Can We Get Coffee?

John Volturo is a credentialed International Coaching Federation (ICF) Executive Coach and the President of the ICF in Los Angeles (ICF-LA). He is recognized nationally as one of a few individuals who has served in multiple C-Suites as an out member of the LGBTQ+ community in both public and private companies.John works with leaders to develop individuals and teams. His focus includes helping leaders of all identities show up authentically, and with confidence, presence, vision and clarity, in alignment with their values, so they may produce better conversations, better decisions, and better outcomes. As a former Senior Executive, Chief Marketing Officer, General Manager and Board Member at startup to established enterprise-size companies, John built diverse and inclusive global teams, led companies through transitions and, through sound strategy, tight execution, team leadership, and an indomitable spirit, helped to generate over $1.5B in top-line growth.John work includes Twitter, Capital One, IBM, Slack, Viacom, Spark Networks, Bertelsmann, Guthy-Renker, and Frontdoor. John has an MBA, is a Master Practitioner in Energy Leadership, is a Conscious Business Coach, and is an LGBTQ+ and DEI advocate. He lives in Los Angeles with his husband Adam and their twin girls.Learn more at https://volturocoaching.com/. Juliana Wells, from Long Island, NY is a junior at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. She is on the pre-health track majoring in sociology with a minor in chemistry. Juliana is passionate about human rights and steadfast in her belief in equality and justice for all. She loves kids and plans to pursue a career focused on children's health. Juliana was one of the very first Student Ambassadors at Smile Train, an international children's charity providing training, funding and resources to local medical professions to provide free cleft and lip palate repair. She was thrilled to be interning at Smile Train this summer. In her free time Juliana enjoys reading, baking, exploring different teas, yoga and playing mahjong.Joey Waters has been in education for almost twenty years as a middle and high school English teacher, News Literacy instructor, and Assistant Principal.  Moreover, Joey has served as a teacher mentor liaison and then as the administrative coordinator of that same program for the Cold Spring Harbor Central School District.  Joey's passion is teacher engagement and bolstering student opportunities to pursue their passions and excel beyond the confines of the classroom.  Joey has presented at various conferences on topics ranging from creating inclusive classrooms to the social emotional significance of accessible literature.  In addition to her background in education, Joey has experience running a small business and works as a freelance writer, editor and English tutor. Joey is a graduate of Boston College, has taken a number of management courses through Hofstra University's MBA program, and has a degree in Education from C.W. Post, Long Island and in Educational Leadership from Stony Brook University.  She is currently an Assistant Principal with the Syosset Central School District on Long Island.

Julia Leeb is a journalist, photographer and filmmaker specialized in the production of VR (Virtual Reality) content. She works as a war photojournalist and filmmaker, and is the author of North Korea: Anonymous Country and other books. Leeb's long-term projects have been published internationally and document political upheaval in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Iran. Elle Magazine listed Julia Leeb within the 80 international characters and Refinery29 named her under the 29th most inspiring women in Germany.Mariam Al-Dhubhani is a Yemeni-Russian award-winning journalist, filmmaker, and curator. She first pursued her passion for media during the 2011 Arab uprisings and co-founded her first media production. Her films have been screened globally in festivals such as Carthage, Interfilm, and Oaxaca. She also utilizes Virtual Reality in highlighting stories from Yemen.Mohammed Al-Jaberi is the program and communication officer of the EU-funded Cash for Work Project at the UNESCO regional office for the GCC and Yemen. Besides his daily job, Mohammed is an awarded filmmaker focusing on stories from/about Yemen. He holds a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University in International Politics and is currently concluding his master's degree in Management of Sustainable Development Goals from LUMSA University.

