Neil Howe, President, LifeCourse Associates

Neil is a historian, economist, and demographer who writes and speaks frequently on generational change in American history and on long-term fiscal policy. He is cofounder of LifeCourse Associates, a marketing, HR, and strategic planning consultancy serving corporate, government, and nonprofit clients. He has coauthored six books with William Strauss, including Generations (1991), 13th Gen (1993), The Fourth Turning (1997), and Millennials Rising (2000). His other coauthored books include On Borrowed Time (1988). Neil is also a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, where he helps lead the CSIS "Global Aging Initiative," and a senior advisor to the Concord Coalition. He holds graduate degrees in history and economics from Yale University. He lives in Great Falls, Virginia, with his wife Simona and two children, Giorgia and Nathaniel.

Genevieve Bell, Intel Fellow, Digital Home Group, Director, User Experience Group

Born and raised in Australia, Genevieve is the Director of the User Experience Group within Intel Corporation’s Digital Home Group in Portland, Oregon. She is the driving force behind Intel’s emerging consumer centered focus. Gathering a team of anthropologists, interaction designers and human factors engineers to transform consumer-centric product innovation, she has fundamentally changed how Intel envisions, plans and develops its platforms. Her team is responsible for setting research directions, conducting global comparative qualitative and quantitative research, leading new product strategy and definition and championing consumer-centric innovation and thinking in Intel’s Consumer Electronics business and across all of Intel’s platforms. Genevieve has a PhD in anthropology from Stanford University and a new book forthcoming from MIT Press. She was recently recognized by Fast Company magazine as one of the 100 most innovative people in business.

Jamie Tworkowski, Founder, To Write Love On Her Arms

Jamie founded To Write Love on Her Arms, a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with addiction, depression, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA began in 2006 as Jamie's attempt to help a friend and tell a story. Since then, the TWLOHA team has responded to more than 150,000 emails and messages from over 100 countries, in addition to investing more than $700,000 directly into treatment and recovery. Jamie's TWLOHA blogs are a source of hope and encouragement for thousands, and he speaks frequently at universities, concerts and conferences. Jamie has been interviewed for NBC Nightly News, CNN.com and Rolling Stone Magazine.

Richard Loomis, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Creative, Disney Channels Worldwide

An award-winning senior entertainment industry marketing executive with over 20 years experience developing and leading successful marketing initiatives, Richard oversees the U.S. marketing strategy and creative direction both on- and off-air for: Disney Channel and its Playhouse Disney programming block, Disney XD, and the Saturday morning ABC Kids daypart on the ABC Television Network. His oversight of the creative sales marketing direction for multiple platforms and content also help influence and shape the marketing campaigns for Disney Channels around the world. He joined Disney from MTV Networks where he served as Senior Vice President, Comedy Central from 2004-06, and as Vice President Marketing and Advertising at Nickelodeon from 2000-04. A native of Ontario, New York, Loomis is a graduate of The College of Wooster.

Kelly Pena, Senior Vice President, Research, Disney Channels Worldwide

Kelly is responsible for strategic, brand and marketing research for the Company's wholly-owned basic cable networks: Disney Channel, Disney XD, ABC Family and SOAPnet as well as Radio Disney. She leads an international, cross-functional team that translates quantitative and qualitative data into meaningful actionable information required for the development of long-term strategies, growth initiatives and key business decisions. She was instrumental in the rebrand of Toon Disney to Disney XD, a boy-focused, girl-inclusive channel. Pena and her team conducted extensive research that helped shape the channel and its online components in order to reach the underserved boy demographic. Pena earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a minor in Mass Media from New Mexico State University and a Master’s Degree in Journalism from Louisiana State University.

Ron Faris, Director, Brand Experiences, Virgin Mobile USA

Ron is responsible for managing Virgin Mobile’s largest brand marketing programs, including lifestyle marketing, events and sponsorships, branded entertainment, and cause-related marketing initiatives (including The RE*Generation, Virgin Mobile’s initiative committed to ending youth homelessness). Most recently, he was responsible for managing and executing Virgin Mobile’s sponsorship of The Monster Ball Starring Lady Gaga. Prior to that he conceived and launched the 2009 Virgin Mobile “FreeFest,” the largest free concert in the country designed to relieve those most distressed by the economy. Before that, he was responsible for managing Virgin Mobile’s sponsorship of “The Circus Starring Britney Spears.” Since Sprint’s acquisition of Virgin Mobile, Ron has also absorbed all brand experiences for Boost Mobile and manages the music initiatives and brand programs across both brands.

Vicki Abeles, Filmmaker

Vicki, an attorney and mother of three, found herself worn out by watching her own children navigate their days filled with school, homework, tutoring, and extracurricular activities. After a series of wake up calls, Vicki set out with her camera to understand why children's lives more closely resemble high-powered CEOs than the type of childhood she had envisioned for her children. Vicki produced and co-directed the documentary film, Race to Nowhere, a close up examination of the unintended consequences of today's education system and achievement culture. Vicki previously practiced law at the prestigious New York law firm of Cahill, Gordon & Reindel, traded gold at Goldman Sachs, advised the media firm Outdoor Systems, (now part of Viacom), when it was taken public.

Ariel Aberg-Riger, Creative Development and Marketing Director, Fourth Story Media

Fourth Story Media is a transmedia studio that tells stories that unfold across books, the web, mobile phones, and other platforms. FSM's first major property – The Amanda Project – is a collaborative, fictional, book + web mystery series for teen girls that launched in Fall 2009. Previously, Ariel worked as Associate Director at Market Partners International where she advised a range of clients from the Ontario Media Development Corp. to Harlequin. In addition, she has consulted extensively for Sparknotes/Barnes & Noble, most recently in their Interactive Media division, working with clients such as Nike, Target, HBO & Neutrogena. Ariel graduated from Smith College with a BA in Philosophy. She is Facebook user #507516468. She loves her Google Reader.

