Fourth Edition of Indian LGBT Youth Leadership Summit to be hosted by ThoughtWorks in Bengaluru

The fourth edition of the Indian LGBT Youth Leadership Summit will be organized in Bengaluru over two days- December 16 and 17 - by Mission for Indian Gay and Lesbian Empowerment (MINGLE) in association with Love Matters and with the support of IBM, Canada Embassy, RNW Media along with local community partners - Humsafar Trust, Pink Pages magazine, and Gay Bombay. Notably, the summit will be hosted by ThoughtWorks at its campus in Kormangala, Bengaluru.

The objective of the summit is to identify potential leaders among the LGBT youth from India & SAARC nations, and groom them for future leadership roles. The two day event will consist of panel discussions and interactive workshops covering aspects of leadership, resilience, mental health, workplace inclusion, and social inclusion.

More than two hundred young LGBT people between the ages 21 and 32 had applied to attend, among whom 35 have been selected to attend based on their leadership potential and willingness to engage on LGBT issues. The participants are a diverse group of youth leaders representing all aspects of the LGBT+ community, from various professional, educational and cultural backgrounds- coming from many Indian cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Imphal and Indore among others, along with international participants from Sri Lanka & Nepal. The theme for the summit this year will be- “Oneness. Togetherness. Happiness.”

Tina Vinod, Inclusivity and Diversity Lead at ThoughtWorks said, “Organizations have a larger role to play in creating an inclusive, tolerant and supportive environment both, in society and our workplaces. The LGBT Youth Leadership Summit is one such event that will bring important aspects of diversity and inclusivity into the spotlight. We are thrilled to host the event, and bring these conversations to where it matters the most - to the people.”

Udayan Dhar, Head of Strategy at MINGLE explained the objective behind this initiative, “We started this leadership forum back in 2014 because we noticed that there was a lack of openly LGBT people in leadership positions both in the business and social sectors of India. If we need to change that over the next decade, it is important to start grooming those future leaders today.”

Harish Iyer, member of Advisory Board of MINGLE and prominent LGBT rights advocate said on the need to hold the summit, “The LGBT movement in India is going to be a long one and there is a need to build our capacities with younger, vocal minds taking the lead. This summit ignites the spark by getting young thriving members of the community to act as catalysts for change.”