Fama hails from The Gambia and is currently majoring in Aeronautical engineering at NUAA in Nanjing.  She is passionate about AI, tech and gender equality. She hopes to bridge the tech and Gender GAP in Africa.  She competes in different tech competitions with her team to help her gain the necessary experience to make an impact when she finally goes back home.  She is currently working alongside her CoFounder Bethelhem, on turning their ideas into companies which can impact young people on the continent.

Gaelle, is a Ph.D. candidate in media and communication studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing. She first arrived in China in 2014 to complete her Master's Degree in Global Business Journalism at the same university. In the course of the several years that she has spent in China, Gaelle has been involved in several extra-curricular activities that have allowed her to make the most out of her academic experience in China. Last year, she was the President of the Tsinghua University African Students Association, where she worked with other talented African students to consolidate the African community of Tsinghua university and to support African students throughout their stay in China, as well as to showcase the uniqueness of Africa to non-African students in the university and beyond. Since September this year, she is the Vice-President of the Student Association of the Belt and Road Initiative (SABRI), where her work is focused on Africa-China relations as part of the BRI. In addition to that academic aspect of her journey in China, Gaelle has, since last year, gotten involved in two main entrepreneurial projects in Beijing long with other inspiring young African students, she has Co-founded Duapa Africa last year, a social enterprise that seeks to contribute to the socio-economic transformation of Africa through developing innovative solutions. In 2018, the different activities of Duapa Africa have benefited over a thousand students, young professionals and businesses in China and in Africa. Since July this year, Gaelle is the Co-founder and CEO of Think, Share, & Create Hub (TSCHub), a Beijing-based social enterprise dedicated to creating platforms where women and youth from different backgrounds and nationalities can get inspiration, resources and skills needed for their personal and professional growth. Her previous experiences include working at the marketing department of Transsions Holdings’ Tecno Mobile in Cameroon, and as reporter at a local radio station. She strongly believes that it is the positive impact that one creates in other people’s lives that gives value to one’s actions, and that it is a great way to express thankfulness for God’s blessings in one’s life.

Zazu is a South African based in China.  She‘s worked in diverse startup teams as both co-founder and consultant. With China as her base, she founded Manzini - an AI research company centered on machine learning for higher education and ultimately building a machine-led curriculum that seeks to fully digitize education in the classroom.

The pursuit of the undiscovered and the passion to present to the word various art forms and artistes with a keen sense of social entrepreneurship, are the driving forces behind Serendipity and Rumana Sinha Sehgal. This multi-talented mother of two young boys, is an Engineer and was a corporate professional with Fortune 500 companies like Oracle & ADP. Rumana turned into an entrepreneur when she started Serendipity in 2012. Rumana was also the Chairperson for the Young wing of Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs of India-Young COWE, supporting and mentoring young women entrepreneurs as they start off on their own. Additionally, she also served on the Executive Board for COWE – the Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs. Rumana’s Serendipity specializes in Papier Mache, Furniture and articles made from recycled products like tyres, 3D art and sculptures made of varied materials like Plaster of Paris, Thermocol, Wood and Fibre Glass. Also interested in the performing arts, her maiden production, Hyderabad Shuffle – a fusion of Jazz Music and Contemporary dance performed in Hyderabad in the summer of 2012. Rumana also does event designing for Corporate, School and private events. The Papier Mache furniture line was showcased at the COWE Trade Carnival in June 2013. Her 3D sculptures are also installed in one of Mumbai’s largest play centres, “Play Around”. She was also a key supporter of the well renowned Dr. Bhaktiar Choudhary’s photography exhibition in aid of “Friends of Snakes Society” at the Muse Art Gallery in Marriott Hyderabad. She has actively contributed towards the social causes for ” Fight Against Rape” HIFW-season 4 and ” Save the Girl Child” at HIFW-2015 as part of their show to support the cause. Over the years, Rumana has focused more on Social Entrepreneurship combined with encouraging young and upcoming artistes as they start their own artistic journeys.    

Sandhya and Sukanya Rao are the Founders of Wikiwear.   Sandhya Rao is an entrepreneur and founder of startup venture, Wikiwear™, that is developing a portfolio of branded apparel. She is also the co-founder of a connected health venture, RedMed Health Systems, with her husband, Jay Srinivasan. She is a qualified engineer from Bangalore University and has been in the apparel industry for over 20 years servicing both the export and domestic markets.   Sandhya is one of the founder members of the Bangalore Chapter of ALL Ladies League, an international organisation of women and is the South India chairperson of the ALL Start-ups Support group.   She is actively involved with NGOs such as Chiguru, which works for girl-child, and the India Literacy Project (ILP), a non-profit, volunteer organization, dedicated to spreading the cause of literacy in India.   Sandhya is a classical Kathak dancer and a disciple of Guru Smt. Vijaya Marthanda, founder-director Layalasya. She is currently also learning to play the violin from Guru Shri. N Ventakesh, who is one of the few people who plays the seven stringed version of the instrument. In her spare time, when she manages to find it, she also dabbles with theater and costume styling for the movies.   Sukanya Rao holds a Master’s degree in Mathematics from Bangalore University,  a diploma in interior designing from Jenson & Nicolson ,a diploma in the Japanese rrt of Ikebana and training in entrepreneurship development from the Indian Institute of Management , Bangalore. She  also has training in Early Childhood Education . While Sukanya started off in the field of healthcare in the late 1990s ,she quickly moved to interior designing where she spent around 3 years managing projects for clients in hospitality and healthcare before she diversified to the field of cost auditing working with her father in his accounting firm Rao , Murthy & Associates. She pursued auditing as a career for about 10 years during which she developed deep knowledge of costing practices and worked with clients in varied industries. Very inquisitive by nature and wanting to avoid run-of-the-mill career options, she later decided to set up her own venture to develop cereal protein bars during which time she worked closely with the Central Food Technology Research Institute for about 2 years. Subsequently, Sukanya to set up her own pre-school in 2009 as a franchisee to the Little Crest chain of Schools . After successfully running the institution for two years she sold her venture to the franchisers and focused on  art with a Passion. She has since pursued advanced courses in art with painting as a specialization at the Ken School of Art, MTV Acharya School of Art and later at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishad(KCKP). She has exhibited her work at KCKP and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Bangalore. She is currently associated with Wikiwear Inc , in building their line of fashionable yoga wear and headgear.

“Innovation does not start with an invention, it starts with a mindset.” Sindu works with this principle and spread the message and tools to adapt innovative mindset and practices in everything starting from education to philanthropy. Having worked in seven different countries and studied in universities in three different countries, Sindu has experienced the benefits and effects of diversity. She writes, speaks, consults and coaches on innovation, Design Thinking, growth mindset, entrepreneurship and education.  She is the CEO of As Many Minds Pte Ltd, which spans its wings in education, publishing, book writing consulting, management consulting and corporate and executive coaching. As Many Minds’ education arm focuses on infusing innovation into education with its products, services and programs for educators, children and schools.   Sindu is also the Chairperson and Founder of International Youth Leadership & Innovation Forum (IYLIF). She is the founding editor of The Kidz Parade edutainment magazine, which promotes creativity and growth mindset in children and education systems. She is the author of the book Infinite Possibilities – Unleash your potential with Growth Mindset and the co-author of Breakthrough – Secrets of growth, happiness and bounce backs from women around the world.  Sindu holds a degree in Computer Science & Engineering, an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and another MBA from National University of Singapore.

Ambar Pariddi  aspires to make Indian Jewels more popular and wearable. Her label, Mine of Design is a luxury design firm dealing in Fine jewelry, Fashion accessories and Festive Favors. Catering to exclusive segment of market fulfilling the needs of the customer pertaining to adorning or gifting luxury.  She specializes in well-constructed jewelley that makes a statement and tells the world about her client’s unique style. Her conceptualized designs are aimed at unveiling the mystical power in the stones and truly make her motivated to create jewelry. As the Creative Head of Mine of Design Ambar PariddiSahai credits her instinctive attraction to the universe of natural stones and elements which inspire her to create a range of lustrous impulse. Mine of Design jewelery is featured in Hindi feature film “Fashion”, music video by French artist Ana Belle and Jewellery for Mrs India 2008 Madhvi Awasthi for Mrs Globe Awards.

  Sonny Mohanty is a Graduate from University of Westminster London.  After graduation she worked with Telco, IT, and Fintech companies in various roles. She is now an entrepreneur who helps companies scale up. Sonny is currently doing active sales for a translation and localization company called into23.com, based out of Singapore. Besides that, she is the solution director for a Cloud based company called DROOTOO. In her free time she likes doing Karate and holds an orange black belt.

  Seema is the CEO and Founder of Varastraa, which stems from the little ethnic pockets found amidst the chaotic colour and diversity of India.  She seeks inspiration by going back to our roots; using beautiful local textiles combined with skilled artistry and natural dyes.From sarees made of textured Matka silk, spun in the small districts of West Bengal to the lines of unique handmade block prints of Rajasthan, our products celebrate the vibrancy of ethnic design.  Varastraa aims to be a dukaan that you can keep visiting, to find something new and beautiful to make your own!

Jigna Shah is a graduate from NIFT and a renowned fashion designer, her panorama meadows into Indo-Western and Western outfits.  Her range offers a diffusion of unique & rich textiles, designs, colour combinations & embroideries – evolving heritage of the past to the present and future. She is the Founder of the High End Designer House, Reve located  in Ahmedabad, India.

As the World’s First Image Scientist, Dr. Kuiljeit Uppaal has brought India on the global map in the Science of Persona and Image Management (PRIM). She has explored and determined diverse dimensions of the subject area, defined and created novel concepts, employed scientific research methodologies and empirical testing for the subject. Her scientific research and contribution has paved way for PRIM to be an integral part of Entrepreneurship Education and Management Training which shall eventually impact our economy.   Dr. Kuiljeit has also introduced her invention as a gift to the world. The world’s first ever, scientifically driven new age quotient – PIQ, Persona & Image Quotient that helps to understand various elements of our image as individuals and identifies the scope for improvement, so that we can make a larger impact and become more effective to meet global challenges. PIQ is a great invention for the world in this digital era to help people evaluate, control and manage their in-person impressions and digital footprints. PIQ also emerges as a convenient way for employers to screen job applicants from any part of the world for their probable ability to build a personal brand and become an influencer in their area of expertise.   She has also created a National Award winning innovative concept like D-PRIM that is very relevant and critical in today’s digital era and dynamism, for the growth and success of individuals and organizations.

Bhavini Mehta is founder and CEO of both Infinity Business Solutions and Publishbook.me. She is a contemporary entrepreneur who is building both endeavours by empowering and lifting people around her. Right out of college, with an undergraduate degree from Christ College and an MBA from AESPG Institute of Management Ahmedabad, she entered the corporate world with HDFC Bank Ltd. and quickly found it was not for her. Her first entrepreneurial ventures include a loan channel partner company with both HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. Along with her entrepreneurial spirit is a strong belief that women are able to achieve at least everything a man can and much more. Incorporating a sense of realism into her beliefs is that in nearly every woman’s professional life comes a time to plan a family. Bhavini faced that situation herself. Thence came a motivating factor in her life to seeking to create a workspace conducive to all women in that special time of their lives. Her business focuses on employing work-from-home mothers and women students who need financial support to complete their education. “There is an opportunity for everyone, you must be vigilant to grab those” is her mantra for life and her advice for all. She has taken the outsourcing industry – which encompasses both of her current ventures – to employ people (now both women and men) from around the world to serve clients who, likewise, are from around the world. This concept took off for her when at the response to her presentation at a conference where she discussed her beliefs that people could well be free to work from home or anywhere else, move among departments, and learn to work on different projects. When she was finished, people flooded to her to ask for a business card and wanting to know more … people who became both clients and part of her workforce! Strong in her beliefs, she rejected funding to grow her business because with the investment would have come the requirement that her employees could not work from home and had to follow specific working hours. Infinity Business Solutions is a shared services outsourcing firm providing services such as bookkeeping, payroll process, Website Development, Integrated marketing, and other specialized IT services. Using today’s technology, such services may be provided by specialists who live half a world away from the client. Publishbook.me came about as one of Infinity’s services that grew to have its own needed set of specialists, such as writers, editors, designers, marketers, etc. Both firms are flourishing.

Mrs. Sheila Kripalani is the Director of Pijikay Group of Companies. Chair, Board of Trustees, Habitat for Humanity, India. Managing Trustee of Grace International. Board Member of Terry Fox (India) Committee. Vice Chair and Hon. Treasurer of Bombay Teen Challenge, an NGO that prevents trafficking and rescues sex workers and their children. Past President of Indian Merchants’ Chamber (Ladies Wing). Recipient of the Asia Pacific Nehemiah Award for volunteer service towards eradication of poverty housing. Sheila is an Honours Graduate with a major in English Literature.

  Mrs. Kavitha M.Prakash has made an enormous versatile transition, from being a content housewife to a freelance Corporate Trainer, as circumstances unfolded in the past 14 years. She was associated with UNICEF as a volunteer member for their child welfare projects, in addition to, being an Educational Consultant for World Book International, USA. She is a person who expands her horizon and takes to people like fish to water. She is a stickler to the adage - ‘ Minds are like umbrellas, they work only when they are open’. Her commitment is backed by the support garnered from her family and friends. She holds a Master degree in Mathematics and English. She started off her stint with children as the Secretary of Chinmaya Mission Balavihar (A lifeskills and culture platform for children) and moved on to become a soft skills trainer for companies like Infosys, Accenture, L nT, E&Y, RIIIT, Nestle, AT&S, Administrative Training Institute, Business establishments and Startups  besides many  reputed schools in Mysore  and Bangalore.  Her own outfit is called ‘OASIS’, which works towards ‘Redefining Transitions,’ provides consultancy and event management solutions.   Apart from being on the Panel of Trainers of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India’s chapters based in several cities, also serves as a consistent guest faculty for the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, Mysore Chapter.  She is also the Regional Coordinator and Master Trainer for MaRRS International Spelling Bee Competitions, which covers most reputed schools in India.

