athletic Business named Chris an Industry Difference-Maker, Boston Business Journal named him to their 40 under 40 list, HealthLeaders Media named him to the HealthLeaders 20, and Hockey News named him to the 40 Under 40 most powerful people in hockey. In 2010, Sports Illustrated named Chris a finalist for Sportsman of the Year. Chris is an Eisenhower Fellow, a program which identifies, empowers and connects innovative leaders to pursue projects that create positive impact across sectors and borders to make the world more peaceful, prosperous and just. Chris is a frequent speaker on various aspects of brain trauma, and since 2004 he has spoken more than 400 times at universities, conferences, high schools, and sports organizations around the world.

Chrystal Seawood

Chrystal Seawood is a multidisciplinary conceptual artist and educator

Claire Glynn

Claire Glynn, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Forensic Science, in the Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, at the University of New Haven, Connecticut. Claire previously was employed as a Forensic Biologist in the homicide and sexual assaults team at LGC Forensics (now Eurofins) in the United Kingdom. After obtaining a Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine, Claire joined the faculty at the University of New Haven in 2014, where she teaches courses and conducts extensive research focused on forensic biology, forensic DNA analysis, and forensic genetic genealogy. Claire is the founding Director of the online Graduate Certificate in Forensic Genetic Genealogy at the University of New Haven, which is the first program of its kind, and she actively consults and provides subject matter expertise on the topic to law enforcement agencies in the United States and internationally.

Cory Pesaturo

Cory Pesaturo is an American musician from Cumberland, Rhode Island who has been playing the accordion since the age of nine. Cory has been winning accordion competitions all over the world and is a pioneer of jazz accordion. In 2002, became the youngest person to win the National Accordion Championship. He most recently won the 2011 Primus Ikaalinen World Championship and was the first ever American contestant. Additionally, Pesaturo won the Coupe Mondiale World Digital Accordion Championship in Auckland, New Zealand, and became the first American to win a World Accordion Championship since Peter Soave 25 years ago. In June 2009, he won the Leavenworth International Championship, and International Jazz Championship. Pesaturo performed in 5 different continents during 2009; some countries included Canada, Italy, New Zealand, Tunisia and Japan. Cory is one of only four accordionists in history to win a World Championship on both acoustic and electronic accordion, and is the only person to also win a world championship in jazz. He is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA where he studied Contemporary Improvisation and a variety of music styles, including Italian and French folk music, Bulgarian and Jewish music, Classical music and Jazz. He became the second person to major in and graduate as an accordionist at the New England Conservatory. He also plays the piano, clarinet, and saxophone. “If anyone can make the accordion hip – and that’s a tall order – it just might be Cory Pesaturo,” said the Boston Globe. “Pesaturo makes the instrument sound as natural and native to jazz as the saxophone or trumpet.”

Erik Lindbergh

An avid pilot, Erik holds commercial, instrument, flight instructor, and glider ratings. In 1996, he helped launch the XPRIZE Foundation in St. Louis. In 2002 Erik retraced his grandfathers epic 1927 New York to Paris solo flight - raising over a million dollars and 500 million (pre-social media) media impressions for XPRIZE. This 9-year “overnight success” story helped to jump-start the private spaceflight industry and is detailed in the NY times bestselling book: How to Make a Space Ship by Julian Guthrie In 2011 Erik awarded the Lindbergh Prize for Quietest Aircraft at the NASA Green Flight Challenge and inspired by the potential for aviation, created Powering Imagination to help accelerate the development of the electric aircraft industry and inspire the next generation of innovators. After nearly a decade working on this industry Erik and his partners have started a new company called VerdeGo Aero to build propulsion systems for the emerging electric aircraft industry which will transform the way people move around the planet. Erik’s story is one of triumph over adversity. He won the Washington state gymnastics championship all-around at age 11 and excelled in water-skiing, and alpine and telemark ski racing during his teens. After climbing and skiing Mount Rainier at age 21, he was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and by age 30 was completely disabled. Total knee replacements and a breakthrough biotechnology drug gave him a second chance at living a physically active life. After years of patient persistence Erik has rebuilt his physical fitness and is now bonafide member of the OGR's (#OldGuysRockin) as an expert mountain biker and backcountry skier. On the creative side, he has been creating unique furniture and sculpture designs for over 25 years. Committed to a life of service to future generations, Erik is a passionate public speaker and Co-Host of The Lindberghs Podcast. Mr. Lindbergh also serves as Chairman of the board for the Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation, as a Trustee of the XPRIZE Foundation, and served as a founding director of the Aviation High School in Seattle which is now ranked the #1 school in the state.