Jack Abraham, Founder and CEO, Milo

Jack began coding at age 12 building some of the first data extraction and processing mechanisms for ComScore where he watched the company grow from 3 to 40 employees before leaving. His interest in data lead him to write software to crawl, analyze and trade products on eBay in real-time when arbitrage opportunities were identified. His eBay arbitrage company was printing money before it was shut down by PayPal. Jack also has experience developing behavioral targeting campaigns for Microsoft and Drugstore.com. Jack is in the process of graduating magna cum laude as a Joseph Wharton Scholar from the Wharton School with a customized degree in Technological Entrepreneurship, combining business and computer science.

Holly Ashworth, Sr. Web Editor, eSPIN.com; Teen Advice Guide, About.com

Since 2005, Holly’s overseen the content, user experience and traffic acquisition of the teen social site eSPIN.com, a subsidiary of Hearst Digital Media. This past fall she also became the Teen Advice Guide for About.com, where she’s been steadily (and happily) rebuilding the teen community ever since. She’s appeared on NPR and in Youth Markets Alert as an expert on teen attitudes. Holly holds a BA in fine arts from New York University, and she previously led artist-in-residence workshops for teens and tweens in New York and New Jersey public schools.

Jeff Berger, CEO, Co-Founder, KODA

Launched in May 2009, KODA introduces today’s young professionals to the world’s employers. Jeff is responsible for setting the overall direction and strategy for the company. He leads the design of KODA’s service and development of its technology and infrastructure as well as its business development. Jeff grew up in the burbs of Boston and graduated from Tulane University. He currently resides in San Francisco.

Craig Bland, VP, Strategic Partnerships and Content Alloy Digital, a division of Alloy Media + Marketing

Craig brings more than 15 years experience in online advertising and production. He is responsible for building online content partnerships and for the development of programming and editorial initiatives for the Alloy Digital Network. The Alloy Digital network is successfully connecting marketers to the largest concentration of millennials online through highly trafficked websites and premium original web programming, airing on AlloyTV, that appeal to the wide ranging interests of these influential consumers. Previously, Craig was VP Celebrity Programming and Development at BUZZMEDIA, where he developed strategic partnerships with leading Internet publishers and worked closely with celebrity talent, including the Kardashian sisters, Nicole Richie, Britney Spears and Whitney Port to develop and implement integrated online marketing sponsorships with leading advertisers.

Nate Bosshard, Brand Manager, Action Sports & Outdoor, The North Face

Nate leads global brand strategy for all aspects of TNF advertising as well their on-line and social media platforms. He is deeply integrated with the product development cycle and committed to pushing the athlete/expedition process forward each year. Most recently Nate spearheaded a "first to market" iPhone App which was used in Apple's fall ad campaign and was recognized by Brandweek as the #1 "Branded Apparel App." Outside of his day job, Nate is a youth pop-culture vulture and obsessive collector of old vinyl records. Prior to The North Face, Nate worked at Burton Snowboards and JDK Design in Burlington, Vermont. Nate currently lives in Berkeley, CA with his wife and 6-month old daughter.

Anne Collier, Co-Director, ConnectSafely.org

Journalist, author, and youth advocate, Anne is co-director of ConnectSafely.org, the leading interactive resource on the Web about youth safety on the fixed and mobile social Web, and founder and executive director of its parent organization, Net Family News, Inc. Anne's other main hat is editor of NetFamilyNews.org, which – when she started it in 1999 – was basically a blog before there were blogs. It's also an email newsletter with, at last check, subscribers in more than 50 countries. Anne is also currently serving as co-chair of the Online Safety & Technology Working Group in Washington. She lives in Salt Lake City with her husband and two teenage sons.

Geoff Cook, CEO, myYearbook

myYearbook is Geoff’s third multi-million dollar Internet enterprise, all grown from zero traffic and zero revenue to significant market-leading properties. In 1997, at age 19, Geoff founded EssayEdge.com and ResumeEdge.com from a Harvard dorm room. His Wired feature story outing himself as a dorm room entrepreneur helped lead Harvard to lift its centuries-old ban on dorm room entrepreneurship. Geoff later sold his company to The Thomson Corporation. He departed Thomson in 2005 to join forces with his sister and brother, myYearbook’s founders, Catherine, age 15, and David, age 16. Geoff was instrumental in raising $20 million in angel financing, venture capital, and venture debt to build the young company into the best place to meet new people.

Trina DasGupta, New Media & Youth Marketing Consultant

Trina is a new media & youth marketing consultant working with consumer brands, non-profits, and political organizations. Most recently, Trina worked with South Africa’s largest youth NGO and seventh most well known brand, loveLife, to develop media-based engagement models to address the social determinants of HIV. On this project, she also created the world’s first cell phone-based social network dedicated to youth empowerment & HIV prevention. Prior to consulting, Trina worked for MTV Networks as the Manager of Integrated Marketing & New Business Development. She has also worked on Viacom and MTV International’s sexual health campaigns, Know HIV/AIDS and Staying Alive. Trina is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with degrees from the Wharton School of Business and the Annenburg School of Communications.

Scott DeYager, Social Media Supervisor, Toyota Motor Sales, USA

Scott leads Toyota’s PR social media communications efforts, including developing and managing an online content strategy, building brand advocacy and protecting brand reputation. An award-winning public relations veteran, Scott has also provided expertise in visual communications, crisis communications and media relations in his more than 13 years with the company.

