Latest Interviews
Showing 16–29 of 29 transcripts.
Clear all filters- Milken Institute1h 23m
Part 1: Evolution of Humanity & Part 2: Inspiring Couples
Richard Ditizio, Suzy Amis Cameron, James Cameron, Juan Enriquez, Precious Moloi-Motsepe, Patrice Motsepe
Juan Enriquez outlines the emergence of *Homo evolutis* through genetic and neuro-technological capabilities that allow humanity to deliberately design life, a shift he deems more significant than the digital revolution. Concurrently, South African philanthropists Patrice and Precious Motsepi leverage their wealth and the Giving Pledge to address the continent's "demographic curse" by prioritizing STEM education for youth and economic development to turn population growth into a dividend. Furthermore, James and Susie Cameron drive a global "One Meal a Day" initiative to decouple agriculture from environmental degradation, utilizing data from *Avatar* and *The Game Changers* to prove the viability and investment potential of a plant-based transition.
- Milken Institute53 min
Breakthroughs in Philanthropy: Game-Changers in Social Impact
Richard Ditizio, Peggy Marie Alford, Princess Ameerah Altaweel, Nanette Medved-Po, Petra Nemcova, Shamsheer Vayalil
A diverse panel of global philanthropists, including representatives from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and Saudi Arabia's Tasmi Center, examined structural inefficiencies in the $390 billion US giving sector and emerging opportunities in the Middle East. Speakers highlighted strategic innovations such as corporate-nonprofit hybrids and data-driven mergers designed to replace short-term disaster response with sustainable, technology-enabled community rebuilding. The discussion emphasized a generational shift toward viewing philanthropy as a serious career path that leverages local leadership and cross-sector collaboration to drive scalable social impact.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
Women's Reception | Building Meaningful Lives: Women at the Forefront
Richard Ditizio, Emily Chang, Jane Goodall, Goldie Hawn, Sheila Marcelo
Hosted by the Milken Institute, this session featured speakers Goldie Hawn, Sheila Lirio Marcelo, and Jane Goodall launching the MI Equality Pledge and the MindUp program to advance gender parity through corporate transparency and neuroscience-based education. The panelists shared personal entrepreneurial journeys while addressing systemic biases in Silicon Valley and linking women's economic empowerment to global conservation goals through initiatives like the Takami microcredit program. Their unified conclusion emphasized a collaborative leadership model that rejects sameness for equality, urging the audience to eliminate fear and foster respect across all genders and generations.
- Milken Institute47 min
U.S. Perspectives on a World in Transition | A Conversation with Thomas J. Barrack
Thomas J. Barrack, Richard Ditizio, Staci Warden
The Milken Institute MENA Summit convened global leaders to address the intersection of medical longevity, pension sustainability, and the critical need for private capital to bridge funding gaps in education and clean energy. During the event, Tom Barrack outlined a shift toward prioritizing total return over yield in an inflationary environment while detailing the Trump administration's strategy of managing conflict to force diplomatic breakthroughs in the Middle East and with China. Barrack further argued that deregulation and a renewed "olive branch" to Palestinians are essential components of the current policy trajectory, predicting that these structural changes will spur entrepreneurship and stabilize regional alliances.
- Milken Institute39 min
Lunch Program | A Conversation with David Miliband
David Miliband, James Morgon, Richard Ditizio, Jayne Van Hoen, Adam Boulton
A global humanitarian leader outlines the scale of the refugee crisis, noting that 65 million people are displaced while the International Rescue Committee advocates for work rights, cash assistance, and increased education funding to foster economic integration. The speaker critiques restrictive US and UK resettlement policies and Brexit as acts of deglobalization, warning that withdrawing from international institutions and climate agreements invites greater instability. Ultimately, the presentation argues that displacement will define the 21st century and calls for robust public advocacy and private donations to address the root causes of conflict and support long-term solutions.
- Milken Institute59 min
Lessons in Leadership: Women Breaking Barriers and Battling Bias
Yomi Abiola, Richard Ditizio, Asli Bayram, Jackie Cooper, Lynne Franks, Assia Grazioli-Venier, Brenda Trenowden
This panel of business leaders and activists argues that achieving global gender equality requires structural reforms beyond individual mentorship, citing the "elephant and giraffe" parable and Norway's 40% board quota as evidence that systemic bias must be dismantled through enforceable mandates and diverse executive empowerment. Key speakers including Asya and Brenda Trenodin outlined strategies such as replacing passive mentorship with active sponsorship, utilizing AI to neutralize gendered hiring language, and investing in mixed-gender leadership to normalize female presence in high-stakes corporate and venture capital environments. While acknowledging slow progress highlighted by the World Economic Forum's 2186 equality projection, the group emphasized that accelerating this timeline demands measurable KPIs, top-down accountability, and a shift in corporate culture from tolerance to active inclusion.