A graduate of Northwestern University, Audrey Chen is an independent Marketing and Communications consultant.  Audrey started her career in Washington, D.C. at Top 100 law firm Venable LLP, before moving to Asia where she is currently based. She has experience in a wide-range of specialties including crisis management and public relations, business and brand development, strategy, and stakeholder and investor relations. Prior to striking out on her own, she focused on business development with global brands owned by Fortune 500 companies such as Starbucks, Unilever, Diageo, Nestle, and AkzoNobel, as well as regional and local brands in the Asia-Pacific/Australasia region (including India and China) during her agency career.She is passionate about supporting and partnering with other female-led businesses as well as fellow start-ups and entrepreneurs. In her personal time, she volunteers and has a keen interest in investment.Natasha Das is a third-year student at Northwestern University in Qatar, majoring in Media Industries and Technology. She has an interest in research and climate change. Outside of university, she likes debate and music.  Natasha brings a blend of media knowledge that including public relations, marketing, and analytics.

Gregory Butler, co-founder and CEO of online event and ticketing platform ZuCasa, has over 15 years of experience building, expanding, and exiting successful technology companies.  Beginning in 2005, Gregory built PCAudioLabs from a one-room operation into a world-renowned provider of audio-centric computers.  Distribution for the company exceeded 250 retail outlets nationwide and in Europe and achieved double-digit YOY revenue growth.  The company's first product line (the Rok Box) earned the first computer nomination for the TEC Award since Apple's nomination in 1988.  Company partnerships included Microsoft, Intel, AMD and more.Following his successful exit with PCAudioLabs, Gregory was hired by Harman International to rebuild the Lexicon brand at a time when revenue was dropping by double digits, year-over-year.  After generating and leading a three-year business plan and product/technology roadmap, the brand returned to double-digit increases in annual revenue.  Gregory's digital strategy led to 100%+ increase in all key web metrics, leading to a fully functional eCommerce platform.In 2015, Gregory went on to become the Global Managing Director of WholeWorldBand, an international company with locations in California and Ireland, an innovated music creation and sharing site developed by 10cc founder, Kevin Godley and financed largely by Barry Maloney, the hugely successful tech investor in Ireland and billionaire financier, Dermot Desmond.  In addition to managing a multinational organizational structure, and securing several million dollars in financing, Gregory led the marketing and product strategies for the company and negotiated partnerships with Ryan Seacrest Production, Warner Music Group Records and Vh1 Save The Music.  WholeWorldBand's user base expanded into multiple countries, including Brazil, Mexico and Russia, with the average Time a user spent on the app increasing 14x.In 2020, along with Tony Rennert and Martha Chang, Gregory launched ZuCasa, a new video engagement platform for creators to engage their audiences, and fans to experience content together. WeAreZuCasa.comGregory has worked on multiple Grammy-nominated albums and Emmy-winning TV shows, as well as Executive Producing a nationally syndicated TV series.Spencer Striker is an associate professor-in-residence for communication, specializing in digital media design. Striker’s creative scholarship is organized around digital media design that embraces interaction design, mobile media, digital media and learning, game media, and entrepreneurship.He has taught at the American University in Dubai, (where he served as Coordinator of the Digital Media Program), the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater, (where he co-founded the Media, Arts, and Game Development Program), and Indiana University at Bloomington. Striker has designed and taught a wide range of creative production courses, including Mobile Game Design, 2D Computer Animation, Digital Podcast Production, Sound Design, Web Design, Creative Opportunities in Contemporary Media, New Communication Technologies, and Next Gen Interactive Entertainment.  Striker has developed History Adventures, World of Characters—a fully interactive digital book series that presents a fresh approach to history education, designed for today's digital generation. This interactive, multimodal learning experience combines mobile entertainment technology with the power of narrative design—bringing the pages of history to life. Striker holds a Ph.D. in Digital Media from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, a Master’s in New Media Production and Design from Indiana University at Bloomington, and undergraduate degrees in Radio-TV-Film (B.S.) and History (B.A.) from the University of Texas at Austin.Yanis Cherif is a student entrepreneur working on creating production content for small businesses in Qatar. Through his college experience, he was able to find his passion for commercial content creation through various communication courses.  His goal is to create a better and more fair way of producing content for businesses in Qatar and their marketing strategies.

