Transgender Inclusion: What it Means, Why it Matters, and What You Can Do
Session seating is first come, first served. Thank you for your cooperation.
Ben will share his story as an openly transgender man who came out at 15—one of the first to do so in his entire town. Despite being a rapidly-growing group of over 3 million individuals, trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people are very often left out of DEI efforts and conversations. After reviewing what it means to be transgender and all of the language that comes up in these conversations, we'll discuss issues facing the transgender community in the workforce and the world at large, why it matters to be proactive about your support, and what individuals and organizations can do to create a safe, supportive environment for all people. Ben will close out the session with a 100% judgment-free Q&A where attendees can ask any burning questions, talk through new strategies, and address any lingering misconceptions they may have had about the transgender community.
Learning Objectives:
- Leave the session with a strong understanding of what it means to be transgender and empathy for the transgender community.
- Understand the importance of active allyship in all scenarios.
- Feel equipped to build supportive systems for all transgender employees.
Ben Greene
As one of only two transgender people in his hometown, Ben Greene has always been the “designated educator”. After giving a successful TEDx talk in 2019 called “Where are you Sitting?”, he decided to go into education and advocacy full time and now works as a public speaker and LGBTQ+ inclusion consultant. Since graduating from Brandeis University in the summer of 2020 he has spoken in many different domains: at HR conferences like DisruptHR, and SHRM, school training sessions for religious and secular high schools, DEI summits like Diversity Live! in the UK and Pitt Diversity Forum 2021, Higher Education Institutes including Washington University Medical School, and the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations, government agencies including NASA, legal organizations including Lowenstein Sandler and Eckert Seamans, and internal events for global corporations including FactSet, AXAXL, and Northwestern Mutual. He sits on the advisory board of a global branding firm and of the Tufts University Master’s Degree in Diversity and Inclusion. He is passionate about educating others from a place of compassion--no matter where they’re starting from.