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Download our WCS | Report exploring DEI Insights & Trends in 2025, a qualitative research study informed by roundtable discussions with UK-based DEI experts from diverse industries. | Reports DEI Insights & Trends in 2025. Join our Community The Future of DEI. This 48-page DEI Insights & Trends in 2025 Report shares practical knowledge gathered directly from those at the forefront of DEI work, forecasting how innovation, leadership engagement, global challenges, practitioner wellbeing, and external partners will shape DEI in the year ahead. Download for free Actionable Strategies and Solutions from DEI Practitioners. Moving beyond theoretical justifications, this report dives into the lived experiences of DEI practitioners who navigate complex and often polarised environments to foster inclusive workplaces. Informed by recent roundtable discussions with UK-based DEI experts from diverse industries—including law, finance, technology, entertainment, academia, and consumer goods—this report provides actionable insights and strategies to equip DEI practitioners with tools to drive change effectively. The themes within this report bring forward key learnings and insights central to the DEI work of tomorrow. The learnings here offer both guidance and inspiration, equipping practitioners to navigate today’s complex landscape with confidence and purpose. Download report 2025 KEY THEMES: DEI & Innovation Leadership Engagement Global Challenges, Local Action Practitioner Wellbeing External Partnerships 2025 CONTRIBUTORS: Ally Tyger-Doyle DEI Lead, EMEA at MiQ Vijay Chohan Head of Inclusion and Diversity at British Airways Kosta Christodoulou Global Pride ERG President and Cluster Community Manager at WeWork Billy Cole Global Senior Manager of DEI at Unilever Georgina Court Diversity and Inclusion Lead UK at Global Law Firm Michalis Diogenous DEI Lead EMEA at Alvarez & Marsal Char Erskine Senior DEI Manager at Taylor Wessing Dr. Jack López Former Associate Dean of DEI at University of Bradford Christina Peach Associate Director, Brand and Inclusion at FleishmanHillard UK Sirajah Raheem Global Director of DEI at MiQ Frank Starling Chief DEI Officer at LIONS Jade Fraser DEI Director at We Create Space & 14 Anonymous DEI Practitioners THIS REPORT WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY: LEAD AUTHOR Coda Nicolaeff Partnerships Manager at We Create Space CO-AUTHOR Jon-Paul Vicari Managing Director at We Create Space DESIGNER & ILLUSTRATOR Jua O'Kane Marketing Manager at We Create Space ONSITE EVENTS MANAGER Neil Hudson-Basing Events Manager at We Create Space EDITOR Sanjukta Moorthy DEI Consultant at We Create Space Download report About WE CREATE SPACE We Create Space is a global community-led learning platform and culture-change consultancy on a mission to improve the lives of marginalised and underrepresented groups of professionals around the world. Find out more Any questions? For any more information please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Get in touch

Body Neutrality Body image issues are rife in the queer community and contribute to poor self esteem, mental health and the development of eating disorders. The body positivity movement encourages people to love and celebrate their bodies, especially the parts of them that may not be considered "ideal" by society's standards. In contrast, body neutrality is about fostering an attitude of acceptance towards your body, appreciating its value beyond appearances. When we can't always muster positive feelings about our bodies, we can accept them for what they are and acknowledging that our appearance has no bearing on our worth as people. See also: Body Image, Body Dysmorphia < Back to Glossary

(he/they) Allan Allan is originally hails from Suriname, South America, but has called Amsterdam home for over a decade. He possesses a culturally diverse background but currently identifies as a queer man working in the finance industry. Allan strives to foster a culture of inclusivity and belonging in both his professional and personal life. He is particularly passionate about exploring the formation of culture in both social and corporate spheres and how positive behavioral changes can impact individuals from marginalized backgrounds. As a coach, Allan is driven to create meaningful change and is committed to empowering individuals from all walks of life. Allan Kartodikromo Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