Dr. Mathieu Trepanier is CEO and co-founder of XT Horizon, a digital insights agency. Mathieu is a seasoned entrepreneur with a track record of 15 years of continuous innovation in start-up environments focusing on digital consumer insights with world leading clients across several industries and geographies.Mathieu holds a Ph.D. in managerial economics and strategy from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University (USA), a M.Sc. in applied economics from HEC Montréal (Canada) and a bachelor’s from Laval University (Canada).Over the years, Mathieu has provided cutting-edge digital insights services to leading clients such as Nestlé, Purina, Nespresso, Hillspet, Colgate-Palmolive, P&G, Reckitt Benckiser, Pernod Ricard, Michelin, General Mills, The Boston Consulting Group, GSK, Sanofi, IQVIA, Coty, L’Oréal, PepsiCo, Campbell Soup Company, Ardent Mills, Rich Corporation, Firmenich, Kraft, Abbott Laboratories, ConAgra Foods, Kering, Dyson, Richemont, Groupe Bel, PwC, etc.Anthony Wallace is a Network Engineer & Computing Security Analyst, Northwestern University in Qatar.  Prior to joining the IT team at NU-Q, Anthony Wallace served at The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, first with the information security department and then as a data analyst for security application development. Before that, he was geo-strategic and cybersecurity analyst for various US government entities. His career in information technology began as a fascination and hobby that he has cultivated since childhood. He earned his bachelor degree from the University of Oklahoma in international security studies with a minor in Arabic. He holds ITIL and NIST certifications and currently is pursuing a master’s degree in information security engineering at the SANS Technical Institute.Stefan Baumann is a student at Carnegie Mellon University Qatar majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Cognitive Neuroscience. He is an international student who moved to Doha in 2018 from Zürich, Switzerland, which is where he grew up, but Stefan also have roots from the US and France - so is fluent in English, German, and French. Stefan has a deep curiosity for the World, which is supported through his passion to learn. After graduation, he is aiming to work in the industry of applied computational neuroscience, e.g. companies who develop brain-machine interfaces like Neuralink. His other interests include:- Psychedelic research (using psychedelics to combat mental illnesses)- Innovative entrepreneurship and investing (incl. cryptocurrencies)- Philosophy of mind and the hard problem of consciousness- Artificial intelligence and ethics of machine learning models

Charles Gaudet has been an entrepreneur since the age of 4, created his first multi-million dollar business at the age of 24, and is credited for developing strategies that have helped many clients achieve “Fastest Growing Company” status.  He’s the driving force behind marketing and sales strategies that have produced such results as: helping a client go from $1MM to $24.1MM within 3 years, generating $1.1 million in 5 days (more money than the company had previously achieved the prior 6 months combined) and deploying other strategies that consistently generate anywhere from 35% to well over 100% growth in under a year.Grit Daily said Charles Gaudet “is regarded in entrepreneurial circles as one of the top coaches for helping entrepreneurs surpass the seven and eight-figure mark.” International Business Times called Charles Gaudet: “The Go-To Business Coach for 7 and 8 Figure Entrepreneurs.” He’s received numerous awards and recognition (including founding a company named as “One of the Best Seed Stage Companies” by Ernst & Young) and was nominated and selected to receive “The Certificate of Leadership Development” from The US Army War College. His business advice has been featured around in the world – including Inc., Forbes, Salesforce, Success, Entrepreneur, and Fox Business – as well as on podcasts and radio - including being named one of American Geniuses’ Top 50 Industry Influencers.He’s the author of THE PREDICTABLE PROFITS PLAYBOOK: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Dominating Any Market and Staying in Top, The host of The Beyond 7-Figures Podcast, and the CEO of Predictable Profits.Charlie trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (two gold medal finishes) and is a 3-time wrestling state champion. He lives in New Hampshire with his beautiful wife, three adorable kid-preneurs and one badass dog.Priya Pradhan is originally from Kathmandu, Nepal, but is currently studying at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Priya is in her third year of undergrad and is pursuing a double major in Information Science and Sociology.In terms of professional goals, as with many of her peers, she is still trying to figure out what exactly she wants to do -- in her case, tech communications or journalism probably. Priya loves writing and conveying stories to wider audiences and wants to do something that encompasses human interaction, storytelling, creative ideation, and tech.This semester she took a really eye-opening course called Computing for Global Development that introduced her to the field of ICTD and that's become something she has been inspired to be engaged in.  Priya is interested in development sociology, especially how technology factors into it and can be leveraged for development.

