Bob Goff is the New York Times Best-Selling Author of Love Does, as well as an attorney who founded Restore International, a nonprofit human rights organization operating in Uganda, India and Somalia. Besides serving as the Hon. Consulate for the Republic of Uganda to the U.S., Bob travels and speaks to encourage current and future influencers to get to the ”do” part of life.

As an attorney, Bob shares leadership in a Washington law firm, Goff & DeWalt. He is also an adjunct professor at Pepperdine Law School where he teaches Nonprofit Law, and Point Loma Nazarene University, where he teaches Business Law.  

 Choosing to live audaciously, Bob connects to audiences in a powerfully inspirational, yet down to earth manner.

Bianca is a writer and teacher in love with two men: Jesus and her husband, Matt. She's a woman who loves God and is committed to speaking truth when it hurts, loving when it’s hard, and living life out loud.
She spends most of her time working as Chief Storyteller for The A21 Campaign, a global anti-human trafficking organization. She is also the creative director for Propel Women.

Passionate about God’s word, Bianca teaches around the globe and blogs about life, love, and the pursuit of Jesus. Whether discussing topics from justice to pop culture, she's spent ten years building the Church and mobilizing God’s people to action alongside Matt, Executive Director and Pastor for Project Europe in Costa Mesa, California.

Jasmine is the Executive Director of Generation Moms – a nonprofit organization dedicated to narrowing the academic and economic achievement gap of adolescent moms by providing them with access and achievement of post-secondary education.

As a teen Mom, Jasmine was challenged by lower expectations and limited resources to achieve post-secondary success. God had a different plan. After completing her graduate studies, Jasmine embarked on a professional career in the nonprofit sector where she assisted in developing long term policy goals & mobilizing HIV/AIDS advocates. In addition to Generation Moms, she also works at a high school to impact youth on the south side of Chicago and lives with her daughter in Westmont, IL.

Helen has been a writer, journalist, and editor in the Christian publishing market for nearly two decades. She is an associate editor at InterVarsity Press, the author of The Missional Mom, and contributor to numerous other books and Bibles, including the NIV Devotional Bible for Women: Always There, the 2012 MOPS devotional; Tending the Soul, a devotional edited by the women of Moody Radio’s Midday Connection, and the Everyday Matters Bible(Hendrickson/Christianity Today, 2012).

Her writing has garnered numerous awards, most recently in 2013 with her winning essay for the “This Is Our City” contest sponsored by Christianity Today. In 2008, 2009, and 2011, she won awards in reporting and devotional writing from the Evangelical Press Association. Helen is also a sought-after speaker who was recently featured on Rachel Held Evans' list of Christian women speakers.

Jeanne believes in the power of face-to-face conversations – speaking the truth…in love. She is a Licenced Clinical Social Worker and  Founder of The Culture Group, a business where she works side by side with leadership teams to create healthy corporate cultures starting with honest conversations.

 In 2009, along with her two adult daughters, Jeanne founded Spreading Hearts (Spreadinghearts.org). SH is re-launching April 2016, with the focus of spreading love and good-will starting right here in Chicago.

 Jeanne is an influential part of their family business - Chicago’s Lou Malnati’s Pizzerias, and also  serves as an Elder at Soul City Church in the West Loop of Chicago.  Jeanne and her husband Marc have been married 36 years, have three adult children, two son-in-laws and two grandchildren.

Sandra is a worship leader, preacher, and urban activist. A second-generation Latina, she is the Executive Pastor at Grace and Peace Community on the west-side of Chicago. She is passionate about mobilizing Christians for reconciliation and justice and creating spaces where voices from different cultures can come together in peace and overcome division.

With InterVarsity Christian Fellowship , Sandra mobilized thousands of college students for God’s mission of reconciliation and justice in the world. Sandra served as Director of Worship for the Urbana Missions Conference, Chicago Urban Program Director, Latino National Leadership Team (LaFe), and Northwestern University Team leader (Multiethnic fellowship).   She has authored Small Group Leader’s Handbook, God's Graffiti Devotional,The Mission of Worship and The Next Worship.

