Social Innovation
Summit 2024

 June 4-5, 2024 | Chicago

Speakers

The Social Innovation Summit program elevates, inspires, and mobilizes cross-sector action spanning the corporate, philanthropic, investment, policy, cultural, civil society, and innovation landscape. Our diverse mix of Speakers help frame the conversation.

Please see below for the latest list of 2024 speakers, and check back for updates as they are announced!

2024 Speakers

Abraham Leno
Executive Director
Eastern Congo Initiative
Aimée Eubanks Davis
Founder & CEO
Braven
Ali Velshi
Chief Correspondent & Host, ‘Velshi’
MSNBC
Allison Holmes
Senior Director, Operations & Strategy
Annenberg Foundation
Amanda Lenaghan
Director of Social Impact & Partnerships
Cruise
Amanda Smith
President
Native American Business Association
Ami Copeland
Senior Director & Washington, D.C. Public Affairs Lead
APCO
Andraéa Lavant
Founder & President
LaVant Consulting
Andrew Kaplan
Vice President, Culinary Operations
Rachael Ray/Watch Entertainment
Ann Canela
Director of Corporate Giving
Niagara Bottling
Ayele Shakur
President
Redstone Family Foundation
Barb Short
Senior Director Corporate Social Responsibility Engagement
Sanofi
Beth Spurgeon
ESG Director, Purpose & Inclusion
PwC
Beth Swanson
Chief Executive Officer
A Better Chicago
Brooke Hanson
Senior Director, ESG & Social Impact
Agilon Health
Caleb Gardner
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
18coffees
Dr. Chelsea Clinton
Vice Chair
The Clinton Foundation
Claire Babineaux-Fontenot
Chief Executive Officer
Feeding America
Claire Graves
President
The Webby Awards
Colton Underwood
American TV Personality
The Colton Underwood Legacy Foundation
Dale Strange
President & Chief Operating Officer
Blackbaud & EVERFI
Danny Wirtz
Chairman & CEO
Chicago Blackhawks
Daryl Brewster
Chief Executive Officer
CECP
Denielle Sachs
Senior Director & Global Head
APCO Impact
DeNora Getachew
Chief Executive Officer
DoSomething.org
Diego Mariscal
CEO & Chief Disabled Officer
2Gether-International.org
Dion Dawson
Founder & Chief Dreamer
Dion’s Chicago Dream
Edith Yokley
Violinist
Chicago Sinfonietta
Eric Ripert
Chef, Author & Television Personality; Co-owner
Le Bernardin
Erica Bauer
Director of Community Relations
Chicago Bulls
Euria Min
Director, Lipman Family Prize & Fellows Program, McNulty Leadership Program
The Wharton School
Francie Schnipke-Richards
Vice President, Social Impact
The Allstate Foundation
Franziska Ehrhardt
Managing Director
Berlin Business Office USA
Fred Tan
Head, Global Social Impact
HPE Foundation
Gabby Clark
Senior Manager, Global Office of Culture, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Walmart
Gary Oppenheimer
Founder & Executive Director
AmpleHarvest.org
Greg Cunningham
Senior Executive Vice President, Global Chief Diversity Officer
U.S. Bank
Gretchen Carlson
Former CBS & Fox News Journalist & Co-Founder
Lift Our Voices
Hakim Bell
DJ
Hana Haile-Mariam
Managing Director, Partnerships
The Robin Hood Foundation
Heather Foster
Senior Director, Federal & International Public Policy
Lyft
Hilary Noon
Head of Strategy & Go-to-Market for the Nonprofit Business
AWS
Janet Szlyk
President & CEO
The Chicago Lighthouse
Jason Palmer
General Partner
New Markets Venture Partners
Jennifer Lawson
President & CEO
Keep America Beautiful
Joshua Arce
President & CEO
Partnership with Native Americans
Judith Spitz
Founder & Executive Director
Break Through Tech
Julie Gehrki
Vice President, Philanthropy
Walmart
Julie Roginsky
Co-founder
Lift Our Voices
Katherine Jollon Colsher
CEO
Girls Who Invest
Katherine Pickus
Vice President, Sustainability & Global Impact
Tyson Foods
Kathleen Boyle Dalen
Founder & Principal
KBD Consulting
Katya Echazarreta
Board Member of Space for Humanity; Citizen Astronaut, Public Speaker, Activist and Model
Kedra Newsom Reeves
Managing Director & Partner, Chicago
Boston Consulting Group
Kelly Leonard
VP, Creative Strategy, Innovation & Business Development
The Second City
Lakshmi Iyer
Managing Director
FSG
Lara Littlefield
Executive Director of Partnerships & Programs
Paul G. Allen Family Foundation
Lauren Coape-Arnold
Global Head of Citizenship
Apollo Opportunity Foundation
Lauren Stovall
Global Head of Nonprofit Programs
AWS
Lynette Bell
Executive Vice President, President
Truist Foundation
Maha Jweied
CEO
Responsible Business Initiative for Justice
Maria Kim
President & CEO
REDF
Marvin Carr
Director, Center for Racial Equity
Walmart
Melissa Conrad
Social Impact Manager & Head of Employee Engagement
Zillow Group
Michele Lee
Board Member of Chicago Transit Authority, Senior Public Affairs Manager, Accessibility
Cruise
Nadia Khamis
Senior Director of Corporate Engagement
Planned Parenthood Federation of America
Nancy Weintraub
Chief Advancement Officer
Easterseals Southern California
Natalie Moore
Columnist
Chicago Sun-Times
Nicole Johnson
Director of Global Social Impact, Diversity & Employee Engagement
Cadence Design Systems
Nikole Hannah-Jones
Domestic Correspondent
The New York Times Magazine
Patti Constantakis
Director, Corporate Philanthropy
Walmart
Paul Rice
Founder & CEO
Fair Trade USA
Paurvi Bhatt
President & Chief Impact Officer
Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers (RCI)
Pooja Shaw
Senior Advisor for Technology & Delivery
The White House
Rachel Salinas
National President
Inter-Tribal Council of AT&T Employees
Reba Dominski
Senior EVP, Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer & President
U.S. Bank Foundation
Regina Miller
Executive Director
Array Alliance
Ritesh Patel
Senior Partner, Global Digital Health
FINN Partners
Scott Curran
Founder & CEO
Beyond Advisors
Sean Knierim
Partner, Co-Founder
SidePorch
Shaka Senghor
President
Shaka Senghor Inc
Dr. Shelley Francis
Co-Founder & Director
EV Noire
Sidney Espinosa
Head of Social Impact
GitHub
Staci Alexander
Vice President, Thought Leadership
AARP
Sukhendra Rompally
Founder & CEO
Chezuba
Sunil Rajpurohit
Chief Investment & Product Officer
U.S. Bank
Susan Jin Davis
Social Impact Officer
Al Roker Entertainment
Thomas Jonas
CEO & Co-Founder
Nature's Fynd
Tiffanie Boyd
Senior Vice President & Chief People Officer
McDonald's USA
Tyler Blackburn
Senior Associate Director
APCO
Valerie Jarrett
Chief Executive Officer
Obama Foundation
Valerie Lefler
Founder & CEO
Feonix
Wandy Hernandez
Founding Board & Past Board Chair
National Association of Community Health Workers

