Judy Chu was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in July 2009. She represents the 27th Congressional District, which includes Pasadena and the west San Gabriel Valley of southern California.

Rep. Chu currently serves on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over legislation pertaining to taxes, revenues, Social Security, and Medicare. In that Committee, Rep. Chu is a member of the Subcommittees on Health, giving her oversight over healthcare reform and crucial safety net programs, Worker and Family Support, and Oversight.

She also serves on the House Small Business Committee, which has oversight of the Small Business Administration, as well as the House Budget Committee.

Chu was first elected to the Board of Education for Garvey School District in 1985. From there, she was elected to the Monterey Park City Council, where she served as Mayor three times. She then was elected to the State Assembly and then California’s elected tax board, known as the State Board of Equalization. In 2009, she became the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress in history.

Judy Choi is the Chief Administrative Officer of Private Credit & Equity (PC&E) within Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM), a global investment manager managing $1.6Tn of AUM with over 40 years of history delivering innovative investment solutions across public and private markets worldwide.

She oversees a broad range of initiatives managing the business of direct private equity and credit investment including organizational management, product development, recruiting and retention, compliance and risk management, expense management, technology management, and process reengineering in close partnership with MSIM and corporate-level support organizations. She leads the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) integration effort across PC&E investment teams and represents the division on the MSIM Sustainability Council. She also serves on the Investment Committee of the Morgan Stanley Next Level Fund, a venture fund that invests in early-stage technology and technology-enabled companies with women or diverse members as part of the founding team.

Judy joined Morgan Stanley in 1999 in the Investment Banking Division and has served in a variety of management roles across Investment Banking, Firm Management and Technology during her 20+ year tenure at the Firm. She received a B.A. from Hunter College, an M.H.A. from the University of Cincinnati, and M.B.A.s from Columbia University and London Business School. She serves on the Board of VillageCare of NY, on the Advisory Council of American Corporate Partners (ACP) and is the co-President of the London Business School Alumni Association in New York.

Business leader specializing in growth planning, team effectiveness, and communication with a focus on growth strategy, team development, leadership, and culture. Demonstrated acumen in working across multiple functions while maintaining trusting relationships and excellent communication. A proponent of aligning the company’s vision with the team’s to develop a strong connection between individual, team and company goals and outcomes.

Priscilla Katerena began her journey back in 2010 after assisting a close friend on set at multiple photo shoots. This friend inspired her to pursue a career as a curvy model. She booked a photo shoot with Damien Smith Photography to build her first portfolio and from these photos, she booked her first modeling assignment on My Black is Beautiful with Jennifer Austin, celebrity stylist.

She began booking runway modeling jobs locally during Los Angeles Fashion Week with such productions as POSH LAFW and Haute Curves LAFW. With ambitious goals to book her dream runway show, Priscilla with sheer determination began her pursuit to perfect her runway walk. After two years of failed castings, she finally booked FFWeek, the runway Oscar of Plus Fashion in 2014, 2015, and 2016. She quickly became known in the plus modeling world as the “polynesian model.� She’s been published in two International Magazines: and. She’s also been featured on the cover of , and, a UK based publication. Recently, she graced the cover of Luxe Kurves Magazine March 2022 Boss Issue.

Priscilla is the creator of the #PolynesianExchange which featured and shed light on Polynesian Plus Models/Actresses such as Tracy McNeal, Veronica Pome'e, and of course herself. It featured designs by Polynesian Designer Nancy Elizabeth Thompson of LIFT. This editorial was featured on and. Since the creation of the Polynesian Exchange, she was able to bring the conversation of diversity in the fashion/film industry for Pacific Islanders to the forefront. “This campaign was such a huge success that it inspired many young Pasifika girls to grow up and see themselves as beautiful and validated�, says Priscilla.

In 2018, Priscilla was able to live out one of her childhood dreams and booked a major commercial as a lead for JCPenney. Then in 2019, she was casted again as a lead for 3 of their commercials. In December of the same year, she booked a lead role for a luxury high end hair company, Mayvenn Inc. The commercial aired at the top of 2020 on various national networks. In October of 2021, Priscilla landed another major national campaign and this time it was with the brand Dry Bar for their launch at Ulta Beauty. She plans to continue being an inspiration for Pasifika people all over the world through visibility as a model, actress, and social influencer.

