Life at Fearless Futures
What do you do when you’ve done all you can? You rest, you recharge, and then- you think bigger. With over a decade in program development and education and a passion for working on behalf of people facing inequities, I was thrilled to join Fearless Futures as US Director of Programmes. I came to Fearless Futures knowing there was more work to do and I was ready to do it on a macro level.
I come from a legacy of hard working Black women. Black women, required to work twice as hard, if not more, to be acknowledged for their contributions. Black women who’ve carried the intricate and delicate history of racism, sexism, classism. Black women, who readily find themselves explaining, things are different, being both Black and woman. A legacy that says, when you find yourselves fighting for equality, remember where you came from and don’t forget where you’re going. A legacy that understands when people come together towards a common goal, beautiful things happen. And to remember not much can be accomplished alone, so team up!
Because of these women, I fundamentally believe we as people possess the unique tools and abilities to shift paradigms, change worlds, and ultimately create a new world where no one has to defend their humanity, at home or at work. Through community and interrogative dialogue, we can discover new, different and potentially better ways of being.
In the last 8 months at Fearless Futures, I have experienced joy and hope. Hope in seeing people from all walks of life coming together to build a better world and disrupt the inequities and injustices that exist. Joy in working alongside an amazing team to amplify the work of people who truly want to make transformative change and make me laugh from my diaphragm while doing so! There’s something so very special about working with people who want to do something and aren’t afraid to challenge themselves and others around them.
Knowing this, I’ve come to completely embody and appreciate the way in which we go about our work. From our carefully curated activities to the use of emergent facilitation, I make sure to study diligently, prepare strategically, and craft critical questions to push participants thinking into a space of deep discovery and nuance. Not everyone knows what they don’t know, but once you know there’s more to know, you might be intrigued to learn more. In my opinion, that is the role of educators, not to give answers, but to ask the right questions, and encourage a critical analysis so well informed positions or conclusions can be cultivated.
On many occasions these questions have been created on my many 8am plane rides (loads of fruit and cheese platters on Delta folks!). Nonetheless, I have seen with my very eyes what it looks like when people genuinely care through our flagship 3 day Design for Inclusion program. I’ve worked side by side with leaders across different sectors from financial services to tech to creatives who really truly want to get it, and then, do something about it. There is something about witnessing the excitement and light-bulb moments from leaders when they’ve thought of an idea to build equity into their organization. That is the beauty of this work!
The women in my life would tell you, life requires balance. Therefore, as many beauties I’ve experienced, there have also been challenges such as managing a small start-up that is expanding in two different global locations, figuring out what processes work and what need to disappear into the abyss rather quickly. In many instances, someone is up mighty late or someone is up quite early or the calendar invite link/dial-in just doesn’t work! And for all my trips to California, sometimes my phone says pacific standard time (it switched in the air once, totally freaked me out) while my laptop still thinks it’s home on the east coast. Ask me how many times this has confused me? One too many folks, one too many.
Yet still, it’s not everyday you get to work towards transformative change in an organization that both sees and hears you. That is the beauty in Fearless Futures and I’m honored to be a part of this organization. It’s even more proof that the world is indeed changing; and I’m grateful to know I get to play a role in this change by way of Fearless Futures.
