Diversify

Networking & Experience Sharing Blog.
Culture and Identity

Is Everyone in the Room?

In Norway, I often find the concept of diversity and inclusion puzzling. It has indeed

July 3, 2019
Culture and Identity

Whitesplaining Color-Blindness.

Whitesplaining can be defined as the unconscious, unjustified and unassessed benefits of prejudice. It is

July 2, 2019
Experience Sharing

“You Are His First Negro.”

My partner has a deadbeat childhood friend. Let’s call the deadbeat friend, “Dick,” and my

June 29, 2019
Experience Sharing

“People Like You.”

Some time ago, while exploring my possibilities of taking a paid language course for the

June 29, 2019

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Linn Schjerven

Project manager and DEIB associate

Linn is a polyglot with work experience from service, journalism, graphics and illustrations and social media management. She has a bachelors in media studies and sociology from the University of Hong Kong and a masters in journalism from the University College of Volda. Linn has been active in public debates about identity and belonging and is pursuing additional studies in migration and social geography. Her past experiences include volunteering for a range of multicultural events and illustrative work for Samora Forum. At Diversify she is a project manager and DEIB associate, supporting the organization’s work on DEIB surveys, workshops and mentorship programs.

Professional Women of Colour

Title

Founded by Selim Ablo-Nielsen & Dr. Phaedria Marie St.Hilaire, ProWoc has catalysed an increased focus on intersectional and ethnic diversity in Denmark. ProWoc provides a community for Women of Colour (WoC) to be empowered and supported in their professional and personal development. They promote positive images of WoC and established an Impact Award that honours the achievements of WoC role models. ProWoc promotes allyship and collaborates with individuals, organisations and companies from different ethnicities, sexes and industries to make sustainable change.

​​https://prowoc.org/

Jasmin Assulin

CEO & Co-founder

Jasmin Assulin is a DEI (diversity, equity & inclusion), racial equity & communications professional and the CEO & Co-founder of deidei, a Helsinki-based consulting agency helping organizations on their DEI and inclusive communications transformation journeys. Her much-praised strength is combining her extensive DEI expertise at the intersection of business and society.

Yesmith Sánchez

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Consultant

Yesmith is a DEI Consultant and Business Strategist who has been advocating for more inclusive organizational practices in Finland throughout her career. Yesmith constantly engages in conversations related to how structural changes are needed in order to have a truly inclusive approach to diversity in the workplace and in the society at large.

Nordic Women in Tech Awards

Nordic Women in Tech Awards is a non-profit initiative and once a year we gather to celebrate the achievements of female role models across all Nordic countries. Our goal is to highlight the outstanding female figures and share their successful stories with the general public, in order to attract & inspire the new generation of women wanting to take on the challenging and exciting path in the tech industry.

Thelma Kristín Kvaran

Partner and Recruiter

Thelma Kristín Kvaran is a partner and a recruiter/head-hunter at Intellecta, a recruitment and consulting agency in Iceland. Thelma is also the Project Manager of the Gender Equality Scale, a project established by the Association of Businesswomen in Iceland. Thelma has advocated for equality in the workplace and has used her platform to get many of Iceland’s biggest companies, municipalities, and institutions to sign a pledge where they make it their mission to even out the gender gap in their workplace. Thelma has held lectures and appeared in the media multiple times where her emphasis has been on diversity, equal opportunities, equal representation in the workplace, media and more. Thelma is a board member at the Association of Young Businesswomen in Iceland.

Mimmit koodaa

Title

The purpose of the Mimmit koodaa -program (women code -program) is to increase gender equality in the Finnish software industry by breaking the stereotype that coding is only for men.

The core of the program is to provide easily accessible coding workshops free of charge for women who are interested in coding but have no previous experience in it. The long-term objective of #MimmitKoodaa is to help give future generations an equal opportunity to study and flourish in the IT field, especially in the software industry. The program is powered by the Finnish Software and E-business Association and its member companies.

