Joint Venture's annual State of the Valley conference
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
9:00 AM - Noon PST
-and-
Wednesday, February 24, 2021
1:00 - 4:00 PM PST
The 2021 conference will be entirely online due to the health crisis.
An international audience is expected for the 2021 State of the Valley conference, Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s annual “town hall” meeting where the region's business leaders, government officials, academia, labor and community leaders, journalists, and citizens come together to discuss Silicon Valley’s economic health and well-being. This year the conference will be unconstrained by geography and no masks will be required.
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
SILICON VALLEY AND THE NATIONAL SCENE (Wednesday, February 24, 3:05 p.m.)
Julián Castro, 16th U.S. Secretary of Housing & Urban Development
Julián Castro, a 2020 presidential candidate who was the youngest member of President Barack Obama's cabinet, will wrap up the conference. Born in poverty to unmarried parents, Mr. Castro pursued a life of activism, attended Harvard and Stanford, and became a national figure. The Secretary will share personal reflections, his views about the Washington scene, and the role he thinks Silicon Valley can play in addressing the nation's woes.
FEATURED SESSIONS: DAY ONE, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23
SILICON VALLEY’S ANNUAL CHECK-UP: THE 2021 INDEX 9:00 a.m.
Russell Hancock, President & CEO, Joint Venture Silicon Valley
Russell Hancock will present an overview of the 2021 Silicon Valley Index. The comprehensive report is produced by the Silicon Valley Institute for Regional Studies, the research arm of Joint Venture, which measures the economic health and vitality of the region. The 2021 Index chronicles a new chapter in Silicon Valley’s unfolding history and assesses the ravaging effects of the pandemic.
BUILDING A MORE INCLUSIVE SILICON VALLEY 10:00 a.m.
Shellye Archambeau, Former Chief Executive Officer, MetricStream
Freada Kapor Klein, Founder, Kapor Capital & The Kapor Center
How do we make Silicon Valley’s tech ecosystem more diverse and inclusive? How do we create opportunities for low-income communities and people of color? How do we eliminate bias and address the structural barriers to underrepresented talent? Ms. Klein and Ms. Archambeau will engage in a hard-hitting dialogue about how Silicon Valley can do more and better.
SILICON VALLEY AND THE RACE FOR THE PLANET 10:45 a.m.
Sally Benson, Precourt Family Professor & Director, Global Climate and Energy Project, Stanford University
Professor Sally Benson, who leads Stanford’s Global Climate & Energy Project, will assess the state of the planet at and issue a charge to Silicon Valley. Among the world’s leading experts on pathways to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Professor Benson will show how Silicon Valley can step into national leadership.
COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT TRENDS AND THE FUTURE OF THE WORKPLACE 11:25 a.m.
Ben Tranel, Principal, Gensler
When the pandemic is finally behind us, will our work lives simply resume? Ben Tranel is considered a thought leader among architects, and his portfolio includes high-profile Silicon Valley projects such as San Jose’s CityView Plaza. Fully abreast of real estate trends in a rapidly transforming world, Mr. Tranel will assess Silicon Valley’s evolving space needs and preview some of the newly emerging design trends.
FEATURED SESSIONS: DAY TWO, WEDNESDAY, FEB 24
SILICON VALLEY’S PATH TO RECOVERY: BUILDING BACK BETTER 1:00 p.m.
Hon. Sam Liccardo, Mayor, City of San José
Nicole Taylor, Chief Executive Officer, Silicon Valley Community Foundation
Russell Hancock, President & Chief Executive Officer, Joint Venture Silicon Valley
When the pandemic set in, San José Mayor Sam Liccardo convened 60 Silicon Valley leaders to chart a path to economic recovery. The group forwarded a sweeping set of recommendations, including social safety net services, ways to spur new job creation for displaced workers, and for addressing the digital divide. This session will provide a briefing on the recovery effort to date.
COVID-19 AND SILICON VALLEY’S PATH BACK TO HEALTH 1:35 p.m.
Dr. Sara Cody, County Health Officer, Santa Clara County
Dr. Cody will assess Silicon Valley’s current state of health with respect to COVID-19, discuss the rollout of the vaccine, and chart the future. Dr. Cody will also reflect personally on the journey this has been for her and her family.
TRANSPORTATION IN A POST-PANDEMIC WORLD 2:15 p.m.
Shiloh Ballard, Executive Director, Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition
Kevin Fang, Assistant Professor, Sonoma State University and Mineta Transportation Institute
When the sheltering guidelines took hold, fewer vehicles on the road dramatically reduced our carbon footprint. Can Silicon Valley hold on to those crucial air quality gains? When the pandemic subsides, can we still reduce our miles of travel and shift to clean transportation alternatives? Panelists will review the results of a survey that probed regional attitudes on future options.
The 2021 Silicon Valley Index will be released to the media at 9:30 a.m. PST on Thursday, February 18, 2021.
Board Co-Chairs: Nicole Taylor, CEO of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and Dave Wehner, CFO of Facebook, are co-chairs of the Joint Venture board of directors.
Sponsors: Facebook, Accenture, Applied Materials, Bank of America, Stanford Children’s Health, and Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
Hashtag: #SOTV2021 Twitter: @JointVentureSVN
Credentials are available for media who wish to attend State of the Valley. Please contact Robin Doran via:
email
(408) 348-7348