Timothy Donza, Brand Strategist, The Sound Research

The Sound Research is the world's leading strategic youth research agency who view youth not just as an age or an attitude, but as a unique lifestage experienced in an ever faster moving context. As a Brand Strategist from the Sound's New York office, Tim works closely with clients like Unilever and Pepsi to understand today's millenials worldwide, with a focus on documenting their lives online and on film. Previously, Tim honed his creative and strategic skills at Redscout and Wieden + Kennedy, and has the distinction of being both a WPP Marketing Fellow and a graduate of Wieden + Kennedy's 12 school. Tim holds a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania.

Donna Fenn, Author/Journalist

Donna is the author of Upstarts! How GenY Entrepreneurs are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You can Profit From Their Success (McGraw-Hill, 2009). She is also a contributing editor at Inc. Magazine and the author of Alpha Dogs: How Your Small Business Can Become a Leader of the Pack (Collins 2005). A business journalist for more than 20 years, Fenn is also a blogger on BNET/CBSi, a featured expert on SBTV, a blogger on Inc.com, and an experienced international keynote speaker. She was a correspondent for The Associated Press in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 1988 – 1992. She now lives in Pelham, NY with her husband, Guian Heintzen, and is the proud mom of two GenYers – a junior at Tulane and a freshman at Cornell.

Simon Fleming-Wood, Senior Director, Marketing, Cisco Consumer Products
Cisco

Simon currently oversees the Americas Marketing organization for the Linksys and Flip Video brands and leads all integrated marketing communications through corporate branding, research, marketing programs, events, public relations, advertising and consumer branded websites (Linksysbycisco.com and theflip.com). Simon has nearly 20 years of experience as a marketing executive and consultant in the consumer technology and packaged goods industries. He served most recently as Vice President of Marketing at Pure Digital Technologies and was responsible for the creation and introduction of the Flip Video brand. Previously, he held senior marketing positions at Sega.com, the Learning Company/Mattel and The Clorox Company. A native of Canada, Fleming-Wood holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Stanford University.

Denise Garciano, Social Media Manager, PacSun

Denise has led PacSun (a lifestyle specialty retailer rooted in the youth culture) in discovering who is talking about their brand online, who their customers are, and how to genuinely reach out and engage with friends and fans. As their Social Media Manager, she has developed and established a community for PacSun, and continues to put forth initiatives and strategies that provide a better experience both online and in stores.

Ryan Garman, President, Co-Founder, Tissla

Ryan co-founded Tissla as a student at Santa Clara University in 2000 and has been a guiding hand behind Tissla’s transformation from a small marketing services house into a nationally recognized collegiate agency. Ryan and his team have spearheaded campaigns for clients as diverse as Comcast, Microsoft, Ford Motor Company, Chase, Yum! Brands, MTV, Folgers Coffee, Army National Guard, Unilever, Bebe, and Lucky Brand Jeans.

Kathleen Gasperini, Co-Founder, Senior Vice President, Label Networks

Kathleen is acclaimed as an industry leader when it comes to global youth culture marketing intelligence and forecasting for her work at Label Networks, a leading global youth culture intelligence company with clients such as Apple Computer, Dr. Pepper, Oakley, Burton, and the Vans Warped Tour. Formerly, Kathleen worked as the Senior Editor of Powder and Snowboarder, and the editor of Women's Sports & Fitness. She was the technical writer for the IMAX movie “Extreme,” and is the co-founder of Boarding for Breast Cancer. Kathleen was the publisher of the original female youth lifestyle magazine, W.i.g. Magazine–for Women in General, and is the author of Pretty Good for a Girl—the Autobiography of Tina Basich, a Snowboarding Pioneer (Harper Collins).

Francois Gossieaux, Partner, Beeline Labs

Through his role as a co-founder and partner at Beeline Labs, a boutique marketing innovation strategy firm that works with leading brands, and his role as a Senior Fellow and Board Member at the Society for New Communications Research (SNCR), Francois has developed rich expertise in how the social in business has fundamentally changed most core business processes. Prior to Beeline Labs, Francois was a marketing executive at a number of product startups, including eRoom Technology, where he spent 5 years leading marketing. He also worked in senior marketing positions for companies like Agfa/Bayer and Stratus Computers. He is the co-author of the upcoming book: The Hyper-Social Organization.

Serhat Gurcu, Founding Partner, CEO, Youth Republic

Youth Republic is an agency that brings the “Youth Marketing” concept and “Campus Brand Manager” system to Turkey and provides 360° marketing communication solutions with its youth communication strategies expertise. Serhat gives trainings, writes about youth marketing and continues to do his job enthusiastically.

Elisa Haidt, Senior Marketing Manager, Adobe Education

Elisa joined Adobe full-time in June 2006 as a Marketing Manager in the World-wide Education Marketing group. Currently, Elisa is a Senior Marketing Manager and is responsible for developing marketing strategies and executing on them to reach the world-wide student market. Her responsibilities include managing all marketing programs, such as paid search, advertising, relationship marketing, the website, social media and social networking activities, for the world-wide student campaign. Elisa has an MBA from the University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business and a MA in Instructional Technology from Teachers College. Her undergraduate education was at Washington University in St. Louis.

Jesse Harris, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY )

At only 24 Jesse is leading the next generation of young and talented filmmakers. At 17, Jesse wrote, directed, financed and secured a multi-city theatrical release for his feature length drama, Living Life. The film tells the story of a teenage boy battling cancer and how he changes other people’s lives in the process of reconciling himself to his illness. As a result of his experience making, releasing and distributing his own film, Jesse decided to create an organization to support other young filmmakers. In 2007 Jesse co-founded the National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY), a new film festival and non-profit organization to support young filmmakers 22 and under.

