InstructureCon21 Lives On!

will.i.am has been recognized by seven Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, a CLIO Award, the World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award, and an Honorary Fellowship by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).  

He a member of the World Economic Forum’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Advisory Committee and Global Artificial Intelligence Action Alliance that monitors the impact of technology on society, people and work. He also co-chairs the World Economic Forum’s Generation AI working group that examines the interaction of AI and youth across education, play, data rights and privacy. In May, he chaired the World Economic Forum’s “Smart Toy Awards” that recognizes top toys that utilize AI to help improve childrens’ lives.

will.i.am collaborates with global brands on creative campaigns and events, among them Accenture, AB InBev, Atom Bank, Bacardi, Beats Electronics, Dr. Pepper, Intel, Lexus Europe, Mercedes Benz, Nestle, Pepsi, Salesforce, Super Bowl, The Coca-Cola Company and VAAY.  He is the Chairman and Founder of XUPERMASK, creator of a smart mask designed in partnership with Honeywell. 

After an eight year hiatus, will.i.am and Black Eyed Peas are topping the international music charts again with multiple hits from TRANSLATION, their 2020 modern Latin crossover album featuring collaborations with J Balvin, Shakira, Becky G, El Alfa, Maluma and Ozuna. “TRANSLATION” was lauded as one of the top chart-topping Latin albums of 2020.

In television he is starring as a Judge on “Alter Ego”, a new FOX reality music competition series that will debut on September 22nd.  Since 2012 he has starred as a Coach on “The Voice” UK and “The Voice Kids” UK program since 2017. He also executive produces series, documentaries and feature films that incorporate technology and social justice themes ranging from “Blackprint”/ITV about being Black in Britain that will air in Fall 2021, “i.am First: Science is Rock & Roll”/ABC, “The Age of AI”/YouTube Learning, and “Parkland Rising”/independent feature.

will.i.am’s i.am Angel Foundation supports in-class and after-school STEAM education programs for disadvantaged youth in grades K – 12. The foundation also funds the Boyle Heights STEM Magnet High School, and the i.am Scholarship program that provides gap funding for college students. In June, 2021, the i.am Angel Foundation announced a major expansion of 400 new teen after-school robotics clubs within the Los Angeles Unified School District. As a member of the FIRST robotics organization’s board of directors, will.i.am also serves as a global advocate regarding the vital importance of STEAM skills development as the basis of an educated workforce that can fill the jobs of today, and tomorrow.

Dr. Knatokie Ford is Founder and CEO of Fly Sci Enterprise, LLC. Established in 2014, Fly Sci Enterprise is an education and media consulting organization focused on leveraging the power of storytelling to promote social change, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

She previously served as a Senior Policy Advisor at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) from 2015 through the end of the Obama Administration. In her role at the White House, Dr. Ford oversaw development and implementation of a national initiative, the “Image of STEM,” which was designed to raise visibility and improve the image of STEM fields and careers in order to help promote diversity in the STEM workforce. 

She previously served as an AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow at OSTP from 2012-2014 with the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). In this capacity, she managed concurrent projects on education technology and improving the nation’s healthcare system, in addition to working with OSTP’s STEM inclusion team. 

Prior to serving in the Obama Administration, Dr. Ford was a postdoctoral research fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA. She also spent time in Los Angeles where she had the opportunity to work as an actress in television and film and serve as a middle school teacher in an underserved community in South Central Los Angeles.

Dr. Ford completed her PhD in Experimental Pathology at Harvard University, where she studied age-related macular degeneration, and received a BS/MS in Chemistry/Biological Chemistry from Clark Atlanta University.

Lauren Bush Lauren is the Founder and CEO of FEED, a social business and impact-driven lifestyle brand whose mission is to “create good products that help FEED the world”. 

In 2004, Lauren had the opportunity to travel with the UN World Food Programme as a Student Spokesperson. While visiting communities in Central America, Asia, and Africa, Lauren witnessed firsthand the realities of poverty and hunger that so many face all over the world.

Using this experience as an inspiration, Lauren conceptualized the idea for FEED by designing the initial FEED 1 bag which, when purchased, feeds one child in school for one year. She founded FEED in 2007 and since then FEED has helped provide over 120 million meals globally through non-profit giving partners globally and in the US.

For her work with FEED, Lauren has received multiple awards including Fortune Magazine’s Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs in 2009 and one of Inc. Magazine’s 30 Under 30 in 2010.

Lauren also routinely speaks at global conferences that focus on business, philanthropy, and the issues of hunger and poverty. Examples include Forbes 400 Summit on Philanthropy, Forbes Women, Women in the World, Atlantic Ideas, and Aspen Ideas.