"We The People" Project 2007 - Presenters
Dawn Drew - Keynote Speaker
Dawn Drew: Vice President, Publisher - National Geographic Traveler
Dawn Drew is Vice President and Publisher of National Geographic Traveler magazine, a publication that reaches more than 7 million readers with each issue and addresses only the pertinent issues related to leisure travel.
During her near 13 year tenure at the National Geographic Society, Dawn has steered the publication and the brand National Geographic Traveler, to its current leadership position in the industry. It is to date the only major travel publication that addresses, "all travel, all the time", focusing on the facts and information for travelers who want to experience authentic cultures, connect with the natural environment and preserve nature.
National Geographic Traveler has achieved some formidable firsts during Dawn's leadership;
- Publication of the largest issues in both ad pages and revenue
- Single subject supplements devoted to India and South Africa
- Named one of AdWeek's "Hot List" publications for 2 consecutive years
- Publication of National Geographic Traveler "On-Campus" - a specially created edition sent to nearly 1 million college students interested in study abroad and educational travel
- National Geographic Traveler Destination Immersion Programs: A series of events for readers to sample the cultures of select destinations via wine and food samplings, film and photography presentations
- National Geographic Traveler performance presentations of authentic cultural music and dance acts from select destinations
In addition to her responsibilities at the magazine, Dawn has been an active and enthusiastic member of the travel industry. Since 1996 she has served on the board of directors of several regional industry organizations. As part of her responsibilities on these boards, Dawn has taken a leadership position in advancing the knowledge base and the concepts of sustainable travel worldwide. One of the pioneers in this area, Dawn along with Dr. Suzanne Cook, SVP of Research at the TIA, created and published the results of the "Geotourism Study", the landmark research that defined and categorized the behavior, awareness and attitudes of American travelers with regard to sustainable tourism issues. Dawn's activities in the travel industry include:
- Active membership and officer's positions with the TIA (Travel Industry Association) since 1996
- Current Second Vice Chair of the TIA
- TIA Committee Chairs for; Research (2 years), Membership (2 years), Marketing (1 year)
- TIA special task forces (Business for Diplomatic Action - Branding America)
- Active membership and Board of Director positions with PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) since 1999
- Currently PATA Board Member and member of Industry Council
- Former chair and co-founder of PATA Sustainable Tourism Committee (2000-2004 as chair), currently committee member
- Advisory Board to the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum of the Tourism Partnership (2003-2005)
In addition to the numerous awards and recognitions for her service to the industry, Dawn was named one of MIN's most Intriguing People in 2005 and is very proud of the Joseph Holland Humanitarian in Business Award she was honored to receive from the American Red Cross.
Dawn began her career in publishing as an editorial intern at Newsweek magazine, working for the book and movie reviews. She later moved to a PR firm, Circulation Experti, where she used her writing skills and learned the business of public relations, allowing her to later advance in magazine promotion and marketing. After working in marketing at ‘W' Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly and several other publications, Dawn spent 8 formative years at the New York Times Magazine Group where she worked her way up from account executive with Golf Digest/Tennis to sales management at McCalls.
In her off hours Dawn enjoys photography, taking her car to the track and considers herself a "weekend gourmet". A graduate of Tufts University with a degree in International Studies, Dawn maintains a keen interest in global politics and history and speaks proficient French and Spanish.
Dawn became a "traveler" at the age of 14 when she embarked on her first trip abroad to France without her parents in tow. A truly passionate wanderluster, Dawn frequently drags along her son Dylan, who at 16 is following in his mother's footsteps as the captain of his Model UN Team and his own opinions on world politics.
For the past 17 years, Dawn has resided in Somers, NY – a small town in northern Westchester County proud of its commitment to land conservation.
Donovan Rypkema - Keynote Speaker
Donovan Rypkema, President of Heritage Strategies International
Donovan Rypkema is president of Heritage Strategies International. HIS was established in 2004 as a companion firm to PlaceEconomics, a consulting firm of which Rypkema is the principal. PlaceEconomics - widely recognized as the industry leader in the economics of historic preservation - specializes in services to to public and NGO clients who are dealing with center city and neighborhood commercial district revitalization and the reuse of heritage structures. Rypkema has worked with communities in 49 states and more than 25 countries. Recent assignments for HIS have included economic training for heritage activists in Sumatra, a feasibility analysis for a heritage building in the United Arab Emirates, developing economic incentives for heritage conservation in the Kingdom of Bahrain for the UNDP and being the financial specialist for a World Bank funded cultural heritage project in Azerbaijan.
Rypkema is the author of numerous articles and publications as well as a book, The Economics of Historic Preservation: A Community Leader's Guide. He holds a Master of Science degree in Historic Preservation from Columbia University. Rypkema served on the Board of Advisors of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is currently on the Board of Directors of Global Urban Development, and teaches a graduate course on the economics of historic preservation at the University of Pennsylvania.
