These community members are building a better tech industry
Each year, the PDXWIT community gathers to celebrate one another and recognize those among us who truly embody what it means to create access, dismantle inequities, and fuel belonging in the tech industry. Our annual awards ceremony was designed to give recognition to those who tend to be structurally overlooked by nomination and selection processes, which tend to favor demographics with the most power and influence.
Last December, we reached a milestone: PDXWIT’s ten-year birthday! During our awards ceremony on December 16th, we commemorated a decade of changemaking with an appearance from our founder Megan Bigelow, three lightning speakers, and a reveal of the 2021 PDXWIT Best Contributor.
From “vote-off” to “showcase”: incorporating community feedback
In previous years, three Speaker of the Year Finalists would participate in a live competition for the award. After listening to feedback about this model, however, we decided to move away from the competitive model, instead showcasing the unique strengths that all three have to offer.
The 2021 Speakers of the Year––Krystal Ngene, Catherine Cambride, and Diyana Mendoza-Price––were selected from a total of 60 moderators, panelists, and speakers, nominated by you after each event. They each spoke to the theme of Reflection & Resilience.
Krystal is an equity and inclusion strategist who moderated the “Transplants to PDX” event February 2021 in partnership with SimpleX. In her awards ceremony lighting talk, she embraced resilience as a personal value while also challenging the idea of resilience as a prescription for social inequities “that can be solved with more equitable practices.” [PDXWIT donated $500 to The Blueprint Foundation in Krystal’s name.
Catherine is an attorney and director of legal and legal operations who served on a panel in August 2021 titled “Accessibility in Tech: A Panel Discussion Centering People with Disabilities.” In her lighting talk, she used current research findings to break down why “Impostor Syndrome” is a discriminatory diagnosis that shifts systemic-level issues to individuals. $500 was donated in her name to The Victims Rights Law Center.
Diyana is a full-stack developer who gave a dynamic lighting talk at the September 2021 WTF?! Happy Hour on the value of a varied career journey. In her awards ceremony lighting talk, she wove a tale from her lineage about magic, protection, and the resilience that comes from tapping into your power. $500 was donated in her name to The Black Resilience Fund.
Jillian Rachal awarded as PDXWIT 2021 Best Contributor
Out of dozens of Best Contributor nominations, one name clearly stood out: Jillian Rachal. A PDXWIT community member for over five years, she was described by a nominee as “embodying what it means to build a better tech industry.”
Jillian understands how to make diversity work strategic, intersectional, and measurable, while not sacrificing the humanity of the work.
“The work we do, especially in Diversity Equity and Inclusion…really takes intentionality,” Jillian said during her acceptance speech. “Everything I do, I try to do with a lens that makes people feel belonging. If I can leave this community with one thing: your work matters.”
She closed with a quote from Maya Angelou, reminding us of the responsibility we have to the people we impact on a daily basis: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” $500 was donated in her name to DollarFor.
As PDXWIT continues on its mission to create access, dismantle inequities, and fuel belonging, we hope to take the lessons learned from these four incredible women. Thank you to those of you who took the time to recognize the accomplishments of others in our community!
You can catch highlights from the 2021 Awards Ceremony, including all of the lighting talks, on PDXWIT’s YouTube channel, and be sure to subscribe while you’re there.
P.S. Shoutout to our sponsors who helped make #PDXWITturns10 a success: Kiva, Cambia, TAO, TAO Foundation, First Tech, PixelSpoke, Nike, TechTown PDX, and Orrick. Together with crowd-sourced donations, we raised over 90% of our $50,000 fundraising goal! These funds will be put towards 2022 scholarships, expanding our mentor program, and so much more.