Jeremy Babendure, Ph.D., coordinates logistics related to the AZSciTech Festival and its signature events, hub and in-field science confirmations, along with year-round science coordination and communications. Babendure attributes his enthusiasm for directing the annual festival to the fact that through the festival format comes an opportunity to position Arizona as an emerging world leader in science, technology and innovation. Babendure sees the festival as a chance to offer a highly visible platform to pull together academia, businesses and the K-12 educational system to collectively work toward growing a competitive workforce and strengthening Arizona's economic future.