Festival Day 2

What is gathering if not the promise and expectation of something larger than the individual? What is the promise of opportunity, community, belonging, collaboration, progress, relationships, and the human experience of togetherness in spending time together? Why have we gathered here today for this investment and business gathering, startup, and change agent platform? Let's start exploring the answers to these questions here.

DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) has become a buzzword, often reduced to a checkbox exercise -- in reality -- in corporate hiring practices. While it can be a competitive advantage and an investment strategy, it often leads to polarization and misses the mark. If we truly want diversity, equity, and inclusion, we need to go beyond individual experiences and backgrounds. We must also talk about diversify the capital stack, reimagine corporate structures, and address the intentionality with capital allocation. This broader approach will help us move beyond tokenism to genuine belonging, integrating diversity into the very fabric of our organizations and society, systemically. Why are we struggling with these shifts, and what are the pathways to truly inclusive and equitable systems? Join us as we explore these critical questions and hear from innovative solutions to build a better system for a more inclusive and equitable future.

Is success determined by societal pressures or individual perspectives? What is the definition of success, and how has it changed over time? Did you ever get good advice on success? Why do we place such a high value on it, and when do we know we have achieved enough? Is success a result of individual effort or a team effort? Is it measured by the love we give and receive or the money we earn? Is it a subjective perception or an experienced reality? Additionally, are sports a good measure of physical success, and does success depend on cultural or social factors? Finally, does success bring happiness or unhappiness? How is success linked to a more just, inclusive, generous, and community-driven future?

History's Lens: Building a Human-Centric Tech Future

The first automaton to ever walk the earth was Talos, a bronze giant built over 2,500 years ago by Hephaestus, the Greek god of invention. This remarkable machine was not constructed by the MIT Robotics Lab but rather by ancient Greek mythology. From Talos to the AI revolution, embracing technology as a tool that reignites our creativity and humanity is critical as we stand at the crossroads of this evolution. Will AI empower us by freeing us from mundane tasks and allowing us to focus on more fulfilling work, or will it strip us of our autonomy and dignity? It is up to us to use technology responsibly and ensure that it serves as a force for progress rather than leading us toward a dystopian future. Our relationship with technology has evolved from the mythical guardian. While digitalization has propelled us into the digital age, we must remember the human touch in our creations. By looking through the lens of history and acting myths, can we better understand our history of creating and building a future where technology enriches, rather than diminishes, the human experience?

What is a story to tell the future? Stories are powerful tools that can create social change, form emotional connections, and help people overcome resistance to change. They connect us with our past and beliefs beyond ourselves and offer glimpses into the future. Throughout history, stories have inspired individuals and groups to act and shape the world we live in today. As a community, can we think about the stories we tell about the future to create the kind of future we want?

Skip the gym and join the Morning Beat! Today, it's time to party without alcohol (it's 8 AM) and dance to the beat of electronic music to start your day with a lot of energy and style. Then, it will be followed by yoga before kicking off the official KFF program. Come as you are, or put on your fancy clothes, sparkly sequins, and dancing shoes, and get ready to groove, or as David Bowie would put it, let's dance!

You need a separate ticket for this. Badge holders get 50% off with the code W2HZC.

Have you ever considered what the Global North could learn from the Global South? Imagine reversing the world's order and looking at things differently. Why couldn't Mpeza begin in Norway, and how can innovation thrive despite seemingly insurmountable challenges? Why consider women, ecosystem building, and a feminine investment approach? Explore local and global markets from those who have both local knowledge and international expertise. From grassroots empowerment to macro changes, learn about the need for investment and discover what can create a real impact and solid investment opportunity. Discuss whether cash, venture capital, philanthropy, or grants drive change. Dig into the value of 'forced' innovation to uncover key investment opportunities beyond wanting to ‘save the world’. Lastly, explore inquiry in praxis, where knowledge evolves through human curiosity and interaction with the world.

Prepare to be captivated by these visionary companies leading the charge in innovation and sustainability:

SolarDuck floats at the forefront of renewable energy innovation with pioneering solar energy solutions. By harnessing solar power on water bodies, SolarDuck is shaping the future of clean energy production.

