WeLead Caribbean announced on Saturday that it will be staging its fourth annual Women’s Empowerment Conference under the theme “DisruptHER.” The conference will be held virtually on December 8, 2020 and will focus on Changing the Element of Women’s Lives through discussions on self-care and wellbeing, mental health, politics, business, education and more.
Usually hosted at the Arthur Chung Conference Center with over 150 participants, this year’s conference will be held virtually via Zoom.
WeLead said the conference is designed for women, by women and will connect participants with experts, thought leaders and voices from the diaspora and within the walls of Guyana on various women specific topics. Participants will also engage in networking breakout sessions. The cost to participate is free but all participants must register, WeLead said.
“WeLead Caribbean has hand-picked the individuals who will lead the sessions,” the organisation said. “These speakers were chosen because of their reputation and expertise in specific topics and are also individuals who will make this online format as empowering, informative and enlightening as the annual WeLead Conference.”
President of WeLead Caribbean, Abbigale Loncke said,”2020 opens up a world of possibilities for the WeLead Caribbean platform and connects us like never before to a network of leaders and corporate and community organization collaborations.”
She said over the years WeLead Caribbean has uniquely positioned its platform as the largest gathering of female leaders within the region to assist in engaging much needed solution-based discussions and has also ensured that the right leaders are at the table for action.
“From our experiences of 2020 we understand there is a need now more than ever to connect and build bridges in Guyana and around the world for all women,” she said. “This virtual conference will serve as a valuable platform for women to integrate, collaborate, knowledge sharing and capacity building in support of the challenges posed in our region and by the Pandemic.”
This year’s featured speaker is Lisandra Rickard, Founder & CEO of Soul Career and Former CEO, Richard Branson Center of Entrepreneurship. The keynote speaker is Jay Blessed, multi-award-winning Caribbean-American blogger, podcaster and mental health advocate.
WeLead said the conference will have four panels with speakers including Melissa Poponne Skerrit, First Lady of Dominica & Member of Parliament, Roseau; Odetta Aaron – CEO Mpowerment Lab; Camille Deokie – Director of Studies, Camille’s Institute; Tenille Clarke – Managing Director & Principle Publicist, Chambers Temple Media; Laura Dorwich-Phillips – Journalist; Melanie Gaskins-Benjamin, Marketing and Communications Consultant; Ms. Georgia E. Innis CPA: Corporate Relations and Sales Management, Sagicor Cave Hill School of Business and Management – University of the West Indies; Ashaka King – CEO, Pieces and Things Boutique; Lillian Lester-Blake – CEO, Center for Personal & Professional Excellence, LLC; Ryanna Miller – Realtor, COMPASS; Stacey Mollision – CEO, Libra Management and Energy Group; Michelle A. Nicholas, Executive Director – Girls Inc. Westchester and Founder, SAFEGuyana; Kamal Persaud, Regional Vice Chairwoman, Region 7; Jacquelyn Gate-Shipe, CEO Global Ties Alabama; Elizabeth Singh – Program Coordinator, New Student & Family Programs, Baruch College; Emma Tettey – CEO, Adonai Media; Melissa Varswyk – CEO, Georgetown American University.
WeLead said with the support of partners such as The NICO Consulting, Global Ties Alabama, MBW Energy Support Services Inc., IAN REID, LLC, Vistar Engineering, Java Coffee Bar, Sites.gy, Golden Crunch Coconut Biscuits, and SAFEGuyana, the conference will offer dynamic speakers and workshops focused on sharpening personal and professional development skills, as well as providing attendees with trinkets of ideas and strategies toward self-care and self-development.
