Theme: Terra Incognita

We have entered an era of unprecedented change and turmoil which has brought widespread confusion — as well as opportunity.

As explorers in the past believed in the promise of the future even as they faced unknowable risks, we today are called to meet our moment by mapping our emerging world, even as we attempt to live within it. We have quickly sailed beyond the limits of what has been previously charted. We truly live in "terra incognita."

Sidney Harman Hall
610 F Street Northwest
Washington, District of Columbia
United States

City of the Sun

Formed in NYC in the early 2010s, the trio has blazed a trail through the city playing everywhere from street corners to venues, selling out hotspots like Rockwood Music Hall, Mercury Lounge, and The Bowery Electric. They’ve shared stages with a diverse array of artists including Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Marky Ramone, Matisyahu, and Greensky Bluegrass. City of the Sun has also traveled abroad to perform for exclusive TEDx showcases and TED Talks.

Ben Colman

CEO and Founder, Reality Defender

Ben Colman is the founder of Reality Defender, the leading provider of deepfake detection. Over the past 15 years, Ben has scaled multiple companies at the intersection of privacy, AI, and cyber security. Prior to this, Ben led cyber commercialization at Goldman Sachs, and was a graduate intern at Google. Ben holds a master's degree from New York University and a bachelor's degree from Claremont McKenna College. Reality Defender is a deepfake detection platform for enterprises, governments, and platforms to detect AI-generated content and manipulations across audio, video, image, and text files.

Carla Norrlöf

Professor, International Political Economy, University of Toronto

A Swedish national, born in Addis Abeba, Carla Norrlöf has lived in Stockholm, Gaborone, New York, Paris, Geneva and Toronto. Majoring in economics (B.A.) and political science (M.A.), she graduated from Lund University (Sweden). At the Graduate Institute of International Studies (Switzerland), she specialized in political economy and received a Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures and a Ph.D degree in International Relations. Her research was supported by the Royal Swedish Academy and Handelsbankens Forskningstiftelser (Jan Wallanders and Tom Hedelius stiftelse). Carla Norrlöf has published on hegemony, the international political economy of trade, monetary relations, international currencies, and security, as well as in the area of trade and the environment. She has taught undergraduate and graduate courses on the international political economy of trade, the international political economy of finance, international cooperation and institutions, international relations and rational choice.

Chelsey Green

Musician + Educator

A native of Houston, Texas, Dr. Chelsey Green was born into a family of jazz and funk musicians and started her performance career as a violinist at age 5. Dr. Green went on to receive a scholarship for classical viola studies at The University of Texas at Austin where she graduated Summa Cum Laude. Continuing her studies, she received a Master’s degree from The Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Maryland College Park. In August 2017, Dr. Green was appointed Associate Professor in the String Department at the prestigious Berklee College of Music and served as Acting Chair for the Spring 2021 term. Dr. Chelsey Green and her ensemble, The Green Project, tear down stereotypes of the violin and viola by fusing traditional classical technique with popular favorites and enticing original songs in various genres – including R&B, Pop, Soul, Funk, Jazz, Alternative, Hip Hop, Gospel.

Claire Atkin

Cofounder, CheckMyAds

Claire Atkin is co-founder of Check My Ads, the adtech industry's first watchdog. As a leading brand safety advocate, she is a trusted advisor to Fortune 500 brands, government officials, and national security researchers. Her work centers around building new sustainable standards in digital advertising while dismantling the ad-funded disinformation economy. As a brand safety advocate, she holds the surveillance adtech industry accountable for abuses against advertisers and consumers in the popular newsletter BRANDED. Her work intersects the economics of digital marketing, media, and disinformation to expose where ads end up online and guide advertisers on how to regain control over their ad campaigns to align their advertising dollars with their corporate values. Claire is a vocal advocate for journalism, actively campaigning brands to directly support diverse voices in the media. Her work has appeared in Fortune, WIRED, DigiDay, FastCompany, AdWeek, Buzzfeed, CBC, and The Guardian.

Clinton Johnson

Geographer + GIS Equity Advocate, National Geographic Explorer

Clinton Johnson is an accomplished and dedicated professional passionate about advancing social justice and equity through GIS mapping technology. As the Racial Equity & Social Justice Lead at Esri, he has been instrumental in connecting individuals and organizations across all sectors with geospatial data, technology, and methodologies to drive progress at the intersection of all systems of oppression. In addition to his work at Esri, Clinton is the founder and leader of NorthStar of GIS, a 501c3 nonprofit committed to creating a more racially-just world through more racially-just GIS, geography, and STEM fields. Through this organization, he has leveraged his expertise and leadership skills to champion important causes and make meaningful contributions toward building a better future. Clinton’s unwavering commitment to racial equity, social justice, innovation, collaboration, community-building, and compassion is evident in everything he does.

