2022 Speakers

Born to a poor immigrant family in New York City, Richard Carmona experienced homelessness, hunger, and health disparities during his youth. The experiences greatly sensitized him to the relationships among culture, health, education and economic status and ultimately shaped his future.

After dropping out of high school, Dr. Carmona enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967 where he received a GED. By the time he left active duty, he was a Special Forces, combat-decorated Vietnam veteran. He then pursued a college degree and entered medical school at the University of California – San Francisco where he won the prestigious Gold Cane award as the top graduate.

Dr. Carmona became a surgeon with a sub-specialty in trauma, burns and critical care and was recruited to Tucson to establish the first trauma system in southern Arizona which he did successfully. Later, while working full time as a hospital and health system CEO, he earned a master’s degree in public health policy and administration at the University of Arizona.

Dr. Carmona has served for over 34 years with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in Tucson, including as deputy sheriff, detective, SWAT team leader and department surgeon. He is one of the most highly decorated police officers in Arizona, and his numerous awards include the National Top Cop Award, the National SWAT Officer of the Year, and the National Tactical EMS Award. Dr. Carmona is a nationally recognized SWAT expert and has published extensively on SWAT training and tactics, forensics, and tactical emergency medical support. Dr. Carmona has also served as a medical director of police and fire departments and is a fully qualified peace officer with expertise in special operations and emergency preparedness, including weapons of mass destruction.

In 2006 Vice Admiral Carmona successfully completed the statutory four-year term as Surgeon General and was named vice chairman of Canyon Ranch, CEO of the health division and president of the Canyon Ranch Institute. Dr. Carmona continues his Canyon Ranch leadership role as the Chief of Health Innovations. He also serves on several public corporate boards and works with private equity and venture capital firms to identify emerging science and technology to translate to market for economic and public benefit.

Michelle A. Williams, SM ’88, ScD ’91, is Dean of the Faculty, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Angelopoulos Professor in Public Health and International Development, a joint faculty appointment at the Harvard Chan School and Harvard Kennedy School. She is an internationally renowned epidemiologist and public health scientist, an award-winning educator, and a widely recognized academic leader. Prior to becoming Dean, she was Professor and Chair of the Department of Epidemiology at the Harvard Chan School and Program Leader of the Population Health and Health Disparities Research Programs at Harvard’s Clinical and Translational Sciences Center. Dean Williams previously had a distinguished career at the University of Washington School of Public Health. Her scientific work places special emphasis in the areas of reproductive, perinatal, pediatric, and molecular epidemiology. Dean Williams has published more than 500 scientific articles and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2016. In 2020, she was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and recognized by PR Week as one of the top 50 health influencers of the year. The Dean has an undergraduate degree in biology and genetics from Princeton University, a master’s in civil engineering from Tufts University, and master’s and doctoral degrees in epidemiology from the Harvard Chan School.

Gloria Caulfield leads health and wellness strategy and planning for the Lake Nona Institute. Gloria is passionate about identifying partners who are skillful at collaboration and have the desire to innovate solutions that have the potential to move the needle on community health and wellness.

William Jefferson Clinton, the first Democratic president in six decades to be elected twice, led the United States to the longest economic expansion in American history, including the creation of more than 22 million jobs.

After leaving the White House, President Clinton established the Clinton Foundation in order to continue working on the causes he cared about. Since its founding, the Foundation has endeavored to help build more resilient communities by developing and implementing programs that improve people’s health, strengthen local economies, and protect the environment.

The Foundation is guided by the belief that every problem has a solution and together with a diverse set of partners, works to improve lives around the globe and across the United States through a wide range of initiatives, including the now independent Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), which has helped over 11 million people in more than 70 countries access critical HIV/AIDS medications at CHAI-negotiated prices. The Clinton Climate Initiative, the Clinton Development Initiative, and the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership are applying a business-oriented approach to promote sustainable economic growth and fight climate change in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the Caribbean. In the United States, the Foundation is focused on helping children and adults live full and active lives by working to combat the rise in childhood obesity through the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a partnership forged with the American Heart Association; reduce health disparities and address emerging health threats like the opioid epidemic by partnering with local communities through the Clinton Health Matters Initiative; and increase awareness about the importance of early childhood development through the Foundation’s Too Small to Fail initiative.

The Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock remains the heart and soul of the Clinton Foundation, and since it opened its doors in 2004, the Clinton Center has hosted hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, catalyzing $3.3 billion in economic impact throughout the community. Today, the Clinton Center also cooperatively manages the Presidential Leadership Scholars Program—a joint effort between the George W. Bush Presidential Center, the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation, and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation that seeks to equip emerging leaders with the tools they need to drive positive change in their communities.
Above all, President Clinton has always believed that we can do more together than any of us can do on our own. In 2005, he founded the Clinton Global Initiative to foster partnerships among governments, businesses, nongovernmental organizations and private citizens to turn good ideas into measurable results. To date, over 3,600 CGI commitments have already improved the lives of more than 435 million people in more than 180 countries. CGI’s work continues through these ongoing commitments and through the Clinton Global Initiative University which this year, celebrates 10 years of bringing together college and university students from every corner of the globe to turn good ideas into action.

In addition to his continuing roles with the Foundation and CHAI, President Clinton has joined with other former Presidents to support relief efforts for communities recovering from natural disasters—partnering with President George H.W. Bush three times to organize aid and support for those affected by the 2004 tsunami in South Asia, Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and Hurricane Ike in 2008, and with President George W. Bush in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti to raise money and assistance for communities devastated by the storm. To this day, the Clinton Foundation continues to support economic growth, job creation and sustainability in communities across Haiti.

President Clinton was born on August 19, 1946, in Hope, Arkansas. He and his wife Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton have one daughter, Chelsea; two grandchildren, and live in Chappaqua, New York.

Kenneth Cole is an American designer, social activist, and visionary who believes business and philanthropy are interdependent. His global company, Kenneth Cole Productions, creates modern, versatile, and functional footwear, clothing, and accessories that make daily dressing effortless for Men, Women, and Kids. The brand spans over 28 product categories with 27 licensed partners. For over 35 years, Kenneth Cole has leveraged his passion and unique brand platform to make a meaningful impact on people’s wardrobes, as well as in underserved communities.

Kenneth joined amfAR’s board of directors in 1987, and on World AIDS Day in 2004, he assumed chairmanship. Under his leadership of 14 years, amfAR was instrumental in significant breakthroughs in AIDS research, treatment, and prevention for the betterment of millions globally.

In 2016, Kenneth accepted an appointment as a UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador with the goal of helping to end AIDS as a public health crisis by 2030.
In 2003, Kenneth joined the board of trustees of the Sundance Institute and has supported advocated for the need for independent story telling.

After the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010, Kenneth opened a Health Center in Cité Soleil, serving the most underserved population in the northern hemisphere, in an effort to enable access to basic healthcare services to over 1.5 million Haitians in need.

In 2020, in the midst of the COVID 19 crisis, Kenneth launched an initiative to address what was arguably an even larger pandemic: Mental Health. The Mental Health Coalition (MHC), a coalition of the nation’s leading mental health organizations, brands, and individuals who have joined forces to end the debilitating stigma surrounding mental health and to change the way people talk about, and care for, mental illness.

The Coalition’s mission is to build a like-minded community who will work together to destigmatize all mental health conditions, and enable equitable access to vital resources and support for all. The Mental Health Coalition was formed with the understanding that the mental health crisis is fueled by a pervasive and devastating stigma, preventing millions of individuals from being able to seek the critical treatment they need. MHC is committed to not relent until mental health is no longer associated with stigma, shame, or judgement and all people feel empowered to openly discuss and address their individual mental health needs.

Karen B. DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MSc is the Chief Health Ocer of Google Health. She is a physician executive working at the intersection of medicine, public health, and information technology whose career has focused on improving health and eliminating disparities. She leads a team of health professionals at Google who provide clinical guidance for the development of inclusive research, products and services. Prior to joining Google, Dr. DeSalvo was National Coordinator for Health Information Technology and acted as the Assistant Secretary for Health in the Obama Administration. During her time at the U.S. Depament of Health and Human Services, Dr. DeSalvo focused on creating a more consumer-oriented, transparent and value-based health system. Dr. DeSalvo served as the New Orleans Health Commissioner following Hurricane Katrina. Prior to that she was Vice Dean for Community Aairs and Health Policy at the Tulane School of Medicine where she was a practicing internal medicine physician, educator, researcher and leader. She serves on the Council of the National Academy of Medicine.

