Work with thought leaders and academic experts from American University

Steven Ekstract is an expert on brand licensing for consumer products and experiences. He is the founder and former Publisher of License! Global, the leading online business publication for the $360 billion a year brand licensing business. In 2020, Ekstract formed his own licensing consulting practice. He writes regularly for License Global and has contributed articles to Licensing International and Jing Daily. In addition, Ekstract serves on the Trend Committee for Spielwarenmesse, the World's Largest Toy Trade Fair. He is the founder and head curator of X Tracks Licensing Forums, executive level Licensing Forums showcasing future trends in entertainment and brand licensing that he produces in NYC and Los Angeles and in 2025 in partnership with Walmart, the world's largest retailer. Currently, Ekstract is curating and producing the Licensing Day content for the Kidscreen Summit taking place in February 2025. He is also a book author currently under contract with Wiley Publishing to write Brand Licensing For Dummies, to be published in May 2025.

Tensie Whelan is the Director of the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business, where she is bringing her 25 years of experience working on local, national and international sustainability issues to engage businesses in proactive and innovative mainstreaming of sustainability. Tensie has been recognized by Ethisphere as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Business Ethics and was a Citi Fellow in Leadership and Ethics at NYU Stern. Her research interests include ESG investing and sustainable business.

Whether at a societal, organizational, or individual level, my perspective is that many of life’s problems can be solved with more effective communication. Why are people picking my competitor instead of me? Why is no one buying my product? Why don’t we all just recycle? Why won’t he text me back? These are communication questions — and, fundamentally, the solution is better communication. I’ve spent my career understanding communication problems and solutions from two complementary perspectives: As a researcher and practitioner. As a researcher, I have a PhD in Communication from The Ohio State University (O-H!) and have published more than a dozen peer-reviewed articles about proven, evidence-based strategies to engaging and persuasively communicate. I use a quantitative social science approach to run experiments and determine what message features resonate best with particular audiences for specific topics, especially related to health and science information. As a practitioner, I started my career in boutique strategic communication firms and have maintained an active consulting practice since 2017. My clients have included technology startups, digital health companies, government agencies, university offices, and consultancies.

My experience working in interdisciplinary environments has improved my skills in corporate communication, operational management, and entrepreneurship, making me well-suited for a corporate ecosystem. I have completed courses focused on Sustainability, energy, Environment, Social, and governance (ESG) that further enhance my expertise in sustainable research. In my previous role as a Financial Inclusion Officer at First Bank Nigeria Limited, I contributed to the design of strategies for establishing the Agency Banking business, resulting in a 25% increase in branch income every quarter. I support the internal control office to ensure transaction due diligence and business risk review to achieve group objectives. Throughout my career, I have consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to corporate sustainability, particularly in the context of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations for businesses. My comprehensive understanding of financial inclusion and sustainability, coupled with my passion for fixed income, credit analysis, and industry insights, has equipped me to make a meaningful impact in this role. What sets me apart is my ability to collect data, analyse, interprete, and communicate complex ideas effectively, both in writing and verbally.

Dr. Asher Beckwitt has over 24 years of experience as researcher and consultant with a strong background in program evaluation and qualitative research. Dr. Beckwitt holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology with specializations in race, gender, social justice, and medicine from American University and an MA in Sociology from George Mason University. Dr. Beckwitt has worked in a variety of roles, including as Principal Research and Evaluation Manager at FedWriters and Ripple Effect. She also founded her own research consulting firm, ASHER CONSULTING LLC, where she provides services that integrate AI into program evaluation, qualitative research, and data analysis. Throughout her career, Dr. Beckwitt has worked with organizations such as government agencies, non-profits, and universities to help them assess and improve their programs and policies. Dr. Beckwitt has also served as a Qualitative Analysis Research Consultant at George Mason University, where she created a university-wide qualitative research service. She worked on various research projects and taught courses in qualitative methods. With her extensive education and experience in research and evaluation, Dr. Beckwitt is a valuable asset to any organization looking to improve their impact and effectiveness. She is dedicated to using data and evidence to inform decision-making and drive positive change.

cultural anthropology, urban studies, design anthropology, South Korea, social media, social network analysis, future studies, qualitative methods, evaluation, multimodality