LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Solutions Summit .

Chemonics International and the SID-US Inclusive Development Workgroup were thrilled to co-host the LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Solutions Summit online and in-person at Chemonics’ Washington D.C. office on June 27, 2023, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET.

The global LGBTQI+ inclusion landscape varies vastly, from positive advancements to huge setbacks. For each success achieved by advocates and allies, daily instances of harassment, discrimination, and violence continue to impact the lived experiences of the LGBTQI+ community.  In many contexts, LGBTQI+ human rights are being weaponized to undermine hard-fought gains and fuel democratic backsliding. These challenges are rooted in anti-gender movements impacting not only on LGBTQI+ rights but those of women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons living with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples, and other historically underrepresented and marginalized social groups.

This LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Solutions Summit brought together representatives from implementing partners, development practitioners, USAID, the private sector, academia, industry coalitions, donors, and other critical stakeholders to develop a community of practice of allies and advocates for LGBTQI+ inclusive international development programs. Participants reflected on USAID’s 2014 LGBT Vision for Action, the recently circulated draft LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy, and the Biden/Harris 2021 Memorandum on Advancing the Human Rights of LGBTQI+ Persons Around the World in advance of USAID’s forthcoming LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy, shared learnings and reflections from existing USAID and other donor-funded projects, identified barriers and challenges for meaningful LGBTQI+ inclusion in development programs, and shared and co-created actionable, cross-sectoral solutions, approaches, resources, and best practices.

Agenda and Speaker Information

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. – Registration, Lunch, and Networking

1:00 p.m. – 1:20 p.m. – Welcome: Anna Slother, executive vice president, Chemonics

Anna Slother (she/her/hers) is a strategic and inclusive leader with 23 years of experience in operations, program management, business development, human resource management, and institutional strengthening. As Executive Vice President, she oversees a diverse portfolio of $475 million in USAID-funded programs and serves on Chemonics’ Board of Directors. Previously, Anna led operations for Chemonics’ Global Health and Supply Chain Office, providing business conduct, communications, compliance, continual improvement, human resources, and security support to the $9.5 billion USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program-Procurement and Supply Management project. She has also led Chemonics’ Supply Chain Solutions Division, Human Resources Division, and Central and Eastern Europe Region. Anna has a B.A. in political science and Asian studies and a certificate in teaching English as a second language from Beloit College.

1:20 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Keynote Address: Jay R. Gilliam, senior LGBTQI+ coordinator, USAID

Jay Gilliam (he/him/his) serves as USAID’s lead to elevate issues concerning lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and other people of diverse genders and sexualities (LGBTQI+). He works to meaningfully integrate LGBTQI+ people into USAID’s inclusive development programs, policies, research, and training. Most recently, he was the Engagement and Communications Advisor in the Center for Education at USAID. Previously, Jay served as the Director of the Global program at the Human Rights Campaign where he successfully organized four annual Global Innovative Advocacy Summits, created an active alumni network of 180+ advocates from over 90 countries, and trained advocates from around the world on LGBTQ+ advocacy. He served in the Obama administration at USAID where he worked on program policy, public engagement and communications, particularly on the Agency’s LGBTQI+ and food security work. Jay also worked at the Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. in Washington, DC and Peace Boat Japan in Tokyo. Jay has a B.A from Amherst College in Massachusetts in political science and an M.A. in peace studies from International Christian University in Tokyo, Japan.   

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Panel: Painting a Brighter Future: Prisms for LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Across USAID Funded Programs

Moderator: Jay  Gilliam

Panelists:
Dr. Chloe Schwenke (she/her/hers) formerly served as the first (and to date, only) openly transgender political appointee at USAID under the Obama administration. She is the founder and president at the Center for Values in International Development – a nonprofit that brings applied ethics practices to improve humanitarian response and international development outcomes. She is an ethicist, gender equality and inclusive development specialist, educator, author, and researcher, with extensive senior level leadership experience in academia, government, non-profit, and for-profit organizations. Chloe has worked in 42 countries, including 15 years based in sub-Saharan Africa. She has previously held senior leadership positions at the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), and at Freedom House. She has also been a consultant to the World Bank, the InterAmerican Development Bank, USAID, UNDP, the Human Rights Campaign, and the National Center for Transgender Equality, among others. In 2013, she was a recipient of the National Center for Transgender Equality’s National Public Service Award. Chloe also serves as an adjunct professor of applied ethics at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, USA. 

