2018 BVC Keynote Speakers Announced

THE 15^TH ANNUAL BVC TICKETS ON SALE; KEYNOTE SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED featuring BLOOMBERG’S EMILY CHANG, INDIEGOGO’S BREANNA DIGIAMMARINO

BEND, OR (August 23, 2018) – The Bend Venture Conference (BVC), one of the most prestigious entrepreneur events in the Pacific Northwest, has announced two keynote speakers for the fall conference: Bloomberg Technology host and best-selling author Emily Chang, and Indiegogo’s Breanna DiGiammarino. The 15^th Annual BVC returns Thursday, October 18 - Friday, October 19, 2018, to the iconic Tower Theatre in downtown Bend. Tickets are on sale now.Friday's keynote, Emily Chang, is the anchor and executive producer of Bloomberg Technology, a daily TV show focused on global technology. She regularly speaks with top tech executives, investors, and entrepreneurs in her podcast, Bloomberg Studio 1.0. The Harvard University graduate has won five regional Emmy awards for her reporting and was previously a CNN correspondent in both Beijing and London. She is also the bestselling author of the groundbreaking book, Brotopia, a look at the world of Silicon Valley and what it is like to navigate the "boys' club" culture as a woman in tech.Thursday's Impact keynote, Breanna DiGiammarino is the Senior Director of Social Innovation at Indiegogo. She actively raises awareness about the value and best practices of crowdfunding for social entrepreneurs, working to empower many of the most impactful campaigners on the site. She’s worked on campaigns such as blogger Humans of New York’s fundraiser to address bonded labor in Pakistan with a $2.3 million raise and the B Corp Cotopaxi’s Allpa Travel bag campaign with a $1.3 million raise. Before Indiegogo, Breanna was the Senior Associate at the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, a leading social venture fund and an Associate Consultant at The Bridgespan Group, the non-profit arm of Bain & Company.Hosted by Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO), this year’s BVC will once again feature three competition categories: Growth Stage, Early Stage and Impact, bringing together over 600 entrepreneurs, investors and business leaders to Bend, Oregon.Ticket SalesTickets to the 15^th Annual Bend Venture Conference are on sale now and are available here.About Bend Venture Conference (BVC)Now in its 15^th year, BVC, hosted by EDCO, is one of the largest angel conferences in the country. Over the past four years, more than $7.8 million has been invested in 34 companies as a result of the conference. This year, over 600 entrepreneurs, investors, and business leaders are expected to attend the multi-day conference on October 18-19, in Bend, Oregon. For more information, visit www.bendvc.com.About Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO)EDCO is a non-profit corporation supported by private and public members and stakeholders, whose mission is to create middle-class jobs in Central Oregon by: recruiting new employers to move to the region; helping entrepreneurs start new, scalable businesses; and working with businesses that are already here to grow their operations. For more information, visit www.edcoinfo.com.