In our first episode we hear from Daniel Beckley who founded EmbRace. In 2010, Daniel had a vision of a collective voice which would ignite change, create a safe space for those conversations, and create a legacy, recognising that “EmbRace is not just for us, but for future generations.”
Daniel’s hope for the future is for EmbRace to have more impact, recognising that advancing race quality is not an overnight solution but a journey. But to progress this, the School needs to “listen, learn and act” with not merely “words from the lips…but actions from the heart”.
Length: 16 mins and 40 secs
Listen to Episode 1 here
Episode introduced by:
Yoshi Shungu, Programme Manager and Marketing and Communications Manager for EmbRace
Speaker:
Daniel Beckley, Founder of EmbRace and senior member of LSE’s Security Team.
Interviewer:
Kojo Apeagyei, former committee member of EmbRace
In our second episode, we hear from one of EmbRace’s past chairs, Marlene Worrell, who was instrumental in shaping the network into the structure we see today.
After identifying a gap, and looking at best practices from other institutions, Marlene’s desire was to focus on those staff and students of Black African and Caribbean descent while also recognising the necessity and importance of involving other People of Colour who could speak for other communities. Marlene formed a committee of members from across the school and worked towards recognition of one of her immediate priorities – a celebration of Black History Month.
Length: 24 mins and 45 secs
Listen to Episode 2 here
Episode introduced by:
Sonia Gomes, Academic Support Librarian and EmbRace committee member
Speaker:
Marlene Worrell, early Chair of EmbRace
Interviewer:
Kojo Apeagyei, former committee member of EmbRace
In our third episode, we hear from EmbRace Co-chairs, Maryane Mwaniki and Ikenna Acholonu who along with Adeola Akande Pierre-Nöel, have led the EmbRace senior leadership team, steering EmbRace through the pandemic and the rise of the Black Lives Matters movement, all virtually.
A huge global change left the world trying to process the reality of what was happening. EmbRace took the opportunity to tackle inconsistencies, Blackness and racism within the workplace and to focus on protecting the community during this time. EmbRace went from being just a Staff Network to a place of “safety, refuge, belonging, friendship and advocacy”.
Length: 55 mins and 21 secs
Listen to Episode 3 here
Episode introduced by:
Anouska Nithyanandan, Research Development Manager and EmbRace committee member
Speakers:
Maryane Mwaniki, Former co-chair of EmbRace
Ikenna Acholonu, Former co-chair of EmbRace
Adeola Akande Pierre-Nöel, EmbRace senior leadership team
Interviewer:
Kojo Apeagyei, former committee member of EmbRace
In our final episode we meet the three new EmbRace Co-chairs, Yvonne Olusoga, Charles Ebikeme and Tash Dalling who together continue to steer EmbRace towards the vision of removing barriers that inhibit the growth of racially minoritised staff and students, with a focus on partnerships with staff networks and connecting with other educational organisations and individuals through events and initiatives.
We look at how the advancement of race equity is “complex, but not complicated”, and “inclusion should be treated the same as other business imperatives”.
Length: 31 mins 19 secs
Listen to Episode 4 here
Episode introduced by:
Paulette Annon, Undergraduate Tutor and Marketing & Communications Officer for EmbRace
Speakers:
Yvonne Olusoga, current EmbRace Co-chair
Charles Ebikeme, current EmbRace Co-chair
Tash Dalling, current EmbRace Co-chair
Interviewer:
Kojo Apeagyei, former committee member of EmbRace
Acknowledgements:
On behalf of LSE’s EmbRace committee, we would like to thank you for tuning into this series on EmbRace’s spectacular history. We hope you found it as fascinating to listen to, and learn from, as we did. This podcast would not have been produced without the help of generous current and former LSE staff.
We would like to send thanks in particular to podcast producer Kojo Apeagyei, Podcast Project Manager Adeola Akande Pierre-Noël and Podcast Coordinator Paulette Annon, we would also like to send a special thanks to EmbRace sponsor Andrew Young, LSE’s EDI team for funding this series, LSE Communications for their support and guidance, the LSE Design Unit for providing our amazing artwork, and the EmbRace Committee for all they do.
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