Anxiety Anxiety is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear, that can be mild or severe (which is often identified through medical diagnosis). Everyone has feelings of anxiety at some point in their life, but LGBTQ+ people are more than twice as likely to experience. If your anxiety is getting in the way of your everyday life, it's important to seek support from people that you trust, and find holistic tools to help manage the symptoms. See: Grounding, Meditation & Reflection. < Back to Glossary

Parenting A parenting style is a psychological construct representing standard strategies that parents use in their child rearing. The quality of parenting can be more essential than the quantity of time spent with the child. Parenting styles reflect variations in the attitudes and practices of parents, and comprise discrete parenting behaviours. < Back to Glossary

(she/her) Taz Taz is a bisexual woman of Bangladeshi Muslim heritage. She is former Director of Volunteering and Youth Programmes at an LGBTQ+ charity, where she ran programmes in universities and small charities, facilitating reforms by and for LGBTQ+ people and others. She has written about educational equality for The Guardian, and intersectional LGBTQ+ themes for Gay Times and DIVA. Taz runs inclusion experimental initiatives and training for UK small businesses and community organisations, at Inclusion Projects by Taz. She is interested in gender, race, power, and how change happens. Taz Rasul Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

(they/them) River River is a Brighton-based non-binary, neurodivergent creative working on projects as a songwriter, photographer, model and creative director. They use their own lived experience with mental health struggles and self-discovery to create music and media with a message. Their song ‘Paranoia’ , an original piece about gender-based violence, was featured in the UN Women UK 'A Safe Space' Virtual Exhibition. As a Youth Consultant for Mind, they work on a freelance basis, developing a trauma-informed care programme for young women, girls and non-binary people as well as delivering presentations and workshops on the relationship between mental health and physical activity. River Solace Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

Holding Space “Holding space” means being physically, mentally, and emotionally present for someone, supporting them as they feel their feelings. Important aspects of holding space are active listening and withholding judgment while remaining calm and present. See: Compassion, Empathy, Empathetic Witness and Healing. < Back to Glossary

(he/him) Elliot Elliot is a non-binary transgender man, a sports physical therapist, and a professionally trained circus artist. In 2018, Elliot immigrated to Barcelona from Israel in pursuit of freedom from the Middle East. His activism includes running a donation-based training group called Drama y Biceps exclusively for transgender and non-binary individuals, providing accessible physical therapy services to trans individuals, co-authoring the first academic study on the rehabilitation of masculinizing top surgery, and giving talks about trans issues such as non-binary biology, trans experiences in the workplace, and personal lived experiences. In addition, Elliot is passionate about promoting intersectionality and educating people on the importance of creating safe spaces for marginalized communities. He is also interested in the history of LGBTQ+ rights movements and combating discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community, particularly in healthcare settings. Additionally, Elliot advocates for the importance of physical activity and its benefits for mental health, and discusses the unique challenges faced by trans individuals in accessing appropriate healthcare. Elliot Theodor Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

Gatekeeping The activity of controlling, and usually limiting, general access to something - whether it be information, products or resources. This is undoubtedly a technique that the upper echelons of society use in order to maintain a wealth gap in society. Gatekeeping financial literacy is a great example of this. See: Class, Power and Hierarchy < Back to Glossary

(they/she) Jolinda Jolinda is an award-winning Certified Life and Holistic Health Coach, dedicated to helping changemakers and revolutionaries reignite their passion and prevent burnout. With a special focus on perimenopause, Jolinda seeks to challenge the traditional narrative and bring attention to the voices that are often overlooked, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and those under 45. As a skilled moderator and facilitator, both in person and online, Jolinda brings her expertise to create safe and empowering spaces for individuals and organizations. She is also passionate about mental health and wellbeing, and believes in the power of self-empowerment to drive personal and professional growth. Jolinda Johnson Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

Achillean Also known as Men Loving Men (MLM), describes men, male-leaning individuals, or masculine-aligned people of all genders who are attracted to other men, male-leaning individuals, or masculine-aligned people of all genders. < Back to Glossary