Jason Harty, Brand Manager, vitaminwater

Jason oversees the vitaminwater product innovation and interactive marketing initiatives. His efforts in social media specifically have helped grow vitaminwater’s Facebook fan base to over 1.1 million in less than a year, earning the brand a Top 10 spot on the Slate.com list of “brands that best engage fans on Facebook” (12/09). Over the past 10+ years he's managed interactive, mobile and field marketing campaigns for client accounts and held marketing agency positions representing F100 clients such as Verizon Wireless, Subway Restaurants and NBC Universal. Jason earned a B.A. in Communications from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY, and currently lives in Brooklyn with his fiancé, Liz, and dog, Rick.

Jack Heath, Founder and President of the Inspire USA Foundation

The Inspire USA Foundation is dedicated to promoting youth mental health and preventing youth suicide. In January 2010 Jack moved from Sydney to San Francisco to take up the CEO role. Before that he was the Founder and Executive Director of the Inspire Foundation in Australia beginning in 1996. Inspire was established following the suicide of Jack’s 21-year-old cousin on their family farm and in response to Australia’s then escalating rates of youth suicide which thankfully have since halved. Reachout.com is Inspire’s flagship program designed to help teens and young adults get through tough times. The US version of Reachout.com was launched March 1, 2010 and is a key partner with the Ad Council and SAMHSA in the “We Can Help Us” national media campaign.

Tina Hoff, Vice President for the Kaiser Family Foundation, Director of the Foundation’s Entertainment Media Partnerships Program

Tina oversees multi-faceted public information partnerships with leading media companies – including MTV, MTVU, BET, CBS, Clear Channel Communications, Fox and Unvision — to address pressing public health and social issues, notably HIV/AIDS. The driving philosophy behind the Foundation’s work in this area is to go where their audience – primarily young people –go already. She also oversees the Global Media AIDS Initiative, a U.N.-supported effort that works with media companies around the world to extend the reach of HIV content and make AIDS a business priority.

Andrea Kraushaar, Youth Strategy & Research Director, Youth Dynamix

Andrea is the youth strategy and research director at Youth Dynamix, a youth consultancy specialising in research, strategic planning and turnkey marketing solutions for clients targeting the youth (0-24 year olds) and family markets. Having completed her Masters degree in marketing (cum laude), she has over 10 years of youth research and consulting experience. Andrea's analytical mind, extensive youth knowledge and passion ensure cutting edge, relevant youth research; the ongoing creation of youth insights; as well as the development of innovative strategic models, tools and methods. Over the years, some of her many clients span all industry spheres, including brands such as Coca-Cola, Nokia, McDonald’s, Nestlé, Kellogg’s and Disney.

Gokhan Kavasogl, Co-Founder, Chairman Youth Republic

Gokhan is co-founder and chairman of Youth Republic, the Istanbul-based youth marketing agency. He studied economics at Bosphours University, and his first career was in journalism. He worked in national newspapers, radio and TV. He was a news producer with the BBC World Service prior to his pursuit in marketing. In 2001, he and his current partners started Kampus Media, an indoor media company penetrating university campuses in Turkey. This company was sold in 2007 to a big media group. Meanwhile, Gokhan and his partners, including current CEO, Serhat Gurcu, started Youth Republic. The company fast became the market leader in the country and plans to extend the operation to other developing markets.

Jordan Levin, Chief Executive Officer, Generate

Recognized for his deep understanding of young adult audiences, Jordan has been instrumental in launching numerous entertainment franchises that have left a lasting impact on popular culture over the past two decades as a television network and studio executive, producer, director and new media entrepreneur. In 2005, Levin partnered to create Generate, a next-generation media company producing targeted content for distribution across traditional and digital platforms. Prior, Levin spent a decade building The WB television network, culminating with his appointment as the youngest CEO in broadcast history. As part of the founding executive team, Levin rose through the programming ranks to become President, Entertainment by age 33 and was instrumental in hit series such as “Dawson’s Creek,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and many others.

Deb Levine, Executive Director, Founder, Internet Sexuality Information Services (ISIS, Inc.)

ISIS is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization using technology, new media and mobile for sexual and reproductive health. ISIS' media-acclaimed projects include inSPOT, SexINFO, and the annual Sex::Tech conference, bringing together techies, health professionals, youth and parents. Deb has been working professionally on the Internet for more than 15 years. At Columbia University, she designed an award-winning online health question-and-answer service, Go Ask Alice! She also wrote an online sex advice column, Ask Delilah, for AOL and Time-Warner, and the Sexuality blog on Yahoo! Health. She has a B.S.W. from Cornell and a Master's in Experiential Education from NYU. Deb is a 2009 Pop!Tech Social Innovation Fellow.

Casey Lewis, Teen Fashionista

Casey is a freelance writer, longtime blogger, and soon-to-be journalism graduate from Missouri. At 14-years-old, she created TeenFashionista.com and continues to write about pretty dresses and pop culture there. (Now 22, she's no longer a teen, though she often still feels like one.) Casey has written for numerous publications, interned at several magazines, including Teen Vogue, and worked as a Ypulse assistant editor and contributor. Most recently, she wrote a book about turning your dorm room into a stylish dwelling. Dorm Living, published by Globe Pequot Press.

Mark Lewman, Principal/Creative Director, Nemo

Mark started his career at 17 and quickly rose to become editor of the seminal action sports publication Freesytlin'. Mark then co-founded Dirt Magazine and Club Homeboy with Andy Jenkins and Spike Jonze. He later helped start Grand Royal Magazine with The Beastie Boys. Mark co-authored BMX legend Matt Hoffman’s autobiography “The Ride of My Life,” the inspiration for “The Birth of Big Air” featured in the ESPN “30 for 30” series. He is also a writer and creative consultant for Jackass and WildBoyz. Today Mark is a Principal and Creative Director at Nemo, a marketing agency innovating for brands like Nike 6.0, Smith Optics, Bell Helmets, and HP. Mark's body of work encompasses Nemo's mantra, "we make culture move."

