Alba Ramos (she/her)

Panel |  Diverse Leaders + Inclusive Work Cultures = Resilient Companies and Better Societies

Global Manager of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity | Coca- Cola Europacific Partners

Alba Ramos is the Global Manager of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity at Coca Cola Europacific Partners, one of the largest Coca-Cola Bottler. Alba is a Inclusion & Diversity young leader with expertise not only in the LGBTIQ+ community but also in gender equality, disability inclusion, culture & Heritage, and multi- generational challenges.
Alba has worked on cultural transformation initiatives that include employee engagement, leadership sponsorship, monitoring and benchmarking and building Employee Resource Groups. Alba is an international lawyer who prior to join the Inclusion & Diversity space, worked in the Human Rights area for different multi-national companies.

Andrea Chagas (she/her)

Panel |  Diverse Leaders + Inclusive Work Cultures = Resilient Companies and Better Societies

Researcher Queer Sociolinguistics | Mannheim University

Andrea is an Uruguayan national and leading scholar in the area of African and South
American socio- and ethnolinguistics. Andrea’s research looks at the consequences of
colonialism to analyse language ideologies and attitudes towards the vernaculars and the
European languages in the global south.
Andrea connects her professional expertise with her activism. She tries to approach
topics of social inequalities resulting from different sociocultural, political and economic
systems coexisting in the global south both empirically and socially. She does this by
approaching these topics in academia and empiric research and second by organizing
events that bring together people from the society, like employees, artists, etc. Andrea is
also a guest speaker on queer allyship and focuses on establishing inclusive spaces
within workforces.

Indrani Sharma (she/her)

Panel |  Diverse Leaders + Inclusive Work Cultures = Resilient Companies and Better Societies

Business Development Specialist | Women Change Makers

Indrani is a proud Indian national, founder and corporate leader in the area of social
business supporting women and inclusion and corporate gender parity. Using the UN
SDGs, she incorporates ethical entrepreneurship and championing women as business
leaders.
Indrani is also a highly respected business advisor and has established several youth
programmes together with the Indian government in fostering science, innovation and
technology.

Ksenija Polla (she/her)

Panel |  Diverse Leaders + Inclusive Work Cultures = Resilient Companies and Better Societies

North American Regional Director | ICCA

Ksenija is Croatian born and Regional Director for North America at the International
Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). In her capacity she advocates for and
supports international meetings suppliers and associations in their endeavours in
creating a better, more inclusive world.
Ksenija also develops the business sense for DEI management and is a member of the
American Society of Association Executives(ASAE) Leadership Meetings and Exposition Council and its DEI subcommittee, which recently has established practical guidelines for associations on leading principles for DEI within the hospitality, travel and tourism
industry.

Yoriko Yasukawa (she/her)

Panel |  Diverse Leaders + Inclusive Work Cultures = Resilient Companies and Better Societies

Vice President | FOGGS

Yoriko, a Japanese national, is Vice President of the Foundation for Global Governance
and Sustainability and facilitator for the dispute resolution mechanism of the Inter-
American Development Bank. Previous to this, Yoriko served in senior positions in the
United Nations, including Regional Director of the UN Population Fund for Asia and the
Pacific. Yoriko has advised and mediated with many national governments on human
rights and supported diversity and inclusion efforts in many spectrums. From indigenous
rights, gender parity, youth and LGBTIQ+, Yoriko is no stranger to the global and UN
context on diversity and inclusion within human rights.

Chloë Davies (she/her)

Unapologetically Abundant in My Skin

Head of Social Impact | Lucky Generals

Short description of talk:
“To be authentic, we must cultivate the courage to be imperfect — and vulnerable. We have to believe that we are fundamentally worthy of love and acceptance, just as we are. I’ve learned that there is no better way to invite more grace, gratitude and joy into our lives than by mindfully practicing authenticity.”—  Brené  Brown
Join Chloe Davies, Head of Social Impact at Lucky Generals as she shares her personal journey to becoming more authentic in the workplace as an out Black Bisexual Working Mother.
She will cover her early career, the event that changed her perspective on life and helped her start to become an agent for social change.
– TW: Suicide, 14yr old self, 24yr old breakdown
Why she classes herself as a Mental Health survivor, the importance of usualising conversations on Mental Health especially within the Black LGBTQ+ community and her role as an Ambassador for Mental Health First Aid England.
Motherhood and how her pursuit for positive representation has impacted her career, her current senior role in advertising and the work she continues to do around the globe in helping to make workplaces and society inclusive of all identities, backgrounds and cultures.