Recently named by Fortune as one of the “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders,” Peter H. Diamandis is the Founder and Executive Chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation, which leads the world in designing and operating large-scale incentive competitions. He is also the Executive Founder of Singularity University, a graduate-level Silicon Valley institution that counsels the world’s leaders on exponentially growing technologies.

As an entrepreneur, Diamandis has started over 20 companies in the areas of longevity, space, venture capital and education. He is Co-founder and Vice-Chairman of Celularity, Inc., a cellular therapeutics company, and of Vaxxinity, Inc. which develops vaccines to harness the immune system against COVID and chronic diseases. Diamandis is Co-founder & Chairman of Fountain Life, a fully-integrated platform delivering predictive, preventative, personalized and data-driven health. Finally, he also serves as Co-founder of BOLD Capital Partners, a venture fund with $250M investing in exponential technologies.

Diamandis is a New York Times Bestselling author of three books: Abundance – The Future Is Better Than You Think, BOLD – How to go Big, Create Wealth & Impact the World and The Future is Faster Than You Think.

He earned degrees in molecular genetics and aerospace engineering from MIT and holds an M.D. from Harvard Medical School. Diamandis’ favorite saying is “The best way to predict the future is to create it yourself.”

Renée Fleming is one of the most highly acclaimed singers of our time, performing on the stages of the world’s greatest opera houses and concert halls. Honored with four Grammy® awards and the US National Medal of Arts, Renée has sung for momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Diamond Jubilee Concert for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. In 2014, she brought her voice to vast new audience as the first classical artist ever to sing The Star-Spangled Banner at the Super Bowl.

In May, Renée launched Music and Mind LIVE, a weekly web series exploring the intersection of music and arts with human health and the brain. In 19 episodes, the show amassed more than 650,000 views, from 70 countries. Renée was inspired to launch the series by the Sound Health initiative she leads as Artistic Advisor to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in partnership with the NIH and the NEA. She has given presentations with scientists and practitioners on the connection of arts and health around the world.

Earning 17 Grammy nominations, Renée has recorded everything from complete operas and song recitals to jazz and indie rock. Her voice is featured on the soundtracks of Best Picture Oscar winners The Shape of Water and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

Renée’s other awards include the Fulbright Lifetime Achievement Medal, Germany’s Cross of the Order of Merit, and France’s Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur. www.reneefleming.com

Goldie Hawn is an Academy Award winning actress, producer, director, best-selling author and true children’s advocate. She is the Founder of The Goldie Hawn Foundation, a public charity with a mission to equip children with the social and emotional skills they need to lead smarter, healthier, happier and ultimately more productive lives.

Alarmed by increases in school violence, youth depression and suicide, and the persistent failure of the education system to help children cope with increasingly stressful lives, Hawn started The Goldie Hawn Foundation in 2003, applying cutting edge scientific research to create education programs that support the social and emotional development of children. Working with leading neuroscientists, educators, psychologists and researchers, the Foundation developed MindUP™ an evidence-based curriculum and teaching model for grades K-12 that provide tools to help children self-regulate and understand their own emotions, reduce stress and anxiety, sharpen concentration, increase empathy, and improve academic performance.

MindUP™ is the signature program of The Goldie Hawn Foundation which is serving over six million children in the US, Canada, UK, Finland, Ireland, Greece, Venezuela, Uganda, Portugal, Serbia, Jordan, Hong Kong, Australia, and New Zealand. The skills and mindfulness practices that are being taught have helped children improve learning and academic performance and learn valuable social and emotional skills that build personal resilience for a lifetime.

Hawn authored two best-selling books, a memoir “A Lotus Grows in the Mud”, in 2005 and in 2011, “10 Mindful Minutes”, offering guidance on raising healthy, joyful and resilient children. In 2015, Hawn released “10 Mindful Minutes: A Journal”, a practical application to her last book, offering prompts and exercises to enhance the reader’s daily life through mindfulness practice.

Goldie has lived with her partner Kurt Russell for over 30 years and has four grown children, Oliver and Kate Hudson, Wyatt Russell and stepson Boston Russell. They have also been blessed with seven grandchildren. Hawn believes “children light the path to joy” and dedicated much of her life’s work to creating innovative solutions to help children thrive.

