Keynote SpeakersBaroness June Sarpong OBE is a broadcaster, author, and inspirational speaker who shares insights on diversity, inclusion, and leadership.
Baroness Sarpong is one of the world’s leading inclusion speakers and educators, and a Top 10 D&I executive.
With over two decades of professional experience in the U.K. and U.S., June was formerly Global Director of Creative Diversity for the BBC and the first Black woman to sit on the corporation’s Executive Committee.
June led the D&I strategy and implementation for the BBC’s 500-million-plus global audience as well as internal creative teams and external production supply chain.
Broadcaster:
She began her career at Kiss 100 and later became a presenter for MTV UK & Ireland.
She became a household name when she started on Channel 4’s T4.
June Sarpong hosted 2005’s Make Poverty History event and presented at the UK leg of Live Earth in 2007.
In 2008 she hosted Nelson Mandela’s 90th Birthday Celebrations in front of 30,000 people in London’s Hyde Park. June has also interviewed and introduced some of the world’s biggest names, including HRH the Prince of Wales, Bill Clinton, Al Gore and George Clooney.
She has worked extensively with HRH Prince Charles as an ambassador for the Prince’s Trust.
June was awarded an MBE in 2007 for her services to broadcasting and charity, making her one of the youngest people ever to receive an MBE, followed by an OBE in the 2020 New Year’s Honours List.
After living in America for eight years, June moved back to the UK in 2015, where she became a regular panellist on Sky News’ weekly current affairs discussion show, The Pledge. (along with Nick Ferrari, Greg Dyke and Michelle Dewberry).
Furthermore, June is the Co-Founder of the WIE Network (Women: Inspiration & Enterprise).
This acclaimed conference has featured leading speakers from a gamut of industries.
Author:
June is an author of three award-winning books;
- Diversify: Six Degrees of Integration
- The Power of Women
- The Power of Privilege
June has launched a new publishing imprint, ‘The HQ Creative Inclusion Lab’ with HarperCollins, giving a voice to those from underrepresented communities, with a focus on those with a disability, those from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds and people from working-class backgrounds.
As a keynote speaker on diversity, June Sarpong advises delegates and companies about how they can best implement the findings themselves.