Lisa Li, Founder & CEO, China Youthology

Lisa is Founder & CEO of China Youthology, a leading research-based consultancy that focuses on the youth market. She has spoken at ESOMAR with a paper nominated as “Best Paper” of 2008. Lisa founded China Youthology in 2008 and has been researching youth in China with a holistic approach based on Sociology and Anthropology. An in-depth understanding of the social changes at a macro level as well as long-term, immersive and community-based studies have enabled China Youthology to decipher youth trends with deeper insights. China Youthology has worked with brands like Nike, Nokia, Nestle, Pernod Ricard and Pepsi to provide them with “youth culture intelligence.” The China Youthology blog (www.chinayouthology.com/blog) was nominated by Ad Age as “20 blogs marketers to China should be reading” in 2009.

Eric Lieb, Partner, Blacklight Transmedia

BLACKLIGHT TRANSMEDIA is a film and video game production company with a first-look deal with Imagine Entertainment. Eric is the former Director of Development of Fox Atomic and Editor-in-Chief of Fox Atomic Comics. Eric spearheaded the creation of Fox Atomic Comics, creating a publishing arm inside a major studio to focus on generating new IP as well as extending the transmedia life of library titles. Eric previously held positions at Artisan Entertainment and Lionsgate, where he worked on such films as the Academy Award-winning CRASH, as well as the SAW series. Eric pioneered the motion comic trend by spearheading an animated version of the Saw: Rebirth comic book, for which he also wrote the story. Eric graduated from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts.

Javier Macias, Ogilvy Group Planning Director, Ogilvy & Mather, Mexico City

Javier joined Ogilvy & Mather in 2003 as part of the planning team, where he has worked with clients such as: Volaris (low cost airline), American Express, Volvo, Kimberly Clark, Pizza Hut, Unilever, Kraft, Nestlé, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Axtel (Mexican TelCo), among many others. Named by the prestigious magazine “Mexican Leaders” as one of the “Leaders of the Future," he has created and developed different strategic planning tools and market research methodologies. Nowadays, he's also the President of the Board of the newly created APG (Account Planning Group) Mexico. A musician and fan of technology, Javier has a BA in Marketing from the Tecnológico de Monterrey and International and Industrial Marketing studies from the Luleå University of Technology, Sweden. He also has a Masters degree in Arranging from Berklee College of Music.

Matt Martelli, Founder and Creative Director, Mad Media

Matt is the founder and creative director of Mad Media, a creative agency offering print, design, photography, video production, and web services. Founded in 1995, Mad Media has a singular vision; to take the structure and knowledge from corporate marketing and brand messaging, and modify it to work within the youth market. Mad Media has grown to the point where they’re now shooting national TV spots, producing groundbreaking viral films, and really pushing the envelope by combining emerging technology with creative. Mad Media has recently received several accolades for the "Gymkhana" viral film series; created with driving phenom, and DC shoes founder Ken Block. The Gymkhana videos have been downloaded over 50 million times, making them the most successful automotive viral film series ever.

Mitch McCasland, Consumer Scientist, Innovation Insights, Frito Lay

Mitch is a recognized expert on using consumer insights as a basis for brand strategy and product design. Throughout his 20-year career, he has worked on strategies for such respected companies as Frito-Lay, McDonald’s, General Mills, Samsung Mobile, Procter & Gamble, Eli Lilly, Cadbury Schweppes, Anheuser-Busch, The Warped Tour, and fashion icons Betsey Johnson and Diane von Furstenberg. He is engaged in the development of new products and brands. At Frito Lay, he works collaboratively with consumers and a team of food scientists, food engineers and marketers in the creation, branding and positioning of snacks. Mitch is a ten-time recipient of the Teaching Excellence Award for his MBA lecture series on brand strategies at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

Lucas Murdock, Director of Marketing, Hookit.com

Lucas is a brand marketing executive with 15+ years of experience building brands. As the head of Hookit.com's marketing team, he is responsible for brand development, member experience, partner relations and traffic. His additional experience includes; 9 years launching the Red Bull Energy Drink brand, Anheuser-Busch’s Contemporary Marketing Program, as well as several of his own ventures. Lucas’ interests were honed by the Nation’s leading entrepreneurship program at the University of Arizona, were he received degrees in Marketing and Entrepreneurship. His passion for sports has him intertwined in the action sports world as a participant, event MC, contest judge, fan and more…

Reena Nadler, Program Director, LifeCourse Associates

LifeCourse Associates is a marketing, HR, and strategic planning consultancy founded by generational experts Neil Howe and William Strauss. Reena helps coordinate research and consulting to give readers and audiences powerful insights into who today’s generation is, how they interact with each other, and how they will shape our national future. Reena’s specific area of expertise is the Millenial Generation. She is contributing author to Millennials in the Workplace (2010), Millennials in K-12 Schools (2008) and Millennials Go to College (2007), and has coauthored many reports and articles with Howe and Strauss. Reena gives keynote presentations on Millennials at events and national conferences. A first-wave Millennial herself, she brings a first-hand perspective to LifeCourse’s work on today’s youth generation.

Burcu Ozturkler, Account Executive, Youth Republic

Youth Republic is a youth marketing agency located in Turkey. Burcu manages a network of campus brand managers made up of university students as well as develops marketing and communication strategies to increase youth brand awareness and market share. Burcu has been at Youth Republic since 2005 and is an expert at guerilla, WOM and event marketing. She existing clients and takes an active role in business development and executing marketing/communication plans. She enjoys lomography and embraces all perspectives of modern art.