Gloria Careaga (she/her/ella) is a lesbian, feminist, Mexican woman. She has been a trailblazer to pave a path of equality in Mexico and across Latin America thanks to her extensive academic work and activism. An accomplished lecturer and researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s Psychology Faculty, she is an expert in human rights, gender issues, and social justice with a specific focus on sexual diversity. Notably, Gloria served as co-secretary general for the International Gay and Lesbian Association (ILGA) from 2008-2014, co-leading an international federation that is committed to equal human rights for LGBTQI+ individuals and actively participating in decision-making processes, strategy development, and advocacy at the international level. Currently, she leads the Fundación Arcoiris in Mexico City where she spearheads initiatives such as the Support Network for LGBTQI+ Migrants in the National Observatory of Hate Crimes against LGBTQI+ people, which brings together civil society organizations and activists from the 32 states of Mexico. 

Tymur Levchuk (he/him/his) is an established LGBTQI+ and human rights activist who started his journey in 2012 while working with organizations such as Fulcrum and KyivPride in Ukraine. Tymur has extensive experience consulting on diversity, equity, and inclusion for major local businesses such as StarLightMedia, a prominent media holding in Ukraine, to develop and implement a comprehensive DEI strategy. Tymur has lent his expertise to support local NGOs to develop effective gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) strategies and action plans. Tymur has worked with the Nobel Prize-winning Center for Civil Liberties on a project addressing war crimes. Currently, Tymur is the GESI advisor for USAID/Ukraine’s Transformation Communications Activity, where he focuses on strategic communications, advocating for social inclusion and gender equality.

Andrew Gleason (he/him/his) provides leadership to the advancement of gender equality and social justice across Save the Children and leads a growing body of work on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, sex characteristics (SOGIESC), which includes steering the agency’s global SOGIESC Task Force – centered on building systems and structures needed to ensure all children and youth, irrespective of their SOGIESC, enjoy their universal human rights. He also chairs Save the Children’s LGBTQI+ Employee Affinity Group and serves as a member of Save the Children’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Council. Andrew has worked in international development for over a decade, holds a graduate degree in Medical Anthropology, and in his free time volunteers for the Trevor Project, the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ+ young people. 

2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – Solutions Sessions

4:00 p.m. – 4:15 p.m. – Closing: Saraounia Mboka-Boyer, agile transformation consultant, Scrum Inc.

Saraounia Mboka-Boyer (she/her/hers) is an inclusion engineer, capacity development and business agility advisor focusing on the nexus of localization, Agile, and intersectional inclusion in the international development context. As an inclusion engineer and agility advisor, Saraounia focuses on ‘representative diversity’ and the intersectional adaptation of program teams. With over 10 years of experience working in Sub-Saharan Africa and 16 years living across Africa, Saraounia brings deep practitioner knowledge and experience in capacity development, conflict mitigation, community mobilization, SCRUM, business agility and systems strengthening. Saraounia is the principal consultant at Ubuntu Solutions and currently works as an Agile transformation coach for Scrum Inc., applying an intersectional lens to Scrum, where Agile and the scrum framework are key to firms adaptively engaging global and domestic challenges. Saraounia is on the board of AfroQueer Studios and is the founder of the Love Africa Initiative. 

4:15 p.m. onwards – Networking Reception

This event was co-hosted by the SID-US Inclusive Development Workgroup and Chemonics International. The event was sponsored by Chemonics International.