And we're back! Greg and Ted return, and they're joined by host and producer Roja Pande this season. We learned so much from audience feedback on the first season. We have a new batch of hosts, shorter episodes that stay focused on particular topics, and now that we've gotten the caffeine jitters out it's more relaxed and fun! The first episode goes live on March 15th and we can't wait to have you join us, so go grab your mug.

Ephraim Cohen is a senior vice president and senior partner with FleishmanHillard and serves as the general manager of the New York office. In that position, Ephraim is also executive sponsor of FleishmanHillard’s global Media and (digital) Platforms practice, working with clients such as Chase and AB InBev. The practice brings together social, digital, and influencer expertise representing how the entire media ecosystem and our clients function. Previously, he was regional lead for social & digital, working with clients such as AT&T, Samsung, EY and SAP.Prior to FleishmanHillard, Mr. Cohen was the chair of the technology and digital content industry practice and executive vice president of innovation at MWW, where he led programs for Samsung, Deloitte Digital and Verizon FiOS. Mr. Cohen also founded and ran The Fortex Group, an industry community-building firm targeting the media, music, video and marketing industries with clients including Accenture Media & High-Tech, IDA Singapore, and Universal Music apps, among others . Mr. Cohen launched the firm after serving as the executive vice president and general manager of Edelman’s global technology practice as well as running their Boston office.Mr. Cohen began his career at Business Week as an assistant editor in the executive programs division. He later became the managing director of the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition (IACC) where he worked on trade policy and served as manager of the Digital Future Coalition, an organization focused on global copyright policy. Mr. Cohen holds a master’s degree of public policy in international political economy from Georgetown University's McCourt School of Public Policy and a bachelor’s degree in political science and dramatic literature from New York University.Isabella Salkeld is a student of Environmental Policy and Regulation at the LSE, focusing her studies on the economics of the environment and development and how this influences climate policy. Prior to this, she worked at Portland Communications as an Account Executive in the firm's Global Impact team, which specialises in global communications for philanthropists, impact investors, mission led businesses and organisations accelerating sustainable development. She holds a degree from Oxford in Spanish and Russian which included a year abroad working and studying in both Russia and Spain.

Michelle Wu, based in Singapore, is Chief Information Officer & Executive Director for APAC at Ingram Micro.  Michelle’s priority is to lead 130+ technical associates, driving business digital transformation and modernizing I&O, while deepening B2B engagements with vendors and eCommerce experience with customers in APAC.Prior to Ingram Micro, Michelle was with General Electric for 18 years, transforming regional operations and internal digital culture, with enterprise deployments and software agility, shared services, and advanced analytics.Michelle earned an M.B.A. from Fordham University, Gabelli School of Business, and has a B.S in Information Systems and Operations from Indiana University, Kelley School of Business.  Michelle is also an ICF certified coach and certified 230RYT yoga teacher.  Since 2015, Michelle has sponsored women empowerment initiatives, that include GE Women’s Network Women in STEM in the Middle East and an endowed scholarship at Indiana University Foundation, supporting female students to attend an annual technology conference. Roja Pande is a journalism student at Northwestern University in Qatar.  Roja is from Nepal, and is passionate about social entrepreneurship and exploring the future of storytelling. She is interested in using extended reality storytelling as a conceptual canvas to creatively narrate stories devoted to socially conscious themes and is in the process of producing an extended reality documentary. For summer 2020, Roja is  interning remotely for Germany-based Reflectista Media.

