Sundance Institute’s Post

COLOR VISION ACHIEVEMENTS Taking the day to show some of the key milestones and accomplishments of Color Vision over the years: Launch: Color Vision was founded in 2018 with the mission of empowering creative black women and improving career opportunities for women of color. National Conferences: Color Vision has hosted several national conferences, bringing together women from various creative backgrounds to share knowledge and experiences. Membership Program: Our insider membership packages is for those looking to connect with other creative women of color and climb in their careers. Scholarships: Color Vision has offered scholarship opportunities and collaborated with organizations like Discovery, Inc. to provide financial assistance to students of color. Advisory Board: Color Vision's advisory board consists of accomplished professionals who guide and strengthen the organization's mission. Events and Initiatives: Over the years, Color Vision has organized numerous events and initiatives aimed at supporting and empowering women of color in their careers and businesses. These milestones and accomplishments demonstrate Color Vision's ongoing commitment to creating a supportive community and providing valuable resources for women of color to thrive in their chosen fields. #Colorvision #BlackWomen

A new study by Dr. Stacy L. Smith has found that 32% of the 2024 Oscar nominees are women. This ties the all-time high first reached in 2021. The study was conducted alongside the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative and Adobe Foundation. As reported by Yahoo: "Twenty percent of nominees in the 19 categories (the ones related to feature-film awards) they examined were from an underrepresented racial/ethnic group. That ranks third all-time, behind 2021’s 24 percent and 2019’s 21 percent. Women of color hold 5.7 percent of the nominations in 2024; the all-time high was again in 2021, with 11 percent." In a statement sent to the media, Dr. Smith shared: “The study reveals how often the Academy Awards recognize the talent and work of women and people of color." “For those who want to say that the Awards are improving, it is critical to note that in 2024, the percentage of women and people of color nominated for awards in feature categories still falls far below proportional representation. There is much more work to do to see the creative talents of women and people of color– and particularly women of color– recognized by this industry body.” Read more via links in comments. #inclusion #representation #stem #research

We’re excited to feature Alexis Cain as she shares her insights on women in financial services. Alexis sees community engagement and social media groups as proactive ways for women to learn more about the career. She also suggests more representation and outreach at college fairs so young women can get educated early about the career and understand the steps they need to take to become a financial professional. Check out the graphic below to hear more from Alexis!

As the DEI Ambassador for one of my professional networking groups, I give a monthly reflection on a topic relevant to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging at our meetings. Yesterday, in honor of Women's History Month and International Women's Day, this was my DEI Moment. Will you join me? "Let's remember the trailblazers, both in our country and our state, our cities and our families.... We're going to be hearing about famous women but let's not forget that you don't need to be a celebrity, or a media darling, to be a trailblazer. You don't need to participate in landmark actions to be a supporter. Imagine a fellow professional, who happens to be a woman, who earned her Bachelor's degree in a STEM field, and was the only woman in her entire program. Think about what she had to deal with on a daily basis. Now image that she continued for post-graduate work in STEM....and was pregnant. Think about being such an oddity that there were no restrooms she could use in her lab building. Let’s imagine she switched career tracks and went to law school, a mother with 3 children, and the effort it took to make that work. Not just the intense intellectual work, but the physical work of caring for and raising 3 children, of being a wife, and of being told "you're not good enough," "you're harming your children by not being a full-time mother," "no one's ever going to hire you anyway," "there's no way you can be a mother and a Partner." Let's commit as professionals to building a more inclusive environment, where a person is accepted and celebrated and supported despite their gender. An environment where women and girls aren't told how much they can't do, but are tempted with the possibilities of, what could you do? And given the support to start building their dreams. Will you join me?" #womeninstem #womenindata #womenindatascience

I'll skip the humblebrag and simply express my genuine excitement, honor, and enthusiasm to be part of this inaugural summit. Danielle Shockey, I have curated the perfect accessory for an event sponsored by the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana during Women's History Month. 😉 If you haven't registered yet, what are you waiting for? Indiana women, trust me, you don't want to miss out on this event. If you've been keeping an eye on the lineup, you know exactly what I'm talking about. #SayNotoFOMO Here's what you need to do: 1. Check your calendar, make some adjustments, or mark yourself as out of office; 2. Click this link to register now: https://bit.ly/3wRpsAN; 3. Go through your wardrobe and find something white, green, purple, or gold; (colors symbolizing Women's History Month, as explained https://lnkd.in/erBdahh6). 4. Plan your route to the Historic Union Station. Plan ahead and calculate your travel time backward from the opening plenary. Trust me, you don't want to be late!

