Speaker profile last updated by AAE Talent Team on 10/10/2024.
The consumer genomics industry is a product of the past decade. The Genographic Project, which launched in 2005, is widely credited with its creation, and companies like 23andMe and AncestryDNA now collectively sell more than 1 million DNA testing kits a year. In this talk, Wells presents a broad view of the industry from its “cottage” roots to its broader acceptance by the general public in North America. Topics covered include ancestry testing, the viability of testing for health-related traits, and the regulatory environment in which consumers for the first time in history have a means to read their own genetic blueprints. A rare first-person account of the dawn of a new industry, presented by one of its founders and leading advocates.
It has been said that the only certainty is change. Today this seems to be truer than ever, as we deal with economic and ecological upheaval our ancestors never could have imagined. Or could they? Creator and director of National Geographic and IBM's Genographic Project and author of three popular books on humanity's ancient past, Wells takes a much broader view. From the evolutionary origins of human innovation to our modern preference for technologies that appeal to hunter-gatherer minds, Wells provides lessons that resonate in today's rapidly changing world.
To find the answer we need to go back ten millennia, to the wheat fields of the Fertile Crescent and the rice paddies of southern China. It was then that our species made a radical shift in its way of life, progressing from a largely hunter-gatherer society to controlling our food supply by domesticating animals and plants. Journey with Dr. Wells on a 10,000-year tour of human history as he charts the rise to power of Homo agriculturis and the effects this radical shift in lifestyle has had on our species, and speculates on where we might be headed in the future.
Join Wells on an epic journey that spans the globe, using DNA to trace the migration routes of our ancient ancestors and revealing the incredible tapestry of human diversity created along the way.
Spencer Wells is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Consumer Genomics: The 30,000-foot view, Innovation: An Evolutionary Imperative, Pandora's Seed: The Unforeseen Cost of Civilization - Terrorism, pandemic disease, and global warming -- what do these have in common? and The Human Journey: A Genetic Odyssey. The estimated speaking fee range to book Spencer Wells for your event is $20,000 - $30,000. Spencer Wells generally travels from Austin, TX, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Calvin Trillin, Sir Richard Branson, Ray Kurzweil, An Phung and Jeffrey Israel. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Spencer Wells for an upcoming live or virtual event.
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