Florian Hillen

Florian Hillen is Founder & CEO of VideaHealth, a venture-backed company developing Artificial Intelligence to detect diseases in dental imaging, helping dentists to avoid missing diseases and offering better health services to their patients. Previously, he conducted research projects at the intersection of engineering and social science at MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems and Society and Harvard Business School, worked for McKinsey & Company and founded ninu, a digital healthtech start-up. He holds two masters degrees from MIT in Computer Science and Technology & Policy, a bachelors in Management & Technology and the first State exam in Medicine. Academically always in the intersection of technology and healthca,re. Studied medicine, business in Germany and Computer Science and Policy at MIT. Dropped out of my Harvard PhD to found VideaHealth. Professionally. Previously founded ninu, a digital pregnancy app, was one of the first team members of Eko health, an AI-powered stethoscope for heart diseases and worked at McKinsey. Spun out VideaHealth as the leading dental AI company automatically diagnosing and treatment planning dental disease.

Greg Kats

Greg is Founder and CEO of the Smart Surfaces Coalition, comprising 40 organization committed to transforming urban surfaces to slow climate change, cool cities and address EJ issues. He served as Managing Director of Good Energies, a several billion-dollar global clean energy PE/VC fund investing in renewable energy and low carbon firms. Greg served for 5 years as the Director of Financing for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the US Department of Energy. He is a founder of both the American Council on Renewable Energy and the country’s first green bank. Greg received the first US Green Building Council Lifetime Achievement Award and is an honorary lifetime member of the AIA. He is the author of Greening our Built World; and has testified frequently on clean energy, finance and decarbonization issues.

James Rosser

James C. “Butch” Rosser, Jr. MD FACS is a surgeon, educator, scientist, inventor, author, futurist, social advocate, television personality, playwright, video gamer, comic book collector, lover of cinema, and self-proclaimed terminal twelve-year-old. Dr. Rosser has described himself as the nexus where that which you think is frivolous meets that which you hold on high ground. He has given more than 350 invited lectures around the world, written over 60 peer reviewed articles, 16 chapters in books currently in print, and 11 digital books. Dr. Rosser has held academic appointments previously at Yale University School of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and at the Morehouse School of Medicine.

