International Symposium Keynote Speakers

In his decades-long tenure as a high school educator, media coach, and technology director in Los Angeles, Marco Torres has become one of America’s most inspiring digital storytellers, empowering thousands of students to build productive lives through creativity, innovation, and cultural awareness. Marco is an accomplished filmmaker and photographer who wields a camera in the classroom the way most use paper and a pencil – with amazing results.

Marco has been recognized locally and internationally for his creative classroom programs and use of technology to empower minority students. He serves on the board of the George Lucas Educational Foundation and is a current Apple Distinguished Educator.

A frequent international presenter, Marco was once referred to as "Jaime Escalante.com" by Mr. Escalante himself, and routinely tops the charts at educational conferences as best speaker. Marco's media rich programs have been showcased on TV and radio, and in online journals and blogs, magazines, books, and news periodicals. For his efforts, Marco was named Teacher of the Year by the California state legislature.

Sponsored by: Apple

Steven Berlin Johnson

Steven Johnson is the best-selling author of five books on the intersection of science, technology and personal experience. His writings have influenced everything from the way political campaigns use the Internet, to cutting-edge ideas in urban planning, to the battle against 21st-century terrorism.

Steven has also co-created three influential web sites: the pioneering online magazine FEED, the Webby-Award-winning community site, Plastic.com, and most recently the hyperlocal media site outside.in.

Both social critic and technologist, Steven has a genius for mapping the future—for predicting and explaining the real-world impact of cutting-edge developments in science, technology and media.

Steven is a contributing editor to Wired magazine and a Distinguished Writer In Residence at the New York Univer­sity Department of Journalism. He lectures widely on technological, scientific and cultural issues.

Named by Newsweek as one of the “Fifty People Who Matter Most on the Internet,” Steven has also written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Nation, and many other periodicals. He’s appeared on many high-profile television programs, including The Charlie Rose Show, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. He blogs at stevenberlinjohnson.com.