Stacie Perry, Marketing Manager, PacSun

Stacie hails from a distinct marketing background in Action Sports, Online and Social Media, Youth Culture and Strategic Partnerships. Stacie began her career at TransWorld Surf — eventually becoming the first female to become Managing Editor at a mainstream surf publication. In 2004, Stacie joined Boost Mobile as the company expanded nationwide, helping to build the brand through online marketing support of major initiatives like the Boost Mobile Pro of Surfing, And1 Streetball Tour, Boost Mobile RockCorps, Roxy Chicken Jam and Boost Mobile Pro of Gaming. Stacie currently manages action sports and brand marketing initiatives at Pacific Sunwear, including programs such as the PacSun USA Surf Team, The PacSun USASA Snowboard Team and the PacSun Clash at Clairemont skate event.

Joi Podgorny, Director of Community Engagement, Smart Bomb Interactive

As Director of Community Engagement, Joi will architect and oversee all aspects of community management for National Geographic’s Animal Jam, an online virtual world for kids 5-9 launching in the summer of 2010. Her mission will be to create an online destination that is an industry leader in child safety, parental engagement, and pure fun. She is considered one of the industry's foremost experts in online community and children’s marketing, specifically in the under-13-year-old demographics. Her management and production accomplishments range across six international children’s entertainment properties.

Marie Policastro, Manager of Partnership Marketing, Barnes & Noble College Marketing

Marie has over a decade of experience in the marketing industry. In her current role as marketing manager for Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, she is responsible for developing strategic marketing partnerships and generating nontraditional revenue streams. Since taking on this role in 2008, she has created a proprietary marketing program for partners to reach college freshmen and their parents during the summer through print, digital media, in store, and experiential events. Marie also oversees U4U, the biannual (1,000,000 circulation) magazine written for students, by students. She reinvented the publication with a new name, design, editorial mission, and marketing strategy, and continues to supervise editorial, advertising, and production. A graduate of Rutgers University, Marie joined Barnes & Noble College Booksellers in 2004.

Mia Quagliarello, Senior Product Marketing Manger for Community, YouTube

Mia joined YouTube in Sept. 2006. Now, as Senior Product Marketing Manger for Community, she manages YouTube's blogs, social media, community outreach, spotlight videos, Creator's Corner, and user-focused product marketing initiatives. She pinches herself every day that she has this job. Mia was previously the Editorial Manager for Video for Apple's iTunes store and the Senior Managing Editor of Rhapsody, the music subscription service. Prior to moving to San Francisco in 2003, Mia was a copywriter and manager at MTV Networks. She earned a masters degree in Media Ecology from NYU and has an undergrad degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Mia lives in San Francisco with her husband, two young children and a dog named Gypsy.

Jason Rzepka, Vice President, Public Affairs, MTV

Jason’s charge, quite simply, is to use MTV’s superpowers for good. He is responsible for the strategic direction of all of MTV’s “pro-social” campaigns, including the Peabody-winning “It’s Your (Sex) Life,” with the Kaiser Family Foundation; Emmy-winning “Choose or Lose,” which has helped drive the largest youth voter turnouts in U.S. history; “A Thin Line,” which launched in December of 2009 and addresses the emerging issue of youth digital abuse; and many more. Prior to his current role, Jason served as the head of communications at the PopTech Institute. Before PopTech, Jason held senior communications positions at MTV, mtvU, IMAX Corporation and Ruder Finn. He serves on the board of directors of PopTech and holds a bachelor’s of business administration from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee.

Nathan Sawatsky, Director of Community Support, Disney Online Studios

Nathan oversees moderation and support for Disney Club Penguin, Disney Fairies Pixie Hollow, Disney's Toontown Online, Pirates of the Caribbean Online, and Disney/Pixar World of Cars Online; managing teams located in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil and Argentina. Before joining Club Penguin as its first director of community support in the early days of the popular virtual world, Nathan worked as a church music and youth director and with the Starbucks Coffee Company. Nathan’s innate understanding of human nature and social interaction, and his passion for keeping kids safe online make him an invaluable part of Club Penguin and Disney Online Studios.

Steve Schubert, Partnership Development, Barnes & Noble College Marketing

Steve began his career with Procter & Gamble, where he held various roles in the U.S. and in Europe from 1992-2000, including Associate Director within the European Finance and Customer Business Development organization. Before his work with Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, he was a Senior CRM Consultant for Peppers & Rogers, an independent consultant for Microsoft and the Director of Strategic Planning for American Standard's $2B global Bath & Kitchen Division. Steve has an undergraduate degree in Finance from Bradley University and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis. Steve lives in Portland, OR, with his wife and four children.

Whitney Smith, Founder and CEO of Girls For A Change

Girls For A Change is a national organization that empowers middle and high school girls to create social change. Her inspiration for the organization and its programming sprang from over a decade of experience as a leader of innovative programs for girls and women. Whitney’s vision consists of a healthier, more equitable society created through the mobilization of girls and women to produce solutions to problems they identify in their own communities. Under her leadership Girls For A Change has served over 8,000 young women in the last ten years across the United States and internationally.

Mark Sperling, Co-Founder, group Y

If Mark’s resume sounds like a boot camp for co-founding the action sports/youth marketing networking organization, group Y, that’s because it is. His successful work as a brand strategist and publicist for such diverse clients as Target, Disney, Best Buy and Tylenol demonstrate his fluency with the Fortune 500 set, while his involvement with the likes of Transworld Media, Live Nation, Lollapalooza, Tony Hawk and Split Clothing speak to his stellar reputation within the Action Sports and Entertainment communities. If it involves building brands, generating opportunities, or multi-facet marketing, this surfer/snowboarder and twenty-year industry veteran has probably done it. (If not, chances are he’s got something in the works.) Currently the Global Director of Marketing for Troy Lee Designs, Mark and his wife live in Laguna Beach, California.