Dr Ruby Bakshi Khurdi is TEDx International Award winning Speaker in Women Economic Forum, Professor, Social Entrepreneur, Global Goodwill Ambassador. She is the Founder of Réseau Inter Culturel des Femmes, Conseillére Communale Rennaz. She has received Exceptional Woman of Excellence Award at Women Economic Forum, Lisbon. She has been nominated Most Inspirational Female Entrepreneur of 2017 by Swiss Entrepreneur Magazine. She is a Role Model and Mentor to International students from Business and Hospitality Management Colleges.   Her family and two kids have always been her first priority in life!!She firmly believes Education & Communication are strong pillars in developing a progressive nation. She has given various successful workshops & podcasts on topics related to Effective Communication, Human Values, Women Empowerment & Emotional Intelligence. Her objective for 2019 is to create more awareness about her social projects, organize inspiring educational sessions and train more like-minded people across the Globe!

Senela Jayasuriya-Abeynaike is the Founder & CEO of Women Empowered Global.  She is a Transformation specialist, Leadership trainer and an Executive coach and has held many positions in leadership and strategy both in the corporate sector as well as in the service and advocacy domain. She is a Director at the McQuire Group of Companies and has trained teams for some of the biggest multinational and public listed companies in the country. Senela has always been an avid believer that women can make a unique social and economic impact and contribution to society and the world.  Through her longtime dream Women Empowered®, she offers specially designed leadership grooming courses and services for women of all ages, in order to facilitate women to rise to board positions and positions of influence, where they can make a bigger and more meaningful impact for self, the business and society.     Senela received the prestigious WEF17 Award of “Iconic Women Creating a Better World for All” at the Annual Women Economic Forum 2017.  Senela was appointed as an Advisory Executive Council Member and session lead speaker and made a special address under the AEC plenary “Understanding the Century of Social Media and Personal Branding”. Her expertise are in Business, Marketing & Brand Communications, Strategy, Presentation & Public speaking, Personal branding & personality development, Executive coaching and Customer Service.  Her greatest pride is that she is a mother to a beautiful six year old daughter. Senela has many versatile leisure interests and enjoys travelling, music and photography which she explores during her spare time.

Fama hails from The Gambia and is currently majoring in Aeronautical engineering at NUAA in Nanjing.  She is passionate about AI, tech and gender equality. She hopes to bridge the tech and Gender GAP in Africa.  She competes in different tech competitions with her team to help her gain the necessary experience to make an impact when she finally goes back home.  She is currently working alongside her CoFounder Bethelhem, on turning their ideas into companies which can impact young people on the continent.

Gaelle, is a Ph.D. candidate in media and communication studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing. She first arrived in China in 2014 to complete her Master's Degree in Global Business Journalism at the same university. In the course of the several years that she has spent in China, Gaelle has been involved in several extra-curricular activities that have allowed her to make the most out of her academic experience in China. Last year, she was the President of the Tsinghua University African Students Association, where she worked with other talented African students to consolidate the African community of Tsinghua university and to support African students throughout their stay in China, as well as to showcase the uniqueness of Africa to non-African students in the university and beyond. Since September this year, she is the Vice-President of the Student Association of the Belt and Road Initiative (SABRI), where her work is focused on Africa-China relations as part of the BRI. In addition to that academic aspect of her journey in China, Gaelle has, since last year, gotten involved in two main entrepreneurial projects in Beijing long with other inspiring young African students, she has Co-founded Duapa Africa last year, a social enterprise that seeks to contribute to the socio-economic transformation of Africa through developing innovative solutions. In 2018, the different activities of Duapa Africa have benefited over a thousand students, young professionals and businesses in China and in Africa. Since July this year, Gaelle is the Co-founder and CEO of Think, Share, & Create Hub (TSCHub), a Beijing-based social enterprise dedicated to creating platforms where women and youth from different backgrounds and nationalities can get inspiration, resources and skills needed for their personal and professional growth. Her previous experiences include working at the marketing department of Transsions Holdings’ Tecno Mobile in Cameroon, and as reporter at a local radio station. She strongly believes that it is the positive impact that one creates in other people’s lives that gives value to one’s actions, and that it is a great way to express thankfulness for God’s blessings in one’s life.

Zazu is a South African based in China.  She‘s worked in diverse startup teams as both co-founder and consultant. With China as her base, she founded Manzini - an AI research company centered on machine learning for higher education and ultimately building a machine-led curriculum that seeks to fully digitize education in the classroom.

Sana Afouaiz is an award-winning, gender expert, women advocate, and public speaker on global feminism and women issues in the MENA region. She is the author of “Invisible Women of the Middle East”. She has spoken in 40 countries at universities, panel discussions and international events. For the past five years, Sana advised United Nations, European Commission, corporate institutions and other organisations on gender agenda. She was also heavily involved in SDGs discussions, she helped drafting several resolutions and recommendations on gender in New York, Bali, Geneva, and Paris and presented to UN representatives, including the former Secretary-General Ban-ki-Moon.   In 2015, she established Womenpreneur Organisation, a network that supports more than 500 female entrepreneurs every year to grow their initiatives, leadership and their social impact. Through her work, Sana reached thousands of women and convened over 20 global events across different countries, to drive visibility, social impact, and resources for women in the ecosystem and beyond. ​ She is also the co-founder of Womenquake, a global movement, that revisits and critically examines the beliefs, myths and ideas about gender in different cultures. She uses her platform to advance the equality agenda through story-telling, social campaigns, as well as sharing tools to empower women. These experiences led her to organise several campaigns including reforming a Moroccan law that allowed rapists to marry their victims to avoid jail. ​ Sana is Advisor Mentor for Queen’s Young Leaders; an initiative of the Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust and The Royal Commonwealth Society, she assists this initiative on areas related to women empowerment and influencing policy. ​ In recognition of her achievements, Sana was named among 10 top inspiring women in the MENA region by the World Bank.  Sana was also nominated among SE100 most inspiring Social Innovators in the World by Social Enablers, she was awarded Ashoka Changemaker Award, and she was named Influential female entrepreneur by Knowing Arabia, Watching Arabia and among 5 most inspiring and talented women by Moustacho. ​ In 2018, Sana was nominated by Ariane de Rothschild Foundation among 18 social entrepreneurs to become a Fellow and Ambassador of social impact and cross-cultural dialogue. ​ She also appeared on various channels and media; at the Huffington post, Devex, PeopleTV, El Pais, NATO Association, Le Matin, Orange Magazine, Wada7, KAWA, Moustacho… ​ Sana reaches thousands of women and young girls every year and is passionate about challenging societal norms, spark conversions surrounding social taboo and lift the cover on unspoken realities.

My story with glass started in the third year at college when I had studied stained glass with lead, I became Fascinated with the designs of the Glass, this course was the light of inspiration.   After I had graduated from Alexandria university with a bachelor degree of Fine Arts in 2008, I received my master degree in interior design in 2014. Then I decided to become an apprentice in Foustat Traditional Crafts Centre and I have learned at the hands of one of the most skilled masters in the craft of Arabian Stained glass with plaster . My apprenticeship period in Cairo lasted for three months, I studied fused glass at Egyptian Porcelain House.  Always searching for new sources of inspiration and innovation that would shape my creations, I began exploring the artistic, intellectual and cultural history of Islamic design to keep our Islamic heritage . Combining my research with my love for architecture, I made a lot of pieces(Doors,Windows, Ceiling, Skylights, Domes, Mirror, Lighting units). I have successfully transformed the concept of Glass making from a craft to an art and have managed to add a new dimension to the glass art.

Founder of Her Story Matters Harriet is a global change agent, media influencer, an avid writer and the founder of Her Story Matters organization, whose mission is to empower women and offer visibility through events and various media outlets. Her organization offers business coaching to amazing leaders in the areas of startup and leadership. Harriet Khataba is an award-winning Business Development Consultant whose expertise is in Business and Financial Management. Her specialty is with startups and small businesses. Ms. Khataba’s client base consists of UK Government and the Department for International Development (DFID). Her consultancy work involves Project Management, where she worked on both national and international events, such as Nigeria Arise, which is hosted by global governmental officials in London. Ms. Khataba is a regular contributor for various publications and Chief Editor for Her Story magazine, she helps individuals write proposals and edit books. She is a speaker who specializes in topics such as, overcoming your fears, leadership in a changing world and how to use your voice to grow your influence. She has received awards from various organizations, for Inspirational Entrepreneur and Emerging Leader. She also mentors many emerging young leaders and pioneering entrepreneurs.

Kitawa Wemo is a result driven and solutions oriented woman.  She is the Founder & Executive Director of MAMA Ventures.  She started this venture to work with start-ups in Africa to assist them to become profitable and remain sustainable while thinking global. She has designed an entrepreneurship toolkit that helps businesses transition to growth and co-currently runs a social enterprise that educates young people and women in self help groups from rural Kenya on how to access opportunities. She successfully runs a dedicated B2B meet-up and platform for business lovers and owners in Kenya and Sri Lanka called the Mingle to create structures towards the goal of poverty alleviation in Africa. At 26, she is also developing and building strategy for SSA in big data analytics, fintech and artificial intelligence through business intelligence.

Alice was born in Chad and raised in Abidjan and Lille.  She has lived and worked in London and currently resides in Zurich.  She is the Founder and CEO of Ayoka Deco, a platform designed to make the work of young black artists around the world available to everyone.

Evelyn Kasina is driven by a passion to ensure your home and work online space is free of threats. As a parent she understands the dangers that lurk online for minors and is able to balance the need for them to use the Internet to their benefit. As a business woman she keeps up with what is necessary for your maximum output.  She is the Founder & CEO if Eveminet, an African-based social enterprise that specializes in providing ICT solutions tailored for families and educational organisations. She believes that in order for the world to fully capitalize and successfully undertake the Fourth Industrial Revolution, digital skills are compulsory. Her digital learning services provide both children and parents with vital digital skills and knowledge that enables them to effectively live through this digital age.

Charlotte is the CoFounder of OYA Venture. She has a background in accounting and completed her MBA at The Gordon Institute of Business Science at the University of Pretoria in 2015. She is a problem solver with the ability to connect people, ideas and processes to achieve success. Oya aims to broaden the imprint of African female entrepreneurs by facilitating the growth of female-owned businesses that empower others.

Vumile Msweli is CEO of Hesed Consulting, a firm specializing in the African market. She has previously worked for reputable institutions such as Barclays, Investec, Nedbank and Vodafone and successfully led global teams in Africa and Europe. She currently serves as a non-executive director at the South African Association for Youth Clubs (SAAYC) and Diabetes South Africa. Vumile is a coach, conference speaker and media contributor on leadership; women empowerment; finance and business in Africa. She is an entrepreneur having commenced her first venture at 22 years old and now has business interests spanning property; retail; logistics and consulting. Vumile has won several awards including Mail and Guardian Top 200 most influential Young South Africans (2016) and Gauteng Premier Award for Excellence in Leadership (2017).

Marian Karina Nanorki Darlington is is the founder and executive director of Reproductive Justice Agenda, an NGO in Ghana which aims at advocating and protecting reproductive health and rights in Ghana. She is the Director in charge of programmes at the League of young Female Leaders, where girl child education is the focus. She is a mentor at Empower Women, a UN Women initiative and also a Global Champion for Women’s economic empowerment. She is the current Chairperson for ALL, Ghana Chapter.

Vanessa Sanyauke is the Founder and CEO of Girls Talk London, an award winning organisation that has engaged half a million women around the world and directly impacted 1,500 women & girls in the UK. Vanessa is also a speaker, presenter and writer based in London. Vanessa has over a decade of experience advising FTSE 100 businesses on Diversity, Inclusion and Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and policy. Vanessa has worked with over 50 businesses that include The Bank of England, UK Parliament, Facebook, O2, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Barclays, State Street, Salesforce, Vodafone, BT, Ericsson, Allen and Overy, Lloyds Bank, Bauer Media, UBS, RBS Legal, Rabobank, Reed Smith and CMS Cameron McKenna. Vanessa has also been an adviser on Youth Policy to the former UK Prime Minister David Cameron and The former Mayor of London Boris Johnson. In 2018 Vanessa was listed on the 2018 EMpower 50 Ethnic Minority Future Leaders List, presented by the Financial Times and as a Changemaker on the 2018 Evening Standard 1000 most influential Londoners list. That same year she won an award at the 2018 European Diversity Awards for Best Community Project for setting up the pan-industry project, Step into STEM. Her speaking engagements have taken her across the globe at institutions such as The Southbank Centre, Glitz Africa She Summit, UN Women UK, Cosmopolitan Self-Made Summit, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Google UK, City Hall, Institute of Directors and Women in Research UK. Vanessa is a regular visiting lecturer and speaker on Social Entrepreneurship, Corporate Social Responsibility and Diversity and Inclusion for London School of Economics, City University London, Kent Business School, Brunel University and Kings College London. Vanessa has written and featured in publications such as The Guardian, Stylist, The Telegraph, LOOK Magazine, virgin.com, Confederation of British Industry and Entrepreneur Country. The 16th April 2017 Edition of The Style Magazine Sunday Times Supplement listed Vanessa as one of 10 people changing the workplace for women in the UK.

Power Thoughts is a teaching, coaching and mindfulness based service aimed at empowering children to tap into the ‘power’ of their minds. Through our sessions, children as young as five are taught how to become confident, resilient and robust, developing a ‘can-do’ attitude that allows them to flourish both at home and in the classroom.  Created and delivered by me, Natalie Costa, the underlying theme of the programme is to encourage children to develop a growth mindset so they are able to regulate their own thoughts and emotions and know that they have the ‘power’ to choose an alternative state.  A state that is positive, allowing for learning and growth - where they are ultimately moving toward fulfilling their potential.

Ifeyinwa Frederick is the Co-founder of Chuku’s, the Nigerian tapas lounge. With the aim of putting Nigerian cuisine on the UK foodie map, she launched Chuku’s with her older brother Emeka in the summer of 2015.  An avid dancer and lover of the performing arts, her first company was a dance school which she set up when she was just sixteen. She is also the Founder of mental health blog, Grey Matters, a space for those with lived experience of mental illness to share their stories. She is a writer and playwright, with her debut feature The Hoes featuring at the Hampstead Theatre in London.

