Plenary Speakers
Joseph F. Coughlin, Ph.D.
Director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab.
Joseph F. Coughlin is one of Fast Company Magazine’s ‘100 Most Creative People in Business’ and was named by the Wall Street Journal as one of “12 pioneers inventing the future of aging and how we will all live, work and play tomorrow.” His research seeks to understand how demographic and social trends, human behavior and technology converge to drive future innovations in business and government. Based within MIT’s Engineering Systems Division, Dr. Coughlin teaches classes in policy and systems innovation and is author of the online publication Disruptive Demographics exploring the new business of old age. He consults to governments, financial services, consumer products, transportation, retailers, IT and health firms worldwide.
Hear Dr. Coughlin's recent interview : An Introduction to Disruptive Demographics in our Multimedia Resources section.
Zuzanna Skalska,
Senior Consultant Design Trends & Insights
Born in Warsaw, Poland, Zuzanna Skalska has been living in The Netherlands since 1991 after studying at the Design Academy Eindhoven and Academy of Fine Art & Design in Den Bosch. After graduation in 1998, Zuzanna started her career as a Sensorial Trend Analyst at the Strategic Design Department of Philips Design in Eindhoven.
Since 2001 Zuzanna has been associated with VanBerlo Design Strategy + Product Development – the largest design consultancy in The Netherlands. She is responsible full-time for ongoing trend research in a large number of industry branches. She has been a member of the board of management of Dutch Design Week Eindhoven (annual design city event) for five years, and is also a lecturer at TU/e Technical University Eindhoven, Department of Industrial Design.
Zuzanna Skalska visits more than 25 international professional trade fairs a year, and also speaks at seminars and lectures. Zuzanna is an author of the 360° Trend Report books – winners of the Red Dot Communication Award 2009. Zuzanna often delivers keynote addresses all over the world.
Don Connolly
Host, Information Morning, CBC
Don Connolly joined the Information Morning team as the "new kid on the block" 29 years ago.
Now a veteran broadcaster, he brings a sense of history and context to the interviews and stories of the program.
Don's interests range from literature to politics, sports to cooking and he enjoys meeting the people and politicians of the province.
Don lives in Halifax with his wife Maureen and four children, Kathleen, Mollie, Joe and Deirdre.
