Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: A Look Ahead in Workplaces Resistant to Rearview Mirrors
Ready to dive into some empowering conversations? The Future of DEI Virtual Summit is just the ticket! This epic event, dreamt up by identity and belonging coach Erin Corine Johnson, ain't your typical corporate shindig. Instead of dry panels and keynotes, it's all about genuine discussions, global perspectives, and a community of change-makers fighting for collective freedom.
For Johnson, an artist, community organizer, and all-around brilliant mind, this summit wasn't conceived as a response to the political climate, but as a realization that DEI's performative practices were failing those they were supposed to protect. "While a lot of the socio-political chaos we're experiencing now has been accelerated by the current administration, it ain't the real issue," she said. "The real root cause is years of performative policymaking without a sustainable and accountable practice to back those policies." This summit is for the folks with and without a DEI title, who are wondering, "What can I do now?"
Spread across five extremely engaging days, the summit includes conversations, panels, and fireside chats, all focused on the central questions: What is the future of DEI, and how do we ignite change outside of unstable institutions? The summit features a broad range of speakers, from digital educators to antiracist scholars, who've all weathered the storm of DEI backlash and found innovative ways to charge ahead.
Blair Imani, the creator of the popular Smarter in Seconds series, will discuss creative approaches to inclusive education. "Despite these harsh policies turning their backs on equity," Imani said, "we don't have to cave. We can innovate."
Across the pond, Spain-based antiracism educator and author Desirée Bela-Lobedde will expose the often-hidden racism in Spain and challenge the notion that DEI is solely an American issue. "In Spain...many think antiracist work is only necessary elsewhere," she said. "I hope to inspire attendees to reflect on their own contexts, question what they've been taught, and feel empowered to contribute actively to antiracist transformation wherever they are." Bela-Lobedde's Laboratorio de Deconstrucción, a virtual learning space, serves as a model for what the future of DEI might look like: rooted in real-life experiences and sustained by the community.
For entrepreneurs and parents Louis and Arlene Byrd, their work and personal lives are deeply intertwined. As summit panelists, they'll discuss how to talk to children about racism. Their session, titled "How to Talk to Kids About Racism," dives into the challenging but necessary work of educating kids about systems of inequality while preserving their innocence and cultivating hope and optimism.
"This topic is close to our hearts as a husband-and-wife team...raising two beautiful children, boys," they said. "We've already started having discussions around race, privilege, systems, and how they impact our lives. We've been very open and authentic on social about our parenting and doing our part to raise emotionally intelligent, open-minded humans." When asked about the future of DEI, Louis didn't mince words. "I believe the future of DEI is about ownership," he said. "Ownership of businesses, infrastructure, neighborhoods, and communities."
What sets the Future of DEI Summit apart is its mission to bring in everyday people. "Over the past year and a half," Johnson explained, "I've noticed that the chasm between those practicing DEI, especially at the organizational level, and those DEI was meant to serve was growing deeper. Not only were people finding it tough to fully grasp what DEI is doing in their companies, but everyday people didn't understand how they, too, could make a difference from right where they stood, right from their own zones of genius." The summit is an attempt to bridge that gap by making DEI more relatable and decentralizing power.
In Johnson's view, the backlash to DEI is not a reason to retreat, but an invitation to rebuild something better. "Anti-DEI activists will come for us regardless of what we call it," she said. "What happens when we care for each other, build our own tables, and feed our own communities in spite of them?" This embodiment of Johnson's mission—radical care, community building, and sustained resistance—is reflected in each speaker. Whether it's Imani's enthusiasm for transnational solidarity, Bela-Lobedde's invitation for a greater racial reckoning in Europe, or the Byrds' commitment to raising conscious and aware children, the message is loud and clear: DEI isn't dead; it's being reborn, outside corporations, beyond empty slogans, and in the hands of the community, who've never needed permission to do the work in the first place.
- Erin Corine Johnson, the future of DEI Virtual Summit's organizer, emphasizes that the event is not a response to the political climate but a realization of the shortcomings of performative DEI practices within institutions.
- Blair Imani, the creator of the Smarter in Seconds series, will discuss innovative approaches to inclusive education, encouraging attendees to move forward despite challenges and not cave to political pressures.
- Desirée Bela-Lobedde, a Spanish antiracism educator, will expose the hidden racism in Spain and challenge the notion that DEI is solely an American issue, inspiring attendees to question their own contexts and contribute actively to antiracist transformation in their communities.
