Table Discussion Topics & Distinguished Faculty

University for a Night participants met over dinner for focused discussions led by our honorees, plenary speakers and other Distinguished Faculty - leaders from around the world with particular knowledge and experience to share. The aim was to allow people from diverse places, backgrounds and interests to learn from each other, to share experiences and ideas, and to make connections that will help us all address the world's most pressing problems.

Using mass media and technology to mobilize action to fight poverty
Simone Duarte, Journalist & Filmmaker
Kim Hamilton, President, NetAid

Global networks for social change
Ashok Gurung, Director, India-China Institute, New School University
Kim Kreiling, Coordinator, Loans for Land Initiative, Land Tenure Network

Forging Common Purpose and Action for Effective HIV/AIDS Service Delivery in South Africa
Jean Flatley McGuire, Lorraine Snell Visiting Professor, Institute on Urban Health Research, Northeastern University
Nancy Muirhead, Assistant Secretary, Rockefeller Brothers Fund

Using business expertise to strengthen the impact of nonprofit action
Marta Cabrera, Executive Director, Empower -- The Emerging Markets Foundation

Globalizing community philanthropy -- What does the future look like?
Pablo Farias, Vice President of Asset Building and Community Development , Ford Foundation
Elkanah Odembo, Director, Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society -- Kenya

Creating the responsible business leaders of tomorrow
Jorge Pinto, Director, Center for Global Finance, Lubin School of Business, Pace University
Anette Richardson, Senior Consultant, NetAid

Creating a sustainable and human-friendly environment in our largest cities
Joe McCarron, Managing Director, Generon Consulting
Janice Perlman, Founder & President, Mega-Cities Project

The role of civil society in consolidating democracy -- Experience from the Dominican Republic
Rosario Espinal, Director, Temple University Latin American Studies Program
Paulo Herrera, Member, Sustainability Commission of Participacion Ciudadana

Youth empowerment as a key development strategy for Africa
Hafsat Abiola-Costello, Executive Director & Founder, Kudirat Initiative for Democracy

Leadership education and partnership building for sustainable development
Patricia Rosenfield, Chair, Carnegie Scholars Program, Carnegie Corporation

Building partnerships -- The emerging role of the United Nations
David de Ferranti, United Nations Foundation

Harnessing the mind's full potential for collective action
Joseph Jaworski, Chairman and Director, Generon Consulting
Michael Rennie, Director, McKinsey & Co

Future scenarios for indigenous people: Experience from Canada
Clare Beckton, Deputy Attorney General, Department of Justice of Canada
Rosa Walker, Executive Director, Aboriginal Learning Institute

Improving the lives of children and youth
Maya Ajmera, President, Global Fund for Children
Geraldo Jordão, Chair, Instituto Rio

Crossing the digital divide in education
Amir Dossal, Executive Director, United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, President and CEO, Ayala Corporation

Bridging divides in the Middle East
James D. Wolfensohn, Special Envoy for Gaza Disengagement, The Quartet Principals

People-centered development -- Lessons from Thailand
Surakiart Sathirathai, Deputy Prime Minister, Royal Thai Government
Shannon St. John, President, Triangle Community Foundation

Ways of exercising wealth with responsibility -- Open source philanthropy
Mary Erdoes, CEO, JPMorgan Private Bank
Peter Karoff, Founder and Chair, The Philanthropic Initiative, Inc

Building partnerships -- The emerging role of the United Nations
Mark Malloch Brown, Chef de Cabinet to the Secretary General, The United Nations
John C. Whitehead, Chairman, Lower Manhattan Development Corporation

Innovative approaches to corporate social responsibility
Robert H. Dunn, President- and CEO-designate, The Synergos Institute
Tex Gunning, President, Unilever Bestfoods Asia

Peace, justice and reconciliation -- Bridging divides in Colombia and South Africa
María Eugenia Garcés Campagna, Chairperson, Fundación AlvarAlice
Nadine Hack, President, beCause Global Consulting

Fighting child malnutrition -- New approaches to an old problem in Mexico
José Ignacio Avalos Hernandez, Founder and President, Gente Nueva
Katherine Lorenz, Co-Founder, Co-Director, Puente de la Salud Comunitaria

Raising awareness and support to ensure safe drinking water for all
Jeffrey Seabright, Vice President, Environment & Water Resources, The Coca-Cola Company
Jin Zidell, Founder & President, Blue Planet Run

Private resources for public benefit -- Steps toward improving social capital markets
Katherine Fulton, President, The Monitor Institute
John Goldstein, Senior Managing Director, Medley Global Advisors

From niche market to mainstream -- Moving toward sustainably produced, healthy food
Hal Hamilton, Executive Director, Sustainability Institute
Eugene Kahn, Vice President, Sustainability Initiative, General Mills

Improving children's education at a distance -- The role of technology
Hylton Applebaum, President, The Liberty Foundation
Rina Lopez Bautista, President and Executive Director, Knowledge Channel Foundation

Preparing for pandemics and other disasters -- Roles for business, government and nonprofits
Daniel Sharp, Founding President, Royal Institute of World Science

Responding to disasters -- The role of philanthropy
Charles MacCormack, President, Save the Children
Maria Schneider, Manager, Partnership for Disaster Relief, Business Roundtable

Promoting a just and peaceful society -- Experience from the Philippines
Corazon Aquino, Chairperson, Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Foundation
Felicidad Soledad, Executive Director, Philippine Council for NGO Certification

What is needed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals?
Ray Chambers, Founder and Chair, Amelior Foundation
Deepak Chopra, Founding Member, Alliance for a New Humanity

Microfinance and global banking -- Opportunities for synergy
M. Pilar Ramírez, President of the Board, FIE-Fondo Financiero Privado

Building girls social and economic assets in the face of HIV
Judith Bruce, Program Director, Gender, Family, and Development, Population Council
Helen Taylor Thompson, Chair, StarFish Institute

Responding to disasters -- The role of philanthropy
George Rupp, President, International Rescue Committee
Priya Viswanath, CEO, Charities Aid Foundation

What is needed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals?
John Forgách, Mclusky Fellow, Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies

Building family assets along the US-Mexico border
Ana Marie Argilagos, Senior Consultant, Annie E. Casey Foundation
Carla Roberts, Vice President, Arizona Community Foundation

Supporting sustainable, community-driven rural development in Southern Africa
Greg Erasmus, Director, Social Change Assistance Trust

Creating a peaceful, multicultural and religiously pluralistic world
Andrea Blanch, Director, Center for Women, Violence, and Trauma, Abt Associates
William Vendley, Secretary General, Religions for Peace