Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Podcast

Happy Holidays, Minority Leaders! This time of the year many of us are taking stock of all the blessings in our lives. One thing I am blessed with is a village of smart, supportive, and inspiring women leaders. Today I am excited to speak with one of my closest friends, Crystal Lander , Chief Strategic Engagement Officer at Pathfinder International . Crystal is a high profile and internationally recognized senior leader with 20 years of experience in global health and development, project and p...

Dear Minority Leaders, Today I’m joined by my Delta Sigma Theta Soror and former Capitol Hill colleague, Dr. Kwamme Anderson. Kwamme and I both worked for our soror Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), albeit at different times. She has worked as a congressional staffer to Representatives Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Maxine Waters (D-CA), and Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), all powerful black women policymakers. Kwamme also counts the late civil rights leader and famous (and some would say infamou...

Dear Minority Leaders,Today we wrap our three part series on diversity in the U.S. Department of State and diplomacy with the preeminent expert on the topic: Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, State’s first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer. Amb. Abercrombie-Winstanley became the first woman to head a diplomatic mission to Saudi Arabia in 2002 and was the longest serving Ambassador to Malta. She speaks Arabic, Hebrew, and Maltese. Ambassador Abercrombie-Winstanley is a living legend and...

Asha Castleberry-Hernandez is a distinguished national security/foreign policy expert. She is a Biden-Harris Political Appointee, and served as a Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary, member of the Senior Executive Service at the Department of State. She is a former adjunct faculty professor at Fordham University, where she has taught U.S. Foreign Policy and U.N. Peacekeeping Operations. She is also a U.S. Army veteran, and since the 2014 ISIL incursion in Iraq, she has served as part of th...

In this episode, host Algene Sajery speaks with Fatema Z. Sumar, international development and author of The Development Diplomat: Working Across Borders, Boardrooms, and Bureaucracies to End Poverty. Fatema shares her experience as a first-generation Muslim American, woman, and mother working on foreign aid efforts in Capitol Hill and the developing world in the wake of 9-11. Fatema offers practical advise to women of color looking to advance their careers in this space .Learn more about yo...

Happy Women's History Month, listeners! March is also my birthday month and this episode was definitely the perfect gift. I’m joined by my girl Erika West, principal at The Raben Group. Erika and I have been friends since our days at Howard University. Ya'll already know the Real HU produces #BlackExcellence, and Erika is a shining example of that. A wise and humble social impact strategist, Erika drops serious knowledge on the roles and perspectives of black and brown people in the reproduct...

Dear listeners—Thanks for your patience. It has been over a month since our last episode aired, as life and career changes had me sidelined for a bit.I’m excited to return with an episode featuring one of the most authentic and accomplished leaders in Washington, who also happens to be one of my favorite people! In this episode of The Minority Leaders, I speak with incredibly wise and dynamic Kendra Brown. Kendra is Director of Public Policy for Mastercard. She is also Chair of the Marylan...

Dear listeners,Thank you for sticking with us these past four months! We are truly grateful for this incredible bonding experience with fellow women of color leaders. The surprising success of this podcast makes clear just how formidable we are when we come together to harness the full power of our unique and beautiful space in this world. Episode 10 of the Minority Leaders Podcast features Na’ilah Amaru, an Iraq war veteran, former community organizer, 2016 Democratic National Convention Pres...

Episode 9 of The Minority Leaders features Indira Ahluwalia, author, and Founder and President of KAUR Strategies, LLC, a firm that provides coaching, strategic, and advisory services to executives and emerging leaders in mission driven organizations. Indira has worked in sustainable development for nearly two decades, and previously founded Development & Training Services, Inc. (dTS) to promote equality, accountability, and sustainability in international development. With work in 90 countries...

The Minority Leaders Podcast is proud to partner with Women in Government Relations (WGR) and the Professional Women in Advocacy Conference on special episodes featuring 2020 recipients of the Excellence in Advocacy Awards. The theme of this year's virtual conference, which will take place November 9-11, is, "Extraordinary Women – the everyday superheroes among us."In this two part series, host Algene Sajery interviews 2020 Excellence in Advocacy Awardees to learn about thier work, discover w...

The Minority Leaders Podcast is proud to partner with Women in Government Relations (WGR) and the Professional Women in Advocacy Conference on special episodes featuring 2020 recipients of the Excellence in Advocacy Awards. The theme of this year's virtual conference, which will take place November 9-11, is, "Extraordinary Women – the everyday superheroes among us."In this two part series, host Algene Sajery interviews 2020 Excellence in Advocacy Awardees to learn about thier work, discover w...

In episode 7, host Algene Sajery speaks with Ana Quintana, Senior Policy Analyst for Latin America and the Western Hemisphere at the Heritage Foundation. Ana’s research at Heritage focuses on U.S. foreign policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean, with an emphasis on civil-military issues and rule of law in the Western Hemisphere.Ana, a Cuban-American raised in Miami, has a unique perspective on U.S.-Latin America relations and the “Latino” experience in the United States. On this special Hi...

In this inaugural episode of The Minority Leaders, host Algene Sajery speaks with leaders of the Black Women’s Congressional Alliance (BWCA)— an organization focused on helping to promote and mentor Black women congressional staffers. BWCA co-founders Keenan Austin Reed and Christina Henderson discuss how a "bring your own wine" happy hour evolved into the premier professional network dedicated to empowering black women who work on Capitol Hill. So get your glass of wine, and join Algene, Keen...