BradSmi

Brad Smith is Microsoft’s president and chief legal officer. In this role, Smith is responsible for the company’s corporate, external, and legal affairs. He leads a team of more than 1,300 business, legal, and corporate affairs professionals working in 55 countries. These teams are responsible for the company’s legal work, its intellectual property portfolio, patent licensing business, corporate philanthropy, government affairs, public policy, corporate governance, and social responsibility work. He is also Microsoft’s chief compliance officer. Smith plays a key role in representing the company externally and in leading the company’s work on a number of critical issues including privacy, security, accessibility, environmental sustainability, and digital inclusion, among others. Smith joined Microsoft in 1993, and before becoming general counsel in 2002, he spent three years leading the Legal and Corporate Affairs (LCA) team in Europe, then five years serving as the deputy general counsel responsible for LCA’s teams outside the United States.

CecileRichards

Cecile Richards is a nationally respected leader in the field of women’s health and reproductive rights who leads a movement that has worked for more than 100 years to build a healthier and safer world for women and teens. Every year, approximately 650 Planned Parenthood affiliate health centers nationwide provide healthcare services to 2.5 million patients, and sex education and outreach to 1.5 million people. Since joining Planned Parenthood in 2006, Richards has expanded its advocacy for access to healthcare and ensured that Planned Parenthood played a pivotal role in shaping healthcare coverage and services for women under the Affordable Care Act. In 2011, she led an unprecedented nationwide campaign to preserve access to Planned Parenthood preventive care through federal programs. Under her leadership, the number of Planned Parenthood supporters has more than doubled, reaching 10 million. Previously, Richards served as deputy chief of staff for House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.

matsleder

AnnieG_Photo

One of the first women photographers to work for National Geographic, Annie Griffiths has photographed in nearly 150 countries during her illustrious career and has worked on dozens of magazine and book projects for National Geographic. Griffiths’ work has also appeared in Fortune, GEO, LIFE, Smithsonian, and Stern, among other publications. In addition to her magazine work, Griffiths is deeply committed to photographing for aid organizations around the world. She is the founder and executive director of Ripple Effect Images, a collective of photographers who document programs that empower women and girls in the developing world. Ripple has produced 26 films and built a photo library of more than 20,000 images since 2010. Using these assets, Ripple’s aid beneficiaries have raised more than 10 million U.S. dollars, expanded their programs to multiple countries, and proven that women and girls are the best investment the world can make in our shared future.