Siana Bangura is a writer, blogger, public speaker and freelance journalist hailing from South East London. She is an award-winning poet and performer: her debut collection of poetry, ‘Elephant’, was published in May 2016 by the Haus of Liberated Reading. Siana is a producer, working across film and theatre and is currently producing the upcoming film, ‘1500 & Counting’, investigating police brutality and deaths in custody in the UK.  Siana is also the founder and editor of Black Feminist platform, No Fly on the WALL. Having worked with an eclectic array or organisations over the last five years, Siana’s portfolio of work focuses on bringing underrepresented voices from the margins to the centre. Her creative work, extensive writing, and community organising focus on highlighting and centring marginalised voices – like hers – empowering them to take up space and be visible on their own terms. Siana has been recognised by MOBO, The Bookseller, VICE, Dazed, Elle, NU People Magazine, Hustle and Heels, The Voice, True Africa, Buzzfeed, and the BBC, among others, for her powerful voice, conviction, and commitment to working towards meaningful inclusivity and positive change in Britain and beyond. She was nominated for the 2016 Nu People x Hustle and Heels Inspire Award and holds a History degree from the University of Cambridge. Siana is an international public speaker, performing and presenting papers most recently in Germany, Finland, and the Netherlands.

The pursuit of the undiscovered and the passion to present to the word various art forms and artistes with a keen sense of social entrepreneurship, are the driving forces behind Serendipity and Rumana Sinha Sehgal. This multi-talented mother of two young boys, is an Engineer and was a corporate professional with Fortune 500 companies like Oracle & ADP. Rumana turned into an entrepreneur when she started Serendipity in 2012. Rumana was also the Chairperson for the Young wing of Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs of India-Young COWE, supporting and mentoring young women entrepreneurs as they start off on their own. Additionally, she also served on the Executive Board for COWE – the Confederation of Women Entrepreneurs. Rumana’s Serendipity specializes in Papier Mache, Furniture and articles made from recycled products like tyres, 3D art and sculptures made of varied materials like Plaster of Paris, Thermocol, Wood and Fibre Glass. Also interested in the performing arts, her maiden production, Hyderabad Shuffle – a fusion of Jazz Music and Contemporary dance performed in Hyderabad in the summer of 2012. Rumana also does event designing for Corporate, School and private events. The Papier Mache furniture line was showcased at the COWE Trade Carnival in June 2013. Her 3D sculptures are also installed in one of Mumbai’s largest play centres, “Play Around”. She was also a key supporter of the well renowned Dr. Bhaktiar Choudhary’s photography exhibition in aid of “Friends of Snakes Society” at the Muse Art Gallery in Marriott Hyderabad. She has actively contributed towards the social causes for ” Fight Against Rape” HIFW-season 4 and ” Save the Girl Child” at HIFW-2015 as part of their show to support the cause. Over the years, Rumana has focused more on Social Entrepreneurship combined with encouraging young and upcoming artistes as they start their own artistic journeys.    

Sandhya and Sukanya Rao are the Founders of Wikiwear.   Sandhya Rao is an entrepreneur and founder of startup venture, Wikiwear™, that is developing a portfolio of branded apparel. She is also the co-founder of a connected health venture, RedMed Health Systems, with her husband, Jay Srinivasan. She is a qualified engineer from Bangalore University and has been in the apparel industry for over 20 years servicing both the export and domestic markets.   Sandhya is one of the founder members of the Bangalore Chapter of ALL Ladies League, an international organisation of women and is the South India chairperson of the ALL Start-ups Support group.   She is actively involved with NGOs such as Chiguru, which works for girl-child, and the India Literacy Project (ILP), a non-profit, volunteer organization, dedicated to spreading the cause of literacy in India.   Sandhya is a classical Kathak dancer and a disciple of Guru Smt. Vijaya Marthanda, founder-director Layalasya. She is currently also learning to play the violin from Guru Shri. N Ventakesh, who is one of the few people who plays the seven stringed version of the instrument. In her spare time, when she manages to find it, she also dabbles with theater and costume styling for the movies.   Sukanya Rao holds a Master’s degree in Mathematics from Bangalore University,  a diploma in interior designing from Jenson & Nicolson ,a diploma in the Japanese rrt of Ikebana and training in entrepreneurship development from the Indian Institute of Management , Bangalore. She  also has training in Early Childhood Education . While Sukanya started off in the field of healthcare in the late 1990s ,she quickly moved to interior designing where she spent around 3 years managing projects for clients in hospitality and healthcare before she diversified to the field of cost auditing working with her father in his accounting firm Rao , Murthy & Associates. She pursued auditing as a career for about 10 years during which she developed deep knowledge of costing practices and worked with clients in varied industries. Very inquisitive by nature and wanting to avoid run-of-the-mill career options, she later decided to set up her own venture to develop cereal protein bars during which time she worked closely with the Central Food Technology Research Institute for about 2 years. Subsequently, Sukanya to set up her own pre-school in 2009 as a franchisee to the Little Crest chain of Schools . After successfully running the institution for two years she sold her venture to the franchisers and focused on  art with a Passion. She has since pursued advanced courses in art with painting as a specialization at the Ken School of Art, MTV Acharya School of Art and later at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishad(KCKP). She has exhibited her work at KCKP and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Bangalore. She is currently associated with Wikiwear Inc , in building their line of fashionable yoga wear and headgear.

“Innovation does not start with an invention, it starts with a mindset.” Sindu works with this principle and spread the message and tools to adapt innovative mindset and practices in everything starting from education to philanthropy. Having worked in seven different countries and studied in universities in three different countries, Sindu has experienced the benefits and effects of diversity. She writes, speaks, consults and coaches on innovation, Design Thinking, growth mindset, entrepreneurship and education.  She is the CEO of As Many Minds Pte Ltd, which spans its wings in education, publishing, book writing consulting, management consulting and corporate and executive coaching. As Many Minds’ education arm focuses on infusing innovation into education with its products, services and programs for educators, children and schools.   Sindu is also the Chairperson and Founder of International Youth Leadership & Innovation Forum (IYLIF). She is the founding editor of The Kidz Parade edutainment magazine, which promotes creativity and growth mindset in children and education systems. She is the author of the book Infinite Possibilities – Unleash your potential with Growth Mindset and the co-author of Breakthrough – Secrets of growth, happiness and bounce backs from women around the world.  Sindu holds a degree in Computer Science & Engineering, an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and another MBA from National University of Singapore.

Ambar Pariddi  aspires to make Indian Jewels more popular and wearable. Her label, Mine of Design is a luxury design firm dealing in Fine jewelry, Fashion accessories and Festive Favors. Catering to exclusive segment of market fulfilling the needs of the customer pertaining to adorning or gifting luxury.  She specializes in well-constructed jewelley that makes a statement and tells the world about her client’s unique style. Her conceptualized designs are aimed at unveiling the mystical power in the stones and truly make her motivated to create jewelry. As the Creative Head of Mine of Design Ambar PariddiSahai credits her instinctive attraction to the universe of natural stones and elements which inspire her to create a range of lustrous impulse. Mine of Design jewelery is featured in Hindi feature film “Fashion”, music video by French artist Ana Belle and Jewellery for Mrs India 2008 Madhvi Awasthi for Mrs Globe Awards.

  Sonny Mohanty is a Graduate from University of Westminster London.  After graduation she worked with Telco, IT, and Fintech companies in various roles. She is now an entrepreneur who helps companies scale up. Sonny is currently doing active sales for a translation and localization company called into23.com, based out of Singapore. Besides that, she is the solution director for a Cloud based company called DROOTOO. In her free time she likes doing Karate and holds an orange black belt.

  Seema is the CEO and Founder of Varastraa, which stems from the little ethnic pockets found amidst the chaotic colour and diversity of India.  She seeks inspiration by going back to our roots; using beautiful local textiles combined with skilled artistry and natural dyes.From sarees made of textured Matka silk, spun in the small districts of West Bengal to the lines of unique handmade block prints of Rajasthan, our products celebrate the vibrancy of ethnic design.  Varastraa aims to be a dukaan that you can keep visiting, to find something new and beautiful to make your own!

Jigna Shah is a graduate from NIFT and a renowned fashion designer, her panorama meadows into Indo-Western and Western outfits.  Her range offers a diffusion of unique & rich textiles, designs, colour combinations & embroideries – evolving heritage of the past to the present and future. She is the Founder of the High End Designer House, Reve located  in Ahmedabad, India.

As the World’s First Image Scientist, Dr. Kuiljeit Uppaal has brought India on the global map in the Science of Persona and Image Management (PRIM). She has explored and determined diverse dimensions of the subject area, defined and created novel concepts, employed scientific research methodologies and empirical testing for the subject. Her scientific research and contribution has paved way for PRIM to be an integral part of Entrepreneurship Education and Management Training which shall eventually impact our economy.   Dr. Kuiljeit has also introduced her invention as a gift to the world. The world’s first ever, scientifically driven new age quotient – PIQ, Persona & Image Quotient that helps to understand various elements of our image as individuals and identifies the scope for improvement, so that we can make a larger impact and become more effective to meet global challenges. PIQ is a great invention for the world in this digital era to help people evaluate, control and manage their in-person impressions and digital footprints. PIQ also emerges as a convenient way for employers to screen job applicants from any part of the world for their probable ability to build a personal brand and become an influencer in their area of expertise.   She has also created a National Award winning innovative concept like D-PRIM that is very relevant and critical in today’s digital era and dynamism, for the growth and success of individuals and organizations.

Bhavini Mehta is founder and CEO of both Infinity Business Solutions and Publishbook.me. She is a contemporary entrepreneur who is building both endeavours by empowering and lifting people around her. Right out of college, with an undergraduate degree from Christ College and an MBA from AESPG Institute of Management Ahmedabad, she entered the corporate world with HDFC Bank Ltd. and quickly found it was not for her. Her first entrepreneurial ventures include a loan channel partner company with both HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank. Along with her entrepreneurial spirit is a strong belief that women are able to achieve at least everything a man can and much more. Incorporating a sense of realism into her beliefs is that in nearly every woman’s professional life comes a time to plan a family. Bhavini faced that situation herself. Thence came a motivating factor in her life to seeking to create a workspace conducive to all women in that special time of their lives. Her business focuses on employing work-from-home mothers and women students who need financial support to complete their education. “There is an opportunity for everyone, you must be vigilant to grab those” is her mantra for life and her advice for all. She has taken the outsourcing industry – which encompasses both of her current ventures – to employ people (now both women and men) from around the world to serve clients who, likewise, are from around the world. This concept took off for her when at the response to her presentation at a conference where she discussed her beliefs that people could well be free to work from home or anywhere else, move among departments, and learn to work on different projects. When she was finished, people flooded to her to ask for a business card and wanting to know more … people who became both clients and part of her workforce! Strong in her beliefs, she rejected funding to grow her business because with the investment would have come the requirement that her employees could not work from home and had to follow specific working hours. Infinity Business Solutions is a shared services outsourcing firm providing services such as bookkeeping, payroll process, Website Development, Integrated marketing, and other specialized IT services. Using today’s technology, such services may be provided by specialists who live half a world away from the client. Publishbook.me came about as one of Infinity’s services that grew to have its own needed set of specialists, such as writers, editors, designers, marketers, etc. Both firms are flourishing.

Mrs. Sheila Kripalani is the Director of Pijikay Group of Companies. Chair, Board of Trustees, Habitat for Humanity, India. Managing Trustee of Grace International. Board Member of Terry Fox (India) Committee. Vice Chair and Hon. Treasurer of Bombay Teen Challenge, an NGO that prevents trafficking and rescues sex workers and their children. Past President of Indian Merchants’ Chamber (Ladies Wing). Recipient of the Asia Pacific Nehemiah Award for volunteer service towards eradication of poverty housing. Sheila is an Honours Graduate with a major in English Literature.

  Mrs. Kavitha M.Prakash has made an enormous versatile transition, from being a content housewife to a freelance Corporate Trainer, as circumstances unfolded in the past 14 years. She was associated with UNICEF as a volunteer member for their child welfare projects, in addition to, being an Educational Consultant for World Book International, USA. She is a person who expands her horizon and takes to people like fish to water. She is a stickler to the adage - ‘ Minds are like umbrellas, they work only when they are open’. Her commitment is backed by the support garnered from her family and friends. She holds a Master degree in Mathematics and English. She started off her stint with children as the Secretary of Chinmaya Mission Balavihar (A lifeskills and culture platform for children) and moved on to become a soft skills trainer for companies like Infosys, Accenture, L nT, E&Y, RIIIT, Nestle, AT&S, Administrative Training Institute, Business establishments and Startups  besides many  reputed schools in Mysore  and Bangalore.  Her own outfit is called ‘OASIS’, which works towards ‘Redefining Transitions,’ provides consultancy and event management solutions.   Apart from being on the Panel of Trainers of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India’s chapters based in several cities, also serves as a consistent guest faculty for the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, Mysore Chapter.  She is also the Regional Coordinator and Master Trainer for MaRRS International Spelling Bee Competitions, which covers most reputed schools in India.

Dr Ruby Bakshi Khurdi is TEDx International Award winning Speaker in Women Economic Forum, Professor, Social Entrepreneur, Global Goodwill Ambassador. She is the Founder of Réseau Inter Culturel des Femmes, Conseillére Communale Rennaz. She has received Exceptional Woman of Excellence Award at Women Economic Forum, Lisbon. She has been nominated Most Inspirational Female Entrepreneur of 2017 by Swiss Entrepreneur Magazine. She is a Role Model and Mentor to International students from Business and Hospitality Management Colleges.   Her family and two kids have always been her first priority in life!!She firmly believes Education & Communication are strong pillars in developing a progressive nation. She has given various successful workshops & podcasts on topics related to Effective Communication, Human Values, Women Empowerment & Emotional Intelligence. Her objective for 2019 is to create more awareness about her social projects, organize inspiring educational sessions and train more like-minded people across the Globe!