David Hogg

Founder, Leaders We Deserve

Thrust into the world of activism by the largest school shooting in American history, Parkland survivor David Hogg has become one of the most compelling voices of his generation. His call to “get over politics and get something done” challenges Americans to stand up, speak out and work to elect morally just leaders, regardless of party affiliation. Passionate in his advocacy to end gun violence, David’s mission of increasing voter participation, civic engagement and activism embraces a range of issues. David is co-founder of Leaders We Deserve, a grassroots organization dedicated to electing young progressives to Congress and State Legislatures across the country to help defeat the far-right agenda and advance a progressive vision for the future.

Elizabeth Neumann

Former Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention, DHS

Elizabeth Neumann is a national security expert and author of Kingdom of Rage: The Rise of Christian Extremism and the Path Back to Peace. With over two decades of experience, Elizabeth served across three Presidential Administrations - on the inaugural staff of The White House Homeland Security Council under President George W. Bush; advising the Office of the Director of National Intelligence during the Obama Administration; and as the Department of Homeland Security’s Deputy Chief of Staff and Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention in the Trump Administration. Elizabeth is the Chief Strategy Officer for Moonshot, an organization which supports governments and community partners to understand and prevent violence. She is also a national security contributor for ABC News; Board Chair for the National Immigration Forum; and a Fellow of the fourth class of the Civil Society Fellowship of The Aspen Institute, and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Felipe Estefan

Democracy Advocate, Luminate Group

Felipe leads Luminate’s efforts in Latin America, managing grants and investments focused on advancing Civic Empowerment, Independent Media, Data & Digital Rights, and Financial Transparency in the region. He also oversees Luminate’s Narrative Change work. Previously, as an Open Government Strategist at the World Bank, Felipe travelled to more than 40 countries around the world, advocating for and advancing efforts to make governments more open and to foster collaboration between state and non-state organisations. Prior to this, Felipe was a founding member of the Open Contracting Partnership, a Planning Producer at CNN’s Washington bureau and was part of the Permanent Mission of Colombia to the United Nations in Switzerland.

Gen. Scott Dingle

Surgeon General, US Army (Retired)

Lieutenant General R. Scott Dingle was the 45th Surgeon General of the U.S. Army and Commanding General, U.S. Army Medical Command. Prior to his appointment, he served as the Deputy Surgeon General and Deputy Commanding General (Support), U.S. Army Medical Command. His awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal (Oak Leaf Cluster), Legion of Merit (two Oak Leaf Clusters), Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (seven Oak Leaf Clusters), Joint Service Commendation Medal, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Army Commendation Medal (two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters), Army Achievement Medal (one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster), Humanitarian Service Medal, the Order of Military Medical Merit, Recruiters Medallion, the Order of Kentucky Colonels, the Army Surgeon General’s prestigious 9A Proficiency Designator, Expert Field Medical Badge, Parachutist Badge, and the Air Assault Badge.

Holly Dagres

Iran Expert, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council

Holly Dagres is a nonresident senior fellow specializing in Iranian affairs, the editor of the Middle East Programs’ IranSource and MENASource publications, and the curator for the weekly newsletter, The Iranist. Before joining the Atlantic Council, Dagres worked as a freelance Iran analyst, regularly following traditional and social media in English and Persian. She also worked as the assistant editor at the Cairo Review of Global Affairs, associated with the American University in Cairo’s Global Affairs and Public Policy School. She regularly gives analysis for television, radio, and print, including BBC News, CNN, Fox News, NBC News, the New York Times, and the Telegraph. Born in Los Angeles, Dagres spent her adolescent years in Iran, from 1999 to 2006, during which she graduated from Tehran International School. She is fluent in Persian.

Jennifer Golbeck

Professor, University of Maryland

Dr. Jennifer Golbeck is a professor at the University of Maryland in College Park. She is an expert in social networks, social media, privacy and is a sought after speaker, expert, and science communicator. Dr. Golbeck began studying social media from the moment it emerged on the web a decade ago and is one of the world’s foremost experts in the field. Her research has influenced industry, government, and the military. She is a pioneer in the field of social data analytics, discovering people’s hidden attributes from their online behavior, and a leader in creating human-friendly security and privacy systems. In addition to her work as a professor at the University of Maryland, she writes for top online news organizations, including Slate and The Atlantic, and appears frequently on NPR and commercial talk radio. Dr. Golbeck also rescues special needs golden retrievers and shares their lives on social media as The Golden Ratio.

