Keynote Speakers
Benjamin Stern became inspired to make a difference when, at 14 years old, he viewed a video on the destructive impact of the plastic industry on our marine life. Ben envisioned a tab-like single serve product that was water soluble for personal care products, such as shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and shaving cream. The delivery system eliminates the need to use plastic bottles in the bathroom, while still enjoying an amazing, enjoyable lather!
In early 2016, Ben appeared on ABC’s “Shark Tank” to pitch his business, Nohbo. Ben accepted an offer from businessman Mark Cuban to make a $100,000 investment for a 25% equity stake in Nohbo. Following his appearance on Shark Tank, Ben was featured in several online blogs and magazines and has received over 60 investment offers. He has spoken at schools like the Florida Institute of Technology, Yale, and MIT. Ben has been awarded the Young Entrepreneurs Award by the Governor of Florida. Learn more at www.nohoball.com.
Benjamin Stern
TROVADORO
TROVADORO brings together some of Seattle's finest players of Cuban Son music to perform original compositions in traditional styles. Cuban Son (pronounced 'sone' like 'tone') is the acoustic roots dance music that is the origin of today's internationally celebrated Salsa music and dance. TROVADORO is guided by Santiago de Cuba's Kiki Valera and his lifetime of extensive performance, international touring, arranging, producing, and mastery of the Cuban Cuatro. Kiki is the eldest son and director of La Familia Valera Miranda - one of Cuba's most revered families of Son musicians. Justin Maggart and Steve Smith are core members of SuperSones - a traditional Cuban septet that has performed Cuban Son in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest for the last 15 years. Javier Maru brings years of experience playing Trova and Son in Havana, Switzerland, and now in Seattle with Trio Cubay and other groups.
TROVADORO raises awareness about Cuban and Latin music by leading interactive performance-workshops for audiences of all ages. In the tradition of Cuban troubadours new and old, TROVADORO evokes deep currents of the human heart and soul with strings, percussion and song. Trovadoro’s participation in WAGIN was supported, in part, by an award from 4Culture.
Aji, 16, grew up in the woods of the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington. From his upbringing Aji developed a deep love and connection to the forest and waters of the Pacific Northwest. His journey in activism began when he learned about oil trains coming through his city and along the coast and he was driven to take part in protests and legislative hearings. He has since served his community by founding the Seattle chapter of Earth Guardians and serving as the President of Plant for the Planet, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting climate change through planting trees.
As one of 21 youth plaintiffs suing the United States Government in a Landmark U.S. Federal Climate Lawsuit, Aji is taking matters into his own hands. He is also plaintiff on another youth-driven lawsuit demanding that Washington's environmental department act to mitigate climate change.
During his spare time you can find Aji volunteering at local food banks, doing forest restoration work with his mother, and performing powerful activist-driven music.
Aji Piper
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Tim Matsui is an Emmy-nominated multimedia journalist and producer focusing on human trafficking, alternative energy, and the environment. He is a photojournalist at heart, but he’s also become a documentary filmmaker, a nonprofit founder, and an agent for change. He has done extensive work on human trafficking both domestically and abroad.
His most recent project, the feature documentary The Long Night tells the story of seven lives forever changed by the American sex trade. It won first prizes from World Press Photo, Pictures of the Year International, and Best of Photojournalism, along with a Webby Nomination and was a finalist for the Dart Center Award. Tim seeks to inform and engage viewers through his projects, using media for social change.
Tim Matsui
Nikkita Oliver
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Nikkita Oliver is a Seattle-based creative, teaching artist, attorney, and anti-racist organizer. Her writing has appeared in the South Seattle Emerald, Crosscut, and the Stranger. She holds a J.D. and Masters of Education from the University of Washington. She is a writer-in-residence with Writers in the Schools at Washington Middle School, leads writing workshops with Arts Corp at Garfield High School, and is a teaching artist and case manager with Creative Justice--an arts-based alternative to incarceration.
Nikkita is the 2015 recipient of the Seattle Office of Civil Rights Artist Human Rights Leader Award, the 2014 Seattle Poetry Slam (SPS) Grand Slam Champion, the 2013, 2014, and 2016 SPS Womxn of the World Poetry Slam representative, a three-time Seattle Poetry Slam national team member and coached the SPS national slam team twice. She has opened for Cornel West and Chuck D of Public Enemy and performed on The Late Night Show with Stephen Colbert.
Photo Credit: Sarah Dilley