Emma McGrattan (she/her)

Lesbian Leadership & Creating a Culture of Change

SVP, Engineering | Actian

Short description of co-talk:
Join Emma McGrattan, SVP of Engineering, and Rae Coffman-Bueb, Director of Employee Experience at Actian Corporation for a conversation about being out as a leader and how you can harness your authenticity in creating a culture of change and belonging.

Emre Celik (he/they)

Who am I?… Who Are You? The Danger to Hide the Authentic Self.

EMEA ER and Investigations Partner | Google II DEInfluencer

Short description of talk:
Emre Celik has been hiding for many years. In a brave talk, he speaks about life situations that have been paralyzing to him. Why speak up? Because he realized that his silence has personal, professional and societal consequences. Reflections on what it means to fear the judgement of others, and how it makes us judge ourselves.

Felizitas Lichtenberg (she/her)

Diversity & Inclusion Insights: Best Practices for Conducting a Global Employee Survey

Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion I SumUp

Short description of co-talk:
One of the main challenges organisations face is to fully understand the representation of different demographic groups and their experiences in the workplace. Are we representing our societies? Can everyone feel belong? Where do we face challenges and need to take actions? Surveys are a great way to analyse these questions in a global and scalable way. Every country has different legal and privacy requirements, which makes it challenging to capture the data. In this talk, Felizitas and Nikoleta bring diversity and legal perspectives together and share first-hand insights from designing and conducting a global Diversity & Inclusion survey at SumUp – a leading FinTech company. Join this talk to hear more about:
    – Why and how SumUp is running a global D&I survey that includes local requirements?
    – What to consider from a legal and data privacy standpoint?
    – How does SumUp analyse the insights and define actions that can be taken?

Gurchaten Sandhu (Nanoo) (he/they)

Race, Religion and Sexuality: Understanding Your Own Intersectionality to Champion Diversity Within the Workplace

Director of Programmes | ILGA World

Short description of talk:
Born to Panjabi Sikh working-class migrant parents in the UK, Gurchaten is a widely respected LGBTI changemaker and community leader, joining ILGA World to further strengthen and build on the organisation’s programmatic work and manage its growing Programmes team. 
Before their time at ILGA World, Gurchaten was the Non-Discrimination Programme Officer at the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work Branch, where they built their expertise and knowledge on promoting social justice through decent and inclusive work for all, in particular to enhance LGBTIQ+ rights at work and economic inclusion. They were also the President for UN-GLOBE, the group representing LGBTIQ+ personnnel  in the United Nations system.
Gurchaten serves as a steering committee member of International Family Equality Day NGO, a fellow of the Salzburg Global LGBT forum, a Sarbat LGBT Sikhs volunteer and a trustee for We Create Space. 
Gurchaten has been listed as the OUTStanding LGBT Role Model from 2018 to 2021. They are also an Honouree of the Out & Equal’s 2021 Global LGBTQ Corporate Advocate Outie Award, and the winner of the British LGBT Award for Exceptional Inclusion 2021. 

Henrique Zanin (he/him)

LGBTQI+ Asylum in Europe and Germany: Challenges and Best Practices

DEI, Culture & Engagement Lead Europe & Asia | Wayfair

Short description of talk:
Our society still persecutes, marginalises and discriminates against LGBTQI+ individuals, and asylum seekers and refugees are today denied rights and have their basic humanity violated. That said, this presentation discusses and denounces this degrading situation of social exclusion that happens in several European countries, including Germany, and presents examples of what governments, society and organizations can do to advocate for this population.

Dr. Julia Ehrt (she/her)

Defending Human Rights of LGBTI People Globally

Executive Director | ILGA World

Short description of talk:
ILGA World is a global federation of LGBTI organisations with more than 1800 member organisations globally. In my intervention I will speak about the situation of LGBTI people across the globe and who ILGA World´s involves LGBTI activists and supports LGBTI community organizing on regional and global levels.

