Topic: Diversity & Inclusion

Michelynn Woodard

Miki Woodard currently serves as President and CEO of Texas Women’s Foundation. She has 25 years plus experience as a philanthropist and social impact entrepreneur who has dedicated her career to championing equity, cultural diversity and social justice.

Most recently, she served as Head of Social Impact, Diversity and Inclusion for Bad Robot Productions, Inc., and Senior Advisor of the Katie McGrath and J.J. Abrams Family Foundation in Los Angeles, CA.

She is currently the leader of one of the largest women’s funds in the world, spearheading efforts to raise funds for research, advocacy and grantmaking on behalf of Texas women and girls. Since its founding 37 years ago, TXWF has awarded more than $57 million in grants and programs. In addition, the Foundation’s assets of over $40 million are invested in its innovative 100% mission-aligned gendered portfolio.

Miki has previously held executive positions at Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Be the Change, Inc., The Artemis Agency and was Vice President, Philanthropy at JCPenney, managing a $30 million global corporate giving portfolio. She was also the President and CEO of the non-profit charitable foundations for Dr. Phil and his wife, Robin McGraw, where she led national programs and advocacy efforts benefitting children and families.

She is an active board member for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Community Coalition, Dallas Regional Chamber and The Challenger Foundation. She is a founding board member of The Papa John’s Foundation and sits on the Trust for Public Land (TPL) Black History and Culture Advisory Board. In addition, she is a member of the Forbes Nonprofit Council, International Women’s Forum and Chief, where she is part of a community of c-suite leaders. Miki is a proud fourth-generation graduate of Hampton University.

Rebecca Theodore

Rebecca Theodore is an experienced international journalist, professional writer syndicated op-ed columnist and public speaker. A highly driven communicator, Rebecca is powered by purpose and is renowned for her conversationalist brilliance and coruscating writing and speaking abilities.

Rebecca’s passion for public speaking traces back to her early years in her Seventh-Day Adventist Church where she delivered her first speech at 12 years old.  From there Rebecca Theodore personifies what it means to ascend above adversity by using criticism as a tool of empowerment.

Rebecca’s abilities as a speaker and writer are celebratory. An award-winning public speaker, Rebecca Theodore sails among word reefs, her prose swells to near poetry at many stages of the journey as she deluges her audience with torrents of eloquence.

Known to vigorously defend and debate her views and opinions, Rebecca Theodore has successfully addressed the Harvard Caribbean Law School Conference, the Discoveries Mining Conference, The Peaceful Caribbean Conference and the Women in Leadership Conference among others.

As an articulate pro-Israel activist, Rebecca Theodore has held notable debates in universities and campuses on the Biblical mandate to support Israel, while platforming the agenda of political parties and social organizations at national conventions and gracing the pulpits of many churches in the US, Canada and the Caribbean in sharing her inspiring message of hope, perseverance and faith in the creator of the universe.

As an international journalist, Rebecca Theodore’s formidable intellectual powers are refreshingly direct, decorating the pages of the LA Times, The Jewish Voice, the Chicago Tribune, The Associated Press, The Baltimore Post Examiner, National Public Radio -NPR, The Nassau Guardian Caribbean News Service, The Cayman Observer, Caribbean News Now, The Root.com, The Freeport News, The Daily Me, The Caribbean Writer, The Washington Pan African, and Nation of Change among others.

Rebecca Theodore’s journalistic and writing credits include the United Nations General Assembly UNGA, The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals UNSDG, The US State Department, The   Bloomberg Global Forum, World Economic Forum, Clinton Global Initiative, Concordia International Forum, and the United Against Nuclear Iran.

In combining her liberal arts education with politics, public administration and journalism, Rebecca Theodore has mastered the art of speech writing, thus translating complex economic, political and policy issues into clear messages for the general public, and has been an outspoken advocate for gender equality on a global scale, earning recognition into the Encyclopedia of speakers as a prominent keynote speaker on gender equality and women’s rights.