Matt Higgins is a noted serial entrepreneur and growth equity investor as cofounder and CEO of private investment firm RSE Ventures. He is also vice chairman of the Miami Dolphins, an Executive Fellow at the Harvard Business School, where he co-teaches the course “Moving Beyond Direct-to-Consumer,” and was a Guest Shark on ABC’s four-time Emmy-Award-winning TV show Shark Tank seasons 10-11.

Higgins began his career in public service as a journalist before becoming the youngest mayoral press secretary in New York City at 26, where he managed the global media response to the September 11th terrorist attacks. He became one of the first employees – and ultimately Chief Operating Officer – of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, the federally funded government agency created to plan the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site. Higgins helped organize the largest international design competition in history culminating in Reflecting Absence, the September 11th National Memorial, and the development of the 1,776-feet-tall One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the northern hemisphere.

Higgins cofounded New York City based RSE Ventures in 2012, amassing a multi-billion-dollar investment portfolio of leading brands across sports and entertainment, media and marketing, consumer and technology industries – including several of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies.

RSE has successfully backed many challenger brands from inception, including RESY, an Open Table competitor that American Express acquired in 2019; the world's premier drone racing circuit, the Drone Racing League; and the International Champions Cup, the largest privately owned soccer tournament featuring Europe’s top clubs. Higgins is also co-owner of VaynerMedia, founded by digital marketing expert Gary Vaynerchuk, and a partner in early-stage venture fund Vayner/RSE.

In 2013, Higgins cofounded Derris, a brand strategy and communications firm that has helped grow many leading brands such as Warby Parker and Glossier. In 2016, he broadened RSE’s investment focus to rapidly expanding fine dining and fast casual concepts, including David Chang’s Momofuku and Fuku, Milk Bar, &pizza and Bluestone Lane.

Higgins received his BA in political science from Queens College and his JD from Fordham Law, where he was a member of the Fordham Law Review. He was named a Top 40 Under 40 executive by Crain’s New York and by Sports Business Journal. In 2019, Higgins received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor – joining the ranks of seven former U.S. presidents, Nobel Prize winners and others who have made it their mission to share their knowledge, compassion and generosity with those less fortunate. He is a longstanding board member of Autism Speaks.

Kevin B. Johnson, MD, MS is an internationally known expert in biomedical informatics and pediatrics, and a well-known communicator of science. His research spans the translational science spectrum, and includes developing tools to acquire clinical information, clinical tools to support sharing and transforming clinical information, and evaluations of new paradigms for clinical information use and management.

Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath is the President and CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), the world’s largest biotechnology organization.
BIO represents nearly 1,000 life sciences companies and organizations from 30 countries. The organization’s mission is to support companies that discover and deploy scientific breakthroughs that improve human heath, environmental stewardship, and sustainable agriculture.

Since assuming leadership of BIO on June 1, 2020, Dr. McMurry-Heath has positioned BIO as a leading champion of scientific innovation and the bio-revolution, which aims to use technological breakthroughs to cure patients, protect our climate, and nourish humanity.

A common thread throughout McMurry-Heath’s career has been her focus on broadening access to scientific progress so more patients from diverse backgrounds can benefit from cutting-edge advancements. She calls the distribution of scientific progress “the social justice issue of our age.”

Before coming to BIO, Dr. McMurry-Heath worked at Johnson & Johnson, where she served as Global Head of Evidence Generation for Medical Device Companies and then Vice President of Global External Innovation and Global Leader for Regulatory Sciences.

Prior to her time at J&J, Dr. McMurry-Heath was a key science policy leader in government, including serving as the associate science director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. McMurry-Heath was also the founding director of the Aspen Institute’s Health, Biomedical Science, and Society Policy Program.

McMurry-Heath received her MD/PhD from Duke’s Medical Scientist Training Program, becoming the first African American to graduate from the prestigious program.

Jessica L. Mega, MD, MPH, is the Chief Medical and Scientific Officer at Verily Life Sciences. As CMO, Dr. Mega's focus is on translating technological innovations and scientific insights into partnerships and programs that improve patient outcomes. She oversees all of Verily's clinical and science efforts, including the Baseline Study.