Jim Sciutto

Anchor and Chief National Security Analyst

Jim Sciutto is CNN’s chief national security analyst and anchor of CNN Newsroom with Jim Sciutto weekdays from 3-4pm ET on CNN Max and CNN International. Sciutto reports and provides analysis on all aspects of U.S. national security including foreign policy, the military, intelligence community and the State Department. Throughout his career, he has reported from more than 50 countries across the globe including dozens of assignments from inside Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran, as well as multiple assignments in Ukraine and the Middle East. Sciutto is the author of four books, including the New York Times Bestseller, The Return of Great Powers: Russia, China and the Next World War.

Mykolai Sierga

Founder, Cultural Forces of Ukraine

Mykolai Sierga is the founder of "Cultural Forces" and "Cultural Forces of Ukraine," an officer in the 59th Separate Motorized Brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces, a public figure, musician, TV presenter, actor, and poet. On February 26, 2022, Mykolai enlisted in the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Odessa region, where he established the Cultural Forces initiative. This endeavor united artists, musicians, poets, composers, and other individuals with a strong civic stance, all focused on uplifting the morale and mental well-being of Ukrainian soldiers. The Cultural Forces team tours across front lines, battlefields, occupied areas, and centers for military personnel rehabilitation.

Neşe Devenot

Professor, Writer, and Psychedelics Activist

Neşe Devenot, PhD (they/she) is a Senior Lecturer in Writing at Johns Hopkins University who has contributed to the interdisciplinary field of Psychedelic Studies since 2010. They completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Bioethics at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and received their PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Pennsylvania. Neşe’s scholarship explores the intersections between health humanities, psychedelic bioethics, neuroethics, and comparative literature. They were a 2015-16 Research Fellow at the New York Public Library’s Timothy Leary Papers and a Research Fellow with the New York University Psilocybin Cancer Anxiety Study, where they participated in the first qualitative study of participant experiences. Their psychedelic ethics research has appeared in the Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal, JAMA Psychiatry, the Journal of Psychedelic Studies, Frontiers in Psychology, and Anthropology of Consciousness.

Pam Melroy

Deputy Administrator, NASA

Col. (USAF, ret) Pam Melroy was sworn in as the NASA deputy administrator on June 21, 2021. As deputy administrator, Melroy performs the duties and exercises the powers delegated by the administrator, assists the administrator in making final agency decisions, and acts for the administrator in his absence by performing all necessary functions to govern NASA operations. Melroy is also responsible for laying out the agency’s vision and representing NASA to the Executive Office of the President, Congress, heads of federal and other appropriate government agencies, international organizations, and external organizations and communities. Melroy was commissioned through the Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program in 1983. As a co-pilot, aircraft commander, instructor pilot, and test pilot, Melroy logged more than 6,000 flight hours in more than 50 different aircraft before retiring from the Air Force in 2007.

Peter Pomerantsev

Writer + Professor

Peter Pomerantsev is a senior fellow at Johns Hopkins University and co-director of the Arena Initiative. Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, Peter grew up in the U.K. He is the author of several books about Russian and other authoritarian propaganda; the third of these, How to Win an Information War: The Propagandist Who Outwitted Hitler, was published in 2024. Pomerantsev was project chair for the Information Warfare Initiative of the Center for European Policy Analysis. He also led the Beyond Propaganda programme within the Legatum Institute's Transitions Forum, where he was a Senior Fellow. Pomerantsev has been at the fellow of the Institute for Human Sciences, Vienna. Pomerantsev has given testimony on the subject of information warfare and media development to the US Congress Foreign Affairs Committee, US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and the UK Parliament Defence Committee.

Sara Minkara

Special Advisor on International Disability Rights, US State Department

Sara Minkara joins the U.S. Department of State as Special Advisor on International Disability Rights. The senior diplomat for disability rights, Special Advisor Minkara leads the U.S. comprehensive strategy to promote and protect the rights of persons with disabilities internationally and across our foreign policy. As a Lebanese-American Muslim woman who acquired her disability at the age of 7, Minkara incorporates her personal experience with disability in all of her work. She has dedicated her life to promoting inclusion as a value, and to empowering others to reach their potential. Ms. Minkara developed a unique approach, her In the Dark Methodology, to introduce concepts of adaptive design, leadership, and inclusion, and to address workplace and social challenges.

Sunny Sumter

CEO, DC JazzFest

Sunny Sumter is President and CEO of the DC Jazz Festival (DCJF). DCJF's signature programs include the annual DC JazzFest, the year-round DCJF Education Program, and the Charles Fishman Embassy Series. DCJF is the recipient of the DC Mayor’s Art Award for Excellence in Creative Industries. Prior to her tenure at the DC Jazz Festival, Sumter held management/director positions with the Aspen Institute, National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Sumter earned her bachelor’s degree in music business from Howard University where she minored in jazz voice. She is a recipient of a Howard University Benny Golson Award, the Sitar Arts Center Visionary Award, a DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities Fellowship, and a Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation Emerging Artist Award. As a professional vocalist, Sumter has performed at festivals, and clubs internationally.