Jenny Yang is the Director of Advocacy and Policy for the Refugee and Immigration Program at World Relief. In this position, Jenny works with members of Congress, their staffers, and the Administration to improve refugee and immigration policy. She previously worked in the Resettlement section of World Relief as the Senior Case Manager and East Asia Program Officer where she focused on advocacy for refugees in the East Asia region and managed the entire refugee caseload for World Relief before their arrival to the United States. Jenny has researched refugee and asylum law in Madrid, Spain through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

She is co-author of Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate.

Shannan Martin, known for her popular blog Flower Patch Farmgirl, is a speaker and writer who found her voice in the country and her story in the city. She and her jail-chaplain husband, Cory, have four funny children who came to them across oceans and rivers.

In 2012, the Martins began a journey away from American-dream Christianity and toward the heart of the Gospel which requires sacrifice and promises pain. Having sold their dream farmhouse, they now enjoy neighborhood life in Goshen, Indiana where they are learning to love hurting people through the ministry of paying attention. Shannan's first book, Falling Free: Rescued From the Life I Always Wanted will be released in September, 2016 by Thomas Nelson.

Lina is a pediatric ER doctor, author, and speaker who loves Jesus. Although she loves taking care of kids in the ER her first passion in life is to tell others about Jesus and the love He has for them.

Lina was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon, and now calls Chicago home. She has written two books: Thrive: The Single Life as God Intended and Stripped: When God’s Call turns from Yes to Why Me? both published by Moody Press.

Her next book Resolved: 10 Ways to Stand Strong and Live What You Believe (Baker) will be available in May 2016.

For more information on Lina visit her website www.livingwithpower.org.

Deborah Knupp has worked globally with CEOs, Managing Partners and Professionals as a coach and business executive for 25 years. She has helped these leaders align their people and business objectives to create cultures based on the principles of accountability, integrity and authentic relationships.

Her work focuses on making the corporate environment a place where the best employees want to work, where profitable clients want to buy, and where inspired leaders want to serve a bigger purpose in their communities.

She resides in Chicago with her family.

Born and raised in East London, but originally from Ghana, Mellissa was always intrigued by different cultures and the communities in which they function.  After having received her BA in English Literature and American Studies with Creative Writing at Kent University, UK, she went on to teach English and P.E (yes, odd combination) for two years before deciding she had had enough exposure to people. In that time, her love of writing increased, as well as her need to travel and experience new cultures again. Since her BA gave her a healthy appreciation and respect of American literature and writers, she decided to apply for her Master's in America. She gained a master's in DePaul University's Writing and Publishing Programme in Spring 2013.   

Passionate around issues involving Identity, culture and social justice, Mel is now pursuing a PhD in Literacy Language and Culture at UIC.

It is by faith and through God’s grace that Reesheda N. Washington currently serves as the Executive Director of Communities First Association ((CFA), a national, faith-based, nonprofit organization that specializes in the multiplication of sustainable practices in asset-based community development, driven by indigenous leadership, based on the community’s felt and expressed needs.

A rising member of The Alliance to End Hunger, an organization committed to engaging diverse institutions to build the public and political will to end hunger, both at home and abroad, Reesheda is passionate about the obliteration of systemic challenges facing traditionally marginalized people groups. 

Deb is a psychologist, coach, and Director of Moody Theological Seminary’s Masters in Counseling Program. Through her organization, SIV Consultation, she helps individuals, small businesses, and emerging leaders establish their place in the world. Deb draws on her experience as a communicator and a licensed clinical psychologist to impart practical wisdom for pinpointing personal motivations, identity and leadership potential.

Deb loves speaking, teaching, and writing about the factors that mobilize leaders, whether that leadership takes place in the home, the workplace, in relationship or in the simple elements of the day-to-day. Equally at home in the casual and the corporate, Deb is passionate about pursuing development from a relational foundation.  Deb currently resides in Chicago and is learning to love winter.