My diversity networks

State School Educated
Low Income Family
First Generation to go to University
Race
Parents

Profile:

“Diversity is being invited to the party; inclusion is being asked to dance”. Vernā Myers

I am a trainee at Withersworldwide, currently doing my seat in Litigation &Arbitration – but my prior career spanned many different sectors before I changed direction and trained to become a lawyer.

I had extensive professional experience before changing careers and entering the law. I worked for Microsoft and the German government’s international development agency in Egypt; in Geneva for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria; and with refugees for the UN in Israel and Palestine and an NGO in Brazil amongst others.

I was the first in my family to attend university. I studied a BA in International Relations with French and Arabic at the University of Exeter, spending a year abroad in France. I moved to Paris for my master’s degree in international development, studying at Sciences Po. I studied for my Graduate Diploma in Law at the University of Law in Guildford and secured a Legal Practice Certificate from BPP University London.

As an African-European ‘cultural hybrid’ I often doubted whether certain spaces would really be open to “someone like me”. The legal profession still has a long way to go to make people from all backgrounds feel welcome – this cuts across ethnicity, social background, gender, and more. Diversity is critical and affects us all: bringing in more perspectives from different backgrounds leads to better outcomes for us all. I am a fierce advocate of social justice and work to build awareness of the talents and potential of historically excluded communities.

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