ABOUT
I’m Carlo Capua, a Fort Worth–based keynote speaker, emcee, moderator, and facilitator. My work explores the experiences that change the direction of a life—and how we can create those experiences for others.
Where it began
In the summer of 1993, I was 15 and had plans to play soccer and hang out with my friends. Then an invitation arrived from Fort Worth Sister Cities for the International Leadership Academy: two weeks of solving global problems, building cultural bridges, and making international friendships. I told my mom it sounded terrible. She encouraged me to try it anyway, so I signed up.
Students from Indonesia, Hungary, Germany, Italy, and Japan came to Fort Worth, and I was hooked by the second day. Our family hosted Francesco, a student from Reggio Emilia, Italy. We bonded over music and soccer and became like brothers. The next summer, I visited him in Italy. A world I’d mostly known through textbooks suddenly became a place full of people I wanted to know.
That summer was the first domino. I studied Japanese at TCU and later lived and worked in Japan and Mexico. Sister Cities introduced me to friendships around the world and to my wife, Rachael. I couldn’t have mapped out that path at 15. I had signed up to make my mom happy.
Why I tell this story
For years, I thought of 1993 as a great summer. Looking back, I began to see how much of my life traced back to that one experience—and to the people who made it possible. Someone organized the program. Someone invited those students. My mom encouraged me to go. Their decisions created an opportunity I almost missed.
I’ve carried that lesson into building a business that hired people facing employment barriers, serving my hometown, and connecting communities across countries. The circumstances have changed, but the question keeps coming back: what becomes possible when someone gets an opportunity they might otherwise never have had?
That question is at the heart of my keynote, Finding Your 1993: The Power of One Experience. Through stories, reflection, and conversation, I invite audiences to recognize the moments that shaped them and consider what they can create for the people they lead.
You may not remember the year. You probably remember the person, the invitation, or the unexpected turn that changed what you believed was possible. I want to help people notice those moments—and take one concrete step toward creating someone else’s.
CARLO'S BIO
Carlo Capua is a professional keynote speaker, emcee, moderator, and facilitator based in Fort Worth, Texas. His signature keynote, Finding Your 1993: The Power of One Experience, explores how a single meaningful experience can change a life—and how leaders can intentionally create those opportunities for others.
His perspective comes from work across business, public service, and international exchange. Carlo founded Z’s Café, a second-chance social enterprise that created 165 jobs for people facing employment barriers and provided 150,000 meals during the COVID-19 pandemic. He later served as Chief of Strategy and Innovation and Deputy Chief of Staff for the City of Fort Worth, where his responsibilities also included welcoming visiting heads of state and international delegations.
Carlo is immediate past Chair of the National Board of Directors of Sister Cities International, which he led from 2024 to 2026. He helped bring together leaders for the 2025 U.S.–Japan Sister Cities Summit in Izumisano, Japan, and received the 2026 Commendation of the Head of the Japanese Diplomatic Mission for his work strengthening U.S.–Japan relations.
Fluent in Japanese and Spanish, Carlo has lived and worked in Japan and Mexico. He taught English in Nagaoka through the JET Programme, later directed a bicultural program in Toluca, and participated in the U.S. Department of State’s U.S. Speaker Program in Papua New Guinea. These experiences inform his approach to helping people connect across differences and see possibilities beyond their familiar surroundings.
Carlo holds a master’s degree in international relations from Harvard University, where he received the Derek Bok Public Service Prize, and a business degree from Texas Christian University. He has completed 19 marathons, including one in North Korea, and an Ironman triathlon. He lives in Fort Worth with his wife, Dr. Rachael Capua.
Credentials
Chair (2024 to 2026), now immediate past chair (2026 to 2028), national board, Sister Cities International
Former Chief of Strategy and Innovation and Deputy Chief of Staff, City of Fort Worth
Founder, Z’s Cafe (2008 to 2020)
Master’s in International Relations, Harvard University (2022), Derek Bok Public Service Prize
BBA, Texas Christian University (2000)
Commendation of the Head of the Japanese diplomatic mission, January 16, 2026
Carlo with his Italian host brother, Francesco, in 1993 - the experience that started it all.
Honors
2026 Defender Trophy North America Finalist — Land Rover
2026 Commendation of the Head of the Japanese Diplomatic Mission
2026 Fort Worth Business Press Man of Impact Award
2025 Diplomat Award from Mary Jean Eisenhower
2022 Harvard University Derek Bok Public Service Prize
Fort Worth Inc.’s 400 Most Influential People (2021, 2022)
2019 Businessman of the Year, Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber
2019 “Man Enough to Be a Girl Scout”, Girl Scouts of TX-OK
2018 Fort Worth Business Plan Competition Winner
2017 Small Business of the Year
2015 Community Hero Award for social entrepreneurship
2014 Texas Christian University Outstanding Young Professional
2013 40 Under 40 Honoree