As Director, Communications at McDonald’s USA, Heather Oldani is responsible for developing and executing the public relations strategy that will build McDonald’s brand reputation and business long-term in the United States. Specifically, Oldani oversees a talented team that crafts leadership public relations programs that build relationships with consumers and the media, drive positive brand perceptions and create awareness and trial of new product launches. She focuses on creating strong synergy and collaboration between the public relations and marketing functions and oversees the McDonald’s National PR Agency Roundtable, which she developed in 2007 to bring more alignment and integration to the brand’s PR efforts at the national and local level.

Oldani is also currently helping to lead the brand’s social media efforts with a focus on direct consumer engagement through Twitter and other social networking sites as well as a comprehensive blogger relations initiative.

Prior to her current role, Oldani held the position of Manager, McDonald’s USA. In this role, she developed and executed public relations programs to support new product launches and the company’s brand trust commitments, specifically in the area of children’s well-being. Oldani led the national public relations efforts to launch the “i’m lovin’ it” brand nationally to consumers and media. She was also responsible for developing the communications strategy and materials to reach and inspire McDonald’s restaurant managers around the company’s business strategy and vision.

Prior to joining McDonald’s USA, Oldani was with Edelman Public Relations where she developed and supervised integrated public relations activities for a variety of financial services, retail and technology companies. As a member of Edelman’s Reputation Management Practice, Oldani managed clients’ internal and external communications initiatives in the areas of corporate and executive positioning, M&A, branding and social responsibility. In addition, she developed and oversaw the Practice’s Executive Forum Service, which counseled clients on the development of thought leadership platforms while also securing high-level speaking engagements for senior management.

Oldani received a both a M.A. and B.A. from the University of Illinois. She is currently a member of the Public Relations Society of America, the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association and the Social Media Business Council.

Marcia Stepanek is founder and publisher of Cause Global, an acclaimed new group blog about the use of social media in social advocacy and innovation. Ms.Stepanek also serves as social enterprise editor for Justmeans.com, as well as blogs regularly for the Stanford Social Innovation Review, msnbc.com and PopTech. Ms. Stepanek, who has covered the evolution of the internet and its impact on society, commerce, and the workplace since 1994, has received a variety of awards for her work, including a George Polk award for consumer journalism, a National Press Club award for Washington correspondence, a New York Newswomens’ Club Front Page award for internet commentary, a Society of Proefessional Journalists’ Sigma Delta Chi award for explanatory journalism, and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. Ms. Stepanek is a frequent speaker on the subject of social media and new trends in philanthropy, and she moderates and produces New Conversations for Change, a Manhattan forum series highlighting social entrepreneurs and innovation in social change advocacy. She is also Founding Editor-in-Chief of Contribute Media, a New York-based media company that covers the new people and ideas of giving. Her latest book, Swarms, about the rise and evolution of Web-wired, self-organized groups and their impact on business, culture, philanthropy and society—for better or worse—is due out later this year.

I am a listener, online community member, social web explorer, and big picture thinker. I create and execute the American Red Cross social media strategy, which means I figure out how to use new technologies to empower communities to fulfill our mission. I work with 686 Red Cross chapters, 36 blood regions, 700,000 volunteers, millions of donors and the public to become more efficient and raise awareness about preventing, preparing for and responding to emergencies. Prior to becoming an internet nerd, I worked in the music industry.

Deb helps corporate clients and non-profit organizations develop and implement their social media and communications strategies. In this role, she works with companies to develop creative ways to leverage Justmeans to promote good work, including corporate social responsibility, corporate philanthropy, sustainability and environmental initiatives. Prior to joining Justmeans, Deb worked with companies and organizations helping them to build their capacity and develop and implement strategic growth plans. Deb is the founder of Camp Starfish, a non-profit program for emotionally disturbed children with one-to-one camper to staff ratio which she ran for eight years. Deb attended Colgate University where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Education, Boston University, where she received an M.B.A. and Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

Matthew Bishop is the US Business Editor and New York Bureau Chief of The Economist. Mr. Bishop was previously the magazine’s London-based Business Editor. His new book, The Road from Ruin: How to Renew Capitalism and Put America Back on Top, with Michael Green, will be published by Crown in February 2010.

Philanthrocapitalism, his previous book (also with Green) on the global revolution under way in philanthropy, has been described as “terrific” by The New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, and as the “definitive guide to a new generation of philanthropists who understand innovation and risk-taking, and who will play a crucial part in solving the biggest problems facing the world” by New York’s Mayor and leading philanthropist Michael Bloomberg. According to former U.S President Bill Clinton, “This is an important book. Our interdependent world is too unequal, unstable, and, because of climate change, unsustainable. We have to transform it into one of shared responsibilities, shared opportunities, and a shared sense of community. Bishop and Green show us how to do it.” Mr Bishop is also the author of Essential Economics, the official Economist layperson’s guide to economics.

