Community & Nonprofit

If you could only use one word to describe Elle Simone Scott, it would be warrior. The executive editor and founder of The Diversity Council at America’s Test Kitchen has navigated a career and life full of extreme highs and lows. From battling ovarian cancer to losing everything in the height of the 2008 recession, she fought to reinvent herself career-wise and is now one of the few queer women of color to work as a chef in the culinary world. APB recently sat down with Elle to discuss the intersection of food, culture and DEI in both our workplaces and communities (she even shared a free copy of her favorite Thanksgiving recipe, you can download it below!).

A breakout star of FX’s Golden Globe-nominated series, Pose, Ryan Jamaal Swain is a triple-threat actor, dancer, and singer who was named to Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list for his LGBTQIA+ activism. Recently, APB sat down with Ryan to discuss his coming out experience and what Pride means to him.

An article by APB speaker Jennifer Senior in The Atlantic magazine has gone viral. “What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind” was published in the September issue. It tells the story of a victim of Sept. 11 and his family’s search for meaning in the two decades since the day the towers fell. Senior’s brother lived with McIlvaine at the time of the attack. The story is getting more engagement than any piece in the magazine since 2002.

An acclaimed biographer, Pulitzer finalist, reporter and cultural historian, Wil Haygood is known for telling the story of America through the lens of history, politics, sports, race and the lives of change-making African-Americans. Author of the New York Times bestsellers The Butler and Showdown, Haygood is about to release his newest title, Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World.

New York Times bestselling author and award-winning historian Dr. Keisha N. Blain has released her highly anticipated new book, Until I Am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer's Enduring Message to America, bringing the Black civil rights activist to life in rich and heartwarming detail.  

We are excited to share that Alma's Way, a new animated PBS KIDS series from Fred Rogers Productions, will premiere next week on October 4th. We are even more excited to exclusively represent the creative genius behind the show, Sesame Street icon and author, Sonia Manzano. Beloved by generations, Manzano broke new ground as one of the first Latino characters on national TV.

Richard Buery, CEO of Achievement First and APB speaker, has been appointed the new chief executive officer of Robin Hood. The non-profit is New York’s largest poverty-fighting organization. Buery will join Robin Hood in September.  

In a little more than a month, over 14,000 people from more than 200 countries will gather in Tokyo, Japan, for the Summer Olympics. They will be joined by thousands of delegates and members of the press. One month later, an additional 5,000 athletes and support staff will come together in Tokyo for the Paralympic Games.  These two enormous events have APB speaker Dr. Michael Osterholm, Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, and several of his colleagues deeply concerned. 

Join us Tuesday June 8th and Wednesday June 9th for a showcase unlike any other, featuring today's top voices addressing issues shaping the diversity, equity and inclusion conversation. Get ready for four keynotes, six panels, over 50 speaker spotlights and more! +Register Now

On May 26, 2020, Philonise Floyd learned that his older brother, George “Perry” Floyd, Jr. had been murdered by four police officers in Minneapolis after a store clerk alleged that he passed a counterfeit $20 bill. The world watched as named officer, Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. George’s death sparked a worldwide outpour of protests against police brutality, especially toward black people. Philonise vowed that George’s death would not be in vain, another hashtag on a t-shirt, and started the Philonise and Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, actively working to eliminate the daily impacts of police brutality, criminal justice reform and systemic racism.