Inspired by the 2023 theme for International Women's Day—Embracing Equity—we're taking a look inward to highlight the lived experiences of our diverse team.

In this live-streamed episode of Brave Conversations with LCW, Host Larry Baker was joined by LCW colleagues Alisa Kolodizner (LCW Co-Owner & Managing Partner) and Tamara Thorpe (LCW Principal Consultant, Real Mentors Network Founder) as they reflected on their entrepreneurial journeys—including motivations for beginning their career path, barriers they faced as women in business, and takeaways for supporting women colleagues.

The pandemic led to a challenging 24+ months for everyone but especially for people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent. With the recent rise in anti-AAPI hate crimes in the U.S. and the COVID turmoil that impacted India and other regions, there’s been an increased interest in allyship and resources to support this community. But has it been enough? What can these events teach us about being better allies?

Culture Moments Host Larry Baker (he/him) is joined by Reap-n-leap Coaching and Consulting Executive Coach and DEI & Culture Change Consultant Peyina Lin-Roberts (she/her) and Intercultural Consultant Jessica Shao (she/her), who share their lived experiences as people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent and what they believe are good first steps to better supporting this diverse community.

After tuning in to the conversation, we encourage you to share your takeaways on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

Following the industry’s boom during the pandemic, the tech sector faces extensive layoffs and a looming recession. Growing employee unease makes intentionally inclusive engagement the number one priority, but what does DEI look like in tech?

Join Culture Moments Host Larry Baker (he/him) and Gusto’s Chief Diversity and Engagement Officer Bernard Coleman (he/him) for a discussion about the cultural implications of tech layoffs and creating proactive strategies for engaging and retaining top talent.

After tuning in to the conversation, we encourage you to share your takeaways on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

We all know that what happens in our world outside of work doesn’t stop at the office door. How do you approach discussing global events with a multicultural team, and how do these conversations affect corporate outcomes?

Culture Moments host Larry Baker (he/him), Harvard Business Publishing’s Vice President of Diversity and Culture Ellen Bailey (she/her), and The Culture Mastery’s President and CEO Christian Höferle (he/him) discuss what it means to create brave spaces where employees feel empowered to embrace discomfort and have authentic conversations.

Find the full show notes and transcript here.

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LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

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While a person’s faith or non-faith is a deeply personal experience, it is also part of the authentic, intersectional identity they bring to the workplace. Yet, many organizations do not consider this important part of workers’ identities outside the Christian faith. In practicing cultural competency, it is crucial that organizations move beyond religious tolerance and toward inclusion­­—especially for non-Christian faiths and non-faiths—to ensure equitable policies for their diverse communities.

In this conversation, Culture Moments host Larry Baker (he/him) and DEI consultant Rahimeh Ramezany (she/her) delve into the complexities of faith in the workplace, drawing on Rahimeh’s experience as a consultant, speaker, DEI expert, and multiethnic, neurodiverse, visibly Muslim American woman.

After listening to the conversation, we encourage you to share your takeaways on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

This Brave Conversation was originally a live stream discussion recorded on August 25th, 2022.

Following 2020’s racial reckoning, companies across the U.S. engaged in their own brave conversations, some for the first time. While we know that many of these conversations centered around a U.S.-centric lens, the conversations that resulted are global conversations that have transcended borders.

But how do conversations on race differ across borders and cultures? How do you approach these conversations when considering different cultural identities within one organization? What is needed to move these conversations forward? And what can you personally do in your own organization to create space for these conversations?

Culture Moments podcast host Larry Baker is joined by, Raashi Sikka (VP Global Diversity & Inclusion at Ubisoft) and Alejandro Tobolski (Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Head at Johnson & Johnson) to unpack all these topics and more.

Find the full show notes and transcript here.

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LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

LCW Twitter: https://twitter.com/LCWllc

Did you know that July is BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month? BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month aims to increase visibility of the ways historically disenfranchised, marginalized, or oppressed racial and ethnic groups face unique mental health challenges.

Culture Moments podcast host Larry Baker (he/him) is joined by, LCW Consultant, Melonya Johnson (she/her) to take this conversation further and examine the specific challenges facing BIPOC DEI practitioners as they discuss inequality, racism, and oppression on a daily basis, while often still enduring it in the workplace.

This Brave Conversation was originally a live stream discussion recorded on July 26th, 2022.

Find the full show notes and transcript here.

Follow LCW on social media:

LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

LCW Twitter: https://twitter.com/LCWllc

Across the country, “Critical Race Theory” has been weaponized as a justification for limiting identity-based conversations in schools and workplaces. To date, at least seven states have passed legislation limiting these types of conversations, while citing or banning Critical Race Theory in the process and at least seventeen more states have similar legislation in the works, proving this conversation is not going away.

In this Brave Conversation, Culture Moments podcast host Larry Baker is joined by Natasha Aruliah, JEDdi Consultant, Facilitator and Coach at The Inner Activist, and Tahitia Timmons, Senior Consultant at LCW, as they break down the true meaning of Critical Race Theory and de-weaponize it in the process.

Find the full show notes and transcript here: https://languageandculture.com/culture-moments-de-weaponizing-critical-race-theory/

Follow LCW on social media:

LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

LCW Twitter: https://twitter.com/LCWllc

Juneteenth is now a federal holiday and is being recognized more than ever across America. Yet, not everyone knows why we recognize this holiday, what happened on this day, and, most importantly, why it matters.

Culture Moments podcast host Larry Baker (he/him) is joined by Dr. Brandon Caffey (he/him), Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Urbana School District #116 to discuss how to keep this meaning at the heart of this holiday and how you can keep this meaning infused within your workplace’s Juneteenth programing.

This Brave Conversation was originally a live stream discussion recorded on June 16th, 2022.

Continue your learning! Access LCW’s complimentary learning module Celebrating Juneteenth here.

Find the full show notes and transcript here: https://languageandculture.com/culture-moments-lets-talk-about-why-juneteenth-matters/

Guest and Host Info:

Larry Baker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-baker-8b262b75/

Dr. Brandon Caffey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-brandon-caffey-5b50977/

Follow LCW on social media:

LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

LCW Twitter: https://twitter.com/LCWllc

What are gender pronouns and why do they matter in the LGBTQ+ community? What do you do when you misgender someone in the workplace? What’s it like to be misgendered?

Culture Moments podcast host Larry Baker (he/him) is joined by LCW Associate Consultant Ada Vargas (they/them) for a candid discussion on Ada’s experience joining LCW, how LCW upskilled staff on pronoun use in the workplace, and why you should be having these conversations within your own organization.

This Brave Conversation was originally a live stream discussion recorded on June 2nd 2022.

Find the full show notes and transcript here: https://languageandculture.com/culture-moments-lets-talk-about-gender-pronouns/

Guest and Host Info:

Larry Baker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-baker-8b262b75/

Ada Vargas: https://languageandculture.com/team/ada-vargas/

Follow LCW on social media:

LCW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/language-&-culture-worldwide

LCW Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LanguageAndCultureWorldwide/

LCW Twitter: https://twitter.com/LCWllc