2006Keynotes

Out & Equal 2006 Summit Keynote Speakers

Out & Equal Workplace Advocates is the only national organization solely devoted to workplace equality issues for the LGBT community. As part of our work, we produce the annual Out & Equal Workplace Summit — the preeminent LGBT conference to address today's multitude of workplace changes, particularly as they relate to LGBT employees and their employers.

Each Summit offers a treasure trove of workshops and networking opportunities, including the renowned Out & Equal Workplace Awards that celebrate outstanding individual and company contributions to LGBT workplace equality. And then, of course, there are the keynote speakers whose awe-inspiring real-world contributions leave us feeling that each and every one of us counts, and that we, too, can bring greatness to the workplace when we bring all of ourselves to work.

Out & Equal is honored to bring you this rich and diverse calibre of speakers, all of whom are celebrities in their own right and all of whom have something truly valuable to offer us in September.

See for yourself the extraordinary lineup of keynote speakers we've arranged to come to the 2006 Summit in Chicago to share their stories and experiences:

George Takei [read more]
Nina Jacobson [read more]
Richard Florida [read more]
Yolanda King [read more]

George Takei

George Takei, best known for his portrayal of “Mr. Sulu” in the acclaimed television and film series Star Trek, is credited with more than 30 feature films and hundreds of television guest-starring roles. A community activist, Takei serves as governing council chair of East West Players, the nation’s foremost Asian Pacific American theater. As an advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equal rights, he was one of the driving forces behind Southern California’s Arts in Transit program in which every metro rail subway station has been given its own distinctive look, thereby fostering neighborhood pride. Takei and his life partner, Brad Altman, reside in Los Angeles, California.

Nina Jacobson

Nina Jacobson, president of Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, develops scripts and oversees film production for Walt Disney, Touchstone and Hollywood Pictures. Jacobson broadened the scope of Disney live-action movies, evidenced by the production of blockbuster films Pirates of the Caribbean and The Chronicles of Narnia. She co-founded Out There, a collection of out gay and lesbian entertainment industry activists, with movie producer Bruce Cohen. In 2005, Forbes.com named Jacobson one of the world’s “100 Most Powerful Women” in recognition of her successful career.

Richard Florida

Richard Florida is a professor of public policy at George Mason University and a nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. In the best-seller The Rise of the Creative Class, Florida asserts a theory that the presence of a “creative class,” including LGBT people, is a factor in urban economic development. His newest book, The Flight of the Creative Class, examines the global competition for creative talent. Florida earned an undergraduate degree from Rutgers College and a Ph.D. from Columbia University. He lives in Washington, DC.

Y olanda King

Yolanda King, the first-born daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, is an artist-communicator committed to using her talents to effect social and personal change. It is her passion for peace and positive change that prompted her to found Higher Ground Productions, an organization committed to celebrating diversity and embracing unity. King is a member of the board of directors of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc. (Dr. King’s official national memorial) and was founding director of the King Center’s Cultural Affairs Program.