Alycia Anderson

Alycia Anderson is an award winning international TEDx speaker, disability advocate, podcaster and corporate inclusion educator.  As the CEO of The Alycia Anderson Company, she empowers organizations to embrace diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.  A wheelchair lifelong user, Alycia champions the benefits of inclusion in the workplace and society worldwide.

From Alicia:
My proudest accomplishment is my appointment as the first representative for Persons with Disabilities Enterprise Business (PDBE) on the California Department of Insurance’s Diversity Task Force, by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. This groundbreaking role allows me to drive diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the insurance industry through initiatives like the California Insurance Diversity Survey (CAIDS), amplifying the voices of people with disabilities. I am committed to advancing meaningful investments in our community and creating a more inclusive industry for all, embodying the values of the Amplification, Impact, & Innovation Award category.

Tomer Aharoni

Tomer Aharoni is the Co-Founder and CEO of Nagish, a technology company that makes communication more accessible for people with hearing loss and speech impediments. Nagish provides a suite of products to bridge communication gaps over the phone, at the workplace, and in person.

From Tomer:
My proudest accomplishment is getting Nagish certified by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). We started Nagish without the intention of making it a company.  It was a side project at our own expense that solved a real problem - inaccessible communication for people with hearing loss.  Today, tens of thousands of people use Nagish daily to engage in conversations across various mediums.  Our work has significantly enhanced inclusivity, enabling better access to education, employment, and social interactions for people with disabilities.  Today, Nagish continues to drive innovation in accessibility technology, making a tangible difference in the lives of those who rely on our services.

Diego Mariscal

Diego Mariscal is the Founder, CEO, and Chief Disabled Officer of 2Gether-International, the largest 501c3 non-profit and global startup accelerator run by and for entrepreneurs with disabilities. 2GI supports high-growth, high-impact startups, led by founders with disabilities.

From Diego:
My proudest accomplishment is founding 2Gether-International to bridge the financing gap for Disabled Entrepreneurs and to change the narrative on disability, demonstrating it can be a competitive advantage for business.  2GI supports Disabled Founders by connecting them with the resources they need to create thriving high growth, high impact startups, and, we are establishing the first-ever fund specifically for Start-up Founders with Disabilities.
Since the launch of 2GI’s inaugural accelerator in 2019, over 80 startups have participated, collectively raising around $70 million through investment, revenue, and acquisitions.

Von Harris

Von Harris is a DEI Specialist & Sr. Operations Manager at TBWA in NYC, bringing 26 years of invaluable experience in the ad industry.  His commitment to pushing boundaries and shaping the future of advertising makes him a true trailblazer.

From Von:
Von Harris exemplifies a ProFound Ambassador by dedicating himself to championing the rights of marginalized communities and elevating the voices of the unheard.

Von has endeavored to dismantle barriers and foster inclusivity.  As Operations Manager, Von was a key part of building culture within the agency.  He played a pivotal role as one of the Co-leads of Omnicom's OPEN Disability ERG, underscoring his dedication to amplifying voices.  In 2021, he moderated a groundbreaking panel on the intersections of accessibility between Racism & Ableism at the ADCOLOR Conference. 

Carole Jean Whittington

As a Burnout Researcher & Chief Well-Being Officer, Carole Jean helps healthcare facilities and organizations optimize performance and foster innovation. Through The UnVeiling Method, Micro Recharge Lab, and the Whittington Burnout Inventory, she provides programs and consulting for burnout recovery and energy management, focusing on Neurodivergent & Disabled adults.

From Carole Jean:
I am most proud of my 3.5-year global research study, the largest data resource on neurodivergent and disabled burnout worldwide.  This study revealed the top five energy drainers affecting quality of life, well-being, relationships, employment, and health.  These insights are the cornerstone of my methodology to help individuals recover from burnout.  My passion is to foster a world where neurodivergent and disabled individuals thrive, innovate, and lead.  As an ambassador for a burnout-free life, I share this vision daily to spread hope and save lives, combating the devastating effects of burnout in marginalized groups.

Alyssa Gialamas

Alyssa is the Founder and Executive Director of Adapt, Move & Gain (AMG)  Fitness Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit that elevates fitness resources for people with disabilities.

