The Rise of Black Communities in Tech: How to mobilise, influence and ally
Over the past couple of weeks, black communities have witnessed and experienced so much pain and trauma. From murder, assignation, to silence and racism. Belly Mujinga, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, have had their lives taken away from them because of the colour of their skin.
On Friday 5th June, 6 pm YSYS are bringing together black community leaders in tech and allies to share how they support and empower their communities to mobilise, influence and ally. The event will start with a guided meditation, followed by a panel discussion, and Q&A. #BlackLivesMatter
Register for free HERE
Jermaine Craig, Founder of Kwanda
Jermaine Craig is a technologist and entrepreneur who has made a career designing and building technology products — positioning them well for scale by developing systems, processes and cultures of thinking that make building complex products easy. He has produced work for companies and organisations such as Adidas, Universal Music Group, Puma, NHS, Sony Music and more.
He is most recently building Kwanda — a modern collection pot for black communities, which uses technology and transparency to scale and democratise collective financing within and for the development of black communities globally.
Abadesi Osunsade , Founder and CEO of Hustle Crew
Abadesi was recently included in the Financial Times list of Top 100 Influential Leaders in Tech and Tech Nation’s 50 most prominent and influential voices in Tech. She graduated from the London School of Economics in 2009 and wrote for the Financial Times before joining London’s tech scene. Prior to her current roles she worked at Product Hunt, Elpha, Amazon, HotelTonight and Groupon where she was promoted after her first 8 months and helped scale her department 5X leading up to their record breaking IPO.
In 2016 she published her careers advice book, Dream Big Hustle Hard: A Millennial Woman’s Guide to Success in Tech which is rated 5 stars on Amazon. She has been featured in Elle, Stylist, BBC, Forbes, The Times and The Independent.
Kike Oniwinde, Founder and CEO of BYP
Kike Oniwinde is the founder and CEO of BYP Network, a platform that connects black professionals with each other and corporations. She has an economics degree from the University of Nottingham and a MSc in Management from the University of Florida, where she gained a full Track & Field Scholarship.
She is also an ex-Great Britain javelin thrower and a three-time British University Championships medalist. The idea of BYP Network came after Kike studied abroad and met talented black students, who faced similar challenges to those in the UK. Once back in London, the lack of diversity in the workplace coupled with low opportunities to meet others in the city; prompted her to take action to ‘change the black narrative.’
Yvonne Bajela Founding Members and Principal at Impact X
Recognised by Forbes 30 Under 30 as a key influencer of global money flows in 2020, Yvonne is the Founding Member and Principal at Impact X Capital, a UK based venture capital fund founded to support underrepresented entrepreneurs.
Over the last five years, Yvonne has invested over £200 million in various startups and advised over 100 companies. A board member and passionate leader, Yvonne is a champion for diverse founders
Bejay Mulenga, Managing Director, Supa Talent
Bejay Mulenga is an award-winning entrepreneur — at 20 years old he was the youngest person to receive Her Majesty the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion in 2016. Bejay founded Supa Tuck at 14 years old, a franchise of student-run tuck shops in schools and has gone on to consult and work for brands such as Sony Music, Uber, Coca-Cola, Facebook, River Island, and Nike.
His recent venture, Supa Talent, is a fast-growing Training and Employer Brand Consultancy working on diversity campaigns and programmes for large corporates
Hanna Naima McCloskey, Founder, and CEO of Fearless Futures
Hanna of Algerian-British heritage and the Founder & CEO of Fearless Futures. Fearless Futures engages people in critical thought to understand and challenge the root causes of inequalities and grow powerful new ways of leading.
She has worked for the UN, NGOs and the Royal Bank of Scotland, across communications, research and finance roles; and has lived, studied and worked in Israel-Palestine, Italy, USA, Sudan, Syria and the UK. She has a BA in English from the University of Cambridge and an MA in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, with a specialism in Conflict Management. Hanna is a passionate and skilled facilitator and educator, and education is the lifeblood of Fearless Futures.