Mr. Bishop is the author of several of The Economist’s special report supplements, including most recently A Bigger World, which examines the opportunities and challenges of the rise of emerging economies and firms; The Business of Giving, which looks at the industrial revolution taking place in philanthropy; Kings of Capitalism, which anticipated and analyzed the recent boom in private equity; and Capitalism and its Troubles, an examination of the impact of problems such as the collapse of Enron. In 1994, he wrote an acclaimed special report on corporate governance, Watching the Boss.

Before joining The Economist, Mr. Bishop was on the faculty of London Business School, where he co-authored three books for the Oxford University Press on subjects ranging from privatization and regulation to corporate mergers. Prior to that, Mr. Bishop was educated at Oxford University. He has served as a member of the Sykes Commission on the investment system in the 21st century. Mr. Bishop was also on the Advisors Group of the United Nations International Year of Microcredit 2005. Mr. Bishop has been honored as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. He has been interviewed on numerous media outlets, including NPR, BBC, CNBC, and the Charlie Rose show.

Ron is the Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of RecycleBank. During his tenure as CEO, RecycleBank has grown from an idea to a company that today is rewarding people for their positive green actions across North America and the UK. RecycleBank has been recognized by a number of leading business and environmental organizations including the World Economic Forum as a Technology Pioneer, the United Nations Environment Programme as a Champion of the Earth and the Wall Street Journal as one of the top 10 venture backed clean tech companies.

Prior to RecycleBank, Ron was at Deloitte Consulting where he developed CRM and strategic account management programs for clients such as Bank of America, Bank of Montreal, Bank One, GE, and DIRECTV. It was during this time that Ron gained the technical and software expertise that enabled him to design EcoStrong, the proprietary software that RecycleBank runs on. Ron was a co-recipient of Deloitte Consulting’s National Impact Award for helping to develop a consulting unit that provides pro bono consulting services to non-profit and charitable organizations.

Ron is also a part owner of Linhardt Design Studio (www.linhardtdesignstudio.com), a jewelry company that designs and manufactures fine jewelry made from recycled metals and sustainable materials.

Ron received a BA in History from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst where he graduated with Departmental Honors and was a Massachusetts Commonwealth Scholar. He received an MBA from Columbia Business School where he was a Eugene M. Lang Center for Entrepreneurship award winner.

Before co-founding Voxiva, Paul Meyer was Founder and Chairman of IPKO, the first and largest Internet service provider in Kosovo. Started in the weeks after the 1999 war, IPKO was hailed by the U.N. Secretary General as "a model for future humanitarian emergencies." Previously, he was a Senior Fellow at the Markle Foundation studying efforts to bridge the global digital divide. Prior to Markle he worked for the International Rescue Committee where he launched a number of projects using technology to reunify separated refugee children and families in West Africa and the Balkans. Before that, he was Chief Operating Officer of the Endeavor Initiative. From 1993 to 1995, he served as one of President Clinton's White House speechwriters and worked on President Clinton's 1992 campaign. He has a law degree from Yale Law School and studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Oxford University. He was recently named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in Davos. MIT's Technology Review Magazine named him one of 100 technology pioneers and their 2003 Humanitarian of the Year. He was named a Henry Crown Fellow by the Aspen Institute and is a member of the U.S. Council on Competitiveness and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Dwayne Spradlin is President and Chief Executive Officer of InnoCentive, Inc. Previously, he served as President at business information company Hoover's Inc. and before that he was President and Chief Operating Officer of Starcite, Inc., an online meeting and events planning business. Spradlin served as Senior Vice President of Corporate and Business Development for Verticalnet Inc., the world's largest portfolio of online industry marketplaces. Earlier, Spradlin was a Director in the E-Business and Emerging Technology practice at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. He holds a BA in Applied Mathematics and an MBA from the University of Chicago. He resides in Southlake, TX with his wife and three sons.

Since joining Pepsi in 2002, Katz has been involved in several brand-marketing and innovation positions. Between late 2002 through early 2004, he was associate marketing manager, developing marketing and channel strategy initiatives within Pepsi’s Foodservice division. From 2004 to 2006 he worked as a marketing manager, responsible for various aspects of the Mountain Dew brand including music, online strategy and development, as well as urban grassroots initiatives. He subsequently worked on Innovation for Pepsi’s sparkling beverage portfolio.

