Inclusion Bites Podcast

Joanne Lockwood is joined by John Sands, an ERG trainer, to unpack how organisations can turn difficult, polarising moments into constructive conversations and tangible workplace improvements. They explore what Employee Resource Groups are for, how they create safer spaces and belonging, and what it takes for ERGs to thrive through genuine organisational support, sponsorship, and resources.

The conversation ranges beyond the workplace to examine how media sensationalism and social platforms can amplify echo chambers, distort statistics, and harden positions. Joanne and John discuss why people cling to certainty, how “headline thinking” fuels division, and what it looks like to disagree without dehumanising one another—especially when freedom of speech meets the risk of harm.

John also shares the personal impact of severe COVID-19 illness, including his time in a coma and the lasting mental scars that shaped his commitment to disability advocacy and support. Across the episode, the focus stays on empathy, education, and allyship as practical tools for building more inclusive cultures—at work and in wider society.

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• John Sands: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by Clare Payne, a law firm partner, tribunal judge and mediator, to explore what it really means to embrace your full potential—personally and in the workplace.

Clare reflects on her fast rise in the corporate legal world, the frustration of repetitive leadership conversations, and what she learned by comparing organisations that had similar diversity “numbers” but very different outcomes. The difference, she argues, is culture: whether people are genuinely able to bring themselves to work and contribute their perspectives.

Using wolves as an unexpected but vivid metaphor, Clare describes how healthy packs rely on varied roles and perspectives rather than rigid “alpha” hierarchy—and what that can teach leaders about collaboration, innovation and belonging. The conversation also touches on nervous system regulation, how modern stress keeps people stuck in fight/flight/freeze, and why that state makes difference feel threatening rather than valuable.

Together they explore practical shifts leaders can make: creating environments where people can ask questions, reflect after trying things, and learn from mistakes without fear. Clare shares experiential approaches she uses with leaders—designed to stretch comfort zones without overwhelming people—and explains the difference between pushing through stress and expanding capability through supported growth.

The episode closes on themes of intrinsic self-worth, the tension between fitting in and belonging, and how mediation, emotional processing and restorative approaches can reduce conflict and help people move forward with more connection and clarity.

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• Claire Payne: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by confidence coach and inclusion consultant Katie Allen to explore what it really means to “talk, not tell” in inclusion work. Together they unpack why people get stuck in ambiguity and fear saying the wrong thing, and how psychological safety can disappear the moment a conversation moves from business topics to subjects like racism, identity, or gender.

They dig into intention versus impact, accountability, and the everyday language choices that can cause harm—even when someone “meant well.” The conversation also looks at echo chambers, polarisation on social media, and how cultural intelligence grows when we actively seek out perspectives beyond our own.

A significant part of the episode centres on lived experience. Katie shares her identity as asexual and panromantic, explaining different forms of attraction and how asexuality is often misunderstood—including within LGBTQIA+ spaces. Joanne reflects on how transitioning changed her understanding of gendered experience and highlights how blind spots can remain around race and policing.

Throughout, the focus stays on curiosity over perfectionism: creating space for respectful conversation, learning, and changing behaviour when we discover our words or assumptions have negative impacts.

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• Katie Allen: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by Sheena Yap Chan to explore what persistence really looks like behind the scenes—moving past the myth of overnight success and continuing to take action through rejection, setbacks, and self-doubt.

Sheena shares how confidence can be rebuilt by understanding the root causes of fear and limiting beliefs, including childhood experiences, trauma, and cultural expectations. The conversation examines how social media comparison and perfectionism can damage self-worth, why vulnerability and authenticity matter, and how support—through communities, mentoring, and professional help—can accelerate growth.

They also discuss broader systemic pressures, including gender double standards at work, barriers to funding and leadership, and the importance of allies in shifting norms. Throughout, the focus stays on practical mindset shifts, staying connected to purpose, and persisting long enough for personal growth to translate into professional impact.

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• Sheena Yap Chan: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood speaks with LinkedIn and social selling expert Sam Rathling about what resilience looks like when life becomes dominated by hospital appointments, uncertainty, and recovery. Sam shares her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment journey, including the emotional impact, the physical toll of chemotherapy, and the lesser-discussed challenge of what happens when treatment milestones are reached but psychological support still feels limited.

Alongside cancer, Sam discusses her decision to become sober and how sobriety changed her ability to cope with adversity, parent through crisis, and stay grounded through treatment. The conversation also touches on family life as a single parent of three neurodivergent children, and the importance of connection and practical support during prolonged periods of stress.

The episode closes with a candid look at authenticity in public life: why Sam chose to share parts of her experience on social media, how vulnerability can build genuine community, and what workplaces and colleagues often get wrong when someone returns after serious illness. Listeners are left with clear encouragement around early detection and a thoughtful challenge to show up as a whole human being, not just a professional mask.

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• Sam Rathling: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by somatic trauma worker and educator Lorie Solis to explore “Claiming Each Other” — Lorie’s approach to building resilient relationships when charged, values-led conflict shows up in our closest circles.

