An Interview With Vanessa Ogle
To create systemic change, we must advocate for policies and practices that promote equity and inclusion. In addition to advocating for diversity quotas in hiring practices, policies can also encourage inclusive curriculum in schools, dismantling barriers and creating more equitable opportunities.
In a world where diversity is often acknowledged but not always celebrated, we are taking a step forward to highlight the importance of inclusivity in building strong, vibrant communities. This series aims to explore the various facets of diversity — be it racial, cultural, gender-based, or within the differently-abled community — and understand how embracing these differences strengthens our social fabric.
As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Pelin Kohn.
Dr. Pelin Kohn is an elected City Councilor in Montpelier, Vermont and a leadership educator at Norwich University where she founded the Center for Leadership. She intertwines 20+ years of executive coaching with competence-based leadership skills to impact her community. Before moving to the United States, Pelin Kohn shaped leaders at global brands such as Bosch, British Petroleum, Ford, Hyundai, and Turkish Airlines through coaching. She’s a sought-after keynote speaker and workshop leader. Pelin collaborates with fellow decision-makers toward a more diverse, sustainable, and efficient future for Montpelier, Vermont as City Councilor. She has a PhD in Educational Sciences, Administration, and Planning from Middle East Technical University in Turkey. She has a MA in Educational Sciences and a BA in International Relations from Bilkent University. She’s completing her MBA at Norwich University. She’s a fellow at The Snelling Center for Government’s Vermont Leadership Institute.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series. Before we dive into our discussion about celebrating diversity, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us the backstory about what brought you to your specific career path?
As an immigrant professor, community member, and leader, belonging has always presented challenges for me. It has taken courage and resilience to integrate into the community I migrated to seven years ago. In an effort to promote diversity and representation, I chose to run for local office, and a year ago, I was elected as a city councilor. My primary objective in pursuing this position was to provide representation for the 3% diverse population within my town. As a local politician and leadership educator, my passion lies in clearing a path for individuals like myself, granting them more opportunities to fully engage in their schools, organizations, and local communities.
Can you share an interesting or hopeful story where spending time with someone who did not look like you or who was different from you taught you something that has been useful to you?
It’s funny how everyone around me is different from me because I am an immigrant American, which gives me many personal stories to share. One of the silver linings in this situation is the numerous opportunities I’ve had to engage with my international students. Interacting with students from diverse cultures and listening to their stories has been an enlightening experience. It has taught me valuable lessons about resilience, especially when navigating a foreign cultural environment.
Through my interactions with students, I’ve learned how to analyze my personal skills and adapt to a new culture. It’s been a journey of stepping outside my comfort zone, challenging my preconceptions, and embracing diversity as an invaluable source of strength and inspiration. Witnessing the resilience of my students in the face of adversity has been truly humbling. It serves as a powerful reminder of the universal human experience and highlights the profound interconnectedness of our shared humanity.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
My leadership journey has been shaped by empathy. Understanding others’ perspectives, motivations, and needs helps me foster better connections and collaboration. For instance, when faced with a team member’s personal struggles, instead of solely focusing on the task at hand, I took the time to listen, empathize, and provide support. Besides strengthening our working relationship, this led to a more inclusive and supportive culture in our team.
It is essential to be able to adapt to diverse environments and circumstances that are constantly changing. Adaptability was crucial when our team had to pivot our strategy midway through a project due to unforeseen challenges such as financial obstacles. By encouraging flexibility and open-mindedness among team members, we were able to quickly adjust course and ultimately succeed.
Courage is also essential for challenging the status quo and advocating for inclusivity, even in the face of resistance. As part of my job, I had to address unconscious biases within my organization. It took courage to initiate uncomfortable conversations, challenge ingrained behaviors, and champion initiatives that promoted diversity and inclusion. Our efforts resulted in a more equitable and inclusive workplace culture, where all employees felt respected and valued.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Can you share a personal story that highlights the impact of diversity and inclusivity in your life or career?
As a city council member in my town, I am privileged to serve on the Homelessness Task Force. Prior to joining this task force, I had limited awareness of the myriad challenges faced by homeless individuals in our community. Many of them are employed but still struggle to secure stable housing due to financial constraints. Listening to their stories and advocating on their behalf has provided me with invaluable insights into the underlying issues plaguing our community.
Through this experience, I have learned to cultivate empathy, engage in active listening, and appreciate the remarkable resilience demonstrated by homeless individuals as they navigate daily survival. This experience has highlighted the importance of diversity and inclusivity in addressing systemic issues and fostering a more compassionate and equitable community for all.
How do you approach and manage the challenges that arise when working towards creating more inclusive communities?
Creating more inclusive communities requires empathy, strategic planning, collaboration, and resilience in order to overcome challenges. In order to drive inclusive community development, I believe in the power of collaboration and partnership. To foster collective ownership of inclusive initiatives, I work with a wide range of stakeholders, including government agencies, nonprofit organizations, businesses, educational institutions, and residents. The process of creating inclusive communities takes patience, persistence, and resilience in spite of challenges and setbacks. Even when progress seems slow or obstacles seem insurmountable, I remain committed to a more inclusive society, knowing that meaningful change takes time.
What innovative strategies or initiatives have you implemented or observed that effectively promote the importance of diversity and inclusivity?
Community Engagement and Partnership Building are the most important initiatives for me. Promoting inclusivity at the local level requires engagement with diverse communities and partnerships with grassroots organizations, advocacy groups, and community leaders. My role as a community producer has therefore been to develop a leadership program with a non-profit media organization. In our show, we host impactful Vermont leaders to share their leadership journeys in creating better community engagement by using purpose-driven leadership strategies. Community listening sessions are another initiative I participate in as a city councilor which promotes open dialogue between elected officials and residents. It is possible to foster trust, collaboration, and meaningful change within communities when organizations actively listen to community needs, co-create solutions, and leverage collective resources.