Senela Jayasuriya-Abeynaike is the Founder & CEO of Women Empowered Global.  She is a Transformation specialist, Leadership trainer and an Executive coach and has held many positions in leadership and strategy both in the corporate sector as well as in the service and advocacy domain. She is a Director at the McQuire Group of Companies and has trained teams for some of the biggest multinational and public listed companies in the country. Senela has always been an avid believer that women can make a unique social and economic impact and contribution to society and the world.  Through her longtime dream Women Empowered®, she offers specially designed leadership grooming courses and services for women of all ages, in order to facilitate women to rise to board positions and positions of influence, where they can make a bigger and more meaningful impact for self, the business and society.     Senela received the prestigious WEF17 Award of “Iconic Women Creating a Better World for All” at the Annual Women Economic Forum 2017.  Senela was appointed as an Advisory Executive Council Member and session lead speaker and made a special address under the AEC plenary “Understanding the Century of Social Media and Personal Branding”. Her expertise are in Business, Marketing & Brand Communications, Strategy, Presentation & Public speaking, Personal branding & personality development, Executive coaching and Customer Service.  Her greatest pride is that she is a mother to a beautiful six year old daughter. Senela has many versatile leisure interests and enjoys travelling, music and photography which she explores during her spare time.

My name is Vayjayanti Pugalia, I am a Corporate Trainer for Etiquette and Fine Dining.  My brand of work Sonali’s Cubo does vivid soft skills/Culinary /Speech Therapy workbench for children and women. SONALIS CUBO I have been working very closely with children over the last 15 year.I believe discipline is what makes the ground for success.I am very proud to share that i have my own tower of accomplishment when it comes to teaching soft skills and etiquettes to children.I have been very fortunate to work with children from ace schools and institutions towards imparting manners and fine dining techniques to make them into finer human beings. Besides working with children i have been able to share my expertise with women and corporates ,guiding them through finesse and perfection related to fine dining/ networking strengths/fine dining etc. TABLE TAILOR (TT)  As a Founder of TT I emphasize on highlighting emotions on the table on festive occasions and more.  I believe one tastes food with eyes then through the palette.  Being a table stylist is my passion and my inclination towards ravishing food presentation. Brand Coordinator I am the Workshop and Guidance Coordinator for BOWTIE FORMALS, a brand of BOWTIE &CO.   As A Philanthropist In the process of working with children what intrigued me was their innocence and the ability to receive knowledge and share gratitude. Hence Sonali’s Cubo came into working with philanthropic subjects with the motto being ‘children for children’.Children unite to raise funds for the much deserving souls. I take keen interest in working with children for Community Service because i believe this will pave a way wholesome development of a family ,a community ,a nation. At Sonalis Cubo besides catering to life style based workshops i encourage children to serve for the society in their own small way. These young souls aged 3 onwards have executed many projects to support education to deserving children and also raised funds for food and other utilities.

Harsha Garg is a speaker, trainer and a life-wealth coach. With her positive spirit and inspiring message, Harsha empowers audiences and readers to live wealth conscious life and develop mastery of holistic wealth. Harsha impacts a range of organisations in the corporate, government, education and non-profit sectors. By adapting the mentality, discipline and rituals of gym workouts, she imparts her 3Ws of holistic wealth: Self-Wealth, People-Wealth and Financial-Wealth. She has a rich professional experience of 14 years in industries including retail banking, investment banking research, logistics, IT and life transformational trainings. She has received her B.Com (Hons.) from SRCC, Delhi University, and hold two post-graduation degrees, a master in commerce (Finance) and a post-graduate diploma in Insurance and Risk Management.

Driven by a strong business mindset since childhood, Anila, a national level gymnast, was raised in Karachi, the cosmopolitan fashion hub of the East. Her zest for knowledge led her to become a Pan American and AMI Montessori Educator, settled in Geneva for over 15 years with her family having three children.. Alongside her teaching role, Anila’s formative years were spent pursuing fashion styling consultancy in Switzerland. Her presence in the world of fashion and glamour in Europe led to SHENANNZ becoming an international brand, where she serves as the brand’s global Ambassador. Anila currently oversees the showcasing of SHENANNZ’s couture collection in Europe across fashion events and platforms such as Montreux Moda Switzerland, London Fashion week, House of iKons and Swiss Fashion week Manor, Vevey and Globus Geneva.   Anila is committed to emancipation and empowerment of impoverished women, by fostering their creativity to create sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families. Her dream is to spread the message of gender equality through entrepreneurship and education, across the world.

Andrea is a social entrepreneur with a passion for empowering vulnerable people, she co-founded in 2006 ACT Training Services, a London-based social enterprise to provide employability skills to people who were out of work and seeking to secure sustainable employment. Over the years our company has trained some 6,000 people free at the point of delivery, enabling them to gain marketable qualifications and develop competencies that position them to move into employment or start their own business.   In 2013 Andrea co-founded Camptys Foundation: a not-for-profit organisation that supports front-line organisations working with disabled people across the world - enhancing their learning, play and health. With the help of people in the community and sporadic pots of funding we have managed for many years to send gifts of books, toys, clothing and accessories to disabled children and their families residing in developing countries.  Andrea is a published author of two books as well as the inventor of the Pocket Learner, an educational development system geared primarily towards the support of children deemed slow learners and those with special educational needs. This invention has gained many accolades and has provided a launchpad for Andrea’s professional speaking career as she seeks to empower those families who are caring for a child with cognitive disabilities like she does.  Andrea has a flair for languages and is a professional Spanish-English interpreter and translator.

Jennifer has  been in business and management since the age of 18, bringing a wealth of experience and intuition to her work with inspired entrepreneurs.  She has been known for turning struggling businesses around to achieve multi-million pound turnover and has secured high end contracts with government for one particular company. She has the ability to see where changes can be made to improve the bottom line by putting people before profit and seeing profit actually increase. Jennifer is passionate about building a thriving community of inspired business owners who are awakening to the gift and power that they have to cause change in the world by doing what they love.  Her role is to help them stop any struggle or overwhelm and to find clarity and direction on their business vision.  She offers coaching services that will give them the tools and inspiration to take action right away to develop a love-based business that supports their lifestyle and celebrates their life purpose, while they do their valuable work. Jennifer also runs Business Love – London, a highly popular, monthly networking and mastermind club. She is the founder of The Business Love Conference held yearly in the spring.  Jennifer is a divorcee/widow who loves music, cooking, reading, going to the movies.  She adores her two amazing children, who are now young men, living the dream on the West coast of the US.  She currently lives in London and has fabulous clients all over the world. Website: Twitter:

Lorlett Hudson is a multi-award winning Entrepreneur, Inventor, Motivational Teacher, Seminar Leader, and Executive Leadership Coach; with excellent development, innovative, planning, strategic thinking, training and facilitating initiating abilities. Lorlett is passionate about helping people to strategically navigate uncertainties and to build confidence in themselves and others.   She set up One Hand Cant Clap in 2000 as a  Highly Focused Learning and Development Enterprise serving leaders; drawing on the rich philosophical significance of culture and Jamaican proverbs in her training. Lorlett is also commonly known as The ‘What Next’’ Coach and the inventor of the critically acclaimed multi-award winning “Things Mama Used To Say”, a 52 card box set of Jamaican proverbs to develop creative people, deliver diversity training, build creative cultures, facilitate culture change and develop high performing teams.   Exploiting many creative angles to support the continued development of Britain’s rich cultural heritage and enterprise infused with that of the Caribbean, Lorlett has developed and designed a series of leadership development workshops, seminars, road-shows, Black History events, residential learning retreats, and proverb parties. In delivering to delegates, Lorlett has succeeded in bridging cultures, nurturing ties between different generations, and trained many individuals to generate new businesses and make a difference. Her pioneering approach has resulted in her winning the Silver Award of the prestigious British Female Inventors & Innovators Awards 2005, Wavemakers National Award 2006, twice runner up in the National Training Awards 2008/2010.She is a Cherie Blair Foundation Business Mentor and also a Member of Courvoisier The Future 500 top talents in the UK. A member of The 100black plus Achievers in the UK, Listed in ‘’Profile of Excellence Book’’ – Strategies for Extraordinary Achievement from 25 years of Interviewing Remarkable People People – Ian Boyne and Glenford Smith, Jamaica 2013.

Ifeyinwa Frederick is the Co-founder of Chuku’s, the Nigerian tapas lounge. With the aim of putting Nigerian cuisine on the UK foodie map, she launched Chuku’s with her older brother Emeka in the summer of 2015.  An avid dancer and lover of the performing arts, her first company was a dance school which she set up when she was just sixteen. She is also the Founder of mental health blog, Grey Matters, a space for those with lived experience of mental illness to share their stories. She is a writer and playwright, with her debut feature The Hoes featuring at the Hampstead Theatre in London.

My name is Charla and I am the founder and owner of a culinary website called That Girl Cooks Healthy. In Early 2014 I decided to make the plunge to set up my very own website. Since I was a little girl I was always obsessed with cooking, often helping my mother and grandmother in the kitchen - a curious child I was. As I transitioned into womanhood I started become more aware of diet and nutrition. Coming from an African-Caribbean heritage where diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and renal ailments are rife, I wanted to revamp the whole concept of Caribbean cuisine. Many people seem to believe that Island cooking has to be traditional even the unhealthy aspects of it. Nowadays many people are suffering from food intolerance which often comprises the cultural upbringing leaving them to feel limited with options. My website is exclusively gluten and dairy free recipes (Caribbean and otherwise) where I teach people how to cook recipes omitting gluten and with using plant based milk. Ultimately the aim is to transfer my skills to others in order to empower them to cook with confidence in the kitchen. Website: FaceBook: Twitter: Instagram:

Ashanti Bentil-Dhue worked in finance for 5 years before becoming a food business consultant. She is now a Food Business Podcast host and Virgin Start Up Mentor.  Ashanti thoroughly enjoys connecting women in the food business by hosting networking events for food entrepreneurs and welcoming them into the global facebook community. ​You can can get food business tips by listening to Ashanti's Women In Food Podcast show on itunes and soundcloud. Website:  https://foodpreneur-collective.teachable.com/

Janet Brown is a life coach for women in business who want to pursue their health and well being goals. She is really passionate about health, as it’s a dream ticket to living life at optimum levels. She has made transformation changes in her own well being and continues to do so. She encourages women to take charge of their goals and give themselves self love.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Perla Sofía is the founder of Agrochic.com, a blog in Spanish, about gardening and urban agriculture. A well known journalist and media contributor in the Island, she found her niche, since 2009, to promote wellness and a healthy lifestyle through sharing trends, ideas and references on what to garden in your home and patio. She is an educator, mentor, mediapreneur and a hip stepmom of two young ladies. Website: https://linktr.ee/agrochic Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/agrochic/

Carey-Lee Dixon describes herself as ‘The Girl With a Knack for Life’ who enjoys working on being the best version of herself and helping others to grow while living purposefully. Carey-Lee, who isn’t afraid to DREAM BIG and believes in living a life without limits has a passion for living a purposeful life where personal growth, career advancement and women empowerment is a passion of hers. In 2012, Carey-Lee founded and introduced For Women to Women which is grew from being a blog into a community designed for purpose-driven, career-oriented and entrepreneurial 20-30-something-year-old women, who want to continually elevate themselves both in their personal and professional lives. Having seen and experienced the benefits of bonding aligning herself with powerful and like-minded women, Carey-Lee hopes women will glean from the mission of For Women to Women as she fosters a culture for women to enhance the lives of each other – by exposing women to tools for growth while presenting refreshingly, raw and honest conversations; and shared life experiences and lessons. She has been named Women’s Entrepreneur Day, Jamaica Youth Ambassador for 2015.

Nedgine is the co-founder and CEO of Anseye Pou Ayiti, which seeks to raise education outcomes in rural Haiti by promoting teacher excellence and student success—rooted in Haitian culture, customs, and community. She has experience in the non-profit sector with an emphasis on promoting equal educational opportunities for all children. Nedgine earned a B.A. in History from Yale College and an Ed.M. in International Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In 2014, she was named among the top global social innovators by Echoing Green. She is passionate about joining forces with others to continue pursuing her deep commitment to the expansion of high-quality educational opportunity in Haiti.

Nerissa Golden is an award-winning media strategist, business coach and author. She is the Founder  and CEO of Golden Media. Her days are spent creating content for multiple platforms and/or teaching clients how to make the most of digital spaces to tell their story.

As a young model in New York City, Nydia Norville quickly discovered the toll that urban living can take on our skin - and spirit. Seeking a solution to chronically dry and troubled skin, brought on by the frantic pace of city dwelling, she found that the remedies recommended to her featured lengthy lists of synthetic ingredients and chemicals not found in nature and only seemed to exacerbate her concerns. At the other end of the spectrum, the more natural “ back to the earth” alternatives left much to be desired, aesthetically speaking, and didn’t appeal to her modern sensibilities and appreciation for understated elegance.  Thus began her journey of discovery into the potent powers of natural botanicals and a passion for formulating nature based skincare solutions that were, at once, effective, aesthetically pleasing and elegantly packaged.

St Lucian entrepreneur Taribba do Nascimento started her bag design business ‘Meme Bete’ as a side project while working in Ethiopia and drawing inspiration from the colour and vibrancy of Africa and African prints.  The company currently operates out of a small workshop in St. Lucia in the Caribbean where lunch hours are typically spent on the beach. The purpose: même bête..., aims to put St. Lucia on the map as a viable contributor to the global fashion industry.

Dr. Crystal Benjamin is the witty relationship educator and CEO of Enriched Life Limited, the premier relationship education company in the Caribbean. Dr. Benjamin has been working with individuals, couples, families and groups for over 8 years and has a profound understanding of family science and the skills needed to foster healthy relationships.  Through facilitating workshops, coaching and counselling clients she has witnessed lives being transformed in as little as one session; her clients have been able to successfully overcome negative relationship cycles, implement personal boundaries, identify unique skills, take steps to improve their marriage and pursue happiness.

Generontologist and Managing Director of the Global Senior Care Institute, Simone has a combined experience of nursing, training and leadership. She has a diploma in gerontology from the London School.of Science & Management, a BSc in Nursing and holds multiple certificates. Global Senior Care Institute offers Home Care Services, Geriatric Training and Mental Health Counselling. They equip their clients, family members and caregivers with the necessary knowledge and skills to optimise healthcare for the ageing.

