Inclusion Catalyst

In this episode, nonprofit consultant Jess Cooper sits down with 2004 Olympic silver medalist Maritza McClendon to discuss diversity in sports. They break down how Maritza’s experience growing up as a black female athlete gave her a platform to help give athletes of this generation a voice. They address: How Maritza’s involvement in swimming has evolved since becoming the first black woman to make...

Greetings friends!  Thank you for listening to the Inclusion Catalyst.   I’m Mickey Desai.  My co-host Susan Cooper and I have been talking about the future of the Inclusion Catalyst podcast, as both of us find we have insufficient bandwidth to continue to regularly work on the program.   But even as our production schedule has slowed down, it is clear we have a dedicated audience that we have eve...

Talking with Idalia Fernandez, Monisha Kapila, and Angela Romans about their work coaching and supporting nonprofit leaders of color, and some key patterns they see emerging as many historically White-led organizations may be appointing leaders of color for the first time. Among the topics we cover: Connecting this work to current events. Identifying problematic organizational patterns. The issue...

This episode was recorded on May 27, 2020. Mickey visits with Olanike Ayomide-Mensah to talk about equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace; and how it intersects with leadership development. We discuss: We've been chasing diversity and inclusion since the Civil Rights Act and making anemic progress. It's time workplaces face the truth about what it's going to take to see real change. Nonp...

Our guest is Mary-Frances Winters, talking about her latest work, Inclusive Conversations: Fostering Equity, Empathy, and Belonging across Differences . Inclusive Conversations relates conversational conditions to the current climate and illustrates how to navigate Inclusive Conversations in uncomfortable or new situations. Mary-Frances contends that in many cases, it is not that most people do no...

Inclusion Catalyst is joined by Julie Kratz, acclaimed trainer, author, and founder of Next Pivot Point . Julie is passionate about promoting gender equality within the workplace, empowering women to express confidence and helping them build a winning career game plan and pivot to the next level. Our conversation looks at a variety of issues related to leadership, culture change, and how to develo...

Scott Ayotte, the Director of Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity and Equity at Grand Valley State University joins us to share his expertise on the transtheoretical model of behavior change as it relates to talent acquisition. We discuss: Organizational structures and how behavior change models are used The phases of the transtheoretical model of behavior change Creating cultural and structural...

Ed Reed from joins us again with Lauren Zehyoue, Communications Director for Fair Count . 3 ways to complete the Census: online, by mail, over the phone Reaching people digitally since the Census is still an important part of democracy that will continue beyond the pandemic Pivoting to virtual events and webinars instead of in-person outreach Census is scheduled to be offline on July 31st (if ther...

Ed Reed from Fair Count joins us to discuss their outreach and community infrastructure programs to increase awareness and participation in the 2020 Census. Fair Count is a non-profit with a mission to engage hard to count communities in the US Census through outreach and education. They are also doing the groundwork the strengthen communities through civil engagement and providing infrastructure...

Catherine Perry from Inward Bound Center for Nonprofit Leadership joins us to talk about how to have conversations on race and healing the racial divide in America. Her workshop, “Racism in America: What is mine to do?” How to break down barriers and start conversations in faith communities, at work and with neighbors and friends Being brave and using humor to engage and make an impact in your com...

Hanna Mason, Host of the Woke Wednesdays podcast, joins us to talk about her show and the state of social justice and politics in America. We discuss: How she got started podcasting Her presentation on How to Evoke Change at the Advertising for Change event in Atlanta Are we in the most divisive time in American history? The state of progressive voices and politcs in the US Under-represented voice...

Brian shares his expertise on capital defense, habeas corpus and the death penalty in Georgia. The importance of responding to the injustices within the criminal justice and capital punishment systems. Constitutional violations that led to the wrongful conviction Reduction of death sentences handed out Federal habeas corpus appeals and overturning cases History of Habeas corpus and due process Lac...

Soon Mee shares her expertise on building trust within organizations to create a diverse culture and how to diversify your own life. Diversity as a business and a moral imperative Desegregating your life with intention Empathy when working in teams Conversations about bias at work and being open to honest discussions Developing a culture of trust at the workplace Imposter syndrome and Code Switchi...

Julius shares his professional experiences with leveraging diversity in the pharmaceutical field to treat prostate cancer. Show notes: Julius shares his case study on working with a pharmaceutical company to work with African American urologists to target populations with a greater incidence of cancer. How the importance of empirical data lead him to his current professional focus Working with C-S...

Lauren Camdzic joins us to discuss the need to include disabilities in corporate board agendas and conversations of diversity. She also shares her personal journey of adapting to life in a wheelchair and the importance of ADA compliance. Show notes: Lauren discusses the Valuable 500 and the companies who have pledged to make disabilities a part of their diversity conversations How companies can mo...

Christian Zsilavetz joins us to discuss the importance of being an ally and advocate for LGBTQ kids and his personal experiences as a transman and educator. Christian discusses the school he founded The risks LGBTQ youth face in their schools and personal lives Civil rights for the LGBTQ community Available resources in the Atlanta community The importance of providing support to LGBTQ youth becau...

Attorney and Community organizer Fallon McClure joins us to discuss the complexities of the Criminal Justice system and why reform is needed in Georgia and nationwide. Fallon brings up the enormity of the varying issues from a Federal, State to locality level The current state of the criminal justice system in Georgia Bail, probation and parole issues, voting rights Restorative vs. Punitive justic...

Dr. Heather Heckel discusses environmental initiatives including wildlife conservation, ecotourism, climate change and what individuals can do to support these issues. Dr. Heckel discusses sustainability and diversity & inclusion in global and local communities Wildlife conservation & consumerism Understanding local impact Ecotourism and fair trade NGOs as change agents Climate Justice, ac...

Dr. Tarece joins us to discuss her book, The Global Purpose Approach , a guide to enhancing multiculturalism in education. She also addresses issues of representation, equity and biases in the public education system. Dr. Tarece discusses her book, The Global Purpose Approach, about multiculturalism, exploration of culture, policies and appreciation of differences. Includes guidance to educators o...

Organizational policy expert, Dr. Brea Heidelberg joins us to discuss culture within organizations and the role of the Arts in communities. Dr. Heidelberg discusses rules and norms in corporate structures and in non-profits Written & unwritten rules in an organizations culture Equitable policies and giving agency to individuals Toxic work cultures Funding and Equity in the Arts Socioeconomic a...