John Werner

John Werner has created a career out of bringing ideas, networks and people together to generate powerful results. He is curious about new technologies, both in the physical and digital world. John is a passionate photographer and documents life as he navigates and this website is a reflection of that. Here is a range of John's photography (John randomly orders them and that order changes periodically). Each year he creates a video his photography you can view. John is an accomplished photojournalist who especially likes to photography people (a few galleries of individuals in alpha order by first name) and in fifteen curated galleries HERE. He has had the opportunity to photograph many leaders. His high-impact images have been seen by millions and have appeared broadly in print and digital media and on billboards in everything from Forbes to New York Times to MIT. A sampling of collections on this site (most photos in these galleries are randomly sorted so the audience experiences the juxtaposition of photos to one another) are – 5 galleries of portraits, pairings (two people), wearing glasses, families, crowds (very large groups), wearing glasses, women, babies, children, African-American diaspora, street photography, action, performances & sports. He has photographed locations such as: India (over 12 visits he made to there), Roxbury Latin (last 5 years his son has attended), MIT, Iceland, Brazil, Spain, China, Vancouver, Adirondacks, Boston, Silicon Valley, Mexico, Davos, NYC, "from above", transportation vehicles, and the Franklin Park Zoo. Collection of galleries, flowers, landscapes, trees, and glaciers. He has photographed events ranging from the Khumba Mela, to the Boston Marathon, to a stop gun violence protest, to music concerts by Bruce Springsteen & U2. He particularly loves to photograph families across generations and also engineers and scientists. John is a Managing Director and member of the investment committee at Link Ventures. In the fall of 2019 Link Ventures raised $100 million in their LV2 fund and are working with early stage entrepreneurs to support their great ideas. Link Ventures is a Venture Capital firm established in 2006 that invests in disruptive consumer internet technology companies that leverage consumer data to help them differentiate, scale, and become profitable. Link Ventures is a different type of VC. Link Ventures equip their portfolio companies with proprietary competitive intel to enable customer acquisition and drive capital-efficient revenue growth. Link Ventures invests in exceptional management teams and help them leverage their data to exceed their revenue plans and their dreams. Before joining Link Ventures, John's deep curiosity and penchant for problem-solving led him to a diverse set of roles spanning many fields and interests. Previously, John was a VP at Meta, a Y-Combinator augmented reality startup based in Silicon Valley. John's also served as the Head of Innovation and New Ventures for the Camera Culture Group at the MIT Media Lab, and the Managing Director of Emerging Worlds SIG, where he led the launch of collaborative innovation centers in Mumbai, Nashik, and Hyderabad. John also channels his passion and curiosity into cultivating platforms for thought and exchange. John is the Founder & CEO of ARIA, a community focused on the potential of augmented reality and the Imagination in Action - which takes place at MIT and the World Economic Forum in Davos with MIT Professor Sandy Pentland. John also founded Ideas in Action Inc., a non-profit that creates and produces TEDxBeaconStreet, whose talks have accumulated 100s of millions of views. John is also a co-founder and co-Leader of TEDxMIT. John was a Founding member of Citizen Schools, an advisor for Everquote (a publicly traded company), PhotoButler, Vestigo Ventures, Breylon, and Founders Forum (Boston). John is currently a MIT Connection Science Fellow at MIT School of Engineering. He was a Loeb Fellow '09 at the Harvard University's Graduate School of Design and a graduate of Hamilton College. John was recognized by Harvard Business Review for his leadership; by BostonInno in 2014 as a top 50 on Fire in Boston; Boston Chamber with a TOYL (Ten Outstanding Young Leaders) Award in 2006. John for 10 years organized and swam the Boston Light Swim - an open water swim that is one of the oldest continuously organize marathon swims (started in 1908) - 10 miles from Little Brewster Island into the L Street Bathhouse in South Boston. John was a multi-sport athlete in college - participating in Cross Country (NESCAC Championship team 1988, team captain and MVP 1991) and Swimming. John loves racing triathlons and qualified and raced at the 70.3 Ironman World Championships 4x. John is a 2x USTA All-American. John earned a spot on Team USA for the 2013 ITU Sprint Triathlon World Championships in London - 96 of 1400+/12th in his age group). John and his wife Erika Alvarez Werner and three children and a dog live in Brookline, MA. HERE are family highlight videos of John's photography.

John K. Werner

John Werner has created a career out of bringing ideas, networks and people together to generate powerful results. John channels his passion and curiosity into cultivating platforms for thought and exchange. He is the Founder & CEO of ARIA, a community focused on the potential of augmented reality and the Blockchain+AI+Human, now called Imagination in Action, which takes place at the World Economic Forum in Davos and at MIT with MIT Professor Sandy Pentland. John is also the cofounder of TEDxMIT and founded Ideas in Action Inc., a non-profit that creates and produces TEDxBoston, whose talks have accumulated 300+ million YouTube views.

Karyn Ross

Karyn is on a mission to Activate People to Create a Kinder, Better World. An award-winning author, Karyn’s sixth book, The Kind Leader: A Practical Guide to Eliminating Fear, Creating Trust and Leading with Kindness is a must read for everyone who leads people at work, at home and in the community. An artist, internationally acclaimed speaker, consultant, and coach, Karyn is the owner of Karyn Ross Consulting and The New School for Kind Leaders. She is also the Founder and President of The Love and Kindness Project Foundation, a registered public charity and grass-roots movement, spreading kindness person to person around the world.