- Milken Institute58 min
Seeding Change: A New Dynamism in Philanthropy
Richard Ditizio, Sir Tom Hunter, Dominika Kulczyk, David Panzirer, Belinda Tanoto, Dominique Cravicchio
Leading philanthropists including Tom, David, Belinda, and Dominika advocate for treating charitable capital as an investment portfolio that prioritizes data-driven efficacy, rigorous milestone tracking, and strategic partnerships over traditional overhead constraints. These experts emphasize shifting from direct service delivery to scaling proven models through government adoption and market-based mechanisms, while accepting that failure must be minimized through rapid iteration and clear exit metrics. The collective strategy focuses on de-risking early-stage solutions, investing in high-quality talent without artificial caps, and fostering deep collaboration to ensure sustainable, measurable impact across diverse sectors ranging from medical research to global education.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Diversity is a reality, but inclusion is a choice
Stephen Frost, Maria Cantillon, Richard Ditizio, Pierre Lagrange, Brenda Trenowden
Driven by geopolitical shifts that revealed the risks of homogeneity, the event redefines diversity and inclusion as a core profitability strategy that correlates with 15% higher financial outperformance. State Street's presentation details concrete operational changes, including mandatory gender-balanced shortlists, skills-based blind recruitment, and localized metrics across European markets to combat unconscious bias and the "merit trap." The discussion further highlights how leadership styles must shift from competition to cooperation while leveraging procurement demands and cultural programs to align internal practices with diverse global client bases.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
The New Faces of Asia: Leaders Transforming the Region
Richard Ditizio, Dilhan Fernando, Leili Gerami, Ren Hua Ho, Anthony Tan
Next-generation leaders from prominent Asian enterprises including Taiwa, Grab, Dilmah, Maya, and a Thai real estate group convened to debate the strategic necessity of merging business growth with social responsibility. Speakers articulated a regional pivot away from exponential GDP expansion toward purpose-driven stewardship, emphasizing hiring based on shared values, integrating philanthropy into core operations, and leveraging technology to solve systemic issues like mobility and gender inequality. Collectively, these figures defined a new leadership paradigm where success is measured by long-term social impact and resilience rather than quarterly financial returns, signaling a shift toward impact investing and ethical consumption across Southeast Asia.
- Milken Institute58 min
Activist Philanthropy: Upping the Ante for Giving
Richard Ditizio, Precious Moloi-Motsepe, Sean Parker, Lynda Resnick, George Weiss
This event critiques the fragmentation of the U.S. nonprofit sector by showcasing five distinct models of high-impact philanthropy led by Linda and Rich Resnick, George Weiss, Precious Motsebe, and Shawn Fanning. Each speaker demonstrates how shifting from single-issue aid to systemic, business-driven strategies—such as Resnick's community surveys in the Central Valley, Weiss's city-wide health and education integration, Motsebe's private equity approach in South Africa, and Fanning's cross-institutional cancer research consortium—creates sustainable capital and measurable outcomes. Collectively, these case studies advocate for a generational shift toward "engineering" solutions that prioritize local data, talent mobility, and self-sustaining economic structures over traditional charity.
- Milken Institute1h 7m
Gender Gap: Checking the Box or Moving the Needle?
Richard Ditizio, Christopher Ailman, Alexandra Cavoulacos, Lauren Leader-Chivée, Rosie Rios, Janet Thomas, Candida Wolff
Panelists and officials highlighted the persistent economic and social costs of gender inequality, citing data that gender-balanced leadership correlates with lower risk, higher performance, and significant GDP growth. While private sector initiatives like CalSTRS and Citi have successfully implemented accountability measures and diverse hiring practices, government agencies continue to lag due to fragmented policies and a lack of internal mentoring structures. The consensus among speakers is that advancing women in leadership requires men to act as active sponsors and companies to enforce measurable diversity targets rather than relying on vague aspirations.
- Milken Institute56 min
2014 London Summit - Talent Without Borders: Building a Global Workforce
Gregory Cappelli, Kris Engskov, Sonia Gardner, Jody Greenstone Miller, Toby Peyton-Jones, Richard Ditizio, Charles Lubar, Sunil Krishnan, Mike Milken
This summit addressed the global transition from traditional employment to a fluid, skills-based economy where millions in Southeast Asia join the middle class and U.S. workers increasingly navigate multiple careers. Leading organizations like Siemens and Starbucks implemented strategic reforms, including rapid curriculum updates and tuition funding, to bridge the widening skills gap while redefining retention through value alignment and flexible "learning and earning" models. Panelists concluded that outdated regulatory frameworks and rigid corporate structures must evolve to support a diverse, freelance-heavy workforce, emphasizing that cultural purpose now supersedes financial compensation in attracting top talent.
- Milken Institute53 min
Asia Summit 2014 - Long-Term Impact: Multigenerational Commitment to Change
Richard Ditizio, Andrew Forrest, Grace Forrest, Laurence Lien, Mike Wiluan
At a Milken Institute session, family philanthropists Grace Forrest, Mike, and Lawrence detailed strategies for sustaining mission-driven impact through business-oriented approaches, structural innovation, and intergenerational governance reforms. Grace Forrest leveraged forensic supply chain audits to expose modern slavery within Fortescue Mines, while Mike shifted the Batam family foundation from direct employment to community-based fishery seeding to support 1.3 million people across Indonesia. Concurrently, Lawrence transformed the Lien Foundation from a tertiary education focus to radical early childhood interventions in Singapore, utilizing data-driven advocacy to replace government risk aversion with pilot programs that eventually became public policy. The panel concluded that the future of philanthropy requires adopting venture structures, competitive talent incentives, and technology integration to solve systemic issues where capital alone is insufficient.
- Milken Institute1h 2m
Leaning In or Pushed Out: Where Are the Senior Women in Business?
Richard Ditizio, Margery Kraus, Sallie Krawcheck, Lauren Leichtman, Liz Claman, Marjorie Kraus, Michelle Kidley, Jeff, Manjuka Nariwala
Despite women comprising over half of college graduates, their representation in senior financial leadership remains stagnant at roughly 16%, a regression driven by systemic biases like the "intellectual honesty" trap and the double-bind of perceived aggression. Panelists highlighted that while diverse management teams generate over 30% higher returns, institutional inertia persists due to regressive maternity policies and a flexibility paradox that sidelines working mothers. To address this, experts recommend leveraging investor pressure through shareholder voting, utilizing regulatory CAMEL ratings to penalize homogenous boards, and fostering mandatory male inclusion to dismantle the status quo.