Schools need more AI. And by AI, we mean Arts Integration, Ancestral Intelligence, Abundant Imagination and Artificial Intelligence. At our opening event, hear from educators and leaders who will speak to each of these important forms of AI.
Arts Integration
Marimar Patrón Vázquez, is a cultural innovator and educator who co-founded Habla: The Center for Language and Culture in Yucatán, México, where she was born and her family lived for generations. Trained in literature at Universidad de las Américas and Brown University, she has been recognized with Brown’s Presidential Teaching Award. She directs Habla’s programs weaving storytelling, cultures, reading, and the arts into language learning to create transformative learning experiences. Her approach foregrounds translanguaging and culturally sustaining strategies: she supports learners in drawing on their full linguistic repertoires, using story, movement, visual arts and multimodal composition to build meaning, identity, and voice across languages. Marimar helps design the Habla Teacher Institute and presents workshops internationally. The greatest lessons she’s learned about teaching are from her children, who are growing up bilingual.
Ancestral Intelligence
Dr. Stanley Rodriguez also serves on the board of Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival and is active in cultural events across the region. Named a 2015 American Indian Heritage Month Local Hero by Union Bank and KPBS, he continues to champion Indigenous knowledge and cultural resilience with unwavering commitment.
Abundant Imagination
Dina Buchbinder is the Founder and President of Education for Sharing (E4S), a global nonprofit transforming education through the power of play. For over 18 years, E4S has engaged more than two million children, educators, and families across the Americas, fostering empathy, collaboration, and civic agency through a Play–Reflect–Act methodology that connects learning to sustainability and real-world impact. A National Geographic Explorer and Ashoka Fellow, Dina leads initiatives like Nature for Sharing to inspire environmental stewardship and systems thinking from childhood. As a social entrepreneur and advocate for joyful, inclusive learning, she builds bridges between education, science, and civic engagement. Dina believes deeper learning emerges when curiosity, creativity, and care meet action—when learners see themselves as protagonists of change.
Artificial Intelligence
Kwaku Aning is the Founder and Principal of Retro Futurism Consulting where he leverages 25 years of experience across education, corporate, and non-profit sectors to help organizations: transform how they build and leverage networks, maximize conference and gathering opportunities, create lasting partnerships that drive change, facilitate meaningful connections that scale impact in corporate and nonprofit sectors. This work has taken Kwaku to national and international stages, where he has presented and participated in panels on the future of education, design, social impact, and technology. Whether it’s discussing AI, Blockchain, Virtual Reality, or Augmented Reality at events like the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 23), Comic Con, Social Innovation Summit, or SXSWedu, he is always eager to share insights and explore new ways to create lasting impact.