Abi Begho (nee Ajose-Adeogun) is the Director and Public Health Project Manager here at Lake Health and Wellbeing. She manages all our projects and the day-to-day running of this small not-for-profit company. She holds a BSc. in Medical Biochemistry from the University of Birmingham, a MSc. in Clinical Biochemistry with Molecular Biology from the University of Surrey and a Masters in Public Health from King’s College.  She started her career in the pharmaceutical industry working firstly for the biotech company, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and after four years at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Abi accepted a position at the multinational Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis where she worked as a Scientific Associate at the Novartis Horsham Research Centre in West Sussex. After five years of working in the pharmaceutical industry Abi decided to explore a different side of research by becoming a Scientific Programme Manager at the National Cancer Research Institute based at Cancer Research UK and then after the project came to an end, Abi worked for Ovarian Cancer Action as a Healthcare Project Manager, has acted as a consultant for charities such as Paul’s Cancer Support Centre and returned to Cancer Research UK to work on their Health Professional Engagement Facilitator programme. Abi founded The Lake Foundation in 2013 to address the health inequalities that exist in the UK. She relocated to the beautiful twin island state of St Kitts and Nevis (where her mother is from) at the end of 2017 and reformed The Lake Foundation as Lake Health and Wellbeing in St Kitts in February 2018.

Sandra is a Sales and Marketing professional with over 10 years of industry experience, during 4 of which she managed her own event planning agency simultaneously. Today, she manages her own Marketing Agency, Encounter Marketing & Public Relations (EMPR) where develops and executes strategies and partnerships to help elevate the presence of small to mid-size businesses and non-profits.   Prior to becoming a full-time entrepreneur, Sandra was part of the Marketing Solutions team at Clear Channel Outdoor where she helped with the strategic development of marketing programs that merchandised data driven products for use by sales to grow revenue. Before Clear Channel, she held a Product Marketing and Digital role at Time Warner Cable Media where she implemented digital strategies and go-to-market plans that differentiated the brand from the competition as a Product Marketing expert for all digital products: Online, Mobile, Social, Search, Addressable, and Video On Demand. Prior to returning to TWC Media, she spent time at PEOPLE.com where she worked on long-term marketing plans for advertisers, integrated deals with PEOPLE Magazine and PEOPLE Stylewatch Magazine. Before PEOPLE.com, she worked at CNNMoney.com, the financial website for CNN and the online destination for FORTUNE Magazine and Money Magazine.   Identifying as an Afro-Latina from Honduras and cognizant of the group’s underrepresentation and the impact it had on her self-identification process growing up, Sandra birthed a passion project, Afro-LatinaBeauty.com. An online destination for stories of other Afro-Latinas, and a place to see and hear from others sharing the same intercultural experience. Sandra is the current NY Chapter President of N.A.M.I.C (National Association of Multi-ethnicity In Communications), sits on the Board of Influencers for Digital Diversity Network (DDN), and the Young Leaders Board for America Needs You. Sandra was a Forbes 30 Under 30 2016 finalist, and in 2012 was awarded by Latino Leaders Magazine, a Top 25 Future Latino Leader (ages 25-35).     Website: https://www.encountermpr.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandragarcialowery Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandy_garlow/?hl=en

As a brand strategist, Tasha strives to highlight her client's unique features online (website copy + social media) and offline, through events. She started her marketing career serving as social media and community manager for several organizations including nonprofit Empowering Youth Towards Excellence and the Temple University Alumni Association in LA.  Tasha is a  Temple University graduate that leverages her solid skills in the television, film and theater industries. She's lent her expertise in production roles for major networks (NBC, ABC, Travel Channel and Food Network), as well as short and feature films.  She understands how a strong social media presence enhances a brand's awareness and their event.  She is a marketer by heart, with a strong love for events and technology. Website: https://www.benchmarkcreativegroup.com/ FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/thebcgnyc Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebcgnyc/ Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/thebcgnyc

  I was born an entrepreneur with an internal locus pushing me forward to start a business, even as a child I dreamed of starting up a small business venture. I used to come up with some ideas on how to convince my friends and neighbourhood kids to buy my slightly used toys, comic books and chips.  After obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration in 1993 and marrying my husband who is an engineer, I decided to take the plunge and all the risks that go with it, and I started a small importing and distribution business in 1995/1996. My firm imports and distributes paper, printing products and equipment, medical supplies, chemicals and textile materials. There are 2 employees and my husband and I primarily manage the assets.  My market is the private sector and government.  The use of computer technology has helped to make the company more efficient in terms of quick communication and response time to orders or inquiries. With the support of my husband and family, I have been able to establish and maintain an extensive network of customers to reach our market. In the first few years the challenges involved how to use formal scientific and management processes to bring about innovation. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yvette-mazariegos-543b74112

Dr Ruby Bakshi Khurdi is TEDx International Award winning Speaker in Women Economic Forum, Professor, Social Entrepreneur, Global Goodwill Ambassador. She is the Founder of Réseau Inter Culturel des Femmes, Conseillére Communale Rennaz. She has received Exceptional Woman of Excellence Award at Women Economic Forum, Lisbon. She has been nominated Most Inspirational Female Entrepreneur of 2017 by Swiss Entrepreneur Magazine. She is a Role Model and Mentor to International students from Business and Hospitality Management Colleges.   Her family and two kids have always been her first priority in life!!She firmly believes Education & Communication are strong pillars in developing a progressive nation. She has given various successful workshops & podcasts on topics related to Effective Communication, Human Values, Women Empowerment & Emotional Intelligence. Her objective for 2019 is to create more awareness about her social projects, organize inspiring educational sessions and train more like-minded people across the Globe!

Driven by a strong business mindset since childhood, Anila, a national level gymnast, was raised in Karachi, the cosmopolitan fashion hub of the East. Her zest for knowledge led her to become a Pan American and AMI Montessori Educator, settled in Geneva for over 15 years with her family having three children.. Alongside her teaching role, Anila’s formative years were spent pursuing fashion styling consultancy in Switzerland. Her presence in the world of fashion and glamour in Europe led to SHENANNZ becoming an international brand, where she serves as the brand’s global Ambassador. Anila currently oversees the showcasing of SHENANNZ’s couture collection in Europe across fashion events and platforms such as Montreux Moda Switzerland, London Fashion week, House of iKons and Swiss Fashion week Manor, Vevey and Globus Geneva.   Anila is committed to emancipation and empowerment of impoverished women, by fostering their creativity to create sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families. Her dream is to spread the message of gender equality through entrepreneurship and education, across the world.

Alice was born in Chad and raised in Abidjan and Lille.  She has lived and worked in London and currently resides in Zurich.  She is the Founder and CEO of Ayoka Deco, a platform designed to make the work of young black artists around the world available to everyone.

I'm Sophie Charlotte - Confidence Coach for Women on a Mission. I'm highly committed to living my life to the fullest and becoming the best version of myself so I can die a happy woman. I don't believe in regrets, I believe in taking life into my owns hands and turning it into a frikkin' masterpiece. Helping you do the same is my greatest joy!

As the founder of All Personal, I help individuals (re)discover and work-out their personal skills ‘muscles’, so they increase their self-awareness and improve their confidence, impact, relationships and, ultimately, quality of life. I train and coach professionals and teams on practical techniques that they can easily apply in any area of their life, with a strong focus on communication (verbal and non-verbal), change, feedback, presenting & speaking, team & self management, teamwork, leadership, coaching & mentoring. My podcast series, All Personal, turns the good old saying ‘nothing personal, just business’ upside down, and proves that, in fact, it’s all personal, nothing is just business. Because it’s all about those personal skills that we bring to the table every day, and which can make the difference between us feeling successful or maybe not very much so. I am also a Mentoring Coach with George Brown College in Toronto, a TEDx speaker, a certified coach and trainer, and a Learning & Development professional. I hold a diploma in Learning & Development and a certificate in Human Resources from the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development in the UK, as well as a Master of Arts in Knowledge, Information and Project Management from the University of Bucharest, Romania.

As a coach, TEDx speaker, and author, Rachel is dedicated to help ambitious people who live abroad to gain clarity, find connections so that they can feel in control and energized to succeed abroad, and enjoy their new surroundings. In 2003, Rachel started her expat life in Spain. Learning about other people and experiencing different cultures is her passion, and she is thrilled to be living the life she has chosen for herself and deeply enjoys helping others by sharing her experiences. Striving, sure, social and sportive, she keeps her mind & body in balance by exercising daily, either running outside or lifting weights at the gym. Rachel enjoys motivating and inspiring people to become the person they want to be. Website: Twitter: FaceBook: Instagram:

Iva loves life and personal growth. Her mission is to impact, inspire and help passionate ambitious women and visionary leading men to change their dreams into reality and teach them how to use the law of attraction in their life to achieve their personal, professional and financial goals and most important to love themselves to live the lives of their dreams! Iva motivates and inspires by sharing her story in a straightforward style together with reflections and exercises.  She experienced that the Law of Attraction really exists and that it operates in every moment of our lives. Most importantly, she knows how it works and how to apply it, the steps that are needed. As a result, she finally created the life of her dreams.   She is mother of two daughters, born in Egypt, of Czech origin and has been living in the Netherlands for more than 24 years. She worked in different management areas such as sales, export and procurement. She is an example of a single mother living abroad who has achieved a career in higher management in a masculine technical world. She studied mechanical engineering and after many challenges in her life she finally found her purpose in life, to help and inspire people all over the world. Her first book called Sanguine-love shows how you can overcome life´s challenges and how you can find your true sanguine-love. She is also an author of e-book ” Love your life, love yourself ” and co-author of the best selling book, The voices of 21st century.

Anna is an author, speaker and radio presenter.  She is passionate about mentoring women to find clarity and fulfilment in their life choices. She created and became CEO of her first company in the entertainment industry at age 32. Midlife approaching, hungry for a dynamic change, she refocused her experience, founding WomenUP Ltd to help women shape their own future. She is the creator of the 'SCOPE' and '4Fs' processes for career, fulfilment and holistic success. Author of ‘Unstoppable Goddess: Every Women’s Guide to Freedom, Fulfilment and Success’. She is also a UN Women's 2016-2017 Global Champion for Change.

In 2008 I graduated magna cum laude with highest honors from Harvard, where I studied French literature and sixteenth-century history. I thought I would be doing that for my entire life. But I was also really passionate about making a difference in my community.  So while studying, I started a program to provide the homeless with direct access to resources in the only student-run shelter in the country. I won the Houston and Ames awards at Harvard for individual leadership and change to the community. It changed my ideas about the impact I wanted to have on the world. To complete my studies, I went on to receive my Masters in International Political Economy from Sciences Po and the London School of Economics because I thought the value of my work would be maximized by working for an international organization. My work on gender and equality started at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, where I learned that no investment project was gender neutral. I became convinced of the fact we lived in a crucial era in which we had to create proactive measures to create equality or else it would never emerge itself. It was the experience that gave me the impulse to do more, but in my own way. I  later created the non-profit organization Led By HER which empowers women who have suffered from violence through entrepreneurship. Creating Led By HER was a way to give different forms of entrepreneurship a voice, and to raise a new form of awareness about gender based violence.

If you want to wish me my birthday, I was born November 3, 1987 in Montpellier. Yes, I am a girl from the south, do not rely on the tan (or the obvious lack of tanning). I wanted to be a florist, then a magician, then a psychologist, then an ethnologist, then a stylist ... to say that my professional project was not very clear. I graduated from Political Science in Lyon and then moved to Sydney, where I lived and worked for a year. I went back to the university in Strasbourg where I did a master's degree in international relations and European studies.I have never worked in this field, nor in any of the above. I had the opportunity during my years of study and job search to be administrative assistant, hostess, waitress in weddings (aha!), Communication assistant, saleswoman in a French pastry shop -German, to distribute flyers (sometimes disguised as a Christmas tree) and even condoms, to make organic smoothies and to give French lessons to German and Spanish. These jobs, often underpaid, taught me to overcome my shyness and although I was not always happy during these times, I finally realized that the ideal job would not fall on me but that I had to build it myself. At that moment, at the end of 2013, I won a photography contest, and little by little I considered this activity as something other than a hobby. I had for a long time compacts and film cameras. I started to spend my days training ... Even when I was bored at work. And then as I evolved, I left my job as an hostess in a company, I had a project for myself finally.  To summarize, I am 30 years old, I have some tattoos and I am always ready for a new trip.I'm addicted to Netflix, chocolate and social networks like many people of my generation. I love all places invaded by nature, but I'm afraid it's also a counter-blow of the Parisian lifestyle, or the old age, I do not know. I love cinema and I love images, I watch the work of other creatives for hours, on the internet or in museums.  I like to use photography to express a lot of things, not just about marriage!  I like traveling more than anything.I am involved, especially for women's rights, and I am interested in all social issues (except sport), which can be useful during family meals. And I have a sense of humor, well, I think. FaceBook: Instagram: Website:

I left my finance job in 2015 to launch Silkarmour, an online platform created to cater to every possible fashion need of the modern career woman. At Silkarmour, we believe that the process of dressing for work should become like a morning ritual that prepares you to become the best possible version of yourself for the day ahead.  In retrospect, having spent my childhood moving between many different countries (my parents travelled for business) and being exposed to new situations, definitely helped in the jump from a stable job to starting a business; it is not much unlike having to learn a new language in a foreign country. Although the company is still very young, the support from our customers has been so encouraging. I think now more than ever (especially after the election of Trump), women are recognising the need to rebalance the scales in the corporate world and beyond. We need to take our seats at the table, but on our terms - simply becoming copies of men would defeat the point. To do this, we need the women who are out there breaking the glass ceiling to be able to do so with confidence and ease, whilst unapologetically being their already powerful and beautiful selves. I also  recently also founded Empress Mimi, a subscription lingerie box celebrating self-love by delivering a personalised experience every month straight to your door. I speak 5 languages and holds a degree from UCL. I am passionate about empowering women through mentorship.

