RECAP: What We Learned at the 2023 Festival
WATCH: 2023 Festival Panels
We gathered on Friday, November 17, 2023 for the 6th annual Ideas We Should Steal Festival. Check back for panel videos and clips from the day.
We scoured the country for the ideas, changemakers, and innovators who are transforming cities. Meet these dynamic leaders whose ideas could fuel much-needed progress in our city. Their mission: to share powerful ways we can work together to create a city that meets today’s particular challenges and opportunities so that all Philadelphians can thrive.
MORNING PANELS
9:30 – WELCOME
9:40 – BANKING FOR GOOD
Priscilla Sims Brown, president and CEO of Amalgamated Bank, which bills itself as “America’s most socially-responsible bank,” in conversation with Kenneth L. Shropshire, Senior Advisor to the Dean for the Wharton Coalition for Equity and Opportunity.
10:05 – THE PAUSE THAT SAVES A LIFE
Molly Baldwin, CEO and founder of Roca, on using cognitive behavior therapy to stop gun violence in Massachusetts and Baltimore.
10:20 – RECLAIMING YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD IN THE AGE OF GENTRIFICATION
MacArthur “Genius” Majora Carter, community-focused real estate developer, Princeton professor and author; and Portland’s Randal Wyatt, of Taking Ownership PDX. Moderated by Citizen Co-executive Director and Executive Editor Roxanne Patel Shepelavy, plus audience Q&A.
11:00 – PLAYING YOUR WAY TO TECH SUCCESS
Damon Packwood, executive director of Oakland-based Gameheads, which uses video games as a way to introduce underrepresented young people to careers in tech. In conversation with Pulitzer Prize winning MSNBC reporter Trymaine Lee.
11:20 – LIVING ABUNDANTLY… AND AFFORDABLY
Atlanta developer Booker T. Washington on his groundbreaking South Park Cottages, the nation’s first minority-developed luxury tiny home community, a model for affordable housing throughout the nation.
11:40 – THE COMEBACK OF THE BIG TENT?
Lauren Harper, co-founder of The Welcome Party, which attempts to lessen the influence of ideological and partisan voters in the Democratic Party; Charlie Dent, a former Republican member of Congress’ bipartisan Problem-Solvers Caucus and current MSNBC commentator; and progressive Democratic State Sen. Nikil Saval. Moderated by MSNBC’s Ali Velshi, plus audience Q&A.
12:00 – LUNCH
AFTERNOON PANELS
1:00 – AI FOR SOCIAL IMPACT
Civil society advocate and A.I. expert Vilas Dhar, president of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation; and Beth Simone Noveck, director of GovLab at Northeastern University, on using artificial intelligence to create better citizens. Moderated by Dalila Wilson-Scott, EVP and Chief Diversity Officer of Comcast Corporation and President of the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation.
1:30 – WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT POLICE REFORM
Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, in conversation with former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and Citizen co-founder Larry Platt, plus audience Q&A. This is a special live taping of The Citizen’s How To Really Run A City podcast.
1:55 – HOW FIRE PITS AND S’MORES BROUGHT A DIVERSE COMMUNITY TOGETHER
Carol Coletta, the CEO of Memphis River Parks Partnership, on how intentional riverfront development has bridged the gap between haves and have-nots in Memphis.
2:30 – POINT GUARD LEADERSHIP
PA Governor Josh Shapiro, star point guard of the 1991 Akiba Hebrew Academy championship team, in conversation with Fran Dunphy, the winningest college basketball coach in Big 5 history, on how to get a team or a state from a “me” to “we” mindset. Moderated by Citizen co-founder Larry Platt.
3:00 – EDUCATION, ENTERTAINMENT, AND CHANGING THE WORLD
Philly native Troy Carter, one-time manager of Lady Gaga, John Legend and Meghan Trainor, turned Spotify head of creator services, turned venture capitalist, turned school voucher activist. In conversation with Citizen co-founder Larry Platt.
