Bentley University and Swap.com CEO Jeff Bennett host a Collaborative Consumption Summit on Thursday, September 30, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00p.m. in the Wilder Pavilion on the Bentley campus in Waltham. The keynote speaker is Rachel Botsman, an international authority on the topic of collaborative consumption -- the global sharing, swapping, lending, renting and gifting of information. The program will also include a panel discussion featuring Botsman and other leaders in the collaborative consumption movement.

Collaborative consumption includes larger marketplaces such as eBay and Craigslist, and also emerging sectors such as peer-to-peer swapping (Swap.com), auto sharing (RelayRides), renting (RentCycle) and more. 

“Massachusetts is home to many emerging organizations that are focused on the collaborative consumption movement and are forming leading positions in their respective categories, including Swap.com, RelayRides and RentCycle,” notes Perry Lowe, senior lecturer in marketing at Bentley and event chairperson. “We are delighted to welcome these ground-breaking companies to the Bentley campus to share their vision and grow this important consumer movement.”

Keynote speaker Rachel Botsman writes, consults, and speaks on the power of collaboration and sharing and how it can transform the way we live.  She has consulted with businesses around the world on brand and innovation strategy. As a former director at the William J. Clinton Foundation, she spearheaded major public-private partnerships with Nickelodeon, Rachael Ray, and the NBA, and recently collaborated with Roo Rogers on the book What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption.  Botsman has lived and worked in the UK, USA, and currently resides in Sydney, Australia.

A Bentley alumnus, Bennett will open the program and moderate the panel. According to Bennett, “A large scale shift in consumerism is taking hold, and we’re excited to discuss how innovation taking place within the local start-up community is helping to pioneer this global movement.” Additional panel members are Shelby Clark, Founder and CEO of RelayRides; Tim Hyer, Founder and CEO of RentCycle; and Aleece Germano, Founder and President of non-profit The S.W.A.P. Team.

Following the panel discussion, Swap.com invites all audience members to engage in an old-fashioned book swap and to meet Ms. Botsman and the panelists. Simply bring along a great book to participate.