Hajer Naili is the Media and Communications Manager for The Soufan Center.  Hajer is a former journalist who is currently a communications and media expert specializing in humanitarian affairs, displacement, and conflict. She started her career in France as a radio reporter and anchor covering world news and social justice issues. She later shifted focus to cover women and gender issues. Hajer reported on the role of Arab women in the Arab Spring, the effects of displacement for Syrian women and girls in Jordan, and the motivations pushing French female teens to join ISISIn 2015 Hajer joined the International Organisation for Migration in Washington, D.C., as its Communications and Social Media Coordinator. She moved on in 2018 to became the Roving Regional Media and Communications Adviser at the Norwegian Refugee Council in Central and West Africa. Over the course of two years, Hajer covered and documented the humanitarian consequences of conflict across the region. Her most recent field missions include Northeast Nigeria, Mali, Cameroon, Niger, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Central African Republic.Khadija Islow is a Somali-Swedish journalism major at Northwestern University in Qatar. Her work centers around members of the diaspora, identity, culture, and technology. Khadija is dedicated to telling underreported stories that amplify marginalized people. She has experience covering US Congress, federal policy, and U.S. politics. She is a reporting fellow at the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and her work has been published in UPI, Frederick News-Post, and The Spokesman-Review. 

Sara Werner Costa is recognized as one of the leading Residential Real Estate Professionals in the United States and has been a go-to maven in her industry since her early twenties; and has sold nearly a billion dollars in residential Real Estate throughout her career.  With a degree in Psychology, a background as an elite athlete & now a mother to her 6-and-a-half year old son Lucca--her business was built with a ton of grit, loads of determination, a "go big or go home" mentality-- and a huge smile on her face.  Sara's business is focused on serving clients in the San Francisco Bay Area of California; yet she has local partners on the ground all over, which allows her to advise on acquisitions & sales anywhere in the country & around the globe.  From technology moguls to professional athletes, to families and beyond, Sara lives to serve as a trusted guide & intuitive advisor for her clients' Real Estate Investments & life transitions. Her passion and zest for life is palpable & the vibrant energy, expertise and joy she brings to all that she does is unparalleled.  You can follow, and connect with Sara, on Instagram at @sarawernercosta.  Maryam Al-Kubaisi is a senior at Northwestern in Qatar, majoring in communication. She is an entrepreneur who started an e.commerce company, with her sisters, selling exotic flowers directly. Maryam always looking for new adventures and challenges to take on and enjoys learning new techniques and information to make her stand out. She is planning to take over the family business knowing she will face many challenges as a young woman in a male dominated industry.  You can learn more about Maryam's company, and place an order, at joudflores.com.  