Amy Strande, Director, Student Audience Marketing, Microsoft

Amy has lead Microsoft's digital strategy for higher education students for the last year. She has launched connected digital experiences (bringing together website, mobile, competitions and more) to reach students and give them low cost software, career advice, and school success tips. Prior to working in the Student Audience Marketing team, she worked in a variety of marketing roles at Microsoft over her 11 years with the company.

Tom Subak, Vice President, Online Services, Planned Parenthood Federation of America

Tom works to define the Federation's online goals and strategies; provide leadership in reaching those goals; and oversees the search and adoption of the technology to do so. Prior to joining Planned Parenthood, Tom was the Founder and CEO of the e Organization — an internet strategy consulting group that worked exclusively with nonprofit organizations and political campaigns. The e Organization was acquired by Mindshare Interactive Campaigns (which later became Virilion), at which point Tom joined Planned Parenthood. Tom and his wife Abby live in New York City with their two children.

Vanessa Van Petten, Founder, Radical Parenting

Vanessa is one of the nation's youngest experts, or 'youthologists' on adolescents, youth trends and parenting. She wrote her parenting book from the teen's perspective, called "You're Grounded!," when she was just 17. After winning the Mom’s Choice Award in 2009 and launching her popular parenting blog, she is now on a national speaking tour, reaching out and talking about what young people really wish adults knew about them. Her blog: RadicalParenting.com has been featured on hundreds of other parenting sites around the web as the only teen-written parenting blog. She has been featured on CNN and has been in the Wall Street Journal and Teen Vogue. She also recently appeared on the 2010 season of Real Housewives of Orange County helping the families get along.

José Villa, Founder/President, Sensis Agency

In 1998, José founded Sensis as a Web development firm, growing it into a full-service digital-centric ad agency managing digital marketing initiatives for powerhouse clients, including the U.S. Army, United Healthcare and Sempra Energy. Under José’s direction, Sensis has grown into an award-winning firm that earned a spot in 2008 and 2009 on the prestigious Inc. 500 ranking of America’s fastest growing private companies and a No. 2 ranking on Hispanic Business’ 2009 list of fastest growing Hispanic-owned companies. As an impassioned champion of multicultural advertising and interactive strategies, José’s official blog, ThinkMulticultural.com, analyzes the latest trends in multicultural digital marketing. You can also follow him on Twitter @jrvilla.

Alissa Walker, Journalist

Alissa is a freelance writer who can most often be found in Los Angeles. She writes about design, architecture, cities and transportation for publications including Fast Company, GOOD, Dwell, Print, ReadyMade, Architect's Newspaper, Design Observer, Core77, and LA Weekly, and is the associate producer for the public radio show “DnA: Design and Architecture,” hosted by Frances Anderton. In 2009 Chronicle Books published City Walks Architecture: New York City, a walking guide to the city’s notable architecture, which Alissa researched, wrote and photographed over the course of a sticky New York summer. She lives in a royal blue house in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, where she throws ice cream socials, tends to a drought-tolerant garden, writes infrequently on her blog, Gelatobaby, and relishes life in L.A. without a car.

Zafka Zhang, Co-founder & Chief Strategy Officer, China Youthology

Zafka is an entrepreneur, internet researcher, columnist, artist and tech geek. Zafka leads digital marketing of China Youthology, investigates macro societal changes, and innovates with community-based research and cyberspace ethnography. Before founding China Youthology, Zafka was senior front-page editor at the 21st Century Business Herald, a leading economic & political newspaper in China. He also headed strategy and research at HiPiHi, a 3D virtual world start-up. As a “cultural investigator," Zafka was named as "135 people to watch" by CNNGO.com (http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/none/hot-list-078194) in 2009.

Dan Coates, President, Youth Pulse, Inc

Dan brings two decades of experience in technology and survey research to the Ypulse team. Based in New York, Dan is a veteran within the online research space. Prior to joining the Ypulse team, Dan was co-founder of SurveyU, drove exceptional growth as Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Polimetrix (acquired in December 2006 by YouGov PLC), served as Vice President of Surveys and Samples at SPSS and was a co-founder of PlanetFeedback.com, an ASP-based consumer affairs portal that rewrote the rules of consumer to business interaction. (PlanetFeedback was merged with Intelliseek and subsequently acquired in January 2006 by Nielsen Buzzmetrics). Dan spent the first decade of his career developing cutting edge research practices and methods on behalf of Burke Marketing, Millward Brown Interactive and the Angus Reid Group, enabling companies to develop online marketing insight.

Anastasia Goodstein, Founder, Editor-In-Chief and Vice President, Youth Pulse, Inc

Anastasia is an award-winning blogger and often-quoted expert on American tweens, teens and early twenty-somethings. She has worked in media for the past 15 years and has helped launch youth oriented web and television properties for brands including Oxygen, AOL and Current TV. She will never forget her roots having begun her career in the non-profit youth media space at Teen Voices. Anastasia was one of the first graduates of the Medill School of Journalism’s new media program at Northwestern University, where she earned an MSJ in 1999. Her first book about teens and technology, Totally Wired: What Teens & Tweens Are Really Doing Online was published by St. Martin’s Press.