As a faculty member at Harvard Medical School, a senior investigator with the TIMI Study Group, and a cardiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, she led large, international, randomized trials evaluating novel cardiovascular therapies. She also directed the TIMI Study Group’s Genetics Program. Her findings have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet, JAMA, and elsewhere. Dr. Mega sits on the advisory group for the California Governor on Precision Medicine.

Dr. Mega is a graduate of Stanford University, Yale University School of Medicine and Harvard School of Public Health. She completed Internal Medicine Residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Cardiovascular Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. She is board certified in Internal Medicine and Cardiology. She has won the Laennec Society, Samuel A. Levine, and Douglas P. Zipes Awards, and she is a Fellow of the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC).

Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, FACOG, provides a valuable combination of experience at the highest levels of patient care and medical research, as well as organizational management and public health policy. Marrying her transformational leadership acumen and strategic thinking to tackle challenging management issues, she has a track record of redesigning complex organizations’ infrastructures to reflect the needs of evolving strategic environments and position the organization for success through sustainability tactics.

The sixth president of Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and the first woman to lead the freestanding medical institution, Montgomery Rice serves as both the president and dean. A renowned infertility specialist and researcher, she most recently served as dean and executive vice president of MSM, where she has served since 2011.

Prior to joining MSM, Montgomery Rice held faculty positions and leadership roles at various health centers, including academic health centers. Most notably, she was the founding director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at Meharry Medical College, one of the nation’s first research centers devoted to studying diseases that disproportionately impact women of color.

Dedicated to the creation and advancement of health equity, Montgomery Rice lends her vast experience and talents to programs that enhance pipeline opportunities for academically diverse learners, diversifies the physician and scientific workforce, and fosters equity in health care access and health outcomes. To this end, she holds memberships in various organizations and participates on a number of boards, such as the following: member, National Academy of Medicine, the Association of American Medical Colleges Council of Deans, and the Horatio Alger Association and board of directors for The Metro Atlanta Chamber, Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine, The Nemours Foundation, UnitedHealth Group, Westside Future Fund, Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, Headspace, Wellpath and CARE.

Montgomery Rice has received numerous accolades and honors. She was named to the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans and received the 2017 Horatio Alger Award. For three consecutive years (2016-2018) Georgia Trend Magazine selected Montgomery Rice as one of the 100 Most Influential Georgians. Other honors include the following: The Dean Griffin Community Service Award from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Girls Inc. 2019 Smart Award, The National Medical Association OB/GYN 2019 Legend of the Section Award, The Turknett Leadership Character Award (2018), Visions of Excellence Award, Atlanta Business League (2018), Links Incorporated Co-Founders Award (2018), Trumpet Vanguard Award (2015), The Dorothy I. Height Crystal Stair Award (2014), National Coalition of 100 Black Women - Women of Impact (2014), YWCA – Women of Achievement of Atlanta-(2014) and Nashville(2007), American Medical Women’s Association Elizabeth Blackwell Medal (2011) and Working Mother Media Multicultural Women’s Legacy Award (2011).

A Georgia native, Montgomery Rice holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology, a medical degree from Harvard Medical School, an honorary degree from the University of Massachusetts Medical School and a Doctor of Humane Letters honorary degree from Rush University. All reflect her lifetime commitment to education, service, and the advancement of health equity. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University School of Medicine and her fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Hutzel Hospital.

Alan Murray is CEO of Fortune Media. He oversees the business and editorial operations of the independent media company and is known for expanding its digital and conference franchises. Murray also writes a closely-read daily newsletter, the Fortune CEO Daily. Prior to joining Fortune in 2015, Murray led the rapid expansion of the Pew Research Center’s digital footprint as president of that organization. Before that, Murray was at the Wall Street Journal for many years, serving as Deputy Managing Editor, Executive Editor Online, Washington Bureau Chief, and author of the Political Capital and Business columns. He served for several years as Washington bureau chief for CNBC, and cohost of the nightly show Capital Report. He is the author of multiple books, including the classic Showdown at Gucci Gulch: Lawmakers, Lobbyists, and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform

Dr. Dava Newman is the Director of the MIT Media Lab and Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics at MIT and a Harvard–MIT Health, Sciences, and Technology faculty member. She served as NASA Deputy Administrator, the first female engineer in this role, from 2015–2017. Her research and teaching include aerospace biomedical engineering, humans becoming interplanetary, advanced suit design, leadership development, innovation and policy.