Navid KhonsariRaised in Iran, Navid Khonsari is a video game, virtual/mixed reality, film and graphic novel creator, writer, director and producer. As a video game director, Khonsari is known for having developed the cinematic look and feel for the iconic AAA franchises such as Grand Theft Auto/Vice City/San Andreas, Max Payne, The Warriors, Midnight Club, Manhunt, Red Dead Revolver, Alan Wake, Homefront and the recent Resident Evil 7.Khonsari’s celebrated original titles; 1979 Revolution, Hero, Fire Escape, Blindfold—have earned him the industries top honors including Best Game Direction and Independent Game of the Year Nominations by  Academy of Interactive Sciences (DICE), BAFTA, Winner of Facebook’s Game of the Year, Lumiere Award for Best Immersive, Winning Indiecade Jury Prize, NY Game Critics Nominations for Writing, Best Narrative Game, Tribeca Film Festival’s Storyscape Award and more.Under the direction of Khonsari, his independent studio is at the forefront of video games and immersive experiences––that Fast Company calls “an Innovation Agent”. Featured in more than 70 notable press outlets including, NEW YORKER, VICE, BBC, FAST COMPANY, NPR, WIRED, TIME, BUZZFEED AND THE GUARDIAN. Khonsari contributes as an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins and guest lectures sharing his unique vision, bold success as a director for games and immersive experiences for classes at Yale University, Princeton, Columbia, Duke, Northwestern in Qatar, University of North Carolina, White House, United Nations, Sundance and more.Khonsari often speaks and lectures on the convergence of technology and storytelling to incite empathy, challenge stereotypes of within mass media --- at venues such as Sundance, Hot Docs, DICE, Games For Change, FoST, Game Developers Conference (GDC), White House, Canadian Embassy, SXSW, VIEWS, NY Film Festival, UN and universities including Princeton, SCAD, Columbia, Northwestern. Khonsari is an advisor and fellow of the New Frontier Lab at the Sundance Institute and recipient of support from Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, IFP and Made in NY.Vassiliki Khonsari is an award winning interactive director/writer/producer whose genre defining work pushes on the boundaries of storytelling and technology across platforms. Vassiliki co-founded iNK Stories––the interactive story studio that Fast Company calls an “innovation agent”. In creating video games, virtual reality, mixed reality or film, iNK’s ethos is centered on bringing visionary, authentic, and impact forward 'aha moments' to audiences. A visual anthropologist , Vassiliki's documentary work has been broadcast in more than 20 countries and on Netflix, ESPN, Sundance Channel, Discovery, TLC, MTV and more. A member of the Academy of Interactive Sciences, Producers Guild, Guild of Future Architects, PGA WIN’s Culture Shift, Consultant and Fellow of Sundance Institute New Frontier Story Lab, recipient of support from The Doris Duke Foundation, IFP, MADE IN NY Innovation Grant. Khonsari contributes to the landscape of technology, storytelling and social impact to reframe an equitable future––at labs, workshops and institutions such as the Sundance Institute, United Nations, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Northwestern in Qatar, SXSW, NYC Public Library, Games For Change, FoST, Phi Centre, Johns Hopkins ISET Summit, CPH:LABS, Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund, Oslo Freedom Forum, Produced By Conference, IDFA, Telly Awards, Juror for One World Media Festival, Doha Forum, Electric Dreams and more.Recent original titles include the groundbreaking location based multi-sensory installation, Hero (Winner of Lumiere Award ‘19, Sundance '18, Winner of Tribeca Film Festival Storyscapes Award '18); Fire Escape, Neo-Hitchcock Interactive VR series made with Google (Telly Award, Tribeca '18, Winner of Infinity Film Festival, Winner of Nexon Award, NYFF, Indiecade Finalist, International Mobile Game Award Nominee, NYC Game Critics Finalist), Blindfold––Interactive VR (Sheffield; FoST, Oslo Freedom Forum, Games For Change, CPJ, Human Rights Festival), 1979 Revolution–– cinematic video game (Facebook Game of the Year, BAFTA Nomination, Sundance, Tribeca, UNESCO, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (DICE) Best Game/Best Director, International Mobile Game Awards, IndieCade Winner). Some of her current projects include Who is Michael Sterling, Blue Light and a new slate of video games. Creative collaborations across platforms include Google, Capcom, Verizon, Microsoft, HTC, HP, Bose, Verizon, Nexon, Stanford University, Columbia, Yale, Eko, Intel and more.Rui Xin Oh, from Singapore, is a Media Industries and Technology senior studying in Northwestern University in Qatar. Driven by her fascination to create interactive narrative content with respect to video games and virtual reality, Rui has actively sought exposure and experience in screenwriting, making a short film and Unity game, creating 360 and AR photogrammetry content, animating on After Effects, and project managing for History Adventures. She is currently working on a podcast/documentary series that will touch upon the stories behind Qatar’s diverse population.

