INNOVATION OPEN

Dimitar is the Director of Content Development at Sustainable Brands. He joined the Sustainable Brands team after earning a Master’s degree in Management Science & Engineering – focused on sustainable business – from Stanford University. Before Stanford, Dimitar worked in international development at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and also in economic consulting at Charles River Associates and NERA. Born and raised in Bulgaria, Dimitar left his home country for the first time about a decade ago to go to college in the U.S. He has since turned into something of an international man of mystery, thriving on global friendships, global food and global thoughts.

As CEO and Chief Old Person of DoSomething.org, the largest organization for young people and social change in the world, Aria Finger uses her expertise on all things young people and tech to lead a diverse, impact-driven team. She has been an instrumental part of scaling DoSomething.org from less than 100,000 members to over 5 million members in 131 countries today. Starting at DoSomething.org as an associate 10 years ago, Aria created their Teens for Jeans campaign which has clothed over 5 million homeless teenagers to date.

With her cause-related marketing experience, Finger has spearheaded partnerships with top brands including Johnson & Johnson, H&M, Sprint and American Express.

In 2013, she founded and became President of TMI, a strategic consultancy that uses DoSomething.org’s 20+ years of experience to help clients reach young people and fuel positive impact in the world.

Aria graduated magna cum laude in economics and political science from Washington University in St. Louis, and completed the Executive Program for Nonprofit Leaders at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Aria currently serves on the board of the NYC-based not-for-profit Care for the Homeless, was one of the first ten World Economic Forum Global Shapers and is an adjunct professor at New York University. She has been highlighted in the New York Times, Fast Company and was named to the 2012 Crain’s New York Business list of “40 Under Forty” and featured on the cover. In 2016, she was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.

When she is not running DoSomething.org or desperately trying to improve her Spanish, Aria can be found reading The New Jim Crow for the thousandth time, or relearning her ABCs with the newest addition to the DS family, her adorable son Luke.

Geoff is CEO of the Future-Fit Foundation, which is leading the creation of a new open source benchmark to help business leaders and investors assess the true future-fitness of companies.

Geoff holds a PhD in artificial intelligence, spent four years as Development Director at think-tank and consultancy SustainAbility, and co-founded and sold two software start-ups.

Geof Rochester is currently, Managing Director, in essence acting as Chief Visibility Officer and spokesperson for The Nature Conservancy. The Conservancy’s mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends. Prior to this new role he had functioned as TNC’s Chief Marketing Officer since 2010. As CMO he was responsible for steering the organization’s marketing, membership and brand strategies. Since coming to TNC Geof has pushed the organization to broaden support for the environment by going after mega brand partners and unusual collaborations. Some of these have included Macys, Subway, Harley Davidson, Univision, Globo. TNC has been recognized for its Marketing prowess winning several awards over the years, including – DMA nonprofit of the year 2012, Shorty Award Best of Social Media in the Charity Category, 2013 (finalist) and also Harris Poll Equitrend Environmental Non-Profit Brand of the Year (2013).

Before coming to The Nature Conservancy, Geof served as the EVP for Marketing at World Wrestling Entertainment. Prior to that, he served as SVP for Marketing at Showtime Networks. He held senior marketing positions at Comcast Communications, Radisson Hotels International and Proctor and Gamble. A graduate of Georgetown University, Geof received his M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He was born in Barbados, but has lived most of his life in the United States. He also serves on the following boards: Georgetown University Alumni Senate, the board of ecoAmerica (a climate change think tank), and on the Alumni Board of Wharton’s Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership.

Sandy Skees is Regional Director at BSI She leads the sustainability practice as well as managing the growth of BSI’s Northern California region, delivering a range of consulting services and program implementation ranging from sustainability and corporate social responsibility, worker safety, business continuity planning, and EHS services. Prior to BSI, Sandy served as Managing Director for Fenton Communications West Coast, accelerating progress through social change communications. Her work with corporations, nonprofits, and NGOs was focused in consumer products, recycling and waste, renewable energy, supply chain and LGBT issues, She brings over 25 years’ experience in leading professional service firms, corporate and communications strategy.

Skees previously ran her own firm Communications4Good, where she served early stage and Fortune 500 companies. While a partner at Porter Novelli, she managed the global HP account team in 20 cities/10 countries around the world and created programs, processes and predictive integration points as a framework for ensuring global implementation of cutting edge communications techniques. She sits on numerous boards including 100 Women Who Care, Sustainable Brands, Mini Mermaid Running Club, was appointed to a four year team on the Santa Cruz County’s Human Services Commission, and is a seasoned speaker on brand, messaging and sustainability strategy.

Colton works at the nexus of business, sustainability, and education at the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise. He has collaborated with the Zell Lurie Institute at University of Michigan to judge and coach the Impact Track of their annual Michigan Business Challenge, and has been a judge for the Roddenberry Prize. He is also the author of a book of poetry, “Grains of Sand” published by Winter Goose Publishing.

John leads corporate social responsibility (CSR) communications for Ford Motor Company, Interbrand’s 2014 Best Global Green Brand.

In this role, he is responsible for communicating Ford’s corporate responsibility efforts to all external audiences, including media, NGO partners, and consumers. Additionally, John supports Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford in his vision to develop sustainable and innovative mobility solutions around the globe that make people’s lives better.

Prior to working at Ford Motor Company, John spent nearly a decade in Washington, DC. He led APCO Worldwide’s digital and creative practice group. While at APCO, John led strategy development and communications campaigns focused on energy, the environment, health, technology and transportation for some the world’s largest companies. John is passionate about sustainability and technology, and how online communication and digital communities shape world events.

Colette is an experienced marketing and product development professional with over a decade of experience in both the CPG and Durable goods industry. In her current role, Colette oversees all aspects of consumer-centric disruptive innovation, Open Innovation and Trends & Foresight at the world’s leading manufacturer of major home appliances.

In her previous role previous roles at Whirlpool, Colette has led both the Connectivity & Smart Home, as well as, Consumer Insights & Strategy teams where she was instrumental in helping shape brand positioning, consumer understanding and build innovation roadmaps within Whirlpool Corporation to drive product and brand leadership.

She kicked off her career at Procter & Gamble with product development roles in both the Global Beauty (China and developing markets) and Health Care business units. Later she accepted a position at Newell Rubbermaid, Beauty & Style Business Unit, where she helped drive consumer driven innovation with assignments in both Brand Management and Consumer Insights. Matthews has led the development and/or worked on a broad array of brands, including Olay, Old Spice, Goody, Solano, the entire portfolio of Whirlpool Corp. brands.
Colette holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and Bachelors of Biochemistry from North Carolina State.