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Everyone – regardless of their background – has something we can learn from and be inspired by. In each episode, our guests will share their personal stories, passions, and challenges – past and present – all with the goal of bringing people together and learning more about others. You might be surprised by what we all have in common.
Episodes
Wednesday Apr 13, 2022
Wednesday Apr 13, 2022
Dr. Gennifer Herley, founder and executive director of TransNewYork, joins co-host John Iino and guest co-host Alan York, Reed Smith partner and chair of PRISM, Reed Smith’s LGBTQ+ business inclusion group, in a powerful discussion aimed at educating listeners about the transgender community, the challenges it faces in the current political environment and the mission and work of Trans New York.
Read the rest of this entry »Wednesday Mar 30, 2022
Wednesday Mar 30, 2022
Research suggests that 70 percent of consumers want to know what the brands they support are doing to address social and environmental issues. However, jumping on the social cause bandwagon is not enough; these public commitments need to be authentic. To delve deeper into this topic, John Iino and Iveliz Crespo are joined by seasoned social media and brand expert Wilsar F. Johnson, vice president of social media and brand development at SKDK, to discuss the company’s people-first approach to helping brands and other clients communicate authentically, avoid blowback from consumers, and manage crises in a thoughtful and strategic way.
Read the rest of this entry »Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Thursday Mar 17, 2022
Erin Wilkins, Reed Smith’s DE&I talent development analyst, joins our hosts, John Iino and Iveliz Crespo, to discuss the role that bias plays in talent development in the employment environment, including advancement, work assignments, and opportunities. Erin also discusses her role in administering and further developing Reed Smith’s DE&I Leadership Development Program, a groundbreaking program that is centered on the premise that mitigating bias and creating equitable opportunities requires intentionality and commitment.
Read the rest of this entry »Thursday Mar 03, 2022
Thursday Mar 03, 2022
Evan Thornburg (she/her), Health Equity Special Advisor for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, joins Reed Smith DE&I professionals John Iino (he/him) and Iveliz Crespo (they/them) to discuss how misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories pose a serious threat to public health. They discuss how it affects equitable engagement of services, causes confusion, creates mistrust, harms people’s health, and undermines public health efforts. Evan dives into the disparate impact that the spreading of inaccurate information has on vulnerable and marginalized communities and their ability to make informed decisions about their health. She also shares strategies that individuals can adopt to combat these threats.
Read the rest of this entry »Wednesday Oct 20, 2021
Wednesday Oct 20, 2021
Join us as we do our part to normalize respecting, sharing, and educating others about personal pronouns. Global DE&I Advisor Iveliz Crespo and DE&I Global Chair John Iino discuss being non-binary, the importance of respecting pronouns, and strategies that help ensure organizations and individuals are inclusive of the transgender, non-binary and gender non-conforming community. This session honors, and coincides with, International Pronouns Day.
Read the rest of this entry »Friday Oct 08, 2021
Friday Oct 08, 2021
Hispanic National Bar Association President Carlos Bollar discusses his efforts to create workplaces, law firms, and a legal industry that better reflect and include the Latinx/Hispanic community. In a session hosted by DE&I Advisor Iveliz Crespo and Partner Julia Lopez, Bollar provides guidance on how organizations can improve their efforts to recruit, advance and retain Latinx/Hispanic employees, thereby tapping into one of America’s fastest-growing consumer demographics.
Read the rest of this entry »Wednesday Sep 29, 2021
Wednesday Sep 29, 2021
As companies prepare to return to the office, they are asking: What lessons should they take from this past year?
In part one of our ‘Returning to work’ series, Reed Smith Gender Equity Advisor Dr. Dana Alvaré discusses the many ways COVID-19 exacerbated workplace problems faced by women, parents and caregivers. Along with co-hosts John Iino and Iveliz Crespo, she then identifies policies that help ensure return-to-work plans are equitable and inclusive of women.
Read the rest of this entry »Wednesday Sep 15, 2021
Wednesday Sep 15, 2021
Reed Smith’s Global DE&I Advisor Iveliz Crespo chats with Global Diversity Chair John Iino and DE&I Executive-Career Coach Kendrea Tannis about their journeys to coaching and why coaching is for everyone, including lawyers.
Read the rest of this entry »Wednesday Jul 14, 2021
Wednesday Jul 14, 2021
Dr. Sherry C. Wang, Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University, joins John Iino to share personal stories and discuss her scholarship on ethnic minority health disparities, including the roles of acculturation, stigma, and oppression. Employees from diverse backgrounds lack representation, and face stressors, such as microaggressions and unconscious bias, that degrade mental health and interfere with psychological wellness. Furthermore, access to mental health care is unequal in the United States: Asians are 51% less likely to use mental health services than whites, Latinos are 25% less likely, and Blacks are 21% less likely. In this episode, Dr. Wang discusses the links between mental health and inclusion, and how organizations can improve access to culturally sensitive care.
For more information please visit Reed Smith's Diversity, Equity & Inclusion page or Reed Smith’s recent Mental Health Summit Report.
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Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
2021 has been a record-breaking year for legislative attacks on the LGBTQ+ community, with a tragic focus on anti-transgender legislation. Over 30 state legislatures have introduced more than 100 bills that would curb the rights of transgender people.
Sasha Buchert, senior attorney at Lambda Legal, discusses the impact of these bills, and describes the coordinated response that Lambda Legal is taking to protect the LGBTQ+ community.
Reed Smith Global DE&I Advisor Iveliz Crespo and Partner Alan York, who is also global chair of the firm’s LGBTQ+ business inclusion group, co-host this important session.
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