In addition to authoring numerous op-eds on politics, national security, human rights, climate change and mining, Rebecca Theodore has been recognized as a key person of influence in the field of journalism and professional writing in Women of Distinction magazine in NY and is eager to initiate dialogues around mining’s contribution of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal UNSDG #7 and #9, as Rebecca Theodore believes  that mining plays a significant role in the green tech revolution, and is the next energy transition for sustainable development

Rebecca Theodore is the powerful voice behind the upcoming television interviews:  Mining, Metals and sustainable development in a post covid global environment.

Jos Dirkx

Are you looking for an energetic, personable and experienced speaker, who will undoubtedly move your audience and shine light on your event? Look no further!

Jos Dirkx is a passionate and articulate speaker who inspires any audience - her experience traveling to over 100 countries in addition to her career as World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer, SU Faculty and award-winning author, make her an irresistible add-on to any event.

Jos speaks with authenticity about critical global trends. She breaks down how leaders can maximize great ideas and high-performing teams in a rapidly changing world. If you want your audience to feel inspired and enlightened about purpose and work, Jos is sure to deliver.

Jos goes where others don't. Her extraordinary life across fifteen countries - from Bangladesh, to Senegal, to Norway, to Canada, to Brazil…and more - means she brings the world to your audience and your audience to the world. Through stories and science, your audience is left feeling connected, energized and freshly informed about hot topics like diversity, culture and education

Jos speaks six languages, has written two books and is working on her third: "Why Great Ideas Die", a how-to guide for 21st century innovation. The ability to deliver against client expectations and seamlessly connect across diverse cultures lies at the core of what Jos embodies, evidenced by countless client testimonials and accolades.

Her speeches for top executives - from global banks, to advertising agencies, to large corporations - are honest, clear and engaging and her audience is left with practical tools for actionable change.

She has worked hand-in-hand with global dignitaries, including UN officials, a Nobel Peace Prize Winner, and Fortune50 CEOs. With experience across the US, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East, Jos builds connections seamlessly to motivate, inspire and move the audience. She has spoken at online conferences, with virtual audiences of up to 24, 000 viewers. Her energy, enthusiasm and ability to connect with any audience means a guaranteed opportunity for engagement and enlightenment.

Jos connects with corporate and casual audiences alike - embodying a natural, engaging and honest demeanor.

Winnie Awa

Winnie Awa is an entrepreneur on a mission to build the next frontier of textured hair care. Famed as the Founder and CEO of Carra, Winnie provides her expert advice on textured hair and how to care for individual hair textures. Disrupting the status quo of the £90bn hair care industry, Winnie is giving a voice to marginalised people within the hair care industry, cutting out the guesswork and providing access to licenced experts on textured hair. Recognised by the likes of Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Sunday Times Style and Refinery 29, it comes with little surprise that Winnie is highly sought-after as a speaker for a range of corporate events, covering topics such as entrepreneurship, women in technology, diversity and textured haircare.

Having forged a highly successful career, Winnie’s career first began as an Analyst for IBM and later as a Senior Consultant for Ernst & Young. From that point on, Winnie worked with an exciting variety of start-up companies, helping to build cutting-edge consumer apps for the likes of ASOS, LVMH and NET-A-PORTER. Working as a Strategic Programme Manager for NET-A-PORTER, a Programme Manager for ASOS and a Product Management Consultant for LVMH, Winnie realised a passion for fashion and became the Co-Founder of andVerv, a London-based contemporary womenswear brand that premiered at London Fashion Week. Winnie is also the Founding CEO of Antidote Street, a global beauty marketplace for multi-cultural women that curates the best brands for multi- textured hair.

Determined to revolutionise the haircare industry, Winnie founded Carra in 2020, now working as Carra’s CEO. Honing her vision, Winnie created the hyper-personalisation platform that brings together expert advice and machine learning to offer custom routines for people with textured hair. Identifying the amount of time that people with textured hair spend on inappropriate and damaging routines, and the exorbitant amounts of money they spend, Winnie is determined to make the haircare industry a more diverse and inclusive place. Spearheading the launch of the Salon Manifesto for textured hair people, Winnie is also trusted by brands such as Professional Beauty, Dove, Tresemme, Unilever and GHD to share her expertise in creating haircare products for different hair types.

