Sophia Lin Kanno, CITP, has been a powerhouse in the corporate event design field with over 20 years of experience in high-end off-premise events across the countryand storytelling through visual event design and event experiences. Sophia has worked for Great Performances, Atlanta Special Events, Bold American Events, Legendary Events, Kehoe Designs and PRA. Sophia is currently National Director of Creative with Access, Her portfolio of clients over the years include top Fortune 500 companies such as Coca-Cola, Nationwide, Target, BCG, Charles Schwab, EY, General Motors, Raising Canes and Delta Airlines. Sophia was named Special Event Magazine's Top 25 Young Professionals to Watch.While she is not traveling or designing events, Sophia remains active as an alumni of the Cornell Hotel School serving currently as Regional Vice President of the Mid-Atlantic for the Cornell Hotel Society and speaking as a guest lecturer at the university. Sophia is a valued member of the Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship’s Restaurant Entrepreneurship & Development Roundtable. Sophia is also actively involved in SITE, having served on the SITE Chicago and SITE Northeast boards. Sophia was instrumental in winning SITE Chicago’s Excellence in Young Leaders Award in 2020 and SITE Northeast’s Sustainability Certification in 2023.In her spare time, Sophia is an instructor for PomSquad Fitness, a cardio dance format with Pom poms and runs a zero - waste minded home chef business called The Spicy Grasshopper. Sophia was recently featured on the Food Network with Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman, on the Big Bad Budget Battle pilot series. Spoiler alert – Sophia won the competition! You can catch her episode on Discovery +, Season 1, Episode 4: Party Planning on a Budget.