Nuria Fernandez is the founder of VALady, a Bilingual Virtual Assistant offering online business support including Inbound Marketing to business owners and small companies. Born in London but raised in Barcelona, she moved back to London in 1991. After achieving a degree on BA (Hons) Business Studies, she began her professional career working for Blue Chip companies alongside with top executives and gaining a great deal of knowledge, experience, dedication as well as the personality needed to be able to provide the level of expertise required to start her own business.  Her clients include phycologists, music organisers, business coaches and artists. Thanks to her bilingual skills, some of these clients are based in Europe.  Nuria credits the success of her company to the fact that as a business person herself, she understands the pressures and multiple demands her clients need. As she believes she is an entrepreneur just like her own clients.  Nuria is married to a music producer and has one son. When she is not working on her business (which is rarely) she loves going out with her family and friends to have fun as well as meeting other entrepreneurs to exchange experiences and ideas.   Website: Twitter: FaceBook:

Dina is a Yemeni with a degree in Chemistry, a license in accounting and an international computer license.  She is an innovator having created a natural cosmetics line, and plant compounds that are particularly effective in activating the cells of the immune system. She has also prepared vitamins for the use of cornial ulcers. Dina has received multiple awards from Yemen, Thailand, the Arab League, South Korea, Germany and the UNDP.  Her current business is a natural inspired cosmetics line.

I'm Maya Avidov, I'm an all-round filmmaker (I write/direct, shoot and produce) with over 9 years of experience.  Before going to film school I went to art school (mostly practising Photography and Printmaking)- though something always felt missing.   Then one day, whilst I was watching a film, I had the (somewhat simple) realization that what had been missing from my photographs was movement. And text. And from then on it was like a light turned on and I started my real work.   ​I moved to London in 2012 and founded my production company Darling Pictures in 2014. I created Darling Pictures with the objective that it be a production home for unique content that pushes the boundaries of genre and method to create original, engaging entertainment. Our company motto is : Everything's interesting if your bold enough to engage. We create online content as well as short and long films (fictional & documentary). Amongst our clients are HTC, The British Library and Ministry of Stories.  We are currently embarking on our first feature-length hybrid documentary about the classroom experience from the point of view of primary school children across the UK."

Ruqya Khan, or RK as she is known, is a wordsmith. She works with words - delivering stories on stage and in print. She is a Master Practitioner of NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming), Hypnosis and Time Line Therapy®. She is also proficient at the neuroscience techniques of mBraining. She started her career as a freelance writer in 2000 and has successfully grown into the field of coaching. Between then and now she has interviewed more than 3000 people from different walks of life. Her articles have covered the views and stories of many - right from celebrities and business owners to the office help!  After many years of being a listener she has now chosen to speak and share stories with the world. Her words create shift and awareness to be better. Gratitude and acceptance are her key topics of focus - she believes that is where self-empowerment seeds from.   RK is an internationally honoured change maker. She has spoken and been felicitated for her contribution at the Women Economic Forum in New Delhi. In 2016 she did a TEDx talk on "The Art of Possibility".  Passion to express, complete trust in self and gratitude are her strengths. She is driven by the awareness that though her life is simple and her achievements still growing - each day she is an example to her children and the many who see her as she is.   FaceBook:

I was born in Turkey.  I am the middle child of our family.  I was always part of an entrepreneurial family since my dad, my sister and brother all owned their own businesses.  Back home in Turkey,  I worked for a big retail & wholesale fashion business as an Accountant; however, I was always a part of various company fashion shows and was very involved in the decision making process for new fashion ideas.   I came to Canada in 1983 to "take a break and visit relatives" not planning to stay. Well life had different plans for me, I have been in Canada since. I later had three children . My baby boy became our "guardian angel" on the 3rd day of  his birth to heart failure.  I am blessed to have two healthy, beautiful daughters Myda 26 and Tanya 20. My entire career was spent at a Canadian Tire Financial Services from 1984 to 2009. I worked in the Finance Division as an Accounting Coordinator, and then progressing into the role of Team Lead for the last 11 years. While working there,  I studied Accounting ,  Management  and graduated with a degree in General Art and Science studies.   My passion for understanding  human behaviour led me to take another program called Counseling for Human Services.  The experience and education that I built during those years have helped me in different areas of my business today. When I opened my store in Port Dalhousie,  I joined the Port Dalhousie Business Community. Currently I am serving as  the Treasurer on the Port Dalhousie BIA Executive. I continue to study fashion and personal styling  with a focus on  energy profiling. ​​I am the Founder and Owner of Your Boutique.

I was born in Turkey.  I am the middle child of our family.  I was always part of an entrepreneurial family since my dad, my sister and brother all owned their own businesses.  Back home in Turkey,  I worked for a big retail & wholesale fashion business as an Accountant; however, I was always a part of various company fashion shows and was very involved in the decision making process for new fashion ideas.   I came to Canada in 1983 to "take a break and visit relatives" not planning to stay. Well life had different plans for me, I have been in Canada since. I later had three children . My baby boy became our "guardian angel" on the 3rd day of  his birth to heart failure.  I am blessed to have two healthy, beautiful daughters Myda 26 and Tanya 20. My entire career was spent at a Canadian Tire Financial Services from 1984 to 2009. I worked in the Finance Division as an Accounting Coordinator, and then progressing into the role of Team Lead for the last 11 years. While working there,  I studied Accounting ,  Management  and graduated with a degree in General Art and Science studies.   My passion for understanding  human behaviour led me to take another program called Counseling for Human Services.  The experience and education that I built during those years have helped me in different areas of my business today. When I opened my store in Port Dalhousie,  I joined the Port Dalhousie Business Community. Currently I am serving as  the Treasurer on the Port Dalhousie BIA Executive. I continue to study fashion and personal styling  with a focus on  energy profiling. ​​I am the Founder and Owner of Your Boutique.

I am Frances McDaniel, 2016 Graduate of the Fox School of business Temple University Executive MBA Program. I was Inducted into the Golden Key National Honor Society in 2015, mentor to 2 current MBA students, CEO of Get OnBoard Technologies, and Smart Skirts INC. I have traveled Internationally and collaborated in South Africa with Coca Cola, MTN South Africa, and many other organizations for profit and not for profit. Recognized as one of the top 20 new business Idea Concept recipients in 2015 for an Idea Competition at Temple University. Participated and Interviewed top investors to assist new business owners in gaining the attention of investors.  Visionary Executive leading high level performance teams to enhance growth and profitability. Empowering people to succeed, through outreach, education, resources, is one of the greatest attributes that I am always willing to share in any sized organization locally and globally. Throughout my 20 plus years of hands on experience in leadership, management, training, in an economically diverse nation and my top executive level education I offer solutions using strategies, analytics, relationship building, innovations, and project management. I am a mother of 2 Children, a wife and professional who believes in creativity, innovations and opportunity for all. I focused my recent activities on entrepreneurial opportunities to help build and empower new leaders. With over 20 years of corporate experience, and leadership I know the importance of community involvement, and continuous education. As Past President of Rotary International (Springfield, PA) we built a new water system in Belize as well as raise funding for protoplast surgeries globally. I have been a speaker and volunteer at local top Universities such as Temple’s Fox school of business to assist recent graduates with career opportunities and Cheyney University for financial literacy and fraud protection.

Tonya Fitzpatrick loves talking about the transformative power of travel and she has done so on several stages including TEDx, the Women’s Economic Forum in India, the North American Travel Journalist Association (NATJA), and FestiGals conference in New Orleans.   She has also served as moderator for the Environmental Film Festival and a film presentation at the National Press Club.  Tonya is a lawyer by training but an intrepid traveler and global citizen by heart and the latter inspired her to create World Footprints Media  where she producers and co-hosts the multi award-winning World Footprints podcast with her husband, Ian.   World Footprints is the recipient of multiple awards including a prestigious  Lowell Thomas award and African Community Service Award for journalistic excellence and socially conscious mission.   Listeners have been inspired by World Footprints interviews with prominent figures like the late Dr. Maya Angelou, Ken Burns, Jack Hanna, Stefanie Powers, David Rockefeller, Jr., Robert Kennedy, Jr., and others. A published author, Tonya has contributed a chapter in a career inspiration book with Stephen Covey, co-created a Baltimore travel app and authored an e-itinerary guide for Washington, DC. Her professional career is diverse and ranges from a fundraising executive for a theatre to a politico.  Under President George W. Bush, she received an appointment as a Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education; she was placed as a federal contractor as Senior Legal Advisor in the Office of Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; and, Tonya has served on Capitol Hill and other in other political positions. Tonya received a Masters degree from the London School of Economics and a law degree from Wayne State University. She has lived, studied or worked in England, Russia and China.  She was recognized as a “Top Woman in Travel Media” by the Women in Travel & Tourism International and is a popular media personality who has appeared on public radio, the CBS and NBC networks and Retirement Living.  Tonya has also been featured in Black Enterprise, USA News Report and several books including “This Is NOT The Career I Ordered”.  Tonya is a member of the National Speakers Association, Society for American Travel Writers and NATJA.  When she is not crossing the globe, Tonya lives in the metro Washington, DC area with her husband Ian and their cat, Irwin.

Anu Vittal is the CEO of AVC Inc and believes in empowering people to create, connect and celebrate. With over 23 years of corporate experience in the fields of marketing & supply chain she brings expertise in process improvement as a certified Six Sigma Specialist and ISO-9001 Auditor. Her greatest strength lies in being a successful entrepreneur who has built and sold businesses. As a practising artist and arts administrator she believes that artists directly benefit the eco-cultural balance of a country. As ALL Canada Chairperson for Social Change and Networks and a community leader she always inspires everyone to share their unique gift and contribute to the world. Lastly, Anu advocates the importance of volunteering and has worked and served on boards of non-profit organisations in North America. This work in the not-for-profit world won her the prestigious Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award in 2009. She is a loving humanitarian with a pure passion for the arts and an ARTepreneur with a purpose.

Vaneese Johnson-The Boldness Coach™, is a Global Executive Coach and Certified Personal Brand Strategist. She helps business professionals to be bold in their approach to amplify their brand presence, grow their careers and make a purposeful impact in the world. She teaches and empowers high-performing and high potential professionals with her proprietary success fundamentals of Branding Out Loud (BOLD), Branding in their Innovated Gifts (BIG) and being Branded and Disruptive (BAD) to accentuate their professional presence with authenticity and authority.

Shenal graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor’s Degree in Physiology and went on to receive her Master’s Degree in Physical Therapy. After years of clinical practice, she climbed the corporate ladder in Healthcare Management and Administration as Hospital Director of Clinical Services which was then followed by her deep desire to follow her entrepreneurial spirit! Through her own journey of deep physical, emotional, and spiritual transformation, she has been able to experience the interconnectedness of science and spirituality. Her own personal healing allowed her to experience, first-hand, a multitude of healing modalities. These range from conventional to complementary to “alternative”. The list includes but is not limited to bio-dentistry, raw foods, detoxification, homeopathy, herbal medicine, Ayurveda, Chinese Medicine, Regression Therapy, Hypnosis, Germanic New Medicine, Emotional and Spiritual Healing, and multiple “Energy” healing modalities (ie. Bengston Method, Reiki). Coupling these with her formal clinical degrees, ongoing clinical education, and professional experience, Shenal pursued years of advanced training. She has transformed her profession to PASSION and her life into one she loves living. Shenal’s life has been filled with enriching experiences. Today, she cherishes her life with her loving husband and two beautiful children while finding tremendous inner joy and satisfaction in who she has become and in the work she does to help others to reclaim their power to transform their lives. She has lovingly created a unique approach to empower people to reclaim their ability to live with abundant health, wealth, love and joy. She shares her connectedness, intuition, wisdom and tremendous love for others and life itself with all those whose lives she touches.  She is passionate about bringing this message and this approach to as many people as she can globally.  In addition to enjoying her private consultation practice, she is a speaker, workshop trainer, facilitator, change maker and thought leader.  She wants to make a positive difference in the world. Shenal empowers people to achieve their full potential in every aspect of life. She is a visionary and a true inspiration, aligning individuals with their meaningful purpose and creating a space for unique expression so that people can reach new heights of success.

Crystal D’Cunha is an award-winning entrepreneur, accomplished Senior Executive, Consultant, Sales Professional and Customer Experience Thought Leader with more than 22 years of success in the retail, construction, non-profit, hospitality, and e-commerce industries. Leveraging extensive experience with strategic innovation, personnel issues, and employee engagement, Crystal is a valuable asset to companies seeking guidance on leadership development, talent management, creative recruitment and engaging spirited results. Her broad areas of expertise include sales, sales growth, management consulting, leadership training and development, coaching and executing company vision strategy, as well as journey mapping the employee and customer experience. Website: Twitter: FaceBook:

I’m Margaret, a certified coach, consultant, and empty nest mom who turned a moving disaster into an opportunity to help empty nesters like you find an amazing place to move that supports the life you want. I know what it’s like to leave the empty nest with hopes and dreams of moving someplace new and exciting, only to watch those hopes and dreams go up in smoke after making a costly and hard-to-fix moving mistake.  I coach self-employed empty nest moms, like you, who want to have more fun. The only problem is you chose your house and neighborhood for your family and you have different needs now. You’re hungry for change and ready for a new adventure. But, you’re not sure where to move and don’t want to risk making an expensive mistake. I provide tools, resources and support to help you navigate your search and figure out your best places to move, so you can start your new adventure knowing you’ll be happy in the place you choose.

I understand what it feels like to be sensitive, to feel like the world is overwhelming and to want more meaning and purpose in a world that often feels like people are just going through motions. Burnout to Brilliance: Coaching in the Forest teaches you how to make small shifts that will free up tons of energy for the things you really love. A life where you wake up to feeling a sense of purpose and easily pay the bills. I teach you how to approach making a career change in a way that is fun, easy and gets results. I understand what it feels when to be tired and feel like something’s not right in your career. And I love helping people like you make changes so your life to build a career that’s aligned with who you are and what you need to thrive. I help people like you get clear on where you want your life to be in 10 years and then take simple steps towards building a life that’s aligned with your purpose. So why did I start this?  When I was 24, I made a big mistake while working with youth in custody. I was overcome with shame and wasn’t able to recover. I quit my job.  I fell apart.  The problem wasn’t that I made this mistake, mistakes happen, but the problem was that I wasn’t able to recover from it. I wasn’t able to recover because I wasn’t being myself.  I was trying to be what I thought my boss, my family and friends wanted me to be instead of myself. And because I wasn’t being myself, I wasn’t very strong. I had a very low level of resilience and so with one mistake, I crumpled. I moved to a yoga ashram for 2 years to put myself back together. I studied yoga and meditation and connected deeply to the spiritual part of me. And I started to heal. I started become more of myself. Since then I’ve been on a path of healing and becoming more of myself. And I started to study a body centred therapy modality called Core Energetics to help myself heal and to support others on their healing journey.