Astrid Sundberg

Director of Diversity & Inclusion

Astrid Sundberg is a People + Talent leader with 26 years’ experience in the STEM sector, specialising within the start up and scale up climate. Astrid is a frequent contributor to DEIB events as a keynote speaker, panelist, moderator, presenter and facilitator. She’s also a Google accredited facilitator of the #IamRemarkable workshop, delivering sessions in her spare time to raise awareness around bias and discrimination. Currently, as Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Oda she has a fundamental and strategic role, building a Global Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging programme.

GeoSilica

Title

GeoSilica develops daily supplements that naturally repair, recover and renew your body from head to toe. We use advanced technology to harvest and process the minerals found in Iceland’s volcanic earth. Our products are pure, natural, vegan certified and sustainably produced. We believe in manufacturing and developing products in harmony with nature, using minerals from deep within the earth while leaving a minimal trace on the planet. GeoSilica believes there is a clear link between diversity inclusion and successful business.

Sidekick

Title

Sidekick is a digital therapeutics innovator. The company operates a digital care platform, providing a 360-degree support to people with chronic illnesses – including remote monitoring, treatment adherence and disease-specific education – driven by gamification, resulting in industry-leading retention rates and proven to boost health outcomes. The platform is a CE-marked, Class I Medical Device.

Marianne Egelund Siig

CEO

Marianne Egelund Siig, CEO of Mannaz, is a respected strategic leader dedicated to creating value and purpose for people, companies and society at large. Marianne is a thought leader when it comes to equal opportunities, diversity and inclusion. She has successfully designed and executed transformations related to organizational strategies and development, including diversity and inclusion, for more than 20 years. In 2022, Marianne published her book “Gid vi Gad” (Wish we would), a collection of articles and essays on various ED&I subjects.

Jyoti Sohal-David

Founder and CEO

Jyoti Sohal-David is the Founder & CEO of Skillhus, a recruitment and consultancy agency that specializes in increasing diversity and inclusion in Norwegian workplaces. As an entrepreneur, recruiter, diversity coach, and passionate individual she has facilitated and delivered workshops within the diversity and inclusion space. Her multicultural background and experiences of working and living abroad led her to pursue her passion for working in the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging space.

Johanna Lundin

CEO & Founder

Johanna Lundin, gender expert , CEO and founder of Equalate AB. Johanna has worked with gender mainstreaming, equality and diversity since 2008 and has great experience of working with core values in organisations and government agencies with valid results. Johanna has developed new gender and diversity programs and tools for organisations in the public and private sector and is committed to the thought of making gender equality in her lifetime.

Charlotte Jónsdóttir Biering

Global Diversity and Inclusion Specialist

Charlotte Biering is Marel’s first D&I Specialist, based in Iceland but operating across 30+ countries. She brings a multidisciplinary and intersectional approach to her work, drawing from her experiences working across multiple industries and cultures. She spent several years working in international development, disaster response, gender equality and social justice, for organizations such as the Red Cross Climate Center, ActionAid and UN Global Compact, before moving into management consultancy, supporting energy companies in improving their societal and environmental impact.

In 2015, she made D&I the sole focus of her career, first working within male-dominated corporate finance and subsequently co-leading EY’s Women. Fast forward platform.

She is working to develop a culture of inclusion at Marel through education and initiatives; by applying a D&I lens to policies, processes and projects and equipping employees with the tools to be more inclusive.

Sammen om en Jobb

Title

Sammen om en jobb  is a social enterprise working for an inclusive society where everyone gets to use their skills and potential. This is done through a mentor programme matching skilled immigrants with mentors with long professional experience from Norway.

The program matches mentors and mentees who share the same professional background. The mentees receive field specific guidance and support in relation to their job search in Norway. They meet 1-2 times a month for 6 months.During the 6 months the Mentee develops a short term as well as a long term plan with specific steps to take in order to access a job within their field. The Mentors also develop a greater understanding of different cultures and the structural and cultural barriers that people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds face entering the Norwegian labour market.

The Program has proved to be successful in integrating highly qualified immigrants into the Norwegian labor market and some into further education. Our partners include big businesses and the public sector.