Meredith Sires, Managing Editor, Youth Pulse, Inc

While Meredith's first love will always be YA books, her interest in new youth media has steadily grown into a full-fledged passion. Lo and behold, she found a job that encourages her to embrace both. Before entering the wonderful world of professional blogging, Meredith worked as a junior associate at a New York-based book publishing consulting firm. It was there that she began researching the reading habits of teens and tweens and the potential for extending the reading experience online. Meredith currently lives in Brooklyn, but she knows that she is a Californian at heart. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA in English in 2007, and plans on returning to the Bay Area… someday.

Chase Straight, Youth Advisory Board Member, Youth Pulse, Inc

Chase works for a online community management and moderation company. He recently moved to Dallas, TX and serves as Head of Community for an online virtual world for kids. A former journalism major at the University of Utah, he wrote feature articles and album reviews for a music and art magazine. He is fascinated and constantly amazed with how children create and interact online. Aside from his work, Chase is an avid gamer, blogger, live music lover and audiophile who is obsessed with discovering new music and building his already extensive collection. Oh, and he really likes pandas. (You can also find him blogging about virtual worlds on his company's blog at metaversemodsquad.com/blog.

danah boyd, Researcher, Microsoft Research New England

danah boyd is a researcher at Microsoft Research New England and a Fellow at the Harvard University Berkman Center for Internet and Society. She received her doctorate in 2008 from the School of Information at the University of California-Berkeley. Dr. boyd's dissertation project Taken Out of Context: American Teen Sociality in Networked Publics analyzes on how American youth use networked publics for sociable purposes. At the Berkman Center, danah co-directed the Internet Safety Technical Task Force to work with companies and non-profits to identify potential technical solutions for keeping children safe online. This Task Force was formed by the U.S. Attorneys General and MySpace and is being organized by the Berkman Center. Currently, danah is co-directing the Youth Media and Policy Working Group, also funded by the MacArthur Foundation.

Derek Baird, M.A., Technologist

Derek is a technologist specializing in the development, planning, implementation and execution of multi-platform (web, TV & mobile) digital media & content experiences focused on the educational media (edutainment), entertainment and digital kid/youth media markets. As a consultant, he advises clients in both the U.S. and international markets. His blog, Barking Robot, has been syndicated in several leading publications and he has published articles in both academic peer reviewed & online industry journals. Most recently he published a book chapter on digital and social media strategies in The International Handbook of Research on New Media Literacy. He is both an active practitioner and thinker in the worlds of digital media, social entertainment, youth culture and educational multimedia technology.

Dave Knox, Brand Manager, Digital Innovation for Procter & Gamble Productions

A seven year veteran of Procter & Gamble, Dave leads the strategy for new business models in digital media, original content and branded entertainment. Previously, Dave served as P&G’s Corporate Marketing Brand Manager for Digital Business Strategy, responsible for driving digital innovation and capability across P&G's 300+ brands worldwide. Dave’s team makes the strategic choices on which digital brand building skills and innovations will be areas of focus for P&G's brands. Dave was also named by AdAge as “1 of 25 Media People You Should Follow on Twitter” and Media Industry News as a “2010 Social Media Superstar.” He is the co-founder of P&G’s Teen & Youth Expert Network, leader of the P&G Digital Network and the author of the branding blog, HardKnoxLife.com. Prior to joining P&G, Dave worked for Red Bull Energy Drinks, Aware Records and FreshTracks Music.

Steve Loflin, Founder and Executive Director of The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS)

Steve Loflin is the founder and Executive Director of The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS). Originally from South Carolina, Steve attended the University of South Carolina, receiving a B.S. in Business Administration Marketing. Upon graduation, Steve attended Florida State University where he received an M.S. in Higher Education Administration with an emphasis on College Student Development. Steve has held professional positions at the University of North Florida, The George Washington University, Georgetown University and the Semester at Sea Program. In 1994, Steve founded NSCS to recognize students who had done well academically during their first years in college and to provide members with an opportunity to take a leadership role in an organization devoted to scholarship, integrity and service.

Allison Mooney, VP, Emerging Trends, Mobile Behavior

Allison Mooney is a media and marketing theorist specializing in mobile communications. As VP, Emerging Trends at Omnicom’s MobileBehavior, she connects the dots between emerging technology, cultural trends, and consumer behavior to generate marketing strategy and intelligence. She also works to raise the visibility of emerging mobile products and services, enabling them to connect earlier with agencies and advertisers and accelerate growth for what are often considered niche mobile trends and innovations. Allison runs MobileBehavior’s blog and writes for publications such as Advertising Age and PSFK.

Tru Pettigrew, President, Alloy Access (Division of Alloy Media + Marketing)

Tru launched the Alloy Access division in 2007, which connects corporate brands with influential multicultural and urban consumer groups, and is dedicated to developing targeted programs for clients that cut through mainstream clutter and connect with the core of urban and multicultural consumption. Under his guidance, Alloy Access has developed and executed campaigns for such notable clients as Axe, MTV Tr3s, Nike, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Timberland.Tru’s background spans the youth and urban cultures as well as entertainment. While working in the music industry, he executed promotions for Converse, which led to a position with their advertising agency, Houston Herstek Favat (now Arnold Communications). Tru later joined AMP Agency’s Triple Dot Communications (acquired by Alloy in 2000) and co-founded its consumer insights division.

Tom Unger, CEO, AllDorm

Tom joined AllDorm in 2005 as COO and became its CEO in 2006. Under his leadership, AllDorm has grown to be the premiere fully-integrated collegiate marketing agency in the United States. Along with his executive team, Tom helps shape and guide AllDorm’s company-wide passion for providing clients with highly targeted, innovative campaigns. Tom has nearly 20 years professional experience in managing marketing and technology companies. He holds degrees from The New York University School of Law (J.D. 1994), The University of Arizona (M.F.A. 1989) and Middlebury College (B.A. 1982).