From Alyssa:
Founding AMG Fitness is my proudest accomplishment.  We serve over 200 people through in-person adaptive fitness classes and online workouts.  I wanted to create a resource that helps break down the barriers in fitness that people with disabilities often face, such as transportation, adaptability, and cost.  AMG has three different programs based on ability so that all participants can find a safe and effective workout, and the online programs are free.  Once a month, AMG has a free adaptive fitness in-person class, creating a safe space for fitness and community.

Jerry Marcus

Jerry Marcus is the Senior Program Manager for Accessibility Operations at NBCUniversal.  Working with the Senior Director of Accessibility, he is focused on demystifying digital accessibility across the enterprise.  He partners with leaders in the business, engineering, design, and other roles to operationalize a program that centers on usability and disability experience.

From Jerry:
I am truly humbled to be considered for this honor with other amazing disability leaders.  One accomplishment was leading a Comcast NBCUniversal and Sky Mental Health Day in 2022 and expanding it to an entire week in 2023.  These days featured panel talks, keynote sessions, and in-person activations on topics such as mental wellbeing.  We had such incredible speakers, but more importantly, used the time to de-stigmatize mental health and address burn-out in a corporate setting. The impact could be heard from employee feedback commenting on the immediate value it gave them, and also being named as a finalist for this past year's Circle of Success (Comcast's highest honor).

Ashira Greenberg

Ashira is a a health educator as well as a disability and accessibility advocate.  She is an independent contractor, and she offers consulting on health education, disability and accessibility to educational and/or healthcare programs throughout the country.

From Ashira:
I am not sure that I have one proudest accomplishment, as the work is ongoing, but I am honored to be in community with equity-minded professionals in key organizations throughout the United States to give disability equity a seat at the table when programs and decisions are made.  I support disabled people as well as educators and healthcare providers to facilitate access to quality information, care, and rights as comfortably as possible. I am passionate about cross-disability and cross-community work to shape data as well as culture across interconnected fields.  Representation, advocacy and allyship are key for future progress.

Dani Izzie

Daniela “Dani” Izzie is a marketing professional and founder of Access Social, a boutique agency laser-focused on disability inclusion.  She holds a Master’s degree with a focus on Disability Studies.  As an advocate, she has worked across organizations supporting disability communities.  As a documentary film co-producer and mom, she has worked to shed light on disabled parenting.

From Dani:
My proudest accomplishment has been personally navigating my career with a disability as I transitioned into both entrepreneurship and motherhood simultaneously. In the first two years of business, Access Social’s collaborative work with disabled creatives alone has gotten upwards of 50 million views for select clients. My mission is to position disability as an emerging market, while empowering the disability communities that have been here all along.

Quemuel Arroyo

Quemuel Arroyo or “Q” is currently the Chief Accessibility Officer and Senior Advisor to the Chair and CEO of the MTA.  In this role Q helps shape the planning and operation of the largest transportation organization in North America with a special focus on ensuring access for persons with disabilities, aging riders, families, and tourists.  The MTA moves nearly 8 million riders daily and Q wants all residents and visitors to have the ability to come out and fully engage and enjoy all that New York has to offer.  

From Q:
At his core, Q believes accessibility is universal and hopes that his work will extend an invitation to make those who felt invisible, now feel seen.

My biggest accomplishment in this role has been establishing a long-term plan for investing over $30 billion dollars into making the entire transit system in New York fully accessible. This will ensuring that New Yorkers can age in place in the communities they helped build, with their families and loved ones. This level of access to transportation will undoubtedly ensure access to independence.

Hale Pulsifer

Hale is the VP of Disability Inclusion on the Customer Inclusion Team at Fidelity Investments.

From Hale:
His proudest accomplishments center around being an entrepreneur for disability inclusion, including:

• Creating a neurodiversity hiring program that evolved into a disability hiring program.

• Launching the Boston chapter of the Disability ERG called Enable, and proceeding to be the first of two global co-leads.

• Writing a business case to create a small department dedicated to disability inclusion on behalf of customers.

• Co-leading the new department (called the Office of Customer Accessibility), including setting groundwork for a digital accessibility program, and supporting other initiatives like an Accessibility Help Desk for customers, a Supplier Diversity program, and the development of new disability benefit offerings.