Geraldine Rosa Henderson, Ph.D. - Featured Moderator
Geraldine Rosa Henderson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Integrated Marketing Communication at Northwestern University
Associate Professor of Integrated Marketing Communication at Northwestern University's Medill School. Ph.D. Marketing, Northwestern University Kellogg Graduate School Management. MBA, Marketing and Organizational Behavior, Northwestern University Kellogg School Management. B.S. Electrical Engineering, Purdue University.
Gerri was formerly on the faculty of Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, Howard University's School of Business, and the University of Texas at Austin's College of Communication. She has also taught at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, The University of Virginia's Darden Graduate School, Thunderbird: The Garvin School of International Management, and in Executive Education at both Duke University (Fuqua) and UCLA (Anderson). Courses taught include Theories of Persuasion, Integrated Marketing Communications, Marketing Management, Marketing Strategy, Consumer Behavior, Brand Management, and the Global Academic Travel Experience (GATE) to Southern Africa.
Gerri's primary areas of research include: marketplace diversity (also known as multicultural marketing), urban marketing, and consumer networks (cognitive and social). Recent publications include "Courting Consumers: Assessing Consumer Racial Profiling and Other Marketplace Discrimination" (Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 2005), "From Despicable to Collectible: Interpreting the Transformation of Meanings of Advertisements Depicting Stereotypical Images of African Americans" (Journal of Advertising, 2004), and "Exploring Collective Memories Associated with African-American Advertising Memorabilia: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" (Journal of Advertising, 2003), and is currently coauthoring a book on Consumer Racial Profiling and other forms of Marketplace Discrimination. Prior to pursuing her Ph.D., she worked for several years at IBM in Relationship Marketing (specializing in the Healthcare, Insurance, and Pharmaceutical Industries) and briefly in Brand Management at Kraft Foods.
Gerri was named a faculty fellow of the University of Texas Humanities Institute in 2006 for her work on Collecting Black Memorabilia and a Dean's Fellow for her work on Customer and Spokesperson Facial Recognition. She was the co-chair for the Society for Consumer Psychology Conference (February 2005) and the American Marketing Association Educators' Conference (February 2003). A member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, Gerri serves or has served as leadership for and/or on several corporate and non-profit boards for organizations such as the Advisory Council of the Association for Consumer Research, the American Marketing Association, the Society for Consumer Psychology, the National Black MBA Association, and the National Society of Black Engineers. She likes to consider herself a "Doctorpreneur" since in addition to her research and teaching, she often serves as an independent consultant and focus group moderator.
Leo Helms - Featured Moderator
Leo Helms, Designer, Hotel Kura Hulanda & Museum, Curacao, Netherlands Antilles
Those who take a visionary's idea and turn it into reality have made world changing discoveries, accomplishments and success possible for their sponsors. To name a few… Christopher Columbus for Queen Isabella, Annie Sullivan for Helen Keller, Tensing Norday—Sir Edmund Hillary's Sherpa guide on his Mt. Everest trek and Lou Perlman for the Backstreet Boys.
And such is Leo Helms to Jacob Gelt Dekker. Helms has taken Dekker's historical and environmental preservation dream and realized it into a luxury complex featuring a hotel, conference center, museum and institute for advanced studies.
As an architect and designer, Leo Helms has a passion for projects where he can combine commerce and culture to create an atmosphere that will visually and mentally stimulate those who experience his work. To date, Helms has authored cultural books and designed exhibitions for well-known museums in Europe and now brings more than two decades of design and architecture expertise to the Kura Hulanda project in Willemstead, Curacao.
Helms is commissioned to realize Hotel Kura Hulanda's 67 rooms, four restaurants and shops; Lodge Kura Hulanda's 120 suites—including 76 safari houses; Museum Kura Hulanda; Conference Center Kura Hulanda; the Jacob Gelt Dekker Institute for advanced Cultural Studies; as well as the furnishings throughout all properties.
For Helms, the challenge with Project Kura Hulanda is recreating the history and culture behind each of the buildings while creating a hotel compound. He accomplishes this by tying the buildings together via architecture, color and the use of many interlaced courtyards thus creating a cohesive neighborhood. To ensure that guests experience true 5-star luxury he incorporates 21st century comforts and technology into the design.
Prior to the Kura Hulanda project, Helms designed many restaurants, bars, private homes and café's. Included in his portfolio are: the Textile Museum in Boras, Sweden; the New Church in Amsterdam, Holland; the national Museum in Oranjestad, Aruba; the Museum of Modern Art in Tehran, Iran; the Historical Museum in Willemstad, Curacao; the Royal Palace in Amsterdam, Holland; the Textile Museum in Lodz, Poland; and the National Museum of Etnografie in Leiden Holland.
In addition to his architecture and design firm, Helms has established two charitable foundations, which develop and mount traveling exhibitions. Currently, the Tutankhamen exhibit Helms created traveled the world in 2006 visiting the Royal Palace Museum in Edinburgh, Scotland and toured the United States in 2002.
Helms holds a degree in psychology from the University of Amsterdam and a degree in architecture and graphic designs from the Gerrit Rieveld Academy of Arts in Amsterdam, Holland.