Monalisa Johnson

Monalisa is not just an International TV Personality who recently appeared on Season 2 of the hit TV Show “60 Days In” and UK’s “The Jail”, which aired on A&E. She regularly appears for TV interviews, radio talk shows, TEDx, and is sought after worldwide for advice on the prison family. Monalisa Johnson has proven herself to be an exceptional and accomplished TV Personality, businesswoman, and visionary! Monalisa’s life was completely knocked off course when she received a call in August 2012 from her one and only daughter stating, “Mom, I’ve been arrested!” Her daughter was ultimately sentenced to 10 years in prison and Monalisa’s seemingly happy, well thought out life, suddenly became unrecognizable. In the initial years of her daughter’s incarceration, Monalisa’s emotional health was at an all-time low. She struggled with understanding society’s negative and callous view of incarceration, and she also lacked an understanding of her declining emotional health. She realized she had a lot to learn about her new “normal” …The World of Incarceration. Unable to find any assistance or resources that might help to cope and improve her circumstances, Monalisa remembered a valuable lesson she learned from her successful professional life and coach training: necessity breeds invention and innovation. She decided to create the help that she so critically needed. Immediately Monalisa founded Parents with Incarcerated Children, Inc. to make sure that other parents had access to the tools, resources, and support they needed to navigate their new journey, with grace and ease. Monalisa’s current mission is to put a human face on the prison family & criminal justice system; incarceration involves individuals enduring a process of imprisonment. However; there are faces, families, people, and personal stories behind every incarceration… it is not merely a process. Giving back to others what they need, when they need it most, is the reason why Monalisa created this organization: to SERVE! Advocating and lifting not just Parents of Incarcerated Children, but also their families. This is a large part of Monalisa’s destiny and testimony. Her journey continues… joyfully as she is now visiting churches and speaking to mainstream audiences all over this nation and abroad, bringing awareness, resources, and tools to answer the question “WHY SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT MASS INCARCERATION?” Monalisa clarifies her assignment as a voice to the nations to Rebuild the Family Unit and Restore Empathy to mankind. Monalisa is a restorative advocate and transformational change agent!

Pablo Paredes

Pablo E. Paredes Castro joined the Department of Computer Science in August 2022 as an assistant professor. He is currently an assistant professor at the Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Department, and by courtesy at the Epidemiology and Population Health Department at Stanford University School of Medicine. His research focuses on subtle interventions to reduce stress, such as guiding people to breathe slowly with subtle haptic cues from office or car furniture, and passive sensing of affective and physiological biomarkers derived from existing devices (such as computers, phones, etc.). Over the next year, Paredes plans to launch a startup on digital well-being products, which is a spin-off of his current lab. Paredes earned his doctoral degree in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley in 2015. Go here(link is external) to view Paredes’s academic publications on Google Scholar.

Pennie Saum

Pennie fights for adult survivors and children of sexual abuse from military soldiers. She was instrumental in the passing of the Child Abuse Accountability Enhancement Act, eliminating the protection of military retirees pension, when child sexual abuse has been prosecuted and a judgement has been awarded. The CAAEA was signed into law 12/2017.

Peter Vanderwarker

Peter Vanderwarker’s work received Institute Honors from the American Institute of Architects in 1991. His photographs are in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Addison Gallery of American Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Recent exhibitions include Sublimation at Gallery NAGA, 2017; Seaport Views at the US District Courthouse in 2016; and Vanderwarker’s Pantheon, at the Boston Athenaeum in 2009. Peter has a Bachelor of Architecture degree from University of California, Berkeley, and he was a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University in 1997. His work has been supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Graham Foundation. Peter is represented by Gallery NAGA, Boston.

Richard Kane

Chairman and CEO, Verijet

Robert Waldinger

Robert Waldinger is a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and Zen priest. He is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and directs the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the longest-running studies of adult life ever done. The Study tracked the lives of two groups of men for over 75 years, and it now follows their Baby Boomer children to understand how childhood experience reaches across decades to affect health and wellbeing in middle age. He writes about what science and Zen can teach us about healthy human development.Dr. Waldinger is the author of numerous scientific papers as well as two books. He teaches medical students and psychiatry residents at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and he is a Senior Dharma Teacher in Boundless Way Zen.To keep abreast of research findings, insights and more, visit robertwaldinger.com.