A 2-time Emmy nominee, Michael Yo is a comedian/actor/host keeping busy in all of Hollywood's platforms. In stand up, Michael came up under the wings of Chelsea Handler and Jo Koy and now headlines all over the country. His hilarious and heartfelt debut stand up comedy special, Blasian, released in late 2018. In acting, Michael reoccurred on "Kevin Can Wait," shot a Damon Wayan Jr.'s pilot "Happy Together" for CBS and was a principal in Facebook's upcoming Facebook Watch first sitcom series, "Starter Pack." Michael got his start in radio and it continues to be his passion. Michael recently launched his new daily pop culture radio talk show, "The Michael Yo Show," on the EW channel of SiriusXM and can also be heard daily on "Hits1 in Hollywood" on channel 2. Michael was previously seen covering celebrity news and gossip on "The Insider," "Extra," "E! News," as well as guest co-hosting CBS' "The Talk." Michael continues to appear as a hot topic contributor on "The Wendy Williams Show." The self-proclaimed "Half-Black Brother with a Korean Mother" was born and raised in Houston and now lives in Los Angeles with his family.

Asia Jackson is an actress, producer, and content creator based in Los Angeles (CA). Growing up a military brat, Asia spent her childhood all over the world. She is of African-American and Indigenous Filipino (Igorot) descent. Asia taught herself to code at eleven years old and was studying computer science & information systems before entering the entertainment industry.

On television, you’ve seen Asia on Modern Family, The Young & The Restless, Speechless, Superstore, Alone Together, ³¢¾±´Ú±ð³Ù¾±³¾±ð’s Stalked By A Reality Star, and most recently Blumhouse’s Nocturne on Amazon Prime. She also has a YouTube channel where she regularly uploads engaging and transparent content about fashion, beauty, and mental health.

In 2016, Asia created the viral movement , literally translated to “beautiful brown skin�, to challenge colorism and celebrate the diversity of beauty in Filipino communities. As an activist and content creator, Asia has been covered in numerous international publications such as Vogue, TIME Magazine, CNN, NBC News, Marie Claire, Elle, Glamour, and many more. She has also been invited to speak at universities including (but not limited to) Brown University, Columbia, UCLA, USC, UC Berkeley, and Syracuse University.

In 2022, Asia founded SKNFLUENCR–an online editorial platform and podcast that explores fashion and beauty at the intersection of race, identity, and culture.

Jiggly Caliente is a trans drag performer and recording artist best known for competing in the fourth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars. She has appeared in a wide variety of roles in television (Pose, Saturday Night Live, Broad City) and film (The Queens) and released an album (T.H.O.T. Process). She currently is a part of the incredibly topical and inspiring weekly roundtable talk show, “Translation� and continues to bring audiences around the world to their feet.

Travis Ing is a film and TV development executive at Hillman Grad Productions. In a previous life, he worked as a venture capital investor in NY before packing everything up and moving to LA, starting over in the WME mailroom. He is originally from Honolulu, HI.

Marcie is the SVP of Marketing at Heading Health, an outcomes-focused behavioral health startup focused on innovative treatments. Previously, Marcie was the founder & CEO of KindMind, enabling healthcare workers to find a therapist confidentially and conveniently. She holds her MBA from The Wharton School, and a BS from UCLA.

Madhavi is leading Engineering strategy to build products and platforms by transforming healthcare into digitalization to serve and respond faster to help people live healthier lives. Certified Healthcare Professional(MBA) with 25+ years of experience working in multiple business segments such as Finance, Transportation and healthcare. Leading enterprise big bets for Optum for enterprise engineering initiatives. Highly motivated ,passionate and inspired by our Vision � Helping people live healthier lives and helping make the heath system work better for everyone� embracing that, my aspiration is to help set the pace for HealthCare products by becoming a trusted thought leader, led by an example also with knowledge. Driven to be the best and enhancing leadership, technical expertise , building Women leaders, Brand Covets of Teams with Engineering culture to serve to organization.

