Event Detail




Shape the Big Opportunities with Generative AI: Lead Innovation and Drive Transformation (Session 3)

Date: June 10, 2025
Time: 9:00 - 10:30 am PST
Location: Virtual

Join our engaging panel on generative AI and its potential to drive innovation, market leadership, and scalable transformation. As global AI adoption evolves, now is the time for forward-thinking professionals and businesses to seize emerging opportunities.

Ticket price:

  • Public Ticket: $15
  • WCS Members Free
  • Interested in becoming a member? Please learn more here

Generative AI is revolutionizing industries, opening new frontiers for innovation, and redefining how businesses create value. Global adoption is progressing more slowly than expected. Forward thinking entrepreneurs and professionals have an opportunity to innovate, experience transformational change and be competitive as gen AI evolves. Recently we learned that gen AI  adoption rates for women and small business owners are 25% to 60% behind men This gap in knowledge and practice can directly affect careers, business competitiveness and funding. 

Our experts in adult education open the event by sharing their perspectives on the current state  and future trends for genAI. Then they will use a discussion format to share their knowledge, and techniques for genAI adoption to our lives and work. 

Speakers: Frederick Wehrle, Ph.D., specialist in AI and Innovation is Assistant Dean, University  of California, Los Angeles Extension. Dr. Rhianna Rogers is a strategic and people-centered  executive driving innovation, operational excellence, and organizational growth across  government, academia, and the private sector. 

What You Will Gain 

  • Opening presentations by speakers on the state and future direction of genAI: Get access to open source learning tools and the trends for agenticAI. 

  • Our experts in adult learning clarify: The mindset and skills needed for professionals,  creatives, and managers to take a transformative leap into genAI. Know when to acknowledge that people get stuck in transformational change and AI and how to work through it. 

  • Clarify expectations about what genAI can and cannot do for you as an individual, decision maker or leader. Understand the meaning of genAI as a value creation tool. 

  • Explore how AI can be an ally in helping non-traditional startup founders acquire adequate funding for growth or restructuring businesses. 

  • AI Risk Management and Ethics: Examples of how these issues are being addressed or not.

  • Direction on finding and getting the benefits of Tool Kits for genAI: Will kits really work? Why and how to create your own processes or creating a personal BOT. 

  • Live Q&A with Experts: Get answers to your questions about genAI and its transformative impact on the future. 

Who Should Attend 

  • Professionals, Executives, and Innovators eager to scale your business through innovation and transformational leaps in your industry.  

  • Small Business Owners and Startup Founders with great ambitions to grow your business and create new business models for smaller organizations. 

  • Freelancers, Consultants and Creatives making their mark with distinctive and unique products and organizations. 

Why This Panel 

Whether you are excited or anxious about AI, do not be left behind because this technology looks complex and may be confusing. Learn from our experts in adult learning and AI across education, business, government, and social change. Shape your future with AI as a partner at the pace you choose.  

Secure Your Spot 

Do not miss this opportunity to learn, network, and position your career or business for the AI driven future. Register today to reserve your virtual seat and join us on June 10 for a panel that promises tangible, real-world takeaways you can implement immediately.


Speakers:

Dr. Rhianna Rogers

Dr. Rhianna C. Rogers is a global leader in digital equity, public policy, and interdisciplinary research with over 20 years of experience in federal, academic, and non-profit sectors. Formerly Biden-Harris Administration's Chief DEIA Officer and Counselor to the Assistant Secretary for Management (AI and Data Analytics) at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, she led initiatives in diversity, AI policy, and digital equity, earning the 2024 Department of Education Gold Medallion of Appreciation. A co-founder of the Sustainable Progress and Equality Collective (SPEC), former director of RAND’s Center to Advance Racial Equity Policy, and former Ernest Boyer Presidential Fellow at the Rockefeller Institute of Government, she has spearheaded multimillion-dollar research projects on equity in technology, health, infrastructure, and education. Dr. Rogers has presented at the United Nations, TEDx, and other global platforms, highlighting her expertise in innovation and inclusivity. An award-winning educator, she has taught at multiple colleges and universities, including SUNY Empire State University, California’s Command College, and the RAND School for Public Policy, shaping the future of equitable technology practices.

 

Dr. Frederick Wehrle

Assistant Dean of Innovation for UCLA Continuing Education

Dr. Frederick T. Wehrle is the Assistant Dean for Academic Innovation and Learning at UCLA Extension. He joined UCLA in 2023, after having served at UC Berkeley Extension since 2018. 

Before immigrating to the U.S., Frederick led Accreditation and International Relations at Business Schools in Paris, France. He has held faculty and administrative positions in France and the US and served as advisor and mentor to startups, non-profit organizations and universities across the globe. Core to his work are the development of AI-powered Instructional Tools and Andragogy, which are grounded in Frederick’s research on innate and learned behavior.

Frederick holds a MSc in Biology from the University of Freiburg, Germany, and a PhD in Management Sciences, specializing in Consumer Behavior from the University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, France. 


 


Moderator:

Darlene Crane

President and Chief Value Creator, Project Concepts Inc. - The Crane Works

Darlene is a multi-disciplinary consultant who works at the intersection of business, people, and technology. Her specialties are market research, growth strategy, planning, product development, funding readiness, and raises.  She has a passion for bringing her decades of experience in transformational IT projects to value-based small and mid-size businesses.  She works with clients to develop their value creation mindset and turn ideas into successful products and projects to become market leaders.  She earned an MBA in Finance and an M.A. in Information Science. 

 

 

 

 

 


Sponsors:

Cleantech Group’s research, consulting, events, and advocacy catalyze opportunities for sustainable growth powered by innovation. From trends and companies to the people and ideas defining the future of industry, we provide the access and customized support you need to engage external innovation and achieve growth in a more digitized, de-carbonized and resource-efficient future.

 

 

Product Rehab provides customer-centric strategic planning, growth, and market research services to help businesses make informed decisions and achieve their goals.

 

 

 


EVENT SPONSORSHIPS AVAILABLE! Please email us at info@womencleantechsustainability.org if you have any questions.