Mario Cada-Frech
Vice President Public Affairs & Corporate Social Responsibility
MTV Networks Latin America
USA
Mario is currently the Vice President Public Affairs & Corporate Social Responsibility for MTV Networks Latin America. Mario was born in El Salvador and completed his graduate studies in International Affairs at Georgetown University. He worked as assistant Director of U.S. Hispanic Marketing and Advertising at MCI Telecommunications, then moving on to become the Regional Marketing and Advertising Manager for Sprint International for Latin America. Mario left Corporate America to create a line of Aromatherapy skin care, and after seven years, he sold his business and decided to spend his time in humanitarian causes, creating the Latin American Cultural Space in Washington, DC and becoming Minister of Cultural Affairs at the Embassy of El Salvador. Mario serves on numerous boards including the Museum of Contemporary Art of Miami, the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, and the Many Hats Institute and serves on the official Welcome Committee for Art Basel Miami Beach. Mario currently serves as Honorary Consul of El Salvador in the United States and has received prestigious awards such as Distinguished Salvadoran and a Ten Year recognition from the National Gallery of Art.
Oded Grajew
Founder and President
Ethos Institute
Brazil
Oded Grajew is one of Brazil's most highly respected entrepreneurs who has, for over two decades, utilized his connections in the business community to combat inequities in the Brazilian political and social sectors, oppose and reform child labor practices, and build a national organization of corporations dedicated to socially responsible business practices. Oded also started the country’s first educational toy company (called GROW), founded an association of progressive business leaders to broaden the democratic opposition, and established the ABRINQ Foundation for Children's Rights. In 1998, founded the Ethos Institute for Business Social Responsibility, of which he is President. The mission of the Ethos Institute is to encourage Brazilian businesses to be more socially responsible and to educate these businesses about the social impact of their business decisions and practices. Today, this non-profit association has more than 270 corporate members - large, medium and small - from diverse economic sectors and regions of the country. After conversations with several colleagues in early 2000, Oded approached his friend, the Mayor of Porto Alegre, about hosting a gathering of organizations in parallel to the World Economic Forum that annually convenes in Davos, Switzerland. This idea blossomed into the World Social Forum that has since the first world encounter in 2001, taken the form of a permanent world process seeking and building alternatives to neo-liberal policies.
Jeffrey A. Joerres
Chairman, CEO & President
Manpower, Inc.
USA
Having joined Manpower in 1993, Jeff served as Vice President of Marketing, and later, as Senior Vice President of European Operations and Global Account Management. It was in 1999 that he was promoted to President and CEO, and in 2001 that he was named Chairman of the Board. Jeff has led a transformation of Manpower's business strategy, adding new business lines that have expanded the company's ability to assist clients and candidates in navigating the changing world of work. Jeff is a true thought leader within his industry, and a pioneer in emerging markets. His role at Manpower has seen him advising domestic and foreign government officials about how to transform their labor markets to compete in the global economy. Jeff is known as a strong proponent of job training and workforce development initiatives. Outside of the company, he serves on the board of trustees for the Committee for Economic Development (CED) and is co-chair of the CEO Diversity Committee of the Greater Milwaukee Committee. He also served as co-chair of the 2005 NAACP National Convention held in Milwaukee. Prior to joining Manpower, Jeff held the position of Vice President of Sales and Marketing for ARI Network Services, a publicly held, high-tech electronic data interchange company. He has also held several management positions within IBM. Jeff has a bachelor's degree from Marquette University's College of Business Administration, from which he graduated in 1983. In addition to the Manpower Inc. board, Jeff is a member of the board of directors of Artisan Funds and Johnson Controls.
Emily Morell
Youth Venturer and 2008 Winner Ashoka Staples Youth Social Entrepreneur Award
Co-Founder and Board of Directors
Gardens for Health International
USA
Emily is a co-founder of Gardens for Health International, (GHI), a U.S.- based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, that strives to create sustainable solutions for providing nutritional support and economic empowerment to HIV-positive individuals in Rwanda. GHI’s program includes three integrated components: (1) agricultural cooperatives comprised exclusively of HIV-positive individuals and their families; (2) education and training in nutrition, sustainable agriculture, and small business skills; and (3) income generation through crop and seed sale. Through its partnership with the Rwandese Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (RRP+), GHI plans to expand its network of community nutrition-through-agriculture programs throughout Rwanda. Last year, GHI was named one of 44 winners of student grants from the Clinton Global Initiative and the Wal-Mart Foundation and the winner of JP Morgan’s GOOD Venture Competition. Emily is a senior at Yale University, where she studies Neurobiology. She will be attending medical school in the fall.
Siamak Taghaddos
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer
Grasshopper
USA
Siamak Taghaddos oversees the strategic direction of Grasshopper and serves as the company’s marketing and creative visionary. A life-long student of branding, Siamak could be described as a one-man, full-service ad agency. Fortunately, his passion for creating effective marketing campaigns is grounded by his desire to create outstanding products and services that truly empower his fellow entrepreneurs. Prior to Grasshopper CEO, Siamak launched a successful communications company serving mobile professionals throughout the United States. He also worked extensively with College Coach, LLC, a Boston-based educational consulting firm, to develop highly targeted, strategic marketing campaigns aimed at the elusive youth market. Siamak has served as a panelist at Harvard Business School, has been a guest speaker at Loyola University School of Business, and serves as a judge for numerous Babson entrepreneurship competitions. Siamak was born in Iran and raised in Boston. He graduated from Babson College with a Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship and Marketing. He is also a student of Sun Tzu.
