Marilyn Carlson Nelson

Keynote Address  Marilyn Carlson Nelson Wednesday, Feb. 8 - 10:45 a.m. - noon Marilyn Carlson Nelson is Chairman and former CEO of Carlson, which includes such brands as Radisson Hotels, Country Inns & Suites, Carlson Wagonlit Travel and T.G.I. Friday’s.  More than 150,000 people work under the Carlson brands in 150 countries. Nelson served as Co-chair of the World Economic Forum, Chair of the National Women’s Business Council and Chair of the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board. Forbes named her one of “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.”  U.S. News and World Report called her one of “America’s Best Leaders.” Nelson serves on the boards of ExxonMobil, the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and is Chair of the Mayo Clinic Board of Trustees. She is the recipient of prestigious medals from the governments of France, Sweden, Norway and Finland and has also been recognized globally for her leadership in combating the sexual exploitation of children in tourism. Nelson is the author of the bestselling book, How We Lead Matters: Reflections on a Life of Leadership, an inspiring collection of wisdom about how to build a meaningful legacy one day at a time.

Ted Peters

Keynote Address  Ted Peters Tuesday, Feb. 7 - 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Like the Mighty Mississippi River flowing from Minnesota through the center of the country into the Gulf of Mexico and eventually blending with the oceans of the world, the ongoing mission of the Lutheran Reformation is an unstoppable flow. What wells up from the depths is the Gospel, the proclamation that the one true God is gracious; and we can now live grace-filled lives. Spreading wide like a delta, Lutheran institutions and hybrid programs invite the world’s thirsty to drink. Those of us who rally support need to map the flow, to lift up a vision of where this river of divine grace is carrying us. Ted Peters is Professor of Systematic Theology at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and the Graduate Theological Union (GTU) in Berkeley, Calif.  He is author of GOD-The World’s Future (Fortress 2000); Science, Theology, and Ethics (Ashgate 2003) and Sin: Radical Evil in Soul and Society (Eerdmans 1994).  He is Editor-in-Chief of Dialog: A Journal of Theology.  He also serves as Co-Editor of Theology and Science, published by the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences in Berkeley. Ted Peters’ teaching portfolio includes the field of theology in the 20th and 21st centuries for both doctoral level students and for students preparing to serve in the ordained clergy.  He is a Lutheran theologian — an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America — teaching in an ecumenical institution with students from an array of differing denominations, and he engages in inter-religious dialogue, as well.