Creator Nyamekye (Yah-MEH-chay) Wilson is uplifting Black women in STEM and creating a talent pipeline for the next generation: "This week, we chatted with Nyamekye Wilson, a creator that is the founder and CEO of Black Sisters in STEM, a group building one of the largest talent pipelines of Black college women in STEM. Her passion for global STEM and bridging the gender gap gave birth to a six-figure tech company while she was working at Google. We talk with Nyamekye about the challenges she’s faced in her career, starting a Black nonprofit, where she draws inspiration from and more. 'I am the Black woman who did not have the support. I am the Black woman who, you know, went through the question and anxiety trying to get to the place where I’m trying to get to my girl’s to. I am the Black woman who gained over 60 pounds trying to take my family out of poverty and be the first person in my family to have a six-figure career right out of college. That is a mental battle that you constantly have to do. And so you really have to have a lot of mental attitude. You really have to work with the best interactions and best relationships that maybe other populations more likely have — they don’t have to do half the work because if they came from a very wealthy area, they’re likely to have that and some people in those areas have a foundation, it’s very likely. And they likely have those people to be family friends or family connections — it makes it so much easier when you can just go to their house, or you can just call them and say, 'hey, I have this idea.' That’s how money moves by relationship. Essentially, it always moves by relationship because money is a trust factor. And when you have the relationship, someone who has known you since you were five, and they’ve been friends with your mom and dad for 20 years, that trust factor is already there. Versus, a young Black girl coming to the phone with her story and her narrative and you’ve never met her in your life. You don’t know anything about her. You don’t know anything about the organization. Now, I have to do 10 times the work. And plead to you who I am, plead to you what we’re doing at Black Sisters to get that trust, compared to someone with less information because that’s someone who you’ve known your whole life." #WomenInSTEM #GirlsInSTEM #STEMGems #GiveGirlsRoleModels https://lnkd.in/efpWhpeY

I wish someone told me... To celebrate all small wins and lessons like it was a massive milestone at the beginning of my career. Because... It builds your confidence. It is the best motivator. It creates momentum. It inspires you to do more. it build your trust in your self. It makes your work more meaningful. Instead, I just went head first into the next task. Because I thought I had to do more, be more ans perform more. And there wwa nothing in it for me. Make it count for you. Make it joyful for you. Make it meaningful for you. it'll pay dividends! If you don't know what and how to celebrate, I will do it for you. Join Ready STEM Grow, the Free support and learning community for Women in STEM who want more confidence. impact and income.

Black Women in Tech When you consider that only 24% of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) roles in the UK are held by women, it shouldn’t come as surprise that the numbers are much lower when it comes to women of colour. The gender and race balance is off and it’s up to us to encourage more young girls and people of colour into STEM fields in the future, if we’re to ensure that the advancement of technology and scientific discovery is to truly reflect the world around us and the people in it.

I’ve been thinking about my dad a lot lately. He would‘ve celebrated his 80th birthday on Aug. 7, and I’d gotten a bit sad missing him more than usual and thinking about how we might’ve marked this milestone day if he were here. Then I received an email…notifying me that I had been named one of Ad Age’s 2024 Leading Women — and guess when the honoree event will take place? Aug. 7, 2024 - my daddy’s 80th birthday!🥳 I immediately started laughing as I could only think “Thank you, Daddy…this is so like you — you made sure we’d all be together on this day to celebrate your big day - and now mine!” Each year, Ad Age’s Leading Women award “recognizes those who create opportunity and drive transformation in the industry. These global talents from companies of all kinds—brands, agencies, technology providers or media platforms—are groundbreakers, forward thinkers and rainmakers in the marketing and advertising realm, blazing trails with new solutions, standout creative work and business-building initiatives. They are empowering teams, building relationships, driving business results and advocating for diversity and inclusion.” Thank you, Ad Age, for acknowledging the work and the ongoing challenges that we navigate (“This year’s backdrop is stark, as a politically charged atmosphere in an election year puts more pressure on company executives to stand up for their values without disrupting the bottom line. These honorees have risen to that occasion.”) and for the recognition as someone “leading the charge for positive change in the industry and finding success in the process.” Thank you to my Horizon Media team and colleagues for being bold enough to embark upon new journeys, and innovative enough to create the paths that others may follow. I am honored and humbled as I simply continue to focus on leaving the spaces I occupy and the people I encounter better, more inspired, and more empowered than they were before. To whom much is given, much is required…and I am ever-grateful. Article 🔗: https://lnkd.in/eqvqNTtA #womeninleadership #cmo #cdo #doingthingsdifferently #marketing #communications #diversity #equity #inclusion #dei

Today is International Day of Women and Girls in Science and we’re thinking about representation for two reasons. One, there’s no doubt there is a huge underrepresentation of Black women in the UK’s STEM fields and two, it’s important to recognise that representation in and of itself isn’t anti-racism. Institutional racism and sexism, (misogynoir), has led to the historical erasure of Black women’s contributions and poses ongoing challenges in their professional advancement. In science for example, despite Black women constituting 4% of the UK population, they represent only 0.3% of the STEM workforce. This disparity is evident at all levels of STEM careers, from entry-level positions to senior executive roles. In fact, over 70% of tech industry boards and senior executive teams lack representation from women of colour at all. Evidence suggests the reasons for this underrepresentation are complex and multifaceted. They range from personal experiences with mentors and academic mindsets to societal attitudes towards STEM and family background characteristics. This lack of representation means there are too few women to be champions and mentors to younger women. A survey by the Coding Black Females network revealed that 67% of its members felt they faced more barriers to entry into the tech industry than women from other ethnicities. The Lewis Hamilton Commission has pointed out that organisations often mistakenly believe they can address diversity without altering their underlying structure and operations. This leads to a mis-belief ultimately based on meritocracy and importantly fails to examine the impact of organisational cultures and practices. And that’s where education is needed to understand that even if organisations accepted meritocracy gives some an unfair advantage and takes steps to address this, they are still inviting Black and Brown women into spaces that will cause them harm; the recruitment processes may change, but the internal culture of the organisation doesn’t. Racism continues unbound and Black and Brown women are no better off. Only with systemic change can the future of STEM become not only diverse, inclusive, and representative of all, but able to also recognise and create safe spaces for everyone, not just a few. #BlackExcellence #BlackWomenInSTEM #InclusionInSTEM #WomenInScience