Speaker Inquiries

Social Innovation Summit year-round events feature blockbuster speakers and industry thought leaders in a variety of formats, including main-stage keynotes and panel discussions, interactive breakouts, roundtable discussions, experiences, and VIP social events.

Nominate a Speaker

Meet Our Speakers

The Social Innovation Summit program elevates, inspires, and mobilizes cross-sector action spanning the corporate, philanthropic, investment, policy, cultural, civil society, and innovation landscape. Our diverse mix of Speakers help frame the conversation.

Previous Social Innovation Summit speakers include…

Nomination FAQ

Throughout the year, the SIS Programming team curates the most compelling content, elevating top industry thought leaders and luminaries, CSR, ESG, & DEI executives, social impact practitioners, cultural icons, and other special guests to fill our speaking roles.

We invite you to review the following FAQs ahead of submitting an application:

Speaker Guidelines

Who can I nominate?

We welcome all types of nominations, whether a colleague, client, or yourself. You may nominate a particular individual, or even a group of individuals for an entire proposed session. Regardless of the nature of your nomination, please be sure to clarify your relationship to the proposed speaker in your application.

Who are you looking for?

Everyone! Our speakers range from the most influential and well-known business leaders and cultural icons, to the undiscovered kid-scientist who will one day change the world. The only key parameter is that we are looking for individuals who are mission-driven and passionate about social impact.

Are speakers compensated?

While we are unable to offer speaker honorariums, we are from time to time able to assist with travel and accommodation for speakers in demonstrated need.

Nomination Process

How do I suggest a speaker?

Please use our Nomination Form and provide the speaker’s essential details: bio/background, content focus, and links to website profiles, news articles, or past engagements. This information goes directly to our programming review team, who will follow up with each applicant.

Is there an application deadline?

We accept nominations on an ongoing basis, even through May 2024. Of course, the earlier the better, as our speaking roles are limited.

When can I expect to hear back?

Our programming committee reviews nominations on a rolling basis, and we will get back to you as soon as possible to provide updates on your application status within 2-4 weeks. If we are unable to make an immediate decision, the decision may be deferred, but we will always keep you apprised of the status of your application.

Can I become a speaker via SIS partnership?

Yes and No. While many of our SIS partners also contribute thought-leadership as a speaker, our Partnerships team does have a set of parameters to validate and ensure the content and messaging is relevant, mission-oriented, and authentic for our audience. If you are interested in learning more about becoming a partner in addition to a speaking role, please just let us know inside your speaker application.

Additional Questions?

We want to hear from you!

For any additional questions, or to follow-up on an existing application, don’t hesitate to reach out to a member of our SIS Programming Team, who will be happy to assist:

Guly Maimaiti

Social Innovation Summit | Programming Team