ESU to Host 13th Annual Economic Outlook Summit for the Pocono Mountains on May 15

daniel burrus

Posted by: Elizabeth Richardson on May 5, 2026, No Comments

Daniel Burrus, leading futurist speaker on global trends and disruptive innovation, will present the keynote address at the East Stroudsburg University 13th Annual Economic Outlook Summit scheduled for Friday, May 15, 2026, from 7:30 a.m. to noon at Kalahari Resorts and Conventions in the Poconos.

Burrus has delivered over 3,000 keynote speeches worldwide and is a strategic advisor to executives from Fortune 500 companies, helping them to develop game-changing strategies based on his proven methodologies for capitalizing on technology innovations and their future impact. His client list includes Lockheed Martin, Verizon, Microsoft, VISA, Deloitte, Google, Procter & Gamble, KPMG, Honda, FedEx and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Burrus is an innovative entrepreneur who has founded six businesses, four of which were U.S. national leaders in the first year. He is the CEO of Burrus Research, a research and consulting firm that monitors global advancements in technology-driven trends to help clients profit from technological, social and business forces that are converging to create enormous, untapped opportunities.

He is the creator of the Hard Trend Methodology, the Anticipatory Organization® Business Model, used by leading organizations worldwide, and he is a founding member of the Department of Defense (DoD) Joint Services Futures Group.

His accurate predictions date back to the early 1980s, when he became the first and only futurist to accurately identify the 20 transformative technologies that would become the driving force of business and economic growth for decades to come. They included digital electronics, AI, distributed computing, genetic engineering, lasers, optical storage, photovoltaics, fiberoptics and nanotechnologies to name a few. Since then, he has continued to establish a worldwide reputation for his exceptional record of predicting the future of technology-driven change and its direct impact on the business world.

Burrus is a featured writer, reaching millions of monthly readers with his insights on disruptive innovation, exponential change and the future. His work is featured across various platforms, including LinkedIn, where he is a member of an exclusive invitation-only group of experts. On LinkedIn alone, he has built a following of over 1.2 million professionals.

He has been the featured subject of several PBS television specials and has appeared on programs such as CNN, Fox Business and Bloomberg. Burrus has been quoted in a variety of publications, including Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Fortune and Forbes.

The Summit will also feature presentations by Ryotaro Tashiro, Senior Outreach Economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Pocono Economic Scorecard Data Analysis; and a presentation on the future of transportation in the Poconos by Michael Carroll, secretary of transportation for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

As an outreach economist and advisor, Tashiro travels across the Third District, speaking to various groups about the economic outlook and the functions of the Federal Reserve. Tashiro knows the importance of informing the public about what is going on with the economy and also thinks it is important to hear what individuals across the district are experiencing in the economy. Many of his research topics were inspired by these conversations with the public. Those topics include his two main areas of focus, labor economics and demographics. Prior to joining the Bank, Tashiro was a business analyst for Bloomberg, where he conducted research on issues related to equity data quality. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Kenyon College and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor.

Carroll was first elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2006 and subsequently re-elected for seven additional terms. He worked on transportation throughout his time in public office. Carroll was Democratic chairman of the House Transportation Committee from 2018 through 2022. He formerly worked as the chief of staff for then-state Rep. John Yudichak, served as legislative liaison for PennDOT under Gov. Robert Casey and served as district office director for Congressman Paul Kanjorski. A graduate of Pittston Area High School, Carroll earned a Bachelor of Arts in liberal studies from the University of Scranton. A lifelong resident of Avoca, he is a member of the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick in Pittston, and the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Avoca Division. Mike is father of three adult children, Matt, Mackenzie, and Ali.

This year’s Summit will also feature business showcases including: Eric Degenfelder, President, U.S. Metal Powders, Inc.; Bob Kiesendahl, Vice President and Food & Beverage Director, Woodloch, Legacy Resort Collection – For Pete’s Sake Cancer Respite Center; and George Brown, Executive Director, Boyds Mills, Highlights for Children: Reflections on 80 years of a Family Business.

A full agenda for the East Stroudsburg University Economic Outlook Summit and information on how to register can be found at esu.edu/economicsummit.

The cost to attend the Summit is $50 per person or $380 for a table of eight. For more information, call (570) 422-7956 or visit esu.edu/economicsummit.