Lisa Russell

Being raised in an immigrant, low-income household and being the first in her family to attend college, Lisa faced a mountain of obstacles to create the life she envisioned for herself.  An artist at heart, Lisa was dissuaded from pursuing hip hop dance as a career because at that time, being an artist was not considered a "real job."

Fast forward, Lisa ended up getting her Masters in Public Health in International Health and landed her first job as a humanitarian relief worker during the 1999 war in Kosovo and Albania.  It was here she learned the power of storytelling - both in terms of its benefit but also harm in the UN/NGO sector.

Lisa became a self-taught director, producer, camera and editor for the United Nations and built a 20-year career getting paid to travel the world to tell stories about incredible people and organizations doing important work for our planet.  During that time she won an Emmy-award, become an Academy recognized screenwriter and become a contracted UN/NGO arts curator, positioning herself as a thought leader in the role of creative economy for sustainable development.

Lisa uses her personal story to speak on how audiences can learn to lean into the struggles they may see as obstacles and transform them into superpowers that will help elevate their career and lives in ways they can never imagine.