Grey Also known as grey-A, this is an umbrella term which describes people who experience attraction occasionally, rarely, or only under certain conditions. People may also use terms such as gay, bi, lesbian, straight and queer in conjunction with grey to explain the direction of romantic or sexual attraction as they experience it. < Back to Glossary

he/him Luke Luke is a fashion enthusiast and business owner based in Harrogate, where he has lived all his life. Luke's childhood was not without challenges. He attended a "hearing/mainstream" school from year seven to year nine but found it incredibly difficult to fit in as the only deaf person in attendance. His peers recommended that he attend a "deaf boarding" school, which ultimately helped him feel more connected to his community. It was Luke's love for fashion and the way it inspires and instills confidence that led him to create his own fashion brand, DEAF IDENTITY . As a deaf, gay male business owner, he aims to raise awareness for the deaf community through fashion while challenging stigmas surrounding it. With his brand, Luke hopes to empower individuals to feel confident in their own skin, regardless of hearing abilities. Luke Christian Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

Two-Spirit Two-spirit is a modern, pan-Indian, umbrella term used by some Indigenous North Americans to describe Native people in their communities who fulfil a traditional third-gender ceremonial and social role in their cultures. See: Indigenous and Indigiqueer. < Back to Glossary

Deadnaming Deadnaming is when you refer to someone by a name they no longer use - most commonly their birth name. Deadnaming most commonly happens to trans people who have changed their name as part of their transition. < Back to Glossary

(she/they) Ruby Ruby is a sex educator, author, broadcaster, and public speaker on a mission to get people talking more confidently and inclusively about sex. She’s curious to have the conversations many shy away from, with a nuanced perspective that holds inclusion and sex positivity at the very core. Their work is influenced by her experiences as a queer, non-monogamous, dual-heritage person. Ruby comes from a background of working directly with young people and marginalised groups, delivering relationship and sex education (RSE) across the country. In 2020 her debut book Sex Ed: A Guide for Adults was published by Bloomsbury, and in 2022 her podcast docu-series In Touch was released, which explores the ways we connect to sex, relationships, and our bodies with nuance and curiosity. Ruby Rare Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

(he/him) Eduardo Eduardo is an Oxford University graduate from Colombia with a passion for philosophy, peace-building and story-telling. His inspiring story talks about bridging his bisexuality and his catholic faith, but also of overcoming cancer at a young age. Eduardo Gutierrez Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

(she/they) Emily Emily Garside is a Queer writer, presenter, DEI consultant, and LGBTQ+ educator. Beginning with a PhD on theatrical responses to the AIDS crisis and the evolution of LGBTQ theatre, she has since expanded her work into Queer cultural history, including writing books on TV, Film and Welsh Queer History. Since leaving academia, Emily has worked with organisations like Bishopsgate Insitute and London Playwrights to share Queer history and culture. They also work to develop diversity and inclusion in my other passions: Ice Hockey and Figure skating. As an Asexual, non-binary, neurodivergent person, they combine lived expertise with research and knowledge to educate— and occasionally entertain. Emily Garside Looking for a Guest Speake r ? Get in touch Our Recent Articles... DEI Trends in 2025: Practitioner Wellbeing and Career Sustainability. UNLOCK | Queer Leadership 101 with Pius Kennedy Harnessing Queer Joy as an Act of Resistance. Create Space for Change. We work with 100+ Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke DEI solutions. Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce insights and craft content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Discover our bespoke corporate solutions... Work with us

History LGBTQ history dates back to the first recorded instances of same-sex love and sexuality of ancient civilizations, involving the history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender peoples and cultures around the world. What survives after many centuries of persecution (and colonisation) —resulting in shame, suppression, and secrecy—has only in more recent decades been pursued and interwoven into more mainstream historical narratives. See: Heritage. < Back to Glossary