Cognotes 2018 Midwinter Meeting December Preview - 1

COGNOTES
JANUARY 25-29, 2019

DECEMBER PREVIEW

AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION

Philanthropist and Author Melinda Gates
to Open Midwinter in Seattle

C

o-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, the largest private
foundation in the world, Melinda
Gates has dedicated her life to achieving
transformational improvements in the health
and prosperity of families, communities, and
societies. Core to her work is empowering
women and girls to help them realize their full
potential. She has said, "if you invest in a girl or
a woman, you're investing in everyone else." The
session will take place on Friday, January 25,
4:00 - 5:15 p.m. at the 2019 ALA Midwinter
Meeting & Exhibits in Seattle. 
For the last 20 years, Gates' mission has
been to find solutions for people with the
most urgent needs, wherever they live. And
her journey's discovery has made one thing
undeniably clear - if you want to lift a society up - invest in women. 

In April 2019, Gates will debut The
Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women
Changes the World, a timely and necessary
call to action for women's empowerment.
The candid and inspiring book traces Gates'
MELINDA GATES
Opening General Session
Friday 1/25, 4:00 - 5:15 p.m.
WSCC Ballroom 6 A-B

awakening to the link between women's
empowerment and the health of societies. It
introduces us to Gates' heroes in the movement toward equality, offers startling data,
and shares some of the moving conversations
she's had with women all over the world.
Gates details the tremendous opportuni-

ties that exist right now to "turbo-charge"
change, and she provides simple and effective
methods that each of us can use to make a
difference. 
After joining Microsoft Corporation
in 1987, Gates helped develop many of
the company's multimedia products. In
1996, she left Microsoft to focus on her
philanthropic work and family. In 2015,
she created Pivotal Ventures, a Seattle-based
investment and incubation company to support women-led businesses. In 2017, Gates
was named  Forbes'  "Third Most Powerful
Woman in the World." She received a bachelor's degree from Duke University and an
MBA from Duke's Fuqua School of Business. 
Gates' appearance at the conference is
sponsored by Flatiron Books/Macmillan
Melinda Gates
Publishers. Add to your schedule now.

Journalist and Author Isha Sesay
to Close the 2019 ALA Midwinter Meeting
Isha Sesay was born in England and at
the age of seven moved with her family to
her parents' homeland of Sierra Leone. At
age 16 she moved back to London to pursue
her studies and ultimately matriculated to
Trinity College, Cambridge, where she read
English. After graduating, she joined the
BBC Networks as a researcher, then moved
to Sky Sports News where she hosted Good
Morning Sports Fans.
Sesay will close the 2019 Midwinter
Meeting on Monday, January 28, 2:00 -
3:00 p.m.
In 2005, Sesay joined CNN International
as an anchor and correspondent covering
major breaking news stories and global events.
Her impressive roster of interviews includes
numerous global leaders, such as the prime
ministers of Kenya and Australia as well as the
presidents of Nigeria, Guinea, Liberia, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone; a host of newsmakers
including Nancy Pelosi, David Beckham, Bill
Gates, Bono, Richard Branson, Matt Damon,
and Michelle Obama; and Nobel Peace Prize

REGISTRATION

ISHA SESAY
Closing General Session
Monday 1/28, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.
WSCC Ballroom 6 A-B

Laureates Wangari Maathai, Malala Yousafzai,
Leymeh Gbowee, and Denis Mukwege.
Sesay played an integral role in CNN U.S.
and CNN International's joint coverage of

major events including the protests in Egypt,
Japan's nuclear reactor crisis, the Amanda Knox
trial, the fall of Tripoli, and the royal wedding
in London. She also reported on the deadly
Ebola outbreak in West Africa and the death
of Nelson Mandela. In 2014, Sesay broke the
story of the kidnapping of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls by Boko Haram. Her team at CNN was
recognized with a Peabody Award for coverage
of the story, and Sesay received a Gracie Award
for Outstanding Anchor.
In August of 2018, Sesay left CNN to
pursue other projects, including her book
Beneath the Tamarind Tree, available July
2019. The book is the first definitive account
of Boko Haram's abduction of the Chibok
schoolgirls. Having developed unprecedented access to the Chibok girls, Sesay shares an

CONFERENCE
SCHEDULER

TRAVEL &
HOUSING

Isha Sesay

intimate account of the night Boko Haram
attacked, exclusive details about their years
in captivity, and their daring tales of escape.
Sesay is the founder of W.E. Can Lead
(Women Everywhere Can Lead), an organization that supports education and
empowers girls in Africa, and ROUSE, a
multi-city summit event dedicated to sharing
the stories of inspirational African women.
She holds a BA honors English degree from
Trinity College, Cambridge University, and
she currently lives in Los Angeles.
Sesay's appearance is sponsored by
HarperCollins. Add to your schedule now.

INSIDE...
2

Sylvia Acevedo

4

Rick Steves

6

Exhibits

EXHIBITS
INFORMATION

http://www.alamidwinter.org https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/ALA-Midwinter/fsPopup.asp?Mode=presInfo&PresentationID=479059 https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/ALA-Midwinter/fsPopup.asp?Mode=presInfo&PresentationID=481643 https://2019.alamidwinter.org/registration/register-now https://www.eventscribe.com/2019/ALA-Midwinter/ https://2019.alamidwinter.org/travel/hotels https://2019.alamidwinter.org/general-exhibits-information

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cognotes 2018 Midwinter Meeting December Preview