Over 50 presenters will descend on the island for the fifth annual Nantucket Project this weekend, and here’s the top 10 we’re looking forward to seeing!
1. JONATHAN BERMAN
Mr. Berman is the CEO of investment and advisory firm J.E. Berman Associates. He’s the author of Success in Africa, about the fastest-growing markets in the world and the CEOs who succeed there. President Bill Clinton calls it “important and timely.” Legendary investor Mark Mobius describes it as “dynamite.” In addition to his business, Jonathan is a fellow of the Milken Institute and writes a regular feature for Harvard Business Review on leadership, uncertainty and global markets.
2. TONY BLAIR
Mr. Blair served as Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for ten years. As Prime Minister, he made Africa a top priority. He put Africa on the G8 Agenda for the first time at the Gleneagles Summit in 2005 and led the negotiations that doubled aid to the continent and dropped the debt for its poorest countries. He also established the Commission for Africa to build a new partnership between Africa and the developed world, and made the decision to intervene to end the bloody civil war in Sierra Leone. Since leaving office he has continued his commitment to Africa by setting up the Africa Governance Initiative. He is Patron of the charity and is actively involved as pro bono adviser, working alongside AGI’s teams to support the Presidents and other political leaders of our partner countries to take on the challenge of reform and reducing poverty.
3. BEN CARSON
Dr. Carson became the youngest chief of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital at the age of 33. Raised by a single mother, Carson grew up in dire poverty, but his love of reading changed the course of his life. He was admitted to Yale University and went on receive his M.D. from the University of Michigan. Dr. Carson has written eight books, and he is also the recipient of the 2006 Spingarn Medal, the highest honor bestowed by the NAACP. In June 2008, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Dr. Carson and his wife are co-founders of the Carson Scholars Fund, which recognizes young people for exceptional academic and humanitarian accomplishments. Dr. Carson announced in May 2015 that he was seeking the Republican presidential nomination.
4. MAURICE CLARETT
Mr. Clarett first became known for his football accolades early on in his life. His success as a High School Parade All-American and USA Today Player of the year continued at Ohio State University as he became the first true freshman to start at running back while setting the single season rushing and touchdown record. After that season Maurice fell into a spiral of poor decisions that landed him in prison for 3 ½ years. Since his release in 2010, he has been committed to restoring his life as a man who lives and acts with integrity, completing a documentary film entitled: Youngstown Boys, and publishing his journal that chronicles his struggles. Maurice travels speaking to schools, universities, churches, and business organizations sharing his story. Maurice also is heavily involved in the packaging industry, having bid successfully on over 1 million dollars worth of new business.
5. KELLY CORRIGAN
Ms. Corrigan is the author of New York Times bestsellers The Middle Place, Lift, and Glitter and Glue. She is also a contributor to O: The Oprah Magazine, Good Housekeeping, and Medium. Kelly co-founded Notes & Words, an annual benefit concert for Children’s Hospital Oakland featuring writers and musicians onstage together. Her YouTube channel, which includes video essays like “Transcending” and interviews with writers like Michael Lewis and Anna Quindlen, has been viewed by millions.
6. PING FU
Ms. Fu describes herself as an artist and a scientist whose chosen expression is business. In 1997, Ping co-founded Geomagic, which was acquired by 3D Systems in February 2013. The 3D imaging and 3D printing technologies she created fundamentally change the way products are designed and manufactured around the world. She was also part of the team that created the NCSA Mosaic software that led to Netscape and Internet Explorer. Ping has received numerous awards, including the Outstanding American by Choice award from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Ernst & Young and Inc. Magazine’s Entrepreneur of the Year.
7. DAYO OLOPADE
Ms. Olopade is the author of The Bright Continent, called “a corrective to Africa’s image as a dark, hopeless place” and “a hopeful narrative about a continent on the rise” by The New York Times, and a member of the African Leadership Network. She began her career as a reporter in Washington and in Nairobi, as a fellow with the New America Foundation. She holds a BA, JD, and MBA from Yale University, and currently manages strategic partnerships for Facebook in New York.
8. DJ PATIL
Dr. Patil joined the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in February 2015, when he was named by the White House as Chief Data Scientist and Deputy Chief Technology Officer for Data Policy. DJ advises on policies and practices to maintain U.S. leadership in technology and innovation, fosters partnerships to maximize the Nation’s return on its investment in data, and helps to attract and retain the best minds in data science to serve the public. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of California, San Diego, and a PhD in applied mathematics from the University of Maryland College Park. DJ has also authored a number of influential articles and books explaining the important current and potential applications of data science. In 2014, the World Economic Forum named DJ as a Young Global Leader.
9. STEVE WOZNIAK
A Silicon Valley icon and philanthropist for more than thirty years, Steve Wozniak has helped shape the computing industry with his design of Apple’s first line of products the Apple I and II and influenced the popular Macintosh. In 1976, Wozniak and Steve Jobs founded Apple Computer, Inc. with Wozniak’s Apple I personal computer, featuring a central processing unit, a keyboard, color graphics, and a floppy disk drive. The Apple II was integral in launching the personal computer industry that we know today.
10. NEIL YOUNG
Mr. Young’s career can only be classified as unclassifiable. Each new path he’s taken us on has been joyously unpredictable. As an artist, he’s risen to prominence as a musician, filmmaker, producer, director, author, activist, humanitarian and visionary who’s helped advance the formats with which we listen to music. Neil Young is the founder, vision, force, energy, and voice of PonoMusic. Pono is the result of Neil’s determination to bring high-resolution music, as good as musicians experience it in the studio, to music lovers around the world. He assembled and leads a team of musicians, engineers and other experts that along with him, have created the PonoPlayer and PonoMusic Store.
Click here to see the full list of Nantucket Project 2015 presenters.