Spotify

Title

At Spotify,we have three strategic pillars guiding our work on Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging:
  • We believe accelerating diversity is not only about hiring; it’s also an opportunity to develop and retain the diverse talent we already have within the organization — at all levels — as well as invest in a new generation of audio creators and tech professionals from all backgrounds.
  • We lead with empathy and are always looking for ways to infuse inclusion into our culture, whether that’s changing the way we work, designing our platform to be accessible for all, or amplifying content from underrepresented creators.
  • We don’t just want to foster a sense of belonging in our company culture — we want to amplify it across the world. We’re working on ways to do this on our platform and in our communities, including advocating for positive policy changes that tackle inequity.

Papillon

Title

Papillon is an organization that stands for an inclusive society. We aim to empower young cross-cultural people to stand in their own choices by, among other things, offering a meeting place, networking, and guidance. Papillon mobilizes the participants to fight the challenges they face and to become resourceful and independent. Therefore, encourage participants to live an independent life, get an education, fit into the workplaces, and participate in the public sector. Furthermore, we function as a bridge-builder in society and contribute to social inclusion, which again contributes to the experience and feeling of community and belonging.

Landssamtökin Þroskahjálp / National Association of Intellectual Disabilities

Title

Þroskahjálp, The National Association of Intellectual Disabilities, was founded in 1976. It’s objective is to advocate for the rights and promote the interests of persons with disabilities. The organization puts particular emphasis on being a strong advocate for people with intellectual disabilities and children with disabilities, and to empower people with intellectual disabilities to express their opinions and will and to promote and protect their rights and interests. Everybody should enjoy the same rights and opportunities in a diverse society.

The Reykjavík Global Forum

Title

The Reykjavík Global Forum is co-hosted annually in Reykjavík, Iceland by Women Political Leaders (WPL) and the Government and Parliament of Iceland. The Forum convenes a diverse group of women leaders from all sectors to share their stories, ideas and solutions on how to further advance society and positively develop the number of women in leadership positions. By prioritizing diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging the forum creates a platform where different voices are heard and accounted for.  To represent participation on equal grounds, all the participants of the Forum are labeled as conversationalists, as they equally contribute to the conversation and success of this ever growing Forum and Community of women leaders.

Futurice

Title

We’re Futurice. We help forward-thinking organizations develop resilience and take control of their futures.

We are experts in software development, design and strategy, and we combine these capabilities to transform organisations at every level.

We believe in co-creation, ultimate learning opportunities and cross-competence teams.

We are committed to building an equitable and sustainable company, society and future. Our values – trust, transparency, care and continuous improvement – are at the core of everything that we do.

Develop Diverse

Title

Develop Diverse is on a mission to create equal opportunities for all in the workplace – and we believe inclusive language is a key in achieving this. We have built a writing platform that detects biased language in text and suggests more inclusive alternatives, so companies can make their communication more inclusive. We currently focus on making job ads more inclusive, but aim to extend our platform to cover all types of text and communication channels.

Sopra Steria

Title

As a European Tech leader specialized in consulting, digital services and software development, we span today over 30 countries with our 47 000 employees. Our mission is: “Together, building a positive future by making digital work for people”, reflecting our firm belief that digital technology can create opportunity and progress for all.

We have chosen to be a “contributor” company involved in building a sustainable world in which everyone has a part to play. We see our contribution as sustainable, human-centred and guiding. Our internal work on DEIB activities are focused on:

  • Promoting a diverse workplace
  • Fostering an inclusive culture through knowledge building, networks, visibility, and
  • Practicing diversity management and leadership in a way that works to externally advance equality and equity on gender, race, ethnicity, disability inclusion, sexual orientation, and/or religion within our society.

In that way our aim is to be a catalyst for change, also in the area of DEIB at the workplace.

Samkaup

Title

Samkaup is one of the biggest retail companies in Iceland. It runs 65 stores in all parts of Iceland and on average the company has around 1.300 employees in over 660 full-time positions. One of the company’s main goals is to be a desirable workplace where the emphasis is placed on a positive and healthy culture, equality and open communication, opportunities for employees to increase education, training, and career development and good information sharing. The company’s corporate culture promotes that all employees can develop, both personally and professionally.

