SALT LAKE CITY — Visit Salt Lake today launched Speak Salt Lake, a new speaker bureau designed to provide convention, meeting and event planners with curated access to a distinguished roster of nationally-recognized local experts including Olympic gold medalists, industry executives and civic leaders. The bureau will provide seamless, value-added service for planners to infuse events with intellectual capital and authentic, local connections.

“Speak Salt Lake’s mission is to elevate the voices that live right here in our own backyard,” said Kaitlin Eskelson, president and CEO of Visit Salt Lake. “From unparalleled Olympic expertise to diverse industry voices, we have a world-class roster of thought leaders who embody the spirit of innovation that defines our community. By connecting them with meeting and event planners, we are moving beyond the ballroom and connecting their audiences with the inspirational power of our destination.”

Founded on the belief that Utah’s world-class voices belong on every stage, Speak Salt Lake celebrates an entire community of leaders, storytellers, Olympians, athletes and changemakers by connecting global conventions and meeting planners with world-renowned speakers who call Utah home. Focused on impact, connection and shared inspiration, the initiative brings the world to Salt Lake and Salt Lake to the world, showing these powerful voices rooted in Utah that are shaping national and international audiences:

  • Alex Lawrence, PhD – A nationally recognized expert on ChatGPT, generative AI and business tech, Dr. Lawrence is a professor of entrepreneurship and technology at Weber State University who helps organizations navigate digital transformation and makes complex AI concepts accessible for a variety of audiences.
  • Sidni L. Shorter, PsyD – As CEO of the Utah Black Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Shorter champions economic equity and minority business success while bringing unique insights on leadership, organizational culture and building inclusive economies.
  • Natalie Gochnour – Chief Economist at the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, Gochnour is one of the Intermountain West’s most trusted economic voices, translating comprehensive data into clear insights about Utah’s remarkable growth trajectory.
  • Kaysha Love – The 2025 monobob world champion and 2022 Olympian who rocketed from Herriman, Utah track standout to elite bobsled pilot after discovering the sport in 2020, Love now represents Team USA while training in Utah, embodying the state’s Olympic excellence and hometown pride.
  • Ted Ligety – A two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time World Champion in alpine skiing based in Park City, Ligety revolutionized giant slalom technique while becoming one of America’s most successful skiers.
  • Chris Waddell – The most decorated male skier in Paralympic history with 13 medals, Waddell became a world champion in skiing and wheelchair track after a college skiing accident, inspiring audiences to redefine their limits and embrace adversity as opportunity.
  • Picabo Street – The 1998 Olympic gold medalist in Super-G and two-time World Cup downhill champion who became America’s most dominant female speed skier of the 1990s, Street’s fearless racing style and charismatic personality helped transform alpine skiing’s popularity while inspiring a generation of athletes to push boundaries both on and off the mountain.
  • Greg Levesque – The CEO and co-founder of Utah-based Strider Technologies who built the leading strategic intelligence platform protecting Fortune 500 companies and government organizations from state-sponsored threats, Levesque has transformed how enterprises safeguard intellectual property and technology while positioning Utah as a national hub for cybersecurity innovation and strategic intelligence expertise.

Each of the bureau members will be available for keynotes, panel discussions, workshops and more to enrich programming for event planners tailored to specific objectives. Drawing from tech entrepreneurs, policy experts, economists and Olympic athletes, the program spans a wide variety of industries and backgrounds to ensure relevant expertise for virtually any audience or conference theme. Organizations searching for local speakers are also invited to utilize this bureau as a community resource.

“Salt Lake’s legacy is built on the incredible people who call this place home,” said Kaysha Love, 2025 Monobob World Champion. “This is a place where Olympians live, train and work. Being part of Speak Salt Lake allows us to share our passion for this community and inspire visitors to see the depth of Utah’s talent and innovation on global stages right here in our own backyard.”

To learn more about the Speak Salt Lake speaker bureau or to submit a booking request, planners are invited to visit visitsaltlake.com/speak-salt-lake.

About Visit Salt Lake

Visit Salt Lake (VSL) is the private, nonprofit Destination Sales & Experience Organization (DSXO) dedicated to recruiting, retaining, and activating conventions, meetings, sporting events and leisure travel that fuels the region’s visitor economy. In partnership with Salt Lake County, hoteliers, members and public-sector stakeholders, VSL helps generate $6.15 billion in annual visitor spending, $575 million in direct tax revenue and $1,700 in household tax savings while supporting more than 56,000 jobs. By championing Salt Lake’s authentic urban-meets-mountain identity, VSL creates transformative experiences that benefit the community and visitors alike.