Johannas is dedicated to empowering communities through sustainable agriculture and food production. With a focus on regenerative farming practices, Johannas is cultivating resilience and prosperity in local food systems.

Blue Forest stands tall as a guardian of marine ecosystems, specializing in innovative solutions for ocean conservation and restoration. Through cutting-edge technology and partnerships, Blue Forest is working to safeguard our oceans for future generations.

Winich Farms is reimagining agriculture with a focus on sustainability and efficiency. Through advanced farming practices and technology integration, they're striving to address food security issues while minimizing environmental impact.

Join us on the Solution Stage as these trailblazing companies showcase their transformative visions and demonstrate the power of innovation to drive positive change.

At KFF, we strive to move beyond the traditional startup pitch format. Our goal is to provide a platform for founders to showcase their projects and share their stories of passionate dedication to solving some of the world's biggest challenges through technology. Of course, these founders are building companies and need capital, creating an opportunity for you to find potential deals and for them to fundraise. You can choose to follow many or a few companies and ask questions to learn more about different industries, markets, technologies, and how they are applied.

Melanin Kapital is more than just a financial institution; we're a catalyst for change. Our mission is to bridge the gap in access to capital for underrepresented communities, empowering them to pursue entrepreneurship and build prosperous futures.

Think-it is your partner in digital transformation. With our innovative tech solutions, we empower businesses to adapt, evolve, and thrive in an ever-changing digital landscape. Together, let's unlock the potential of technology for positive impact.

Matter. Industries is redefining material science for a sustainable future. Through our groundbreaking research and development, we're offering eco-friendly alternatives for a wide range of industries, driving innovation while preserving our planet.

Pascal Technologies are pioneers sustainable technological advancements, driving innovation across industries and paving the way for a cleaner, greener tomorrow.

Elucid harnesses the power of technology for social impact, leveraging data and insights to drive positive change and foster community engagement.

At KFF, we strive to move beyond the traditional startup pitch format. Our goal is to provide a platform for founders to showcase their projects and share their stories of passionate dedication to solving some of the world's biggest challenges through technology. Of course, these founders are building companies and need capital, creating an opportunity for you to find potential deals and for them to fundraise. You can choose to follow many or a few companies and ask questions to learn more about different industries, markets, technologies, and how they are applied.

Nordic Batteries is revolutionizing energy storage with sustainable battery solutions, paving the way for a cleaner and more efficient future.

In this panel, we first explore the current trajectory of artificial intelligence, which faces multiple serious challenges like privacy, energy consumption, inequality, and social injustice, which threaten the future of humanity itself, and what this means as both an Investment Opportunity, and Investment as a Responsibility to ensure we build a responsible AI-based future for humanity. We then dive deep into consciousness, creativity, and artificial intelligence and why humanity is so different from generative AI. We end with a discussion about how to harness the power of artificial intelligence to enhance the human side of humanity.

If you're a student looking to make a positive difference, this interactive session is perfect for you. Join to get inspired and potentially become the next generation of change leaders the world desperately needs. In this session, you will learn how to use money to drive positive change and gain a new perspective on capitalism through the lens of social impact. You'll have the opportunity to gain insights from renowned impact investor Jed Emmerson, who has over three decades of experience in the field. The best part is that you can ask as many questions as you like; Jed is a distinguished social impact philosopher who combines theory and practice with inner growth and passion. Come, ask questions, and learn about promoting equity, delivering meaningful financial returns, and driving sustainable, positive change. This is your chance to take the lead in your career and make a real impact as a future leader. Take advantage of this opportunity to turn your passion into purpose and take action to contribute to building a future that is more just and equitable.

Join the discussion on how investing in Steward-Owned companies could be our most potent strategy for systematic change. We'll explore how this approach could enable any company to become a force for good – not just those few directly working on ESG issues. Could it accelerate the transition to sustainability, or perhaps even create entirely new economic models? And what is in it for the new generation of investors supporting such initiatives? Join us to find out.

