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School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment's latest Celebrating Black Excellence event explores achieving excellence in the sector

Earlier this month, the School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment hosted the latest event in their Celebrating Black Excellence series - Celebrating Diversity & Inclusion; A Conversation on Achieving Excellence.

    It was the first in-person event of the series and celebrated BME people who excel in the sectors associated with Architecture, Design and the Built Environment (ADBE).

    Over 35 current students, professionals and staff attended, and the session started with networking and refreshment whilst attendees completing a map exercise, pinpointing their places of heritage and demonstrating the diversity of the group.

    Guest speakers, Amos Simbo and Nelly Twumasi-Mensah, shared their experience and spoke about their journey to the positions they hold now.

    Amos, founder of BPIC Network (Built Environment Inclusion) and Winway Group, a fitout M&E services specialist contractor, spoke about how his network can help NTU students gain placements and graduate jobs within the sector.

    Since launching in 2019, the BPIC Network has grown to over 6000 members and 45 industry-leading partners which has enabled them to collaborate effectively with the industry.

    Nelly, a business change leader, spoke about the inherent burden of people from BME backgrounds to ‘be excellent’, reminding attendees that we must also looks after the mental health and wellbeing of our early career colleagues and ensure the sector promotes a good work/life balance for all.

    As a business change leader, she specialises in delivering and embedding valuable, transformational change with a focus on managing and motivating individuals and teams to achieve the benefits of change programmes.

    Conversation topics also covered areas such as resilience, positivity in a challenging workplace and taking success as it comes.

    The School is delighted to continue its series of Celebrating Black Excellence events and whilst conversations discussing Black Excellence have led the forefront of the School’s Equality, Diversion and Inclusion strategy, future events will focus on themes which effect more underrepresented groups in Higher Education to open the conversation to a broader range of colleagues, peers and the public.