Ahead of the US presidential election, as the world faces the possibility of Trump 2.0, this Diversity Festival event discusses the societal impact of the presence and absence of equity, diversity and inclusion.
Host, Verity Firth, Vice-President, Societal Impact, Equity and Engagement, will be joined by former BBC foreign affairs correspondent, journalist and author Nick Bryant, and UC Law San Francisco's Chief Diversity Officer, Mario Lopez.
UNSW Diversity Festival is an annual celebration, this year taking place 16-20 September 2024. Diversity Festival brings students and staff together to embrace the diversity of our community, enrich identity and ignite conversations about how we can foster a more inclusive society.
Proudly hosted by EDI in the Division of Societal Impact, Equity & Engagement, the 2024 program features events and activities on themes and topics that include cultural diversity, neurodivergence, accessibility, LGBTQIA+ inclusion, social impact, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Find out what’s on at Diversity Festival 2024 and register for events.
For event enquiries or to discuss your access requirements, please contact EDIComms@unsw.edu.au.
During a distinguished career with the BBC, much of which was spent covering US presidential politics, Nick Bryant came to be regarded as one of its finest foreign correspondents. He has written for The Economist, The Washington Post and The Atlantic, and is now a regular columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. He is also a regular contributor on the ABC. He is a history graduate from Cambridge University, who holds a doctorate in US politics from Oxford University.
Born in San Francisco, and raised in Marin County, Mario is the proud son of immigrants from Guatemala and El Salvador, and is the inaugural Chief Diversity Officer at UC Law SF. As a member of the Chancellor and Dean’s Office, and Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Working Group, Mario oversees campus-wide diversity initiatives, including diversity partnerships, implementing campus climate recommendations, first-generation programming, the California Scholars Program, and diversity recruitment.
During his time as a student at UC Law SF, Mario was on the UC Law SF Trial Team, fundraising chair for La Raza Law Students Association, and interned for President Obama at the White House in the National Economic Council during his third year of law school, where he also served in a leadership role as the co-chair of the Legal Professional Interest Group.
Verity Firth is the inaugural Vice-President Societal Impact, Equity and Engagement at UNSW Sydney. She has over 20 years’ experience at the very highest levels of government and education sectors in Australia. Prior to her role at UNSW, Verity was Pro Vice-Chancellor Social Justice and Inclusion at UTS (2015–2023), CEO of the Public Education Foundation (2011–2014) and NSW Minister for Education and Training (2008–2011). Verity is a member of the Commonwealth Government’s Implementation Advisory Committee for the Universities Accord.
Explore the 2024 Diversity Festival program and register for events.
