| EVENT REPORT 10.28.09 12:52 PM |
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Shriver's Women's Conference Adds Second Day of Programming—Plus a Step-and-Repeat—for 25,000 in Attendance
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 | Helen Devore Waukazoo on the podium with Maria Shriver at the Minerva Awards
Photo: Gold/Wong |
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It might be said that 2009 is a year that created a particular need for inspiration and community support—especially in a state like California, where budget shortfalls and the unemployment rate have become notorious. Either in spite of or because of that climate, California's first lady, Maria Shriver, and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Women's Conference once again drew masses of women from all over the state to join a packed roster of about 70 high-level speakers and participants at the Long Beach Convention Center.
This year, the program ballooned from a single day to two full days—to accommodate the increasing number of would-be attendees. (Each year, full-day passes to the conference sell out in record time. Tickets this year sold out in less than two hours, beating last year's record of three.) The first day's program, a Day of Transformation, served as somewhat more informal programming, with two 1,500-attendee sessions and six 400-person breakout sessions. "We were getting so much feedback from people who wanted to participate and have access," said executive producer Alexandra Gleysteen. "It's a way to get more hands-on information—how to get a new job, start a nonprofit—all in a spiritual context and a serene environment. It's on a different scale, more intimate, than the main program."
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The Women's Conference, Maria Shriver, Arnold Schwarzenegger |
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| EVENT REPORT 10.23.08 5:16 PM |
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Growing Women's Conference Draws 14,000, Adds Night-Before Program
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 | Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, CNN anchor Campbell Brown, and PepsiCo chairman and C.E.O. Indra Nooyi on stage
Photo: Gold/Wong |
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How do you accommodate a record crowd of 14,000 women for a fast-growing, sold-out conference at the Long Beach Convention Center? For one thing, open access to the men's bathrooms. But organizers behind Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver's annual Women's Conference had plenty of bigger ideas than that for this year's event, which drew the biggest crowd in its history—with tickets selling out immediately after going on sale.
In addition to the full day of conference programming—which included a varied list of more than 70 speakers, including hosts Schwarzenegger and Shriver, plus Warren Buffett, Condoleezza Rice, Madeleine Albright, Jennifer Lopez, and Gloria Steinem—organizers added an evening-before event called Night at the Village. On Tuesday night, attendees could browse the vendors on the exhibit floor and stay for book signings, entertainment, food, and a conversation with Rachael Ray. (The show floor was also open throughout the day of the conference.) In addition, the conference extended the outreach for its extensive live Webcasting offerings, with the goal to reach 1 million additional viewers in the U.S. and internationally online.
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The Women's Conference, Maria Shriver, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Condoleezza Rice, PepsiCo, CNN, Target |
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