Gus Perna, the visionary leader of ‘Operation Warp Speed,’ shares the principles of leadership, teamwork, strategic planning, secure operations, and supply chain mastery that helped his team orchestrate the largest, safest, and most rapid vaccine deployment effort in global history.

Before he was named to co-lead the U.S. government’s COVID-19 response in 2020 with Operation Warp Speed, General Gus Perna served as head of the U.S. Army Materiel Command where he managed redistribution of critical munitions to the Pacific and fixed the Army’s housing crisis. As Commander of the Philadelphia Defense Supply Center, he was responsible for the fighting force’s global supply chain.

One of the military’s most skilled and most senior logisticians, General Perna worked to build manufacturing capacity and the end-to-end supply chain needed to get vaccines distributed “at warp speed.” Leveraging public-private partnerships, he accelerated the operation beyond what anyone thought possible—all while the vaccines were still in development.

General Perna retired from the U.S. Army in August of 2021 after 38 years of distinguished service in which he was awarded the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Service Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters, Defense Superior Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Legion of Merit, and Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster. In 2021, the association of Business Executives for National Security honored him with the Eisenhower Award.

Dr. Robert R. Redfield is an American virologist who most recently served as Director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, advising the nation during one of the most tumultuous and fast-paced scientific discovery environments of our time, the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr. Redfield has experienced three vastly unique and scientifically complex global epidemics during his career: Ebola, HIV/AIDS, and COVID-19. As such, he holds the unique perspective of someone who has played a significant role in finding, studying, and publishing some of the most important scientific discoveries and medical advancements in modern history. Redfield is passionate about teaching the body to heal itself resulting in self- limited chronic viruses.

While Director of CDC, Redfield’s accomplishments included advancing the presidential initiative to end HIV transmission by 2030, successfully responding to three Ebola epidemics, developing a new program to confront the nation’s expanding drug use disorder, identifying and responding to Acute Flaccid Myelitis, developing programs to address growing nicotine addiction in children and adolescents, and of course leading CDC’s COVID- 19 response.

As co-founder of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Redfield is highly esteemed for his clinical research contributions for the virology and therapeutic treatments of HIV infection and AIDS. Working with various faith-based organizations, he traveled extensively from 2004-2013 throughout Africa and the Caribbean, providing care and treatment to over 700,000 people living with HIV infection. Redfield was able to successfully transition the continuation of these overseas care programs to local, national organizations. This meaningful work was part of a $700M grant award to Catholic Relief Services as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDSRelief.

In addition to recently serving as CDC Director and a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force and Operation Warp Speed, Redfield’s other national administrative services include: Membership of the President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS under President George W. Bush, numerous chair and member positions with National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Special Advisor to Global Virus Network in Bioterrorism and Clinical Virology, Administrator of Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and membership positions with Department of Health and Human Services, amongst many others.

Redfield holds a Doctor of Medicine degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine and completed residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC) in Washington, D.C., where he was also enrolled as a U.S. Army officer throughout his clinical research fellowships in infectious diseases and tropical medicine. Redfield retired from the Army as Colonel in 1996.

Robert Redfield resides in Maryland with his wife, Joy. They have six children and thirteen grandchildren.

Adam Schechter became CEO of Labcorp in 2019 and Chairman of the Board in May 2020. He had previously served as a director of the company since 2013. Before joining Labcorp, he held a variety of senior leadership roles at Merck & Co., Inc., including EVP and President of Merck’s Global Human Health Division and special advisor to the CEO.

Born in 1944 in Marks, Mississippi, Frederick W. Smith, Yale College 1966, is the founder and CEO of FedEx Corporation. The original analyses about the logistic needs of a highly automated future society were done during his tenure as an undergraduate.

After four years of service in the Marines, including two tours of duty in Viet Nam, he launched the original air-ground Federal Express network which began operations in 1973 to serve the rapidly growing high tech/high value added sectors of the economy Smith had predicted. The company has since grown into a $69 billion global enterprise.

Smith is responsible for providing strategic direction for all FedEx operating companies: FedEx Services (including FedEx Office), FedEx Express, FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight. FedEx serves more than 220 countries and territories with operations that include 678 aircraft and over 150,000 vehicles. More than 450,000 team members worldwide currently handle more than 15 million shipments each business day.