Kyte Bohlke (they/them)

Corporate Activism – How My Own Vulnerability Turned Into a Superpower

Team Lead | Finoa Gmbh

Short description of talk:
Inclusion has finally arrived as a buzzword in corporate environments.
As contemporary company structures move towards supporting employees who are outside the norm, only few of those companies do know where to start off the journey.
Between gender-neutral language, inclusive bathrooms, pronoun fields and company DE&I requirements, there is a lot to consider.
As a non-binary professional, I would like to share how my own journey was the superpower and catalyst to help transforming work environments around myself and those around me. Let us talk about responsibility based on privileges and how we can create safe workspaces being each other’s allies.
If you think activism and corporate thinking does not belong together, you might be surprised.

Meghna Vanjani (any pronouns)

Leadership as the “Minority Within the Minority” – Finding the Balance Between Authenticity, Power and Leadership Effectiveness

Manager, Digital & Tech Strategy | Pandora Jewelry

Short description of talk:
Being LGBTQ+ at the workplace is hard because of the prevalent stereotypes, discrimination and even outright harassment. Many queer folks carry feelings of shame, inferiority and/or vulnerability and are often afraid of being their true selves. For people with intersectional experiences (such as queer women, racial / ethnic minorities) these feelings are further compounded by the feeling of being a „minority within the minority“. 
When these LGBTQ+ folks get to leadership positions (formal or informal), the internalized feelings of shame, inferiority & vulnerability can play out in unique ways. Especially when leading people who represent the majority, it can be challenging to be „heard“ while still being authentic, and dealing with the pressure of emulating the majority.
This session covers the following topics:
1) How does „minority stress“ hold back leadership ability?
2) How do you find a leadership style which is effective and authentic? How can you leverage your intersectional experiences for this?
3) What can Allies do to support and empower minority leaders?

Meike Imberg (she/her)

HR Does Not Equal D&I

EDI Lead | Vattenfall Heat UK
D&I Consultant

Short description of co-talk:
Join us to learn more about the reasons behind the bold statement that HR does not equal D&I. In this session, Meike will share some insights from the LGBT+ and wider D&I journey for any organisation. She will provide you with some practical tips you can take into your workplace (and home!) and also share some reflections on her own journey as a D&I expert working in the UK.

Nikoleta Statelova (she/her)

Diversity & Inclusion Insights: Best Practices for Conducting a Global Employee Survey

Lead Privacy Counsel, Europe I SumUp

Short description of co-talk:
One of the main challenges organisations face is to fully understand the representation of different demographic groups and their experiences in the workplace. Are we representing our societies? Can everyone feel belong? Where do we face challenges and need to take actions? Surveys are a great way to analyse these questions in a global and scalable way. Every country has different legal and privacy requirements, which makes it challenging to capture the data. In this talk, Felizitas and Nikoleta bring diversity and legal perspectives together and share first-hand insights from designing and conducting a global Diversity & Inclusion survey at SumUp – a leading FinTech company. Join this talk to hear more about:
    – Why and how SumUp is running a global D&I survey that includes local requirements?
    – What to consider from a legal and data privacy standpoint?
    – How does SumUp analyse the insights and define actions that can be taken?

Pascal Possler (he/him)

Want Inclusion? Don’t Change Minds, Change Context

Consultant for Influencers, Purpose and Impact

Short description of talk:
When I started consulting, I wanted to do evidence based Diversity Management. The more I studied the research, psychology and evidence, the more I understood that no matter how much we educated ourselves or change minds, we will display exclusive behaviors and structures. (e.g. Did you know that unconscious bias trainings have mostly shown to make white people fill out questionnaires measuring racism better, but didn’t end up in more diverse hirings). When we understand what the obstacles to more diversity in our organizations are, based on research and evidence, we can make better changes. Let me present you processes to plan for more inclusion, obstacles and enablers that can help more to change our exclusive behaviors to inclusive behaviors.

