5 speakers we’d like to hear at City Age conference on Nov. 13-14

City Age, a national event series on the future of cities, lands in Philly next week with a star-studded cast of speakers. The line-up is a mix of speakers with national and local prominence.

Register here ($195 – $495). The event will be held on Nov. 13 – 14 at Drexel University.

Here are five City Age speakers we’re excited about:

• John Fry, president of Drexel University: Fry is leading Drexel’s transformation, one facet of which is the school’s focus on innovation, entrepreneurship and technology.
• Michael Brennan, project lead at SecondMuse: Fresh off the event series celebrating the tucked away Grays Ferry Crescent, Brennan always has his hacker hands in something interesting, whether it’s NASA’s Space Apps, the National Day of Civic Hacking or this tool that can uncover who’s behind a certain text.
• Laurie Actman, interim director at the Energy Efficient Building Hub: The EEB Hub is going through a transition period, but Actman has been one standby of the Navy Yard research initiative.
• David Devan, president of the Philadelphia Opera: We loved Devan’s presentation at Ignite Philly 10, so it’ll be interesting to see what he brings to a bigger stage.
• Eugenie L. Birch, professor of urban research at the University of Pennsylvania: As the co-editor of Penn Press’s The City in the 21st Century series, Birch can talk about the state of Philadelphia today and also offer a national context.