ABOUT

Since 1993, Paul Zelizer has worked with and led programs for 30,000+ leaders working for positive change in and through their organizations. He started his business in 2008, making him one of the first business coaches to focus on the needs of social entrepreneurs and impact business leaders. In 2017, he founded Awarepreneurs as a way to amplify the practices successful social enterprise leaders use. Today he is best known as host of the Awarepreneurs Podcast, the world's longest running social entrepreneur podcast. Paul maintains a busy coaching and consulting practice working with impact focused founders, leaders and companies.

Vicki Apodaca is a serial entrepreneur and founding member of several tech startups (StellarFi, Joust, and Soply). She's been through two exits as the Head of Marketing (Joust acquired by ZenBusiness, Starship HSA acquired by Optum), and one as a Growth Lead. Currently she's a founding member and CMO of Phalanx, a document intelligence software for startup founders and consultants. She also advises on go-to-market and marketing strategies for portfolio companies of Fiat Ventures, a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm. Locally in New Mexico, she's the Chapter Director & Co-Founder of Techqueria NM and NMClimate, and is passionate about helping underserved communities.

Esteban Martinez, MSPM is a Senior Economic Development Coordinator with the New Mexico Economic Development Department Technology and Innovation Office, where he works to strengthen New Mexico's tech, entrepreneurship, and innovation ecosystem. Before that, he spent six years at CNM Ingenuity building experience across economic development, workforce development, and tech community building. A Las Cruces native with a Master of Science in Technical Project Management from The University of New Mexico Anderson School of Management, Esteban has spent his career doing exactly what NMTT is all about: connecting businesses, entrepreneurs, and organizations with the resources and opportunities that help New Mexicans thrive.

Travis Neufeld is a Senior Software Engineer with more than a decade of experience in web and mobile application development. Throughout his career, he has worked on a range of consumer technology products, including at Sony Interactive Entertainment, and currently serves as a Mobile Engineer at the National Audubon Society. Travis is an organizer of the Albuquerque Google Developer Group and Albuquerque Software Social Club, as well as a key organizer of NM Tech Talks' Desert Dev Lab Hackathon. He brings a combination of technical expertise and community-building experience to the board and looks forward to helping NM Tech Talks continue creating opportunities for members of the local technology community.

May is a Product Designer, Front-End Developer, and Founder of WishWebStudio, a creative agency specializing in web design, branding, and digital strategy. She also leads product design at GILZ, blending innovation and user experience across mobile and web platforms. As an organizer for Google Developer Group Albuquerque and a board member at NM Tech Talks, May is passionate about growing inclusive, community-driven tech initiatives across New Mexico.

Rudy Parra is a Mechatronics & Lab Technician at GridFlow, where he helps pioneer the world's first lithium-sulfur hybrid flow battery. With a background rooted in IoT, robotics, and lab automation, Rudy brings science and technology together to solve real-world energy challenges. Whether he's prototyping a new sensor system or refining processes in the lab, he's driven by a love for innovation, efficiency, and building things that matter.

Josh is a technology leader focused on building high-performing, autonomous development teams that deliver secure, standards-compliant, user-centered applications across desktop, web, and mobile platforms. He is passionate about mentoring developers and driving innovation through automation, asynchronous collaboration, and authentic team culture. Josh is also deeply involved in the local tech community—serving on the CNM Deep Dive Employer Board, mentoring for the UNM App Contest, leading as Chapter Director of Techqueria NM to support the Hispanic tech community, volunteering with Dukes Up for political action, and now joining the NM Tech Talks Board of Directors.

Erin Scott Adams is a Software Engineer who has worked in digital innovation since 2014. She is currently a Frontend Engineering Manager at Trek Bicycle, where she codes user-friendly, maintainable, and performant experiences for the web. Erin holds a master's degree in Human Computer Interaction, as well as a BS in Communication Studies and a BA in Spanish. She is also a graduate of CNM's Deep Dive Coding Bootcamp. Erin strives to be an advocate for accessibility & diversity in tech. Outside of work, she leads Rubber Ducks NM, a networking, social, and educational group centered around female-identifying & non-binary adults in STEM. Erin also serves on the board of NM Tech Talks and on the advisory council for the Albuquerque Community Foundation's Future Fund.

Jacky So is an award-winning AI-Driven Search Technologist, Social Impact Architect, and the pioneer behind Gamified Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) for Public Benefit. Jacky specializes in solving algorithmic data gaps, authoring code that has powered millions of health reports and thousands of dynamic enterprise dashboards. Her work has earned global recognition for engineering the digital infrastructure and strategy behind New Mexico's first Office of Asian Pacific Islander Native Hawaiian (APINH) Affairs. Her firm, Data With Style™, builds Search-to-LLM infrastructure, zero-to-launch data workflows, SaaS product engineering, and Tech-For-Good social networking for high-impact ecosystems.