Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging

Why 'Count Me In' ?

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) is a topic on everyone’s lips as businesses and other organisations attempt to embrace the many opportunities and challenges which the subject raises.

Although many leaders are enthusiastic about engaging with these, this is often accompanied by a lack of knowledge about how to adopt these values as well as a nervousness about getting it wrong.

We started hosting our DEIB conferences on the back of our Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) conferences (Ethical Gambling Forum) so that we could drill down into the specific issues around DEIB experienced by many organisations around the world.

Part of the problem was that there were too many ‘talking shops’ on the subject but not enough practical advice and guidance so that people could take action. So now we bring together a diverse range of experts as well as hands-on expertise to the broad range of individuals and organsiations who attend our events.

We also consider the business imperatives which show that DEIB can have a positive impact on profit, staff retention and attracting the best new talent.

On top of all of this we are also launching a brand new 'COUNT ME IN' community for 2025.

Why? Well, we want to be different and add real value to our members!

We listened to the people who have attended our conferences and they wanted more! They wanted to:

learn more so we're introducing expert-led webinars
ask questions so we're introducing a WhatApp community channel
discuss issues and ideas with a wider network so we're introducing quarterly drop-in surgeries
get specialist help at reasonable prices so we're introducing discounts off services from the 'Friends of' our community
have access to useful information so we're introducing a library of resources

Click here for details about how to join the 'Count Me In' Community

"Let's Kick Up Some Dust!"

Who Should Attend Our Conferences?

Our conferences bring together individuals from many sectors who are not satisfied with sliding into a comfortable acceptance that diversity and inclusion only matters when the spotlight is on the latest news-cycle injustice.

Attend because you want to be counted-in to a dynamic conversation about what we need to do to keep hope alive after the dust settles on a legacy moment.

The conferences pose the question:
Are we more effective carrying the DEIB torch by ourselves, or can a select group of focused people/organisations generate the impetus to kick start new approaches?

It's time to say 'Count Me In' and join the conversation at one of our conferences to explore cutting edge thinking and strategies for energising your DEIB practices and building that truly inclusive culture!

We're planning 4 conferences throughout 2025 so why not come and join us at one or more of them?

In addition to London and Gibraltar we'll be adding Ireland and the Isle of Man to the annual schedule.

Each event will give you opportunity to network with our ever-growing community for an unbeatable day of expertise, practical guidance and lived experience on creating a culture of employee-owned DEIB

CLICK on the red button for more details

Meet The Team

Jo Abergel is co-founder of Count Me In. Through her training company, Rock Learning, Jo works with leadership teams across the private and public sector on DEIB topics. Her Managing Diversity in the Workplace course is accredited by the Institute of Leadership & Management. Jo includes DEIB scenarios into her everyday leadership training to demonstrate the ease and importance of incorporating these topics into an organisation's culture. As previous Chairperson of Childline Gibraltar and an ex-youth worker, Jo has worked with young people affected by abuse, gender and identity issues and a wide range of mental health concerns.

Adrian Sladdin is the co-founder of the Count Me In and Break The Bias conferences which take place annually in London and Gibraltar. He takes responsibility for creating the agenda and finding new and interesting voices from the DEIB spectrum. He also co-founded the Ethical Gambling Forum with a focus on ESG and responsible leadership. His background is in education and training, with a focus on content creation, accredited courses and qualification outcomes. He is also a director at Seventh Wave Corporate Training which specialises in leadership and management training, ESG and DEIB, alongside leadership and communication. He is a published author on Responsible Leadership with the United Nations.

Christina Thakor-Rankin is our Conference Chair. She is a Co-Founder of the All-in Diversity Project, an organisation that works to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the gaming and betting industry. The project works to collect data on diversity in the industry, promote best practices, and provide resources for companies to create more inclusive workplaces. A passionate advocate of ESG and EDI and supporter of women and minoritised groups in the workplace, she is the technical author of the new BSI standard PAS 1948:2023 Diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace - a code of practice, a regular speaker at industry conferences and events, and has been recognised with numerous awards for her contributions to the industry.

Danielle Wood is our Community Engagement Manager and is responsible for driving the growth of this vibrant Count Me In community. She increases engagement, facilitates more learning opportunities, sparks more discussion and most importantly encourages more progress towards truly inclusive workplace cultures. During her HR career she has headed up a D&I function whilst working within the UK police service. She is also an ICF accredited coach and more recently co-founded Belonging Base, an I&B consultancy with her wife Sophie. Together they deliver talks, workshops and training - their specialisms are all things transgender, mental health and psychological safety.