Robert J. Waldinger

Robert Waldinger is a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and Zen priest. He is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and directs the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the longest-running studies of adult life ever done. The Study tracked the lives of two groups of men for over 75 years, and it now follows their Baby Boomer children to understand how childhood experience reaches across decades to affect health and wellbeing in middle age. He writes about what science and Zen can teach us about healthy human development.Dr. Waldinger is the author of numerous scientific papers as well as two books. He teaches medical students and psychiatry residents at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and he is a Senior Dharma Teacher in Boundless Way Zen.To keep abreast of research findings, insights and more, visit robertwaldinger.com.

Sabrina Lane

Sabrina Lane, 18, was born in New York, she is currently studying at United World College in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sabrina founded Erase the Hate in the spring of her junior year.- a student led team trying to tackle hate speech around the city she lives. An avid communicator, Sabrina is a passionate, determined and inquisitive individual with a wide array of skills on a global level. Sabrina’s personal interests lie in politics, history and journalism - particularly in Eastern Europe. Furthermore, Her studies abroad have made her knowledgeable about the political and historical situation in the Balkans. Above all, she is a passionate believer in the power of individual action to create great change.

Sean Doherty

Sean Doherty led the concept-creation, design and capital financing of the Fund, and he has driven its strategy since inception. Sean retired at the end of 2018 from his role as Managing Director of Bain Capital, LP, a private global investment firm which he joined in 2005 as the firm’s first general counsel. In this role he built a pioneering and industry-leading deal lawyer and risk management group during a time of rapid growth and institutionalization of the alternative asset industry. He also had a diverse operational and constituency management role at Bain Capital, where he led crisis management, press and external communications, government relations, branding and philanthropic initiatives and was deeply involved in governance matters and capital raising. Earlier in his career he worked at Ropes & Gray LLP and was a law clerk to a federal district judge in Boston. Prior to law school, he was a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, in which he served on a Middle East Force frigate from 1990-94. Sean and his wife, Suzy, have been involved with JDRF since 2002 when their son Finn was diagnosed with T1D at the age of 2. He served on the JDRF International Board and its Executive Committee from 2016 to 2019 following more than a decade of service on the JDRF New England Chapter Board, including two years as its President. He received a J.D. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School and a B.A. magna cum laude in Government from Harvard College. He serves on the boards of directors of two companies with T1D programs and is also a member of the board of trustees of Thayer Academy in Braintree, MA.

Suzanne Hamill

Suzanne (Suzi) Hamill believes insight into human behavior is the key to building incredible customer experiences. For more than 20 years, she has designed and launched companies and digital experiences impacting how people live day-to-day. Most recently, Suzi was the Head of Design Thinking at Fidelity Investments. She led a team working in start-up style incubators – conducting research and experiments for new markets and product concepts. Additionally her team taught human centered design skills to thousands of employees, customers, and community members across the country. Suzi has lectured at Stanford University, Boston College, Boston University, Harvard University, Berklee School of Music and MIT. Currently Suzi consults with organizations to design and develop new products, services, and businesses.

Tierney Thys

Dr. Tierney Thys is CoFounder of Around the World in 80 Fabrics--an educational nonprofit and traveling museum dedicated to celebrating the power of textiles to promote biodiversity and human wellbeing. Thys is a National Geographic Explorer, biologist, author, filmmaker and Research Associate at the California Academy of Sciences. As a scientist, veteran storyteller and Nat Geo Expedition expert for more than 20 years, she is committed to catalyzing biodiversity conservation through art and science. She serves on the science advisory boards for Think Beyond Plastic, the Plastic Pollution Coalition and was a member of the TED Braintrust. Fascinated with fabrics since a young age, she roams the globe continually impressed with the wealth of ingenious makers and textile communities creating renewable, ethical alternatives to fossil-fuel-based fast fashion.