As Sr. Manager on brand Pepsi, he is currently leading the Pepsi Refresh Project including the digital and social media strategy for the brand and its website www.refresheverything.com and www.facebook.com/pepsi.

For the first 10 years of his career, Katz worked in account management at several advertising agencies in New York City including Lowe and Deutsch.

He received his MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University and his BA in Political Science from Trinity College.

Ralph Thurm joined Deloitte in July 2008 as Director Sustainability Strategies. With 20 years of experience in sustainability Ralph supports both Deloitte internally and its clients regarding the development of sustainability strategies and performance. As an economist Ralph is convinced that the balanced approach towards economic, environmental and social performance opens new opportunities for successful business model creation and long-term value increase.

Between 2002 and 2008 Ralph was working for the Global Reporting Initiative, mainly in the area of business engagement and development. Between 2004 and 2007 Ralph was GRI’s Chief Operating Officer; during his time at GRI the number of GRI reporters grew from 120 to more than 1.500 organizations, while number of staff and revenues of GRI tripled. More than 500 organizations worldwide have also joined GRI’s Organizational Stakeholder program, a loyalty program to help to further develop the GRI Reporting Framework. GRI is now seen as the globally accepted international standard for sustainability reporting.

From 1993 to 2002 Ralph was working for Siemens where he was responsible for the development of the first ever Siemens sustainability strategy and was heading the Siemens Sustainability Strategy Council. He was also an advisor to the German Federation of Industries for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002.

Ralph has co-authored books, is a well-known writer on the subject of sustainability and has given more than 250 presentations on sustainability strategies and transparency all over the world.

Craig is the Global Director of Digital at Nokia - Responsible for all bought and earned digital strategies across the Nokia brand. Leading a team of highly skilled experts who will drive the centre of digital media excellence and ensure a high standard of strategic execution along with the creation of a company wide social media framework focused on transforming Nokia into a truly social brand experience through connecting people.

Craig joined Nokia from Open Text where as Director of Social Media Strategy he led and advised on the social media and Enterprise 2.0 strategies across their own business as well as their major customers including T-Mobile, Novartis, SAP, RIM, Motorola and many more. Previously, he headed up the global eCommerce and digital marketing strategy for STA Travel and is credited with delivering cutting edge technologies to enhance the online travel agency's hugely successful online presence and web solutions. This included interactive travel applications, creating award winning social media communities and web2.0 applications including the award winning travel blogs, widgets, RSS feeds and many more. Craig was also involved in developing some of its earliest partnerships and social media strategies with the Facebook founders which are still going strong today.

Craig has been previously invited to talk and participate on the panel of some key events over the past three years including Social Media Influence, Enterprise 2.0 Conference, Internet World, EyeForTravel, AdTech, Revolution Search Marketing, Widgety Goodness, Content World and the ARK group's Streamlining web content and approval. Craig was voted as one of the UK's rising stars in the digital marketing sector.

Craig is passionate about social computing, web2.0, collaboration, usability, digital marketing and innovation. He is a prolific blogger with a significant following of influential business owners and C level executives and has built a very influential twitter following.

Craig often shares and posts his thoughts via twitter @ http://twiter.com/craighepburn

Craig tries to keep his blog up to date at http://forwebsake.blogspot.com

Marcel LeBrun is a serial entrepreneur, media philosopher, and the CEO of Radian6, the social media monitoring company that is used by leading brands such as Dell, Microsoft, Comcast, Kodak, and Pepsi to listen, measure and engage with their customers across the social web.

Marcel believes that “your brand is now the sum of conversations about it”. He loves to talk about the transformative effect of social media on how businesses communicate with their customers (see him riff on the subject in this video), and he has been known to geek out on the topic of social media metrics and measurement.

Phil Radford is in a unique position as he takes the helm and builds on Greenpeace's rich legacy. Having served as Greenpeace USA's Grassroots Director for the past 6 years, he has unsurpassed experience in movement building.

"Greenpeace is nothing without the people," Phil explains. "Greenpeace learned early on that we need the political power from people all over the world in order to make the changes needed to protect the planet for us and future generations." Phil is committed to continuing to involve people and build the kind of public support needed to win critical environmental fights.

As Grassroots Director, it was Phil's vision and leadership that built Greenpeace's $9 million Grassroots Program and our cutting edge online to on-the-ground organizing, as well as a robust student organizing and training program and the national street and door-to-door canvass program. "Greenpeace is the organization that works with people rather than paper," Phil says. For many years, Phil was leading the team that was out in the field, talking to the people, gaining their support, and building stronger alliances for the environmental movement to march onward.