I am the founder of XL Consulting Group, a consultancy helping businesses with strategy, business and marketing plans as well as website design.  We help many people who are setting up their businesses for the first time or businesses that require a new direction.  After a 30 year career as a marketing executive and corporate CEO, I thought all this valuable business experience in a large international corporation could be used to help people start their own businesses or increase revenues in an existing business.  It was after I started my consultancy that I realized many of my women clientele had similar questions about how to start a business and that led me to author “Fabulous Fempreneurship” a business startup book for women entrepreneurs.  Before the book was published early in 2016 I understood it was important to give ongoing support to women entrepreneurs rather than just getting a book in print.  ​From the book project a website was created for Fabulous Fempreneurship and also a mastermind on Facebook which has almost 500 members.   Mentorship is extremely important to me, so I developed a mentorship program on the Fabulous Fempreneurship website to offer free help to women who are just getting started in the hopes of making their entrepreneurship dream a reality.  More programs to help women entrepreneurs are in development and it’s exciting to be a part of this whole movement to change the business landscape for women.

To better understand, to be of service, and to help enlighten, these have always been my passion it seems.  The place where science and spirituality meet is where I am drawn to learn and to teach. My formal training is in social & clinical psychology, journalistic writing, and holistic health.  I am a psychologist and currently serve in the role of life coach.  Having been a psychotherapist for much of my career, I support clients with a deep understanding of behavioral science, while inspiring them to evolve their consciousness in alignment with their life purpose. The two key questions in life are “Who am I?” and “What am I here for?” This is what we explore in Enlightened Life Coaching.  Enlightenment leads to a sense of freedom and peace.  It opens both mind and heart.  It releases us from our past, enlivens the present, and opens the future of possibilities. I was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, an only child raised by my mother in a working class family.  I am a second generation American with maternal grandparents from Slovakia, and paternal grandparents from Italy.  As a little girl I would often sit and read the dictionary, and I dreamed of one day having  kitty cats and a garden.  Today I have an online presence called ZenCat Gallery and am fundraising to create a cat café + art gallery here in Columbus, Ohio. We can learn so much from Mother Nature and the animals. I published my first book, Enlightenment Appetizers: A Taste of Enlightenment in Everyday Life.  It is a unique full color, magazine style soft cover book with uplifting articles on many practical life topics.  I hope it inspires and enchants my readers.

Marissa McTasney is the Pink Work Boot Lady in her footwear circles and known in the business world as a woman with moxie. She is the Founder and President of Moxie Trades Ltd.   Moxie Trades is now a multi-million dollar threat in the safety footwear industry and the most recognized brand of women’s safety footwear in Canada. Moxie Trades safety footwear can be found in over five hundred retail outlets across North America.   With the birth of her children, Carter and Frankie she wrote a book for them based on her philosophical hopes for their futures that included a powerful mantra.   ​Marissa decided to pursue her mantra and ditched her high heels in her corporate job for work boots in the trades’ industry. She returned to school to study the skilled trades. On the first day of the program, all twenty two women bought men’s work boots. This marked Marissa’s “aha moment.”

  Her entrepreneurial instincts kicked into high gear and she made it her personal mission to fill this gap in the market and to inspire women to have moxie along the way. In 2008, Marissa pitched her business on the CBC’s, Dragons’ Den and partnered with oil and gas tycoon, investment banker and philanthropist; W. Brett Wilson.   Website:

I am a content single mother, fierce learner and teacher, ardent lover of life, and President/CEO of a Social Enterprise, The Flyways, Inc. After a long and varied career in just about every kind of Liberal Arts field imaginable, and in every type of job position- volunteer, employee, entrepreneur, non-profit worker, and freelancer- I've decided to put my money where my mouth is and marry my two deepest passions: storytelling and social justice. The results have surpassed my wildest expectations.  The Flyways, Inc. is a registered benefit corporation holding company. We envision a dignified and inclusive economic ecosystem that unites, fulfills and empowers people in communities around the world. Ultimately, the Flyways network will represent a wholly innovative approach to social justice. I also coach businesses and organizations to meaningfully build their social impact programs from the ground up. This includes: designing outcomes and developing goals, measuring impact and creating a universal metric, and quantifying results to the public. To this end, I have also written several books on Social Impact and Innovation.

Lanise is a teacher, writer and self-love advocate from Michigan (USA). She loves encouraging and inspiring others. She created a self-love community for women to help them learn to love themselves mentally, spiritually and physically.

I am obsessed with making things happen. I am a brand builder, an aggressive project manager and a passionate network architect. After 6 years in China cross-pollinating between design, agency, fintech, and corporate tech, I recently moved to Kenya to pursue my vision of building China-Africa tech ecosystems. I am Head of Marketing at BitPesa, a digital foreign exchange and payment platform for frontier markets. I'm deeply passionate about women's spiritual and professional empowerment. Currently, I am the executive director for Phoenix Risen, a platform to help combat sexual assault globally and a WeDu Mentor. Previously, I founded the League of Extraordinary Women, a cross cultural women's networking group, and Buzz & Bloom, a WeChat platform to teach college age Chinese women about sex education. I am the 2016 Curator for the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Shanghai II Hub. I was also elected to sit on the GSC Advisory Council for Hub Engagement.I believe that curiosity in large doses is the most important trait anyone can have. With curiosity comes passion, resourcefulness, and bravery. With curiosity comes innovation.  

I’m Le’Nise Brothers, a registered nutritional therapist, women’s health, hormone and wellbeing coach and yoga teacher.  I work with women who want to get control of sugar cravings, mood swings and hormonal acne, bloating and headaches. I’ve helped many women who want help with hormonal issues ranging from PMS, PCOS, fibroids, endometriosis, heavy, painful, missing & irregular periods, post-natal depletion, perimenopause and menopause. My mission is for you to feel your healthiest, live your life to the fullest and enjoy each day. I love seeing my clients regain their spark, improve their health and boost their energy.

A recognized Colombian, young entrepreneur, in the areas of sustainability, renewable energy and peace. She works as Competency Coordinator at Rosario University (Bogotá, Colombia) developing programs for the promotion of entrepreneurial skills. She is among the seventy social entrepreneurs at the World Bank. Cofounder of the Crispy Fruits Company, recognized by President Barack Obama as a company with the greatest impact on the quality of life for rural farmers. She is a member of the Foundation MET (Women Business and Technology) mentoring women and networking and is responsible for outreach and communication strategies in Andean Community and Brazil for the Zayed Future Energy Prize (UAE). She participated as a juror in qualifying renewable and sustainable energy projects for the Program Hondas for the Colombian government. She was at the eighth summit of ORU Fugar and invited as a sustainability leader by Cusco, Peru.

Born in French Guiana and raised in Paris, I came to the USA in 2009 to take up a new challenge leaving everything behind me to live my American Dream. Not because I didn't have a good life in France rather say all the contrary. Therefore, I began from scratch quite difficult at the beginning but I didn't give up despite all the obstacles. As the CEO & Founder of Alize La Vie Media, my objective is to become one of the most powerful media & entertainment international platforms, to help people achieve their goal through my contributions, report and introduce to the world diversity of culture, talents and be an inspiration for young people. Website: Twitter: https://twitter.com/alizeutteryn

Ann Davis graduate from Tulane and immediately joined Teach for America where she taught in New Orleans. About a year into her teaching assignment, Ann was out running with some friends when she experienced a jolting feeling in her leg. She felt to the ground and suffered a seizure. Two weeks later, she was diagnosed with brain cancer. At this point her priorities shifted and she eventually created Venture With Impact, a coworking retreat that engages professionals on a 30-day skills-based volunteering project while they work remotely for their jobs, allowing them to develop professionally, rediscover purpose, and in the process, provide a positive social impact.

Juliette is passionate about entrepreneurship and the Caribbean. Her interests lie in tourism, marketing and communications. She also believes in the potential of her country and unlike her peers has decided to not migrate.

Melissa Noel is an award winning multimedia journalist. She produces television as well as print and online stories for several notable media outlets including NBC News, Voices of NY, Huffpost.com and Caribbean Beat Magazine.  Recognizing the absence of regular Caribbean/Caribbean Diaspora coverage in mainstream U.S. news media, Melissa regularly travels to the region as well as to cities with large Caribbean populations throughout the U.S., to report stories on mental health, entrepreneurship, immigration policies and practices, tourism, culinary arts and several other topics as related to the Caribbean region and its diaspora.   Both domestically and internationally, she is dedicated to researching, writing, producing, and editing news stories that center on the experiences and critical issues impacting communities of color.  It’s a journey she began over a decade ago as co-host of the Island Hoppin show on WHBC 830M, Howard University Radio and as a news writer for WHUR 96.3FM where she reported on news stories from the Caribbean region and West Africa.  Recently, Ms. Noel was named a 2017 International Center For Journalists, Bringing Home The World International Reporting Fellow and a USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism National Fellow.  She also received the CUNY Graduate School Of Journalism alumni award for Best National Story for her piece, Black and Undocumented: Caribbean Immigrant's Long Fight For Citizenship, one story in a series which shed light on issues facing black immigrants in America. Ms. Noel’s commitment to bringing attention to underreported stories earned her the 2016 International Labour Organization's Global Media Competition for her piece, Migration and Separation: Stories of "Barrel Children" discussing issues of parental separation due to migration in the Caribbean and the diaspora.   Her dynamic global diaspora coverage was also recognized by Congresswoman Yvette Clarke when she was honored as a 2016 Shining Star Journalism Awardee and by former U.S. President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as a 2009- 2010 White House Correspondents’ Association journalism award recipient.  A proud first generation Guyanese American, Melissa Noel is committed to providing holistic stories of the Caribbean and Caribbean diaspora through her news coverage.   ​She is a summa cum laude graduate of Howard University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcast journalism and holds a Master of Arts degree in journalism from The City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate School of Journalism.

Shinese Brathwaite is the creator and owner of Bk Girls Night out LLC, a lifestyle and event planning brand. Shinese B is an immigrant to the Borough of Brooklyn, similar to countless others. She received her schooling from the age of five years old, residing in crown heights, Flatbush, and currently Bushwick. She is the mother of a first generation Brooklyn girl, who is mixed with several cultures, similar to her birth place of Brooklyn.   While completing her Master’s Degree in Organizational Management, Shinese felt there was a need to use her degree in a way that told the story of her borough, bring women together, and celebrate all things Brooklyn. Her years in fashion, retail, sales, and marketing made her knowledgeable enough to launch her business BK Girls Night Out in 2014. Since then she has been able to work with over 100 and counting female businesses from Brooklyn, outer boroughs, the DMV area, and Delaware. The line-up consists of women seeking an environment to promote their brand, whether hair or skin products, makeup, food, jewelry etc, all things women would want to shop, and see with their girlfriends.   She is also passionate about parties with a purpose always seeking a way to educate, enlighten or inform women about diseases or causes which affect them. Her annual Think Pink Event celebrates survivors or those working toward decreasing/eradicating breast cancer. BKGNO has drawn out crowds of five plus hundred women annually. Most recently the BKGNO “Let’s Meet Up” Series an after-work event which focuses on connecting women through various intimate conversations. In addition, the event partners with small business locations such as restaurants and lounges to promote their location within Brooklyn. Her work has been featured in local blogs such as OurBKSocial, I Don’t Do Clubs, Leading with Lee magazine, Women’s Empire, and a few others. Most notably she received an Appreciation award from the Tallom Foundation located in Brownsville after she raised money toward the organization's scholarship fund for their graduating girls.   Shinese is passionate about working with the youth to ensure they are aware of the various options. Most recently signed on as a board member for Tallom Foundation located in Brownsville Brooklyn. Being a single mother, and teen mom from a culture that believes in marriage first, then family, she wants to ensure young women know that even though it may be the best, if they end up differently it does not mean they are failures. There can be a path to success, regardless of one’s  setback.   In the near future her plan is to open her own restaurant/lounge in the Brooklyn area where she can work with other starts up, and coordinate events for others. Continue to watch as this tree grows in Brooklyn.

I’m Michelle, a 20 something Guyanese blogger living in the Tampa Bay area. I moved to the Bay area long enough ago to acquire my Masters of Architecture degree. I now work for an architectural design firm. This blog was born as a way for my family to keep track of my journey through architecture school. It has since morphed into my little space on the interwebs that has become a home to musings. I use this space to share my fashion, jewelry, interior finds as well as the artists and designers I happen upon. When I’m not designing homes or perusing the internet for inspiration, you may find me out on a paddle board or sewing.  You can find tales of a few sewing projects here, reviews on the occasional book I read, and an outfit post or two. I hope you enjoy the blog as much as I enjoy finding inspiration, perusing Pinterest, and trying not to feel awkward in front of a camera.   I started learning to sew because I would love to eventually launch a line of my own. I have a multitude of ideas in my head that I would like to take from just being a concept into something I can don, except I can’t seem to sew fast enough for how quickly the ideas pop up. I think it’s necessary to understand the intricacies of how fabric works and elements of construction. The learning process has given me a greater appreciation for designers and handmade pieces.  One day, I would love to teach a college studio at an art school that allows for a cross design field collaboration as I think the products of a studio that combines architecture, fashion, and interior design would be mind blowing.

Alissa Jacques is the co-founder of Shuga N’ Spice Magazine. She grew up in East Flatbush, Brooklyn born to Jamaican/Guyanese parents. After leaving Brooklyn, Alissa saw that Caribbean culture were often misrepresented and most depictions of the Caribbean referred to poverty and tourism. After graduating from New York University with a Bachelor’s degree in Entrepreneurship, Education Policy, and Narrative Studies, Alissa realized the Caribbean narrative needed an interdisciplinary approach that replaced how others interacted with Caribbean culture and how the region presented itself to others.  Her experience growing startups through storytelling and design theory led to the inception of Shuga N’ Spice Magazine.  Alissa is a graduating student at Teachers College, Columbia University earning her Masters of Arts in Sociology of Education.

