Diversity & Inclusion (U)

<p>Bree Newsome rallies your spirit with her impassioned message about racial equality and illustrates how, with courage, zeal and the support of others, ordinary people can make an extraordinary difference. </p><p>This contemporary civil rights icon first garnered national attention for her daring act of peaceful disobedience in June 2015.

<p>One of hip-hop’s most respected artists, Che "Rhymefest" Kweku delivers powerful insight on healing divides, finding your purpose, and empowering communities through the arts.</p><p>Rhymefest is a writer, artist, activist and teacher known for shattering negative stereotypes about hip-hop and establishing himself as a positive role model for underprivileged youth.

<p>Actor, musician, activist, and feminist Jackie Cruz currently stars as “Marisol ‘Flaca’ Gonzales" on Netflix's critically-acclaimed series, <i>Orange Is the New Black</i>. </p>

<p>Dr. Joan Morgan is an award-winning journalist and author, and a provocative cultural critic. Morgan's passion and commitment to the accurate documentation of hip-hop culture combined with adept cultural criticism placed her at the forefront of music journalism.</p><p>She was one of the original staff writers at <i>Vibe</i> magazine and a contributing editor and columnist for<i> Spin</i>.

<p>With more than two decades of experience in groundbreaking storytelling, Emmy Award-winning journalist and bestselling author Lisa Ling shares stories of her dramatic career to educate and inspire audiences to live without limits.</p><p>Over a twenty-year career in media, journalist Lisa Ling has dedicated herself to shedding light on stories impacting the world in which we live. She joined CBS News in 2023 after 15 years with CNN, where she hosted This Is Life with Lisa Ling.

<p>Diversity speaker Helen Zia is an award-winning journalist and a contributing editor to <em>Ms.</em> magazine, where she was formerly executive editor. Her articles, essays, and reviews have appeared in many newspapers and magazines. She has contributed essays to several anthologies, and was executive editor of the book, "Notable Asian-Americans".

<p>Vandana Shiva is one of the world's most respected environmental activists and feminists. A trained physicist, she received her Ph.D. at the University of Western Ontario, and since the 1970s, has been a vocal figure in the conservation movement.</p><p>A leader in the International Forum on Globalization (IFG) along with Ralph Nader and Jeremy Rifkin, Vandana Shiva fights actively for changing practices in agriculture and the way humans view food.

<p>Dr. Julianne Malveaux has long been recognized for her progressive and insightful observations. She is a labor economist, noted author and colorful commentator. Described by Cornel West as “the most iconoclastic public intellectual in the country”. Her contributions to the public dialogue on issues such as race, culture, gender and their economic impacts are shaping public opinion in 21st Century America.</p><p>Dr. Malveaux’s popular writing has appeared in <i>USA Today</i>, <i>Black Issues in Higher Education</i>, <i>Ms.

<p>World-class athlete and best-selling author Kyle Maynard has never considered his physical differences to be a disability, but rather just another obstacle that cannot stop him from realizing his dreams.</p><p>On first sight, Maynard is obviously exceptional. He is a quadruple congenital amputee, which means that his arms end at the elbows, and his legs extend to just past his knees. His adamant refusal to accept the limitations of this condition, however, is what truly sets him apart.

<p>Sonia Nazario is an award-winning journalist whose stories have tackled some of this country’s most intractable problems -- hunger, drug addiction, immigration -- and have won some of the most prestigious journalism and book awards. </p><p>She is best known for "Enrique's Journey," her story of a Honduran boy’s struggle to find his mother in the U.S. Published as a series in the <i>Los Angeles Times</i>, "Enrique's Journey" won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing in 2003.