**We encourage and welcome people of all gender identities to attend this event (and want to warmly encourage men looking to learn more about allyship, in particular, to join the conversation!).**

**This is also a safe space and by purchasing a ticket, you are agreeing to our Rules of Engagement (below).**

Join Girl Geeks Toronto on May 9th at TWG, as we gather for an interactive evening of courageous and radically candid conversation about allyship, inclusion and moral courage in the era of #MeToo.

The #MeToo movement has been a powerful force which has brought many people’s lived experience of harassment, microaggressions and toxic workplace cultures to the forefront. Many of us have been compelled more strongly than ever to learn to be better allies, and we strive to attend talks and read about how we can be better.

But do we have enough examples in our lives and workplaces of courageous behaviour? Where are the examples of courageous conversations, modelled for us, that we can learn from? How can we show up--and we mean really show up--and stand up for what we believe in? How do we get up from the sidelines and have the difficult conversations that can drive real change in culture and behaviour? What does the nuts and bolts of allyship look like in our everyday lives?

We have two powerful facilitators lined up for a truly thought-provoking, interactive evening designed to put allyship into action.

Note: If you're looking for another sit-in-your-chair-all-night speaking event this isn't for you -- get ready for some interactive, challenging, fun & insightful activities designed to flex your empathy muscles!

Avery Francis - Senior Consultant at Bright+Early, Founder of the Bridge Program, and DITTO (Diversity and Inclusion Talks TO)

Always looking to what’s next, Avery works with leading startups to navigate the world of talent acquisition and build a creative culture worth being a part of. A champion of diversity, inclusion and belonging, Avery is a founder of the Bridge program for female engineers as well as DITTO (Diversity and Inclusion Talks TO). Formerly the Head of Talent at League and Director of Talent at Rangle.io, Avery leads Bright + Early’s recruiting and inclusion projects. Avery was recently named to the Hot List 2018, an annual list recognizing the HR leaders “to watch” in Canada, by Human Resources Director Canada magazine.

Jeff Perera - Founder of HigherUnlearning.com, Healthy Masculinities and Mindful Manhood Speaker and Writer

For close to ten years, Jeff has been a speaker and facilitator who has delivered keynotes, talks and workshops for tens of thousands of people across North America from all walks of life--from organizations and community spaces, to grade school, high school, college and university students--on how society’s unattainable and harmful concepts of masculinity impact people of all genders. From Rogers Media, Vidyard, Canada Post, to numerous post-secondary spaces, Jeff has created space for people of all genders to explore being ‘the lesson in action’!

He has delivered two TEDx talks on Masculinity and men’s troubled pursuits of identity: Words Speak Louder Than Actions and The Ladder of Manhood. Jeff started HigherUnlearning.com as an online space to explore how ideas of gender and masculinity impact us in everyday life. Jeff previously worked at White Ribbon Campaign, organized dozens of gender/masculinity-related events, founded the annual ‘What Makes a Man’ Conference and was event director for the first TEDxWomen event in Toronto, Canada. He was named to Racism Free Ontario’s Top 100 Person of Colour list spotlighting anti-racism activists.

Agenda:

6:30-7:00 - Doors open, registration & food.

7:00 - Event begins

9:00 - Event ends

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT:

Stories stay in the room, but learnings can leave. An event like this requires honesty and vulnerability to share your experiences, and this is a safe space to do just that.

Follow your gut about what feels right to share. It’s more important to connect with the people around you and share lessons than to disclose a lot of personal information.

Respect, ALWAYS. This is an inclusive space. We expect everyone to respect fellow attendees and show kindness and respect to each and every attendee in the room.

This month's event is sponsored by our amazing friends at TWG, who have taken a leadership role in promoting inclusion in tech through initiatives like Change Together, a diversity guidebook for startups.

To get notified of all other upcoming Girl Geeks Toronto events, sign up to our community on Meetup.com.