Brian MacNair is the Executive Director of World Central Kitchen, an international social enterprise that develops smart solutions to hunger and poverty through local programs promoting health, education, and jobs – in five countries and counting.

MacNair joined World Central Kitchen in 2013 after ten years leading the development efforts of the iconic DC Central Kitchen, which pioneered the intersection of fighting food waste and hunger through providing hands-on culinary training to jobless adults.

Brian’s two decades of nonprofit fundraising and leadership experience has been shaped by his past private sector careers as a professional chef and in the fast-paced music industry.

He is a sought-after nonprofit board member, currently serving as the Chair of La Cocina, a culinary training program for at-risk Latino immigrants in northern Virginia, and holds a B.A. from SUNY-Fredonia.

As the senior director for research and emerging issues at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Michael Hendrix manages the Foundation’s research, programming, communications, and publications. He is project director of the Foundation’s partnership with the startup incubator 1776 for Innovation That Matters, a study of innovative city economies. He is also project director of the Regulatory Climate Index, a barometer of the business environment in major American cities. In addition, Hendrix implements the Foundation’s research program and nationwide events on data-driven innovation. Hendrix writes on technology policy and urban ecosystems for various publications, including National Review, National Affairs, City Journal, and The American Conservative, and is a contributor to the American Enterprise Institute’s Values & Capitalism project. He is the author of The Power of Prizes, a report on the future of innovation challenges. Previously, Hendrix served as a fellow at the National Review Institute and as program assistant at the Center for International Private Enterprise, where he coordinated programs to institute market-oriented reforms around the world. He is a graduate of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland with an M.A. (Hons) in international relations and holds a certificate in strategy and performance management from Georgetown University. He began his undergraduate education at the College of William & Mary as a James Monroe Scholar.