Human Library

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At the Human Library you can borrow books, like at any library. The difference is that the “books” are people with personal stories and experiences. Every book represents a group in society who are marginalised or targeted with prejudice and discrimination because of their identity, lifestyle, social status, religious belief, sexuality, ethnic origin etc. Everyone has prejudices, but not everyone can challenge these, within a safe space. The Human Library offers the opportunity to meet your prejudice and not judge someone.

Oda

Title

Oda is a leading online grocery store delivering a huge range of affordable groceries to millions of doorsteps. Using data driven methodology, with a focus on sustainability, they’re building the world’s most efficient retail system. Online shopping with home delivery is thought to be better for the climate than driving to the store, with an average Oda van delivering food to 26 families. Oda offers climate receipts for every customer order, developed in collaboration with Cicero, Center of Climate Research. Launched in the winter of 2020, this feature offers an overview of the climate cost for different foods. This unique feature encourages customers to grow knowledge about food emissions and be conscious of what they put in their basket. Oda has already changed to LED-lightning in their warehouses, saving 1.700.000 kWh per year and aim to have 100% renewable energy consumption by 2025. In 2020, every 5th burger sold by Oda was vegan and a vegetarian lentil soup was among the top 10 recipes bought by customers in 2020. With a bold ambition to cut emissions of the products they sell by 50%, Oda have pledged to continue working with Green nudging in collaboration with Cicero. Oda has also recently set new targets relating to animal welfare while actively promoting plant based diets in campaigns such as “Green January,” with a food waste percentage of 0.5%. Oda were recognised with the 2021 Norwegian Diversity Award owing to the high numbers of people employed from the immigrant community of Norway. They currently have 31.5% women in the company with a dedicated team of people tirelessly and passionately working together with the strategy for Sustainability, Diversity and Inclusion.

The Center for Sustainability Research

Title

The Center for Sustainability Research at the Stockholm School of Economics is a multidisciplinary social science research center focused on diverse challenges in sustainable development. We connect areas in socioeconomic development, global governance, migration and integration and sustainable markets. We are especially interested in the connection between the climate and environment and the social dimensions of sustainable development with special emphasis on diverse human rights issues. Our research is scientifically rigorous but also relevant and applicable to practitioners.

The Social Few

Title

The Social Few is a data and insight driven growth agency focusing on enabling sustainable growth by including more perspectives. We focus on enabling sustainable growth with the purpose of future-proofing organizations and societies – built by all and for all.

We were founded in 2016, initially as a think-tank with the aim of developing HOW TO methodologies for efforts regarding diversity, inclusion and belonging. In 2019 we had established a clear proof of concept and many business cases and therefore decided that it was time to launch our methods in the Scandinavian market. We became the first agency in the Nordics with focus on growth and innovation by adding more perspectives, based on data-driven methodology. Today we are the leading agency in data driven inclusion – in Europe.

The Social Few is founded by three members, all with different perspectives, backgrounds and from different sectors, industries and disciplines. Collectively, we speak many languages and come from different regions of Sweden and the world.

As do our partners and suppliers, within their respective areas of expertise.

This gives us not only expertise within our field but also deeper perspectives and knowledge regarding the very complex target audiences we include in all of our efforts. Our way of working is digital, iterative and incremental with the focus of solving and overcoming challenges, in a quantifiable and measurable way.

The Oslo Desk

Title

Ka Man Mak, a British-born Hong Konger, is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Oslo Desk where she leverages different journalistic and trauma-informed approaches to transform Norwegian media by portraying racialized immigrant communities more accurately and completely. Ka Man covers immigration, identity, human rights, digital violence and violence in closed relationships through the gender and race lens. Through the She Witness project, she tackles the latter topic with two other NGOs. She has also appeared in numerous panel discussions.

Viaplay Group

Title

Viaplay Group is the Nordic region’s leading entertainment provider. We entertain millions of people every day with our streaming services, TV channels and radio stations, and our production companies create content that is experienced around the world. We make life more entertaining by telling stories, touching lives, and expanding worlds –from live sports, movies and series to music and original shows.
At Viaplay group we embrace diversity by appreciating and including varied perspectives. We are committed to providing equal access, opportunity & resources for everyone. We believe that equality, diversity & inclusion will lead us to better decisions, bring forward greater creativity, give us increased engagement, and a highly motivating sense of belonging for our people.

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