Pledges
Inclusion in this decade and beyond
These pledges are for event organisers, speakers, individuals, employers and sponsors. By signing, you are pledging to highlight where there is a lack of diversity at events and doing what you can to improve things.
To help identify and promote best practices, we have designed our Conference and Event Pledges to ensure that maritime events are diverse and inclusive throughout.
Promote the pledges
By signing one or more of the pledge/s, you will be able to display your support on your website and social media accounts.. Each signatory will be featured on this website.
Pledge for organisers
You can host better events for your participants with more diversity of thought – by having conference speakers from diverse backgrounds. Signing this pledge means you commit to increasing the diversity of the people on stage and in the audience at your events.
Criteria for signing the pledge
Undertake data analysis
- Look at year-over-year data to identify patterns and trends in attendees, vendors, exhibitors and speakers (both positive and negative).
- Examine feedback from events over the past six months (or year) to see if you already have diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I)-related feedback.
- Read and analyse social media comments and event reviews.
- Ensure your speaker line-up includes individuals from diverse genders, races, religions, abilities, cultural backgrounds and more.
- Act on results and do more of what you are doing well.
Make a real impact by including a variety of speakers
- Consider your audience’s demographic and how they may respond to each speaker and topic.
- Choose a range of diverse speakers who can challenge your attendees.
- Choose speakers from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds.
- Choose a mix of established, well-known speakers and those building a name for themselves.
- Consider hiring a diversity consultant to help build a more comprehensive speaker diversity program.
- Take care when organising the order in which panellists speak.
[name of organisation] agrees to ensure diversity in all of its maritime events as per the criteria set out for the conference pledge.
Pledge for speakers
We invite speakers to pledge to only share their knowledge and experience at conferences that are pledge signatories or adhere to the principles of the pledge.
I pledge to only speak at conferences where the organisers are committed to having diverse speakers.
Pledge for companies which fund or sponsor maritime events
Companies or entities which give sponsorship or fund corporate or commercial maritime events should ask about the commitment to diversity and inclusion.
[name of organisation] will only sponsor an event which commits to having diverse and inclusive speakers and audiences.