Since April 10, 2014, Ms. Stormy D. Simon has held the position of President of Overstock.com Inc. Prior to that, she held the position of Co-President of the company from February 22, 2013 until April 10, 2014. Up to the 22nd of February in 2013, Ms. Simon was employed at Overstock.com Inc. in the capacity of Senior Vice President of... read full bio
Everest is the first mountain in the world to be climbed by a woman from Scandinavia, and Lene Gammelgaard did it. She is a motivational speaker that focuses on mental toughness and abilities to help people face the problems of the future. Lene is an ardent and energizing speaker, and the core message of her presentation is about having a... read full bio
A Gay and A Non-Gay confronts our differences head on and comes to the conclusion that no matter who you are or what you're into (Bruce Springsteen or Britney), love is love, and gays and non-gays can be friends. This film was released at a time when all of us are being threatened by the rhetoric of hate coming from... read full bio
Jeff Mahin is a chef/partner at Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises (LEYE), the co-founder of the consumable nutrition company Split Nutrition (splitnutrition.com) and the brains behind the restaurants Stella Barra Pizzeria (Santa Monica, Hollywood, Chicago, and Bethesda), Summer House Santa Monica (in Chicago and Bethesda), Do-Rite Donuts (Chicago) and M Street Kitchen (Santa Monica). He was also a contestant on Season 1 of... read full bio
Michael Voltaggio is an American chef from Pasadena, California who is most well known for being the winner of the sixth season of Top Chef, a cooking competition reality show on the Bravo network. He competed against his brother Bryan in the show. They both ended in the finale alongside Kevin Gillespie. Judge of Top Chef, Tom Colicchio, stated on... read full bio
Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo are partners and co-owners of Animal, Son of a Gun, Jon & Vinny's, Helen's Wines and catering company, Carmelized Productions. Growing up on opposite sides of the Florida coast, they have been working together for over a decade working on their ideas for recipes and restaurants together and even eventually being credited with innovating and... read full bio
Tokyo-born Austin-bred, Tatsu spent most of his upbringing in restaurants. At a young age, he took a job as a dishwasher and continued on this path working his way from line cook, sushi chef to executive chef. Eventually, he made a trek to LA to immerse himself in Japanese cuisine at the Michelin rated kaiseki, Urasawa in Beverly Hills. Tatsu... read full bio
French chef, restauranteur, and king of the pop-up restaurant, Ludo Lefebvre trained in France for twelve years before moving to Los Angeles where he quickly won the prestigious Mobil Tavel Guide Five Start Award…at two separate restaurants. Since, he has opened two restaurants - Trois Mec and Petit Trois - and created the LudoBites concept, a multi-city restaurant tour. Lefebvre... read full bio
Chef, food advocate, TV personality, culinary innovator, and restaurateur Hugh Acheson has a lot on his plate. Chef Acheson believes that every choice we make – from the food we eat, where it comes from and how we prepare it – has a lasting impact on our children and the world they will inherit. A staunch supporter of No Kid... read full bio
Troy Johnson was the host of Crave, a program on the Food Network. He has appeared in national magazines like Surfer, Spin, Mojo, Paper and Rolling Stone and has even hosted a music television show on San Diego's Fox affiliate called Fox Rox. The show won two regional Emmys and gave some of Troy's favorite bands a live, in-studio platform, including... read full bio
Vaclav Smil is an expert on the history of technological innovation. He points out that the energy industry—which includes production, processing, transportation and distribution, coal and uranium mines, oil and gas fields, pipelines, refineries, fossil-fuel fired, nuclear and hydroelectric power plants, tanker terminals, uranium enrichment facilities and transmission and distribution lines—constitutes the world’s most massive, most indispensable, most expensive and... read full bio
Chef Sue is a Pennsylvania native who graduated from the Culinary Institute of America with a fellowship in seafood and fish. She relocated to New Orleans and like so many talented people before and after her, she began in the kitchen of the Commander's Palace before transferring to Gautreau's. When Sue took over as executive chef, she made sure Gautreau's food honored... read full bio
The Link Restaurant Group, which consists of 5 different restaurants in New Orleans, is owned by Chef Donald Link. In addition to being a nominee for the "Outstanding Chef" Award, Link won the James Beard Award for "Best Chef South." Pêche Seafood Grill, the newest member of his business, also won its fourth and fifth JBF Awards for "Best New Restaurant in America" and... read full bio
Since 1979, Susan Spicer has played a significant role in the New Orleans restaurant scene. However, it was her 1990 opening of Bayona, with its fusion of European, Asian, North African and American flavors and its cozy setting in the French Quarter, that first garnered national attention. Spicer won a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef/Southeast area and Bayona was inducted... read full bio
Tory attended Seattle Community College after high school and graduated with a culinary science degree. He traveled to New Orleans after college to experience the city's illustrious past, Creole cuisine and of course, Mardi Gras. He was hired by Commander's Palace Executive Chef Jamie Shannon at the age of 19 and he advanced quickly through all 12 kitchen levels while mastering his art and... read full bio
Southern Louisiana native John Besh has established the standard for gourmet dining in New Orleans, a city whose identity is tied to its cuisine. His twelve highly regarded establishments—August, Lüke, Domenica, Pizza Domenica, Borgne, Shaya, Willa Jean, Eunice and The Caribbean Room, Bayou Bar, Hot Tin and Silverwhistle Cafe residing in the Pontchartrain Hotel—celebrate the region's abundance and customs. In his restaurants,... read full bio
Sir John Armitt is an English civil works engineer and current chairman of the United Kingdom's National Infrastructure Commission. Sir John has a wealth of experience working with the government at the ministerial level as well as in the building, engineering and transportation industries. Having served as Chair of the Government Commission on the Thames Estuary, the Olympic Delivery Authority and the... read full bio
Scott Bayman is a former President and Chief Executive Officer of GE India. He guided GE to become one of the top multinational corporations in India during his 14 years there, with in-country sales of 3 billion US dollars. Scott now serves as chairman of the board for Lumis Partners, a private equity firm that specializes in financing tech-driven, development businesses.... read full bio
Jo Fairley began her entrepreneurial journey in 1991 when she co-founded Green & Black's Chocolate, which is now approaching a £100 million a year brand. Jo Fairley left school at 16 and went on to become the UK's youngest-ever magazine editor through perseverance and dedication. Because of the success of Green & Black's, Jo has been able to launch multiple businesses, including Judges Bakery,... read full bio
The Honorable Dr. Pippa Malmgren is an economist who clarifies the global economy through writing, establishing tech companies, consulting with international legislators, public speaking and instructing. She serves as a Special Advisor to Avonhurst, a UK-based legal and advisory firm that specializes in deals, regulation and project finance, as well as a Senior Advisor to The Monaco Foundry, a start-up workshop for innovators with an... read full bio