Recently named an InnovateUK Women in Innovation winner, Winnie has been recognised in various publications, cited in the book Palette and having contributed to Looking Beyond The Car In Front. Now booked as a speaker for a range of corporate events, Winnie is trusted by companies for her authority on diversity and inclusive haircare. If you are looking for an empowering speech from a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, don’t hesitate in booking Winnie Awa today!

Silvina Moschini

An award winning serial entrepreneur, international speaker and author, Silvina Moschini has established herself as one of the foremost experts on the digital economy, the future of money, and how Web3 blockchain technologies and token-based economics are transforming and disrupting wealth-creation.

She is the President and Co-founder of Unicoin, a next-generation coin from the producers of Unicorn Hunters, that is equity-backed and designed to be profitable and stable. Unicoin solves for volatility, the greatest challenge of traditional crypto, by offering its holders inherent value through equity positions in high-growth companies.

Silvina is the executive producer of Unicorn Hunters, a platform that democratizes wealth by connecting high-growth companies looking for funding to hit the coveted $1B “unicorn” valuation with people around the world who are seeking lucrative investment opportunities. She stars in the show as a Circle of Money cast member, alongside Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple and Rosie Rios, 43rd Treasurer of the United States.

She is also the co-founder of solutions that harness the cloud to connect businesses and on-demand talent, including TransparentBusiness software-as-a-service, a remote workforce management platform and the Founder and CEO of SheWorks!, an innovative platform that leverages technology to close the gender gap.

With a unique perspective on technology’s influence on business and social impact, Silvina was the only featured entrepreneur for W20 Argentina, the G20’s advisory group on gender-inclusive economic growth, was an invited participant at the Global Entrepreneur Summit 2022 and in 2019 she led the Innovation panel at the President’s Summit of the Americas, a gathering of leading CEOs and Chiefs of States.

She is a regular contributor to CNN en Espanol, the World Economic Forum’s Agenda blog and her expertise is sought after by national and international media including CNBC, CCTV and Forbes. In 2020, she received the “Lifetime Achievement Award” from Women in Tech® and was named “Woman of the Decade” by the Women Economic Forum, which also recognized SheWorks! with the “Iconic Companies Creating a Better World for All” award for its efforts in creating equality for women. In 2019, Silvina received the Equals In Tech Award, the global initiative of the United Nations that recognizes projects with the greatest impact to close the digital gender gap.

Susie Wolff

Susie Wolff started her career in motorsports when she began driving go-karts. Susie made history in the 2014 British Grand Prix. She became the first woman in twenty-two years to compete in a Formula 1 race weekend. Susie Wolff began her career in karting, then moved on to Formula Renault and DTM for Mercedes-Benz. She eventually made her way into Formula 1.

At the age of eight, Wolff began racing go-karts. In 1996 she received the title of British Kart Racing Driver of the Year. The following year, she won most of the karting competitions she participated in. She also won the Scottish Open Junior Intercontinental “A” category as well as the Scottish Junior Intercontinental “A” category.

Throughout the years, Susie went from competing in the British Junior Intercontinental “A” Championship to competing in the British Formula “A” Championship.

Wolff did a lot of work in promoting women in sport. For this reason, she received the Honorary Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. She had previously paused her studies at Edinburgh’s Business School in order to pursue a professional career.

Speaker Susie Wolff retired from driving in 2015. She then created Dare to Be Different, a campaign designed to increase women’s involvement in motorsports at all levels. For her achievements in the field of women’s sport, Susie received an MBE in 2017.

In 2018, Susie became VENTURI Formula E Team’s Team Principal. “Dare to be Different” was eventually joined by the FIA’s program, “Girls on Track,” to create a single worldwide outreach effort promoting grassroots work that brings attention to the opportunities accessible to girls and women of all ages.