Together they unpack somatics as a whole mind-body practice and how emotional charge, threat responses, and a sense of dignity and belonging shape the way we argue, withdraw, or escalate. Lorie shares practical, body-based ways to create more capacity in moments of tension, including how to pause and de-escalate before conflict takes over.

The conversation also moves into lineage, identity, and decolonisation. Lorie reflects on her mixed ancestry and what it has meant to reconcile both colonised and coloniser histories, including how relocating from Texas to Portugal created new space for healing, reflection, and re-connection to land-based practices. Joanne explores her own feelings of disconnection from ancestry and how community, including queer lineage, can offer a different route to belonging.

Throughout, the episode returns to the possibility of staying in relationship across difference — treating conflict as potentially generative, practising repair, and learning how to be connected imperfectly while remaining rooted in values, care, and authenticity.

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• Lorie Solis: website

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by workplace culture innovator and conflict resolution expert Maria Arpa for a wide-ranging conversation about how conflict can become a route to compassion rather than retribution. Maria challenges adversarial approaches that focus on “winning” and argues for connection before correction, creating the conditions for people to be heard, receive empathy, and rebuild trust.

Together they explore the difference between debate and dialogue, and why many workplace processes escalate division by rewarding competing stories rather than shared understanding. Maria describes how mediation and facilitated dialogue can help people find a shared, factual truth, make space for emotion, and then address both the practical mechanics of a situation and how it has impacted people.

The discussion also touches on how power imbalances, psychological safety, and language shape what people feel able to say at work and in society. Joanne and Maria reflect on the impact of labels, the narrowing definition of “normal,” and why human connection and community are essential for healing and lasting change.

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• Maria Arpa MBE: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by technology and digital recruitment specialist Luke Morrisen to explore what inclusivity can look like in today’s digital working world, grounded in Luke’s personal journey and his experience placing people into tech and recruitment environments.

Luke describes struggling in traditional education, leaving home young, and later discovering that he learns differently. Becoming a parent, particularly to a neurodiverse son, prompts deeper self-understanding and a commitment to helping others move beyond limiting beliefs. He shares how structure and clear goals helped him thrive in recruitment, build confidence, and ultimately set up his own business.

A major thread of the conversation focuses on alcohol-centred workplace culture and how it can exclude people and undermine wellbeing. Joanne and Luke discuss sobriety, addictive tendencies, and how ADHD-style “all or nothing” patterns can amplify reliance on alcohol or caffeine. They reflect on the real-life consequences of alcohol on judgement, safety, and participation at work, and argue for workplaces to design social and expense policies that don’t default to drinking.

They also examine what it takes to build inclusive teams in tech: being honest about culture, avoiding tokenistic hiring, and ensuring people are supported once they join. The episode closes with practical reflections on culture change, understanding individual needs, and creating environments where more people can belong and perform at their best.

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• Luke Morrisen: LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Caroline Praveen shares how moving from India to the United States as a child reshaped her confidence, sense of self, and connection to her mother tongue as she learned English. She describes the long, uneven path from feeling like an outsider to becoming fluent, and the unexpected cost of that fluency: struggling to speak her native language and feeling a shift in identity.

Joanne and Caroline explore what language barriers really mean in day-to-day life for immigrant and refugee families, including the pressure on children to translate for adults, the added challenge of digital literacy, and the isolation that comes from being cut off from familiar community and culture. Caroline also explains why empathy and patience matter so much when speaking with people who are developing English, and how well-meaning overcompensation can become patronising.

The conversation broadens into inclusion, mindset change, and the realities of bias and stereotyping, including the idea of “good immigrants” and how different forms of racism show up. Caroline reflects on working with children who have fled war, the role of local support organisations, and the resilience she sees in families as they rebuild their lives. The episode closes with a call to individual responsibility: small, consistent actions can shift the “ratio” toward a more inclusive society.

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• Caroline Praveen: website · LinkedIn

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]

Joanne Lockwood is joined by workplace inclusion specialist Toby Mildon to explore his path from technology transformation into equality, diversity and inclusion work, and what it takes to make EDI feel practical rather than intimidating.

They unpack why so many leaders feel anxious about “getting it wrong”, how that fear can create inaction, and what helps: clearer organisational purpose, emotional connection to the “why”, and a focus on behaviour change over simply knowing the right facts. Along the way they challenge siloed approaches to diversity, discuss bias and representation, and reflect on how privilege and the myth of meritocracy show up in workplaces and wider society.

The conversation moves into what effective, measurable inclusion looks like in practice. Toby shares how organisations can connect inclusion to commercial outcomes such as retention and attrition costs, and why culture, psychological safety and a credible employee value proposition matter more than surface-level perks. They close by looking at shifting expectations of work and values alignment, and what inclusive culture needs to deliver for people to feel safe, respected and able to belong.

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• Toby Mildon: website · LinkedIn

Full show notes, chapters and transcript for this episode

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Inclusion Bites is hosted by Joanne Lockwood of SEE Change Happen. Partnership and sponsorship enquiries: [email protected]