Mireille Liong-A-Kong, a Suriname native, graduated with a Master Degree in Computer Science from the University of Amsterdam and relocated from Holland for Brooklyn New York in 2003.   ​Motivated by the hair and scalp issues that a majority of Black women face, Liong started writing with the purpose to redeem the beauty of natural hair with hopes to solve this problem.  Her debut, also the first Dutch book about African hair care, was sold out within two months. Going Natural, How to Fall in Love with Nappy hair, her American book, tops Amazon’s list on the subject of natural hair.

I'm Maya Avidov, I'm an all-round filmmaker (I write/direct, shoot and produce) with over 9 years of experience.  Before going to film school I went to art school (mostly practising Photography and Printmaking)- though something always felt missing.   Then one day, whilst I was watching a film, I had the (somewhat simple) realization that what had been missing from my photographs was movement. And text. And from then on it was like a light turned on and I started my real work.   ​I moved to London in 2012 and founded my production company Darling Pictures in 2014. I created Darling Pictures with the objective that it be a production home for unique content that pushes the boundaries of genre and method to create original, engaging entertainment. Our company motto is : Everything's interesting if your bold enough to engage. We create online content as well as short and long films (fictional & documentary). Amongst our clients are HTC, The British Library and Ministry of Stories.  We are currently embarking on our first feature-length hybrid documentary about the classroom experience from the point of view of primary school children across the UK."

I’m Pat Duckworth, the Founder of Smarter Menopause. I am a Women’s Health Strategist specialising in working with women, and their employers, to manage the changes that occur at menopause. From research and from my experience I understand that when women receive appropriate support in the workplace they are able to work more efficiently and effectively. Women who feel they can speak openly to their managers about what they are experiencing are likely to have less sick absence, better relationships with colleagues and improved morale. That process starts with giving leaders and managers the information and knowledge they need to understand how menopause can affect their female colleagues. My menopause journey led me to take a very different career path. After over 30 years working in Civil Service at senior management levels, I decided to pursue my interest in complementary approaches to health and well being. I trained with the Internationally recognised Quest Institute founded by Trevor Silvester. Since then I have worked with hundreds of clients, helping them to take back control of symptoms they are experiencing. In 2012 I published my first Award-winning book ‘Hot Women, Cool Solutions; How to control menopause symptoms using mind/body techniques’.

As a Transformational Mentor I offer soulful guidance and mentoring to empower women in business to create a life and business you love on your own terms. I've worked with petite businesses, female entrepreneurs and creative souls all over the globe since 2009. So there's plenty of life and business expertise included within my own pot of wisdom. During our thought provoking 1-1 sessions we focus on you in your entirety and do the inner work to discover who you really are, what you're here to do and who you're here to be.  We make you a priority in your life and work, so that you begin to reconnect more deeply with yourself and live life and work with intention. You'll find clarity to work smarter not harder, feel empowered to step forward with courage and conviction and authentically lead others with your own unique wisdom and expertise.

Andrea is a social entrepreneur with a passion for empowering vulnerable people, she co-founded in 2006 ACT Training Services, a London-based social enterprise to provide employability skills to people who were out of work and seeking to secure sustainable employment. Over the years our company has trained some 6,000 people free at the point of delivery, enabling them to gain marketable qualifications and develop competencies that position them to move into employment or start their own business.   In 2013 Andrea co-founded Camptys Foundation: a not-for-profit organisation that supports front-line organisations working with disabled people across the world - enhancing their learning, play and health. With the help of people in the community and sporadic pots of funding we have managed for many years to send gifts of books, toys, clothing and accessories to disabled children and their families residing in developing countries.  Andrea is a published author of two books as well as the inventor of the Pocket Learner, an educational development system geared primarily towards the support of children deemed slow learners and those with special educational needs. This invention has gained many accolades and has provided a launchpad for Andrea’s professional speaking career as she seeks to empower those families who are caring for a child with cognitive disabilities like she does.  Andrea has a flair for languages and is a professional Spanish-English interpreter and translator.

I work as co-Director of School Space, a social-enterprise I co-founded in 2011. We work with schools to rent out their facilities in evenings, weekends, and holidays, thereby raising income to invest in children's learning, and linking state schools with their local community. We also aim to raise companies' awareness of facilities schools have to offer, increasing private potential to give back and aid their own CSR aims.

Jennifer has  been in business and management since the age of 18, bringing a wealth of experience and intuition to her work with inspired entrepreneurs.  She has been known for turning struggling businesses around to achieve multi-million pound turnover and has secured high end contracts with government for one particular company. She has the ability to see where changes can be made to improve the bottom line by putting people before profit and seeing profit actually increase. Jennifer is passionate about building a thriving community of inspired business owners who are awakening to the gift and power that they have to cause change in the world by doing what they love.  Her role is to help them stop any struggle or overwhelm and to find clarity and direction on their business vision.  She offers coaching services that will give them the tools and inspiration to take action right away to develop a love-based business that supports their lifestyle and celebrates their life purpose, while they do their valuable work. Jennifer also runs Business Love – London, a highly popular, monthly networking and mastermind club. She is the founder of The Business Love Conference held yearly in the spring.  Jennifer is a divorcee/widow who loves music, cooking, reading, going to the movies.  She adores her two amazing children, who are now young men, living the dream on the West coast of the US.  She currently lives in London and has fabulous clients all over the world. Website: Twitter:

The objective of enriching society through ideas and action faintly echoes in its own way across my career trajectory through a background in regeneration particularly business development and employment. That journey encompasses, Economic Development but also includes Human Resources, Recruitment, Management Consultancy, Security and Construction as well as over 25 years of Third sector experience. Past Companies include: Wandsworth Borough Council, Tesco, British Airways- Peach Personnel, Paragon Training-United Nations and The Women’s’ Design Service.  Past Countries include:  Greece, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Italy and Kosovo as the project management of a series of transnational programmes.   My current focus is Peach Mango Maverick (PMM) a “Creative Brokerage,” which partners in the strategic development of innovative creative industry business projects. PMM has a think tank comprised of an eclectic mix of multi-industry experience and expertise; as principal artist I am also contributing to a groundswell of a developing body of work on the genesis of de-colonial pedagogy led by Queen Mary London University and I am a Fellow of the RSA.  My current project African Violet...Hybrid of Circumstance – (a painting in a book) is developing an Artistic dialogue of Colonial Experience.

Vanessa Sanyauke is the Founder and CEO of Girls Talk London, an award winning organisation that has engaged half a million women around the world and directly impacted 1,500 women & girls in the UK. Vanessa is also a speaker, presenter and writer based in London. Vanessa has over a decade of experience advising FTSE 100 businesses on Diversity, Inclusion and Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and policy. Vanessa has worked with over 50 businesses that include The Bank of England, UK Parliament, Facebook, O2, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Barclays, State Street, Salesforce, Vodafone, BT, Ericsson, Allen and Overy, Lloyds Bank, Bauer Media, UBS, RBS Legal, Rabobank, Reed Smith and CMS Cameron McKenna. Vanessa has also been an adviser on Youth Policy to the former UK Prime Minister David Cameron and The former Mayor of London Boris Johnson. In 2018 Vanessa was listed on the 2018 EMpower 50 Ethnic Minority Future Leaders List, presented by the Financial Times and as a Changemaker on the 2018 Evening Standard 1000 most influential Londoners list. That same year she won an award at the 2018 European Diversity Awards for Best Community Project for setting up the pan-industry project, Step into STEM. Her speaking engagements have taken her across the globe at institutions such as The Southbank Centre, Glitz Africa She Summit, UN Women UK, Cosmopolitan Self-Made Summit, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Google UK, City Hall, Institute of Directors and Women in Research UK. Vanessa is a regular visiting lecturer and speaker on Social Entrepreneurship, Corporate Social Responsibility and Diversity and Inclusion for London School of Economics, City University London, Kent Business School, Brunel University and Kings College London. Vanessa has written and featured in publications such as The Guardian, Stylist, The Telegraph, LOOK Magazine, virgin.com, Confederation of British Industry and Entrepreneur Country. The 16th April 2017 Edition of The Style Magazine Sunday Times Supplement listed Vanessa as one of 10 people changing the workplace for women in the UK.

Lorlett Hudson is a multi-award winning Entrepreneur, Inventor, Motivational Teacher, Seminar Leader, and Executive Leadership Coach; with excellent development, innovative, planning, strategic thinking, training and facilitating initiating abilities. Lorlett is passionate about helping people to strategically navigate uncertainties and to build confidence in themselves and others.   She set up One Hand Cant Clap in 2000 as a  Highly Focused Learning and Development Enterprise serving leaders; drawing on the rich philosophical significance of culture and Jamaican proverbs in her training. Lorlett is also commonly known as The ‘What Next’’ Coach and the inventor of the critically acclaimed multi-award winning “Things Mama Used To Say”, a 52 card box set of Jamaican proverbs to develop creative people, deliver diversity training, build creative cultures, facilitate culture change and develop high performing teams.   Exploiting many creative angles to support the continued development of Britain’s rich cultural heritage and enterprise infused with that of the Caribbean, Lorlett has developed and designed a series of leadership development workshops, seminars, road-shows, Black History events, residential learning retreats, and proverb parties. In delivering to delegates, Lorlett has succeeded in bridging cultures, nurturing ties between different generations, and trained many individuals to generate new businesses and make a difference. Her pioneering approach has resulted in her winning the Silver Award of the prestigious British Female Inventors & Innovators Awards 2005, Wavemakers National Award 2006, twice runner up in the National Training Awards 2008/2010.She is a Cherie Blair Foundation Business Mentor and also a Member of Courvoisier The Future 500 top talents in the UK. A member of The 100black plus Achievers in the UK, Listed in ‘’Profile of Excellence Book’’ – Strategies for Extraordinary Achievement from 25 years of Interviewing Remarkable People People – Ian Boyne and Glenford Smith, Jamaica 2013.

My name is Lorna, I’m the Founder of Birmingham Doula and Live & Learn Homestays.  I am mom to 2 children born in 1989 and 1993. I had 2 very different births and, single-handedly raised 2 amazingly wonderful young people.  I am easy to get along with, practical, organised and a good listener.   ​Parents tell me that I bring a special calmness and warmth to their births; I can also bring a wealth of experience to support you and your family through the tricky days and weeks of early parenting.  I strongly believe that every birthing mother should have access to a nurturing doula.  This is such a special time and, as a doula, I feel honoured to be able to share these precious moments with you and your partner/family.   When we meet for the first time I will listen to you and do my utmost to understand your needs and we’ll decide, together, how best I can support you.  I am on hand to support you with your birthing choices and will do all that I can to ensure that your experience is a positive one; it’s your birthing experience and I can be as hands on or hands off as suits you and your situation.   ​I can provide emotional and practical support once baby has arrived; I will support you with your feeding choice and help to create some space/time for yourself so that you’re not too frazzled!

I love what I do I make people smile. I came to being an Image & Style Consultant late in life but it has always been part of me, in my genes/jeans!  I had always been the one that friends would ask to go shopping when they had a 'do' to go to.  I now have clients who will not go clothes shopping without me! I worked for 30 years in the Food Flavouring industry so was used to finding the things people liked. It meant driving lots of miles and nights away from home and eventually quite tiring.  I decided to change into full time styling  two & a half years ago after training with London's ASTON + HAYES.  Since then I have been building my business when my health allowed it.  I love helping people find the styles which suit and make them feel amazing.  It is a skilled process with the defining of colours, body shape and proportion.  Plus discovering their style preference and that's before we get to searching and trying on clothes.  What I do helps people to find their sense of self and build confidence, in their personal and business life.

I am the proud Founder of Creations by Roxy; a beautiful small greeting cards business. I am delighted to say that I have reached the one year anniversary.  Creating beautiful cards whether it is bespoke or cards that let my imagination and ideas run wild allows me to enter a therapeutic and enjoyable creative place. I love creating, I love the great feedback and I love when people want more! Although I enjoyed some aspects of craft as a youngster;  I wasn’t really aware that I had a creative ‘flair’ until maybe a few years ago or perhaps I wasn’t too fussed then with the idea of creating.  I have been working in John Lewis for 4 years and every now and then I embark on some merchandising duties where I have been told on the odd occasion that I have ‘the eye’- the creative eye, I guess. I would say that I do enjoy merchandising and making things look pretty. What’s better is that I have full control over my creations and where to put what where, what colour matches best with the other and so forth.

I hold space for women to create the ideas that are on their hearts & in their minds.  A Life More Inspired is a lifestyle brand created to help you cultivate everyday joy and go from dreaming to doing.  Through coaching, community and merchandise, I help you take the small steps that lead to the big life changes.  Tell me your dream and we'll build it together.

Power Thoughts is a teaching, coaching and mindfulness based service aimed at empowering children to tap into the ‘power’ of their minds. Through our sessions, children as young as five are taught how to become confident, resilient and robust, developing a ‘can-do’ attitude that allows them to flourish both at home and in the classroom.  Created and delivered by me, Natalie Costa, the underlying theme of the programme is to encourage children to develop a growth mindset so they are able to regulate their own thoughts and emotions and know that they have the ‘power’ to choose an alternative state.  A state that is positive, allowing for learning and growth - where they are ultimately moving toward fulfilling their potential.

Ifeyinwa Frederick is the Co-founder of Chuku’s, the Nigerian tapas lounge. With the aim of putting Nigerian cuisine on the UK foodie map, she launched Chuku’s with her older brother Emeka in the summer of 2015.  An avid dancer and lover of the performing arts, her first company was a dance school which she set up when she was just sixteen. She is also the Founder of mental health blog, Grey Matters, a space for those with lived experience of mental illness to share their stories. She is a writer and playwright, with her debut feature The Hoes featuring at the Hampstead Theatre in London.

Liv Little is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of gal-dem.  She is a politics and sociology graduate from the University of Bristol and has a passion for documentaries, clothes, and women’s rights. gal-dem.com is a creative online magazine comprised of almost 50 women of colour. Most of the team are based in the UK, but they do have a few from farther afield including the States and South America. The aim of gal-dem is to open up their take on the world to a wider audience. They want people of different shapes, sizes, genders and ethnic backgrounds to engage with the work they are doing. It is no secret that the mainstream media doesn’t represent or reflect them, so they are doing it for themselves.