Catalysts: Ideas Moving Iowa Forward

July 23, 2026 | Des Moines

Hear powerful stories from Iowans using technology and bold ideas to break down barriers, expand opportunity, and shape what comes next.

Presented by

Catalysts celebrates the people and innovations driving Iowa’s progress. In a dynamic, TED-style format, presenters share the why behind their work and the how behind their impact. These powerful stories highlight how technology—paired with bold ideas—can break down barriers and expand opportunity. Each talk demonstrates how one idea can catalyze broader change and inspire others to lead.

Come ready to leave inspired, connected, and equipped to bring these ideas back to your organization and community. We invite anyone interested in innovation, inclusion, and shaping Iowa’s future to be part of the conversation. These presentations are preserved in a post-event publication, ensuring these ideas continue to inform and influence what comes next.

Event Details

Thursday, July 23, 2026

8:00 a.m. – Light Breakfast & Networking

8:40 a.m. – Speaker Presentations

Venue: Willow on Grand

Speakers

TALK TITLE

Tech, Talent, and Transformation: Creating Inclusive Economic Pathways; Multicultural Development Center (MDC)

This session will explore the personal experiences and values that shape a commitment to inclusive innovation, the spark that led to deeper involvement in expanding STEM access, and the work MDC Iowa is doing to support communities through education, technology, and empowerment.

Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of why equitable access to STEM matters, and how inclusive innovation can create opportunity, strengthen communities, and contribute to a stronger Iowa.

SPEAKERS

Tracy Jon Sargeant

Founder, Multicultural Development Center of Iowa

Matt Butler

CISO, Multicultural Development Center of Iowa

TALK TITLE

Beyond the Diagnosis: Reclaiming a Voice Through Artificial Intelligence

This session will explore how AI-powered voice cloning helped Robin Leaper regain a deeply personal part of herself after ALS affected her ability to speak. Using archived recordings from public meetings and community events, ElevenLabs voice cloning technology recreated Robin’s voice in a way that sounded authentically like her, helping restore not only communication, but identity, connection, and presence.

Attendees will see how existing digital content can become a powerful AI asset, and how the greatest value of AI comes when it is applied to real human needs. Robin’s story demonstrates how technology can create meaningful impact by helping people stay connected to family, friends, colleagues, and community.

SPEAKER

Tai Lieu

Marketing and Communications Specialist, City of Norwalk

TALK TITLE

Building Digital Skills, Confidence, and Protection for Iowa’s 50+ Community

Gain insight into AARP’s work to advance digital literacy and protect Iowans from fraud Hear firsthand stories demonstrating real-world impact across Iowa communities Identify ways to partner, volunteer, and scale digital literacy and fraud prevention efforts.

SPEAKER

Michael Wagler

AARP Iowa State Director

TALK TITLE

The Skills You Take for Granted Could Be Someone Else’s Miracle

Nonprofits often serve communities with limited time, funding, and technical capacity. Through dsmHack, technology professionals help bridge that gap by building practical tools and systems that allow nonprofits to work more efficiently, serve more people, and focus more resources on their missions.

This session will explore how donated technical expertise can create long-term value for community organizations. From saving hundreds of hours to expanding services and improving outcomes, dsmHack demonstrates how a few hours of focused technology support can create impact that compounds year after year.

SPEAKERS

Dellen Burk-Flores

Board President, dsmHack

Rachelle Little

Board Vice President, dsmHack

TALK TITLE

The Visibility Gap: Technology and the Future of Economic Mobility

This session will explore how technology, institutions, and information can expand economic mobility by making overlooked individuals, businesses, and communities more visible to the formal economy. Many barriers to opportunity are not rooted in a lack of talent, ambition, or capacity. They stem from a lack of visibility into the people and enterprises that institutions have not historically recognized, measured, or served.

Attendees will examine how alternative data infrastructure and information technology can help close that visibility gap, turning overlooked potential into recognized opportunity. The session will frame visibility not as charity, but as an economic growth strategy — one that can help societies, institutions, and companies unlock productive capacity that has always existed but has remained outside the reach of formal markets.