Powen Shiah (he/him)

How LGBTQI+ Friendly Communication Can Make or Break Your DEI Strategy

Inclusive Communication Expert (English & German) | Fairlanguage

Short description of talk:
The words we use — they tell on us. They reveal our biases and attitudes, and so that’s how people read into what we say and how we say it. If a company’s communication shows that they’re still thinking in heteronormative ways and reinforcing the gender-binary, LGBTQI+ customers and employees will recognize the rainbow-washing for what it is. By making inclusive communication a pillar of every DEI strategy, you can show that change is happening, and it’s not just lip service. Powen works with companies on gender-inclusive and anti-racist language in marketing and communication, and he’s seen it all. Learn from the flops and the chart-toppers of corporate communications.

Rae Coffman-Bueb (she/her)

Lesbian Leadership & Creating a Culture of Change

Director, Employee Experience | Actian

Short description of talk:
Join Emma McGrattan, SVP of Engineering, and Rae Coffman-Bueb, Director of Employee Experience at Actian Corporation for a conversation about being out as a leader and how you can harness your authenticity in creating a culture of change and belonging.

Samet Akti

„You Can’t Say That Anymore“  – How Inclusive Language Fails to Find Consensus

Senior D&I Communication Manager | Zalando
DEI Consultant

Short description of talk:
Is it marginalized or empowered groups? Is it disabled person or a person with disability? Is it LGBT or LGBTQQIA? – Why does terminology in the Diversity & Inclusion sphere seemingly evolve at a rapidly fast pace? Why do terms fall out of favor when they had been introduced to mitigate exclusion in the first place? What is the underlying phenomenon? And most importantly: How do we nonetheless apply the idea of inclusive communication successfully?Join this session to learn all about inclusive language, its ephemeral nature and how to work with it.

Zamina Ahmad (she/ her)

Product Inclusion – Building Products With Value for Everyone With Everyone

CEO | shades&contrast

Short description of talk:
Zamina will talk about Inclusive Product Design – to design for as many different people as possible with a diverse team. Too often we imagine one, single target user. In result, products are not accessible to customers with different abilities, circumstances and identities. Product Inclusion means to involve different people in your product development process and to create diverse ways to participate on your product. In consequence, products are build that addresses the needs of more people who get a feeling of belonging – and we build a better future for everyone.

Anthony Dunn (he/ him)

Kick start your ERG – The J&J experience

Skin Health Squad Lead, Northern Europe and Open&Out ERG UK co-lead | Johnson & Johnson

Short description of co-talk:
Congratulations, you have decided to build or have just founded an ERG in your company! But what is next? Kerstin and Anthony will talk about their experiences at Johnson & Johnson in Germany, the UK and the US, on how to found local, national and international LGBTQ employee resource groups and the challenges and benefits this will bring. They will also highlight different types of activities they have been supporting and growing as part of the ERG, be it presence at Pride events, Ally trainings or community and business involvement. After a short presentation, this session is meant to be an exchange of experiences and a place to bring your questions.

Kerstin Wagner (she/ her)

Kick start your ERG – The J&J experience

Applied Science Lead North America; global lead Open & Out LABS | Johnson & Johnson

Short description of co-talk:
Congratulations, you have decided to build or have just founded an ERG in your company! But what is next? Kerstin and Anthony will talk about their experiences at Johnson & Johnson in Germany, the UK and the US, on how to found local, national and international LGBTQ employee resource groups and the challenges and benefits this will bring. They will also highlight different types of activities they have been supporting and growing as part of the ERG, be it presence at Pride events, Ally trainings or community and business involvement. After a short presentation, this session is meant to be an exchange of experiences and a place to bring your questions.

Karen FitzGerald (she/ her)

How to Make a Community Impact – HPE Pride RG Success Story

Manager NVidia Alliance EMEA | HPE

Short description of talk:
Karen is a professional business developer with more than 25years experience within the IT Industry, a mother, wife, biologist, artist & dog trainer – with a passion for equality within the workplace and life regardless of anything. 

Roisin Geraghty (she/ her)

How Employee Networks Can Influence Company Policies

Strategic Execution Specialist and Chair of Zurich Pride UK | Zurich Insurance

Short description of talk:
In this session Roisin will share how organisations can improve their employee policies by collaborating with diversity and inclusion networks and how networks themselves can influence and shape the organisation through policy change. Roisin will share some recent examples from Zurich Insurance UK and offer guidance for anyone seeking to do the same.