As Greenpeace's leader, Phil is proud to stand up for environmental issues and invites others to stand up with him.

Phil Radford earned a Bachelor degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 1998, and holds a certificate in Non-profit Management from Georgetown University.

Tim Mohin joined AMD as the Director of Corporate Responsibility in December 2009. Prior to joining AMD, Tim was a Principal Consultant and Team Leader for EORM's growing sustainability and corporate social responsibility practice where he advised senior executives at Fortune 500 companies. Formerly, Tim led Apple’s Supplier Responsibility program where he initiated the company’s world-class social and environmental responsibility program. Tim also had a twelve-year career with Intel Corporation from 1995-2006 where he held several positions including Director of Sustainable Development, Director of Employee Communications, Corporate Environmental Manager and Government Affairs Manager. Significant accomplishments include Intel’s highly successful design for the environment program and Project XL (Excellence and Leadership), a program designed to improve the environment with less bureaucracy. Before joining Intel, Tim worked for ten years in the Federal government with both the U.S. Senate and U.S. EPA. Significant accomplishments include the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 and The National Environmental Technology Bill of 1993.

Tim serves on the board of directors of Net Impact, an international nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire, educate, and equip individuals to use the power of business to create a more socially and environmentally sustainable world. Tim earned a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Biology from the State University of New York and a Masters degree in Environmental Management from Duke University.

Joe Marchese is co-founder and President of SocialVibe. SocialVibe effectively builds brands in social media by facilitating interaction between people, brands and causes. SocialVibe is Series A funded by Redpoint Ventures.

Prior to SocialVibe, Marchese built and lead the online media strategy division at a boutique management consulting firm. Marchese developed and guided the group to provide Fortune 1000 clientele research and online strategy development focused on digital media. Before consulting, Marchese began his career as a business analyst for Monster Worldwide, the parent company of Monster.com.

Joe Marchese is a well known thought leader in the social media and advertising industry, writing weekly for MediaPost publications. Joe has also keynoted various digital advertising and media summits including, OMMA, iMedia, Digital Hollywood, as well as having contributed to a number of national publications as an expert on new media, such as BusinessWeek, NY Post, Boston Globe.

Rod Arnold is passionate about empowering leaders to think smarter about leadership, strategy, branding and marketing. For more than 15 years, he has worked with organizations in both for-profit and not-for-profit sectors as a strategic leader and organizational coach.

As a college student, outreach trips to Central and South America opened Rod’s eyes to the extreme poverty that envelops hundreds of millions of people in developing countries. In 1990, Rod and his wife, Michelle, put their career plans on hold and spent two years working in the jungles and mountains of Peru. This life-altering experience compelled Rod to focus the bulk of his time and energy to work with organizations and efforts that directly impact people in need. Over the last 15+ years, Rod’s outreach work has taken him to 25+ countries around the world.

Rod now serves as Chief Operating Officer for charity: water, a non-profit organization focused on the global water crisis and the 1 billion people without clean drinking water.

Prior to his work with charity: water, Rod founded BrandSmart, a branding and marketing agency that works primarily with non-profit organizations.

Randy Paynter is the Founder & CEO of Care2. With more than 12 million members, Care2.com is the largest online community of people making a difference in healthy & green living, human rights and animal welfare. Randy holds an AB from Harvard and an MBA from Stanford.

Jacob Colker is a recognized leader in political activism and issue advocacy, and a leading voice in the use of technology for community engagement. Jacob has managed political campaigns in California, Illinois, and Maryland, and he was one of the first field directors in the country to leverage Facebook in a major political campaign to win a statewide election. Jacob has also managed issue advocacy campaigns for The International Campaign for Tibet, The 1Sky Campaign, and other non-governmental organizations, both in the U.S. and around the world.

The Extraordinaries are recipients of a 2009 United Nations World Youth Summit Award, a 2009 Echoing Green Fellowship, a 2009 Ashoka Changemakers Award, and a 2010 Rolex Young Laureates Award for Enterprise.

Dr. Ian Bogost is a videogame designer, critic, and researcher. He is Associate Professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Founding Partner at Persuasive Games LLC. His research and writing considers videogames as an expressive medium, and his creative practice focuses on political games and artgames. Bogost is author of Unit Operations: An Approach to Videogame Criticism, ofPersuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames, co-author of Racing the Beam: The Atari Video Computer System, and co-author of the forthcoming Newsgames: Journalism at Play. Bogost's videogames cover topics as varied as airport security, disaffected workers, the petroleum industry, suburban errands, and tort reform. His games have been played by millions of people and exhibited internationally.