The Hundred-Acre Wood is a wondrous place to learn the importance of perseverance, investment, and focus. By looking through the lens of poetry, we can understand how we are all connected and how we can drive social change. We can seek answers from nature and discover how our actions can affect the world around us. From the forest, we can learn how to be resilient and resourceful. The trees that stand tall and weather the storms and seasons can teach us valuable lessons. We can gain insights into the intricate relationship between humanity and the natural world, realize our place in the grand scheme, and learn how to invest in the future legacy. But it's not just about introspection. It's about acting and using our collective consciousness to impact society and the environment positively. Can we cultivate a sense of responsibility and agency in our lives and culture by pondering the forest's questions, understanding the intersection of social, financial, and future consciousness, and striving to create a better world? Let's find out?!

What would you do if you found a way to get each dollar invested to have a 10x more positive impact? As investors, we'll play a computer game to experience how this ergodic strategy can deliver 2-10x better results than conventional approaches, giving us 2-10x capacity for impact and sustainability at fixed investor returns. Can you beat our ergodic strategy?

The Digital Age calls for an upgrading of our humanity. Why, over the course of recording human history, has this upgrade into our higher selves been continuously postponed? Never before have we been so pressed to realize community, compassion, empathy and love. What are our digital creations telling trying to tell us about the illusory creations of our minds? Might this digital mirror provide the precise recipe for ascension? Join John Mack for an upward journey of ascension toward our higher humanity.

How to accelerate the usage of Steward-Ownership in early-stage ventures? This session is focused on a shared understanding between impact entrepreneurs and investors. Conveying the benefits of steward-ownership to enable more investors to support it.

How do we co-create a better tomorrow? This interactive session explores conscious entrepreneurship and impactful capital allocation to ensure humanity thrives.

There is an incredible potential to solve some of our largest environmental challenges with fungi, and we are already seeing it emerging from new materials, breaking down plastics or cleaning contaminated soil and water, and even using fungi as self-healing materials or biobased batteries. Still, we are just scratching the surface. The most significant breakthroughs in fungal innovation are to bring us to a more regenerative and prosperous society, which we expect to have in front of us. In this session, we invite you to tap into your imagination and creativity to unlock new potential breakthroughs and ways to solve some of our most significant environmental challenges with fungi. We asked all the participants what more they could use fungi for. Let's activate both sides of the brain and all your senses and tune in to the question, “If you can save the world with fungi, what would you make?” Who knows what we can develop if we explore new frontier fungal ideas as a group? We invite you to embark on this journey with us!

What does healthy growth look like in a changing world? How can investing become an act of creation and not merely extraction? Does inner work by founders and investors enable the shift? Does inner and outer growth align? Join us exploring these questions in a participatory workshop with investors, entrepreneurs and institutional actors with front line experience of working with aligning inner and outer growth in the context of investments.

Meet the practitioners, researchers, and wellbeing activists - Luis Gallardo from The Happiness Foundation, Laura Francois from The Awe Exchange, and Alexandra Pittman from ImpactMapper & Havn Hus. We will explore diverse perspectives on Awe, Happiness, and Inner Wellness, and we welcome participants to come and share their practices and innovations around the interconnections between wellness, awe, and impact. This meetup will share tips on implementing sustainable and catalytic practices that deepen happiness and inner wellness for collective impact, cutting-edge research on health, and practical cases of catalyzing impact through the mission and vision of all our endeavors.

The word is an ancient Greek word that means “walk on tiptoe or strut.” Partner acrobatics requires working together, trusting each other, embodied communication, reciprocal reactions, accurate timing, (some) physical strength, fearlessness, planning, and backing up and trying again. How would this process of testing boundaries work in teams, how do you approach investments, and what is the balancing act between failing fast forward and being mindful of your surroundings? Keeping a bird's eye view from the top of someones' shoulders or down to the tiny details of a handgrip, what does the world look like if you literally change your perspective? This is an embodied workshop, so be prepared to feel and explore the trust, fear, your own boundaries, or the flow and play, what happens when trust is built between us? Imagine how this dynamic can support your daily life as an investor, founder, and change maker.

Are you ready to dance on the edge of possibility? This immersive experience is a proactive group flow where tech meets traditional tantra practices. We’re blending arts embodiment, (social) technology, and our humaneness to flourish individuals and ecosystems. Enter into a co-created experience uniting head and heart. Connect deeply with others and receive support in your quest.