TEDxCulverCity Travel Salon, January 26th 

JESSICA BLOTTER: The Future of Travel - Purpose is King

Bio: Jessica Blotter is an entrepreneur, activist, journalist and co-partner of new social venture, KIND TRAVELER, which transforms the annual $7 billion travel industry into a force for good.

Topic: There is an opportunity to apply the psychology of happiness to create more purposeful travel experiences while also benefiting local communities, the environment, and animals. Jessica will be discussing what it looks like to bridge the gap to create more meaningfulness in travel experiences and in everyday life.

RACHEL RUDWALL: Connecting Beyond BordersBio: 

Rachel Rudwall is a travel TV host, producer and social media influencer who creates travel videos from around the world.

Topic: Curiosity and restlessness is within in all of us but we continue to separate ourselves from others because we have the human need for borders. Borders were once used as protection but soon became national borders. Rachel Rudwall will discuss how there are ways to break down the borders in our daily lives to make us more connected instead of distant.  

MARKO AYLING: Building Peace Through Travel

Bio: Marko is a traveling journalist and a Co-Host, Co-Producer and Travel Documentary Film Maker at Vagabrothers, a YouTube channel with a global perspective for the millennial generation.

Topic: Marko will be discussing “Building Peace Through Travel.” Through his exploration of the world, he has discovered that although at times globalization has lead to societal conflicts such as wars and cultural biases, it is up to us to become responsible and respectful world citizens to promote unity and understanding among different cultures.

DERON QUON: The Impact of Outsourcing

Bio: Deron is a serial entrepreneur and consultant with over 15 years of experience in start-ups, corporate strategy, communication processes, financial management, and sales and business development practices. He is the Executive Chairman of Collective Solutions which provides full service business processing outsourcing work from international call centers.

Topic: Deron will be talking about "The Impact of Outsourcing.” Most people think of outsourcing as taking away American jobs, but Deron will shed light on how outsourcing can improve communities by exporting knowledge, fulfilling careers and by increasing professional standards. His company, Collective Solutions, built the first international call center in Honduras in 2010.  Since then, lives and communities have changed for the better (he employs 500 people). In the Philippines (he employs 1,000+ people) an entire second economy at night, serving the US, has developed and the country employees 1+ million voice call center agents making it one of the fastest growing ASEAN countries.