LEAD 2026: Integrating Higher Ed into the Corporate R&D Value Chain

Name: LEAD 2026: Integrating Higher Ed into the Corporate R&D Value Chain
Start: 2026-11-12T09:30:00-0500
End: 2026-11-12T17:00:00-0500

Overview

Celebrating its 11th year, LEAD Conference 2026 will gather visionary leaders from industry, higher education, community colleges, government agencies, nonprofits, and economic development organizations to showcase the power of strategic partnerships. LEAD 2026 will explore the connections between research, investment, talent, workforce development, and regional economic growth that create measurable, sustainable value for institutions, industry, students, and communities.

This year’s conference focuses on a central question: How can higher education become more intentionally intgrated into the corporate R&D and innovation value chain?

Who Should Attend

Corporate executives
R&D and innovation leaders
University and HBCU leadership
Faculty and researchers
Community college leaders
Government agencies
Economic development organizations
Workforce development professionals
Nonprofit leaders
Students and emerging professionals

Agenda

8:30 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. | Registration

9:15 a.m. - 9:25 a.m. | Opening Remarks

9:25 a.m. - 10:25 a.m. | Pillar 1: Co-Innovation & Research Collaboration

10:35 a.m. - 11:35 a.m. | Pillar 2: Strategic Philanthropy & Infrastructure Investment

11:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | LEADtalk: Redesigning Early-Career Pathways for an AI-Disrupted Workforce

12:00 p.m. - 1:20 p.m. | Lunch and Keynote

1:35 p.m. - 2:35 p.m. | Pillar 3: The Talent Bridge: Student Professional Development & Immersion

2:35 p.m. - 2:50 p.m. | LEADtalk: Beyond the Internship: Building the Human Skills Emerging Leaders Need to Thrive at Work

3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Pillar 4: Building the Ecosystem: Higher Ed & Economic Development

4:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. | Networking

November 12, 2026 9:30am - November 12, 2026 5:00pm

NCBiotech
15 TW Alexander Dr.
Durham, NC 27713

Starts at $75.47

Networking
Workforce Development

December 8, 2026

Global Forum for Plant-Based and Alternative Proteins: “The Startup-Driven Protein Economy”

Join startups, strategics, investors, and academics to learn about the exciting and emerging protein economy at this marquee event in Durham. This event will cover protein diversification, the emerging bioeconomy sector, and bringing more plant-based programs, crops, and talent to the Global South.

The Global Forum for Plant-based and Alternative Proteins, a non-profit dedicated to increasing economic participation in the plant-based sector in the Global South, will host this event.

November 5, 2026

Catching Alzheimer’s before symptoms start

UNC-Chapel Hill’s Ronit Freeman leads IMPEDE, a consortium backed by up to $24.8 million from ARPA-H to catch protein-misfolding diseases like Alzheimer’s and pulmonary fibrosis before symptoms appear.

During a fireside chat, UNC Carolina Chief Innovation Officer Tommy Sowers will talk with Freeman about forming the consortium, why she paired a brain disease with a lung disease, how AI is tackling “undruggable” proteins, her path toward a pulmonary fibrosis venture, and how Carolina’s innovation ecosystem moves discoveries toward patients.

November 17, 2026

RTP: Then, Now, Next

More than six decades ago, a group of leaders made a bold bet that a research park in the pine forests between three universities could transform North Carolina’s economy. That bet became Research Triangle Park, and its success reshaped the region and the state. The program will cover where the park came from, what it has meant for North Carolina, and where it goes next.