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Diverse perspectives enable decision-makers to better serve all the people within their orbit. Maryam Ahmed is an entrepreneur, speaker, writer, and activist immersed in the world of food and wine and during this conversation, we discuss how her lived experience informs her incredible work to improve diversity and equality in the industry.
Join us as we explore Maryam’s lifelong passion for food and wine and how her early life influenced her career path today. We discuss her unique position at the intersection of food, wine, activism, and entrepreneurship and how small tweaks lead to turning a big dial.
This episode also includes Maryam’s analysis of the current climate of understanding privilege and working to create a more equitable society. With the goal of creating a more equal world; bringing equal opportunity to every industry is essential. Join us today to hear all about Maryam’s contribution to creating change.
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Key Points From This Episode:
• Introducing Maryam Ahmed, her lifelong passion for food and wine, and her work as an activist. [0:00:00]
• Her experience of having a trifecta of qualities that made her a minority. [0:07:23]
• What her role looks like practically, making small tweaks to turn a big dial. [0:08:56]
• Initiative fatigue, demographics of activism, and recent shifts in representation. [0:12:06]
• How Maryam’s work in advocacy differs from the history of the wine industry. [0:17:49]
• What the Diversity in Wine Forum focuses on and how they work with other organizations. [0:20:15]
• Addressing the World Health Organization’s claims that no alcohol consumption is safe. [0:28:06]
• Maryam’s Field Blends initiative and how impact is built into it. [0:31:04]
• The ultimate goal of diversity work: showing up in your full identity. [0:35:13]
• How listeners can help to grow this next economy. [0:37:41]
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Quotes:
“It depended on the day, whether my being young, brown, or a woman was the thing that kept me out of a room or that made me the only lonely.” — Maryam Ahmed [0:08:11]
“People need alternative perspectives. People who realized that included me in a lot of things.” — Maryam Ahmed [0:08:30]
“At the end of the day, we want an equitable world, so we want an equitable wine world.” — Maryam Ahmed [0:23:53]
“We need to make sustainability more accessible.” — Maryam Ahmed [0:25:20]
“When you’re in diversity work, the goal is that you get to show up in your full identity.” — Maryam Ahmed [0:35:24]
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Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Maryam Ahmed on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryam-ahmed-3764b993/
Maryam Ahmed on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goodfriendsgoodfood/
Maryam and Company: https://www.maryamandcompany.com/
Diversity in Wine Leadership Forum: https://www.diversityinwineforum.com/
Field Blends: https://www.maryamandcompany.com/fieldblends
280 Project: https://www.280project.com/
Napa Green: https://napagreen.org/
No Level of Alcohol Consumption is Safe For Our Health: https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/04-01-2023-no-level-of-alcohol-consumption-is-safe-for-our-health
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