Jaqueline Gil is a Brazilian entrepreneur and the founding partner of Amplia Mundo, where she and her co-founders consult for tourism companies and organizations around the world to develop new ways to innovate and go beyond the typical activities, and instead focus on sustainable, measurable, experiences that have purpose and impact.  Jaqueline brings more than 15 years of experience in Brazil and abroad in international business & policy, project management, and consultancy. Outside of Brazil, she has studied and worked in Australia, the US, France, Spain, New Zealand, and South Africa.  She can be seen on Amplia Mundo’s YouTube channel where she invites viewers to join her for interviews, workshops, and exploring cultures and communities around the globe.Giordana Bido is a student at Northwestern University in Qatar who founded the first Brazilian Student Association (BRASA) in the Middle East. Because BRASA’s main goal is to exchange cultures acting as a bridge between Latin America and Qatar, she is also a content writer for BRASA’s Brasinhas website. As a Communication student, she loves filmmaking and event coordinating. As a result, she is the Events Coordinator for Not Another Film Club, the film society on campus. Giordana is also interested in contemporary dance, since she started dancing when she was 6 years old. In NU-Q, she is the vice president for EC Thumakda dance group as well as an active participant. As a freshman, Giordana participated in a Service Learning Trip to Kenya that focused on building a foundation for a water tank, providing a school’s community access to clean water. In addition to Portuguese and English, she also speaks Spanish.

TJ Ciro  heads up Strategic Partnerships for Opendorse, the leading athlete marketing platform that makes it easy for brands, properties & publishers to share content with 13,000+ athletes on social media.  TJ graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S. in Sports Marketing.  He spent five years at Turnkey Sports & Entertainment working his way up from an intern to become the Vice President of Business Development and helping create the Turnkey Intelligence platform.  Looking to gain experience working directly for a property, he was hired as the first full-time Premium Seating & Suites salesperson for the Yankees as they transitioned from the old Yankee Stadium to the new stadium in 2008/2009.  From there he went on to sell corporate partnerships for the Philadelphia Eagles, Madison Square Garden (NY Knicks & Rangers) and the International Champions Cup.  Yahya Salem is an Egyptian, born in the United States, raised in the United Arab Emirates, and is currently a journalism senior at Northwestern University in Qatar. He was recently a marketing intern at Fortune Brand Studio under Fortune Magazine. He is passionate about everything to do with the media and entertainment industry, and is an avid sports enthusiast. Being an active Northwestern University in Qatar student, he has been able to spend time co-producing and working on short films, producing multiple video journalism pieces, as well as feature articles. He has published multiple articles in Egyptian online magazines, inArabic and English, about the entertainment industry. He is the captain of the university’s football team, and a member of the university’s African Students Association, debate club and culture club, and has worked with local charities in Egypt, Qatar, and the UAE.

Lauren Glassberg is an Emmy-award winning journalist who has been a member of the ABC Eyewitness News Team since 2000.  Before coming to WABC TV, she anchored and reported at stations in Akron, Little Rock, and Minneapolis.  She actually got her start in journalism as a teenager, reporting for the Main Street Wire, the newspaper on Roosevelt Island in New York.  It was always her dream to cover her hometown of New York City. She is primarily WABC TV's feature and lifestyle reporter, but you will catch her as a frequent substitute anchor.  You can watch her restaurant features, called Neighborhood Eats, most Fridays during Eyewitness News at 5 p.m. EST.  Lauren is a distinguished alumna of Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism. Sarah Shaath is a recent graduate of Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q).  She served as the student body president, was captain of the NU-Q’s women’s basketball team, and as managing editor for The Daily Q, the student online publication in her senior year. She is passionate about storytelling and using knowledge and education as a tool to do so. Sarah previously worked as an intern for the BBC.  She is planning to pursue her master’s degree in Management at the University of Manchester in the fall of 2020. 

Welcome to Can We Get Coffee. We kick off season 1 on August 31st. CWGC speaks with people across industries, joining us from North and South America, Europe, Middle East, and Asia, for conversations that students and young professionals can learn from as they look to start their careers.