Nobel Prize winner Simon Johnson to keynote 2Life’s 2025 annual gala
2Life Communities is delighted to announce that Nobel Prize winner Simon Johnson will be the keynote speaker at our 2025 gala celebrating our 60th anniversary!
Dr. Johnson is the Ronald A. Kurtz Professor of Entrepreneurship at the MIT Sloan School of Management, where he is head of the Global Economics and Management group. This October, he received the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in memory of Alfred Nobel, joint with Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson, “for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity.”
Dr. Johnson worked closely with 2Life during the first and most frightening year of the COVID pandemic, determined to help us encourage private-sector development of rapid tests that were effective with older adults. Through his help, 2Life became the beta testing site for a number of companies and researchers, allowing us to access critical testing resources well before they were commercially available. Much of our stellar track record of saving lives during COVID is attributable to this partnership and Dr. Johnson’s leadership.
“In the early days of the COVID pandemic, we found a kindred spirit in Simon,” says Amy Schectman, 2Life’s Saul and Gitta Kurlat Chief Executive Officer. “At a time when everyone felt alone, Simon was a true partner who cared deeply about our seniors, about protecting the most vulnerable population in our society, and about how our work together could lead to broader systemic impact.”
The 2Life gala will be held next year at the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport on Sunday, May 18. Mark your calendars now — this is an event you will not want to miss!
Discover more about Dr. Johnson and his work.
Read the press release about the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in memory of Alfred Nobel.
Learn more about 2Life’s COVID response, as reported by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
Photo credit: Michelle Fiorenza
