Featured Speakers

Fareed Zakaria Roberta Jamieson

Fareed Zakaria

Along with his duties as a columnist for The Washington Post, a contributing editor for The Atlantic, and a bestselling author, Fareed Zakaria is the host of Fareed Zakaria GPS, a weekly international and domestic affairs program that airs on CNN/U.S. and globally on CNN International. Since its debut in 2008, it has become a prominent television forum for global newsmakers and thought leaders.

Fareed Zakaria has interviewed notable guests including past U.S. President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Other past guests include military officials such as Gen. David Petraeus and Adm. Michael Mullen; corporate leaders such as Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi; and other public figures like Bill Maher and Bono.

Zakaria is the author of four highly-regarded and New York Times bestselling books: In Defense of a Liberal Education (2015), a commentary on the importance of a well-rounded education; the international bestselling The Post-American World (1st ed.2008, 2nd ed. 2011), a discussion of the rise of non-Western powers; and The Future of Freedom (2003), a study of “illiberal democracy” in various countries, also an international bestseller; and his newest book Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World (October 2020).

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Roberta Jamieson

Roberta Jamieson is Mohawk who has achieved many firsts. They include being the first First Nation woman in Canada to earn a law degree; the first woman Ombudsman of Ontario; and the first woman elected Chief of the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory.

As President of Indspire, Canada’s largest Indigenous charity, Roberta oversaw an eightfold increase in bursaries and scholarships. Charity Intelligence Canada named Indspire as one of the 10 Canadian Charities with the most impact and Macleans and the Financial Post chose it as one of Canada’s Top Charities. Since 2004, Indspire has given a record $153 million in bursaries and scholarships to 49,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis students across Canada.

During her time at Indspire, Roberta launched several highly successful initiatives: the first National Gathering for Indigenous Education, a unique conference where educators meet and learn the best practices for improving educational outcomes for K–12 Indigenous students; Rivers to Success, which supports mentorships for First Nations, Inuit and Métis students in high school, allowing them to attend post-secondary institutions and move into employment; the Indspire Research Knowledge Nest, which promotes Indigenous scholars and publishes the research and data that encourages investment in Indigenous education and employment; and Teach for Tomorrow, an innovative program training hundreds of Indigenous educators, and supporting them from high school though to employment. Since leaving Indspire, Roberta has continued her involvement in philanthropy, most recently as a Founding Visionary of the Prosperity Project. Roberta has long been recognized as an effective and visionary member of corporate boards. She is currently a member of the board of directors of Deloitte Canada and Chile and the Royal Bank of Canada. She is also co-chair of the Indigenous Advisory Council advising the Board and CEO of Canadian National Railway on matters relevant to CN’s relationship with Indigenous communities in Canada. At Prime Minister Trudeau’s request, she served on the inaugural Gender Equality Advisory Council during Canada’s G7 Presidency. Roberta Jamieson has received 30 honorary degrees, earned numerous awards and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

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