Keynote speaker Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa at AIBTM 2012.
The life of Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, a former illegal immigrant who jumped the border fence from Mexico into the US 20 years ago, may sound like a movie script but its not fiction.
Known today as Dr Q, his remarkable journey from that border to Director of the Brain Tumour Surgery Program at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Centre, is the subject of what it takes to beat the odds in his motivational closing speech at The Americas Meetings and Events Exhibitions, AIBTM 2012 (www.aibtm.com).
Graeme Barnett, Reed Travel Exhibitions, AIBTM Event Director commented, We are delighted that Dr. Alfred Quinones-Hinojosa has accepted our invitation, he has a truly amazing story to share and one that I am sure will motivate and inspire everyone.
Delivering inspirational and thought provoking content is once again, part of this years education program and the rest of the sessions will have equally dynamic speakers.
Alfred Quinones-Hinojosas story begins in a tiny farming community, 60 miles south of the U.S. border. Quinones-Hinojosa was born there, and by age 5, he was working at his fathers gas station. His grandmother was a village healer and a midwife.
In the mid-1970s, Mexicos economy collapsed, and his father could no longer keep food on the table for the family. Quinones-Hinojosa continued his schooling and became a teacher by the time he was 18, but he, too, was unable to provide for his family. So he made the decision, like so many relatives before him, to head north.
Quinones-Hinojosa picked cotton, tomatoes and cantaloupes, and lived in the fields in a broken-down camper he bought for $300. When his cousin told him he would be a farmworker for the rest of his life, he realised it was time to move on.
He signed up for English classes at a community college, where a teacher encouraged him to attend the University of California, Berkeley. At Berkeley on a scholarship, Quinones-Hinojosa developed a passion for the scientific method. He went on to Harvard Medical School, where he eventually delivered the commencement speech. It is also during this time that he received his U.S. citizenship.
Quinones-Hinojosa says he owes so much of his success to the many people who have extended a hand to him throughout his life. Packed with adventure and adversity, his story sets a motivational benchmark for the industry.
For more information about ways to attend AIBTM and make the most of all of the education opportunities available as part of AIBTMs Americas Meetings Week, please visit www.aibtm.com/visiting.