In your opinion, what are the key elements that make a community truly inclusive, and how can these be fostered on a larger scale?
To create an inclusive community, it is necessary to address several interrelated factors. Such as diverse representation, equitable access, and cultural competence,
The first step toward inclusivity is representation. A truly inclusive community reflects diversity across all dimensions, including race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability, religion, socioeconomic status, and others. Initiatives such as affirmative action policies, targeted recruitment efforts, and inclusive leadership development programs can help foster diverse representation. Inclusivity also entails ensuring equitable access to resources, opportunities, and services for all community members. It includes access to education, health care, employment, housing, and transportation.
Equal access must be promoted through policies and programs aimed at reducing barriers such as systemic discrimination, economic inequality, and geographic disparities. Understanding, respecting, and appreciating diverse perspectives and experiences also requires cultural competency among community members.
Developing cultural competence involves the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enable individuals to communicate and interact effectively across cultural lines. The promotion of cultural competence within communities can be achieved through education, training, and intercultural dialogue initiatives.
The community can foster a climate where all individuals feel welcomed, valued, and empowered to fully participate in social, economic, and civic life by prioritizing these key elements and implementing strategies to foster inclusivity.
Based on your experience and research, can you please share “5 Ways We Can Build Inclusive Communities”?
It takes a multifaceted approach to building inclusive communities, which tackles systemic barriers, fosters empathy and understanding, and empowers marginalized voices. The following are some ways I approach and manage this challenge:
The power of education and awareness-raising can combat ignorance and prejudice. We can promote cultural competence and empathy by organizing workshops, training sessions, and community discussions on diversity and inclusion.
Diverse stakeholders, including government agencies, nonprofits, businesses, and community organizations, must collaborate to build inclusive communities. We can drive meaningful change by forming strategic partnerships and leveraging collective resources and expertise.
To create systemic change, we must advocate for policies and practices that promote equity and inclusion. In addition to advocating for diversity quotas in hiring practices, policies can also encourage inclusive curriculum in schools, dismantling barriers and creating more equitable opportunities.
Creating inclusive communities requires empowering marginalized communities and amplifying their voices. A variety of strategies can be used to accomplish this, such as fostering leadership opportunities for underrepresented groups and ensuring diverse representation in decision-making processes.
In order to create inclusive communities, continuous evaluation and improvement are necessary. We can ensure that our efforts are effective and responsive by regularly assessing the impact of our initiatives, gathering feedback from community members, and adjusting our approaches accordingly.
How do you measure the impact and success of diversity and inclusion efforts, and what changes have you seen as a result of these initiatives?
In order to accurately measure the impact and success of diversity and inclusion efforts, we need to go beyond simple metrics. Indicators such as demographic representation and employee satisfaction surveys are important, but they only provide part of the picture.
We can measure success by the tangible results of our initiatives, such as increased leadership representation for marginalized groups, a reduction in disparities in opportunity access, and an inclusive organizational culture that values and respects everyone. Additionally, qualitative measures, such as anecdotal evidence of positive experiences and testimonials from community members, provide valuable insight into the lived experiences of those we serve.
Through diversity and inclusion initiatives related to representation, I have seen tangible changes that have helped to develop an inclusive organizational culture where people from diverse backgrounds feel empowered to contribute their unique perspectives and talents, create a more diverse hiring process, encourage leaders to be culturally intelligent, and create a more inclusive organization culture.
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
If I could start a movement that would bring the greatest amount of good to the greatest number of people, it would promote empathy and compassion on a global scale. As an immigrant leader based on my professional and personal experience, I can say that it takes empathy and compassion to bridge divides, foster understanding, and drive positive change in a world filled with division, conflict, and polarization.
To promote empathy at all levels of society, this movement would include educational programs, community-based initiatives, and policy advocacy efforts. We can encourage empathy among individuals so that future generations will live in a more compassionate and inclusive world by teaching them to recognize and value others’ humanity.
How can our readers further follow you online?
They can check my LinkedIn account: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pelinkohn/
Thank you for the time you spent sharing these fantastic insights. We wish you continued success in your great work!
About The Interviewer: Vanessa Ogle is an entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and singer/songwriter. She is best known as the founder of Enseo which she and her team grew into one of the largest out-of-home media and connected networks in the world, serving more than 100,000,000 people annually. Vanessa’s talent in building world-class leadership teams focused on diversity, a culture of service, and innovation through inclusion resulted in amazing partnerships and customer relationships. She collaborated with the world’s leading technology and content companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and Dish Networks to bring innovative solutions to the hospitality industry. Enseo has also held an exclusive contract to provide movies to the entire U.S. armed forces for almost 15 years. Vanessa and her team’s relentless innovation resulted in120+ U.S. Patents. Her favorite product is the MadeSafe solution for hotel workers as well as students and children in their K-12 classrooms. Accolades include: #15 on FAST 100, 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned 2018–2020, Entrepreneur 360 Best Companies 2018–2020, not to mention the Inc. 500 and then another six times on the Inc. 5000. Vanessa was personally honored with Inc. 100 Female Founder’s Award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and Enterprising Women of the Year. Vanessa now spends her time enjoying her children, sharing stories to inspire and give hope through articles and speaking engagements. entrepreneurs-to-be with her articles including her LinkedIN newsletter Unplugged. In her spare time she writes music with her husband Paul as the band HigherHill, teaches surfing clinics, and trains dogs.
Celebrating Diversity: Pelin Kohn Of Norwich University On How To Build Inclusive Communities was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.