Ron Conway - Chairman of sf.citi and SV Angel Special Advisor
Ron Conway is the Chairman of sf.citi and Special Advisor to SV Angel. Ron has been an active angel investor since the mid 90’s and has been included in 2010’s Vanity Fair 100 most influential people in the Information Age, awarded Best Angel at The 2009 TechCrunch Crunchies Awards, and named # 13 in Forbes Magazine Midas list of top "deal-makers" in 2011. He is the Chairman and Founder of sf.citi, San Francisco’s first tech-backed civic organization that leverages the power of the tech sector behind items of civic action.
Alex Tourk - Principal of GFPA
Ground Floor Public Affair (GFPA) was retained by Ron Conway to build infrastructure for sf.citi. Alex Tourk launched GFPA in March 2007 after working in the public sector for 15 years and playing an integral role in the past five mayoral campaigns. At City Hall, Tourk worked for two mayoral administrations. As Deputy Chief of Staff, he created and implemented Project Homeless Connect, a unique civic initiative that has now been adopted by over 200 cities worldwide. Due to Tourk's deep relationships within government and the community, his firm, Ground Floor Public Affairs, specializes in serving as a bridge between the private sector, City Hall and the diverse neighborhoods of San Francisco.
Bevan Dufty - Director of HOPE SF
Bevan Dufty was appointed to serve as the Director of Housing Opportunity, Partnerships and
Engagement (HOPE) on January 27, 2012 by Mayor Edwin M. Lee. HOPE’s role is to find ways
to improve outcomes for individuals in all forms of city sponsored housing—including shelters,
supportive, public and affordable housing.
Bevan Dufty has more than 18 years of public service to the City and County of San Francisco,
including five years as the City’s Director of Neighborhood Services and eight years on the
Board of Supervisors. As Supervisor, he spearheaded the creation of neighborhood-based case
management, founded the Castro Youth Housing Initiative, and implemented library-based
social workers to assist homeless individuals. Dufty was also instrumental in maintaining HIV/
AIDS services and funding.
Joel Mahoney - Tech Strategist & Evangelist for Code for America
Joel was a 2011 Fellow at Code for America and now serves as Tech Strategist & Evangelist. His work with the City of Boston clarified the rules around school eligibility so parents can make more informed choices for their kids. He will talk about open data, civic engagement, and how technology is transforming government.
Molly Turner - Manager of Public policy at AirBnB
Molly has realized that change in city policy may come quicker if driven from outside of the city government. As an urban planner moonlighting in the world of tech, she manages Public Policy for Airbnb and works with local officials across the world to measure the economic impact and ramifications of the emerging sharing economy. Now that technology provides marketplaces for citizens to share and trade previously untapped resources, from personal cars to houses, the line between individuals and businesses is getting blurred, calling for innovative and sustainable policies.
Rob Spiro - Founder of GoodEggs
Rob leads the development of a platform seamlessly connecting consumers directly with Bay Area food producers to by-pass traditional industrial food supply chains. His service allows to serve urban demand for sustainably produced food, engage the consumers in the food production and buying process, and increases production from local farmers in a unique win-win-win fashion.
Larry Hunt - The Bucketman
Larry has been living on and off the streets of San Francisco for years, sharing his passion for music directly with passer-bys. He plays drums on a variety of makeshift instruments and performs almost every day on Market street. He was picked up by a touched Will Smith during the shooting of the film "The pursuit of happiness" to appear in the movie, about the real-life story of a homeless man turned investment banker that juggled his job duties with raising his kid while living off the streets in San Francisco.
Jake Levitas - Research Director for the Gray Area Foundation for the Arts
Jake is a designer, organizer, educator, and community activist based in San Francisco. As the Research Director at GAFFTA, his work is focused at the intersection of design, technology, cities, and information.
Sam Lavigne - Designer at Situate
Sam Lavigne is a game designer and artist from San Francisco. In 2006, he launched SFZero, a real-world game built on the principles of urban exploration and collaborative artistic production. That same year, he also created Journey to the End of the Night, an open source street game which has gained worldwide popularity and has been played in cities including San Francisco, New York, Berlin, and Milan. He has produced games with the Smithsonian, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Microsoft Education and the Nike Foundation, and in 2010 he co-founded the game design studio Situate. His work has been featured in CNET, Newsweek, NPR and the Wall Street Journal.
Alicia Johnson - SF Department of Emergency Management
Alicia serves as the Resilience and Recovery Manager at the SF Department of Emergency Management. Her aim is to catalyze community to create sustainable resilience and a successful community recovery.
Dan Parham - Founder of Neighborland
Dan co-founded Neighborland with TED Senior Fellow Candy Chang, and his brother Tee Parham. Neighborland is a tool for people to share ideas about their cities and take action on those insights. Dan leads design, product strategy, and operations for Neighborland.
Melissa Small - Design Lead for The Bold Italic
Melissa is the Design lead of the Bold Italic. The online magazine uncovers secret gems of San Francisco from artisans to events to "Bold Locals", celebrating the free-wheeling spirit of the City.