FedEx has been widely acknowledged for its commitment to total quality service. FedEx Express was the first service company to win the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 1990. FedEx has consistently been ranked on FORTUNE magazine’s industry lists, including “World’s Most Admired Companies,” “100 Best Companies to Work For,” and is on FORTUNE’s “Blue Ribbon Companies List.”

Smith is co-chair of the Energy Security Leadership Council, a Trustee for the United States Council for International Business, and a member of both the Business Council and Business Roundtable. He served as chairman of the U.S.-China Business Council and co-chair of the French-American Business Council. Smith has served on the boards of several large public companies – Malone and Hyde (AutoZone), First Tennessee, Holiday Inns, EW Scripps, and General Mills – and charitable organizations including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
and the Mayo Foundation. He was formerly chairman of the Board of Governors for the International Air Transport Association and chaired the executive committee of the U.S. Air Transport Association.

Smith has received several honorary degrees and numerous civic, academic, and business awards including the Global Leadership Award from the U.S.-India Business Council; the George C. Marshall Foundation Award; the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy; and the Circle of Honor Award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. In addition, Smith is a member of the Aviation Hall of Fame and the Business Hall of Fame. He served as co-chairman of both the U.S. World War II Memorial project and the campaign for the National Museum of the Marine Corps. He has been named a top CEO by both BARRON’S and CHIEF EXECUTIVE magazine.

Kathy Wengel is Executive Vice President & Chief Global Supply Chain Officer for Johnson & Johnson, and a member of the Company’s Executive Committee. She has significant healthcare, operations and global business expertise – with more than three decades of experience in leadership positions with Johnson & Johnson.
In her current role, Kathy is responsible for all aspects of the development and implementation of the global Supply Chain for Johnson & Johnson, as well as its Quality & Compliance, Procurement, Environmental Health & Safety, Sustainability and Engineering & Property Services functions. A strong developer of globally diverse teams, Kathy leads an organization across three business segments: Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices and Consumer Health.

Under Kathy’s leadership, Johnson & Johnson has been recognized by world-leading groups. The Company has been named #3 in both 2020 and 2021 on the Supply Chain Top 25 list by Gartner, Inc., the world’s leading research and advisory company. It has also been recognized by the World Economic Forum (WEF) – an international organization that engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas – with five Lighthouse designations, more than any other organization, for its use of innovative technologies at production sites and other facilities. Kathy is also one of the pioneers of WEF’s Advanced Manufacturing Platform.

Since joining Johnson & Johnson in 1988, Kathy’s responsibilities have grown through a variety of strategic leadership and executive positions across the enterprise in multiple countries and in various roles within operations, quality, engineering, new product development, IT and other business functions. Kathy also served as the first Chief Quality Officer for Johnson & Johnson. During this time, she also co-led the design of the Company’s enterprise Supply Chain and Quality operating model. The effort brought together more than 20 disparate groups, all using core standards and operating principles, while delivering substantial value for the Company over the past decade.

Externally from Johnson & Johnson, Kathy serves as a member of the Board of Directors at LabCorp, a leading global life sciences company dedicated to using science to improve health and improve lives. She also serves as Chair of the Board of GS1 Global, a nonprofit that develops and maintains global supply chain standards. She is a member of both the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors of the National Association of Manufacturers in the U.S., and a member of the Board of Directors for the Manufacturing Institute. Kathy serves in several advisory capacities, including as member of the Executive Advisory Board for the Gartner Supply Chain practice, member of the Reagan Institute Task Force for National Security and U.S. Manufacturing Base Competitiveness and member of the Board of Advisors at AWESOME, a nonprofit working on the advancement of women in senior supply chain roles. Within Johnson & Johnson, Kathy is executive sponsor for the Women’s Leadership & Inclusion (WLI) initiative and the Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Manufacturing and Design (WiSTEM2D) program.

In 2019, Kathy was recognized by the Council of Supply Management Professionals (CSCMP) with its lifetime Distinguished Service Award, and she was elected to the Supply Chain Hall of Fame, the industry’s top individual supply chain honor. In 2015, Kathy received the National Association of Female Executives’ (NAFE) Women of Excellence Award and AWESOME’s Legendary Leadership Award in 2014.

Kathy holds a BSE degree in civil engineering and operations research from Princeton University.