Janani leads the Enterprise Engineering team responsible for driving the tech strategy and execution. Over the last 20+ years, Janani has worked at multiple divisions of Optum and led many enterprise modernization initiatives. She has passion for researching, developing and implementing innovative solutions and onboarded new technologies for enterprise adoption; IoT, Conversational AI/Chatbots, Chaos Engineering, Distributed SQL and Serverless computing. She is also an open source advocate and has spoken in various internal(Optum Dev Days) and external (Kubecon, Open Source North, Rasa Chatbot Dev Summit) conferences.

Lacy is the Executive Director of the Hillman Grad Foundation, overseeing its Mentorship Lab and Rising Voices initiative with Indeed. Lacy previously served as the Associate Director of BLD PWR, an initiative founded by actor and activist Kendrick Sampson to mobilize the entertainment industry in support of grassroots organizations. Additionally, she’s an alum of the Creative Artists Agency Foundation and the Randall Woodfin for Birmingham Mayor, Jon Ossoff for Senate, Joe Biden for President, and Kamala Harris for the People. She is currently a board member of Covenant House California’s Advisory Committee, RAINN Speakers Bureau, InsideOUT Writers junior board, GoFundMe’s AAPI Community Fund, and board chair of The Objective.

• She currently serves on Asian American Futures' Movement Leaders Circle, Asian American Women's Political Initiative Advisory Board, and GoFundMe & Gold House's AAPI Community Fund - taking part in the to fundraising for AAPI community orgs, which led to $7m in donations.
• In March 2021, Lacy was one of the leaders of the responding to the rise of anti-Asian violence in our communities.
• She produced Lauren Young-Smith/'s based on her viral . We then partnered with to raise money for microgrants for queer AAPI artists.
• Her grandfather was Prime Minister of Vietnam before his assassination. My family came to the US as refugees where my grandmother started the Vietnamese American Voter Association. Ada Tseng wrote a on my family in Nov 2020.
• She has a single line in Jeff Yang, Phil Yu, and Phillip Wang's NYT bestseller , which was put together by her close friend and Coalition for Asian Pacific’s in Entertainment Comms Director Jes Vu. So, if there's a way to tie their exploration of AAPI representation into their current book tour.
• She is potentially MCing gala next month on May 19th.

In addition:

• She was the Associate Director and first employee at Kendrick Sampson's org. She co-hosted all in Los Angeles in 2020, launched the which included signers like Lena, Tessa Thompson, Michael B. Jordan, Chadwick Boseman, and more.
• She started her work in sexual violence advocacy and awareness. She re-wrote part of the UC Sexual Violence policies when I was 18, getting rid of the 1 year statute of limitations. I'm also part of RAINN Speakers Bureau and was featured in the campaign with Google for and .
• She previously worked for the campaigns of now-Vice President Harris, President Joe Biden, Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff, and Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin.

Born in Phoenix, AZ and raised by immigrant parents from China and Japan, Naomi has always been drawn to stories that celebrate and examine identity, multiculturalism, and diversity. She began her career at CAA in the Books to Film department, where she sold titles like Bret Anthony Johnston's critically acclaimed best seller Remember Me Like This before moving to the producing side first at Heyday Films and then Mandeville Films. There she worked on such features as Disney's live-action remake of the animated classic Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson, Stephen Chbosky’s adaptation of beloved best-selling middle grade book Wonder, and Tom Harper’s period epic The Aeronauts starring Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones. Naomi then transitioned into television at Freeform overseeing a number of projects in development centering around and created by underrepresented voices and perspectives reflecting contemporary American life. She is passionate about changing the conversation and championing the next generation of storytellers.

Rishi Rajani is the CEO for Hillman Grad Productions, the multi-platform entertainment company founded by actor, producer, and Emmy-winning writer Lena Waithe. In his role, Rajani oversees all divisions across Hillman Grad, guiding the company’s strategic and creative direction, while developing new business partnerships.

Since joining the company in 2018 as president of film and television, Rajani has played a key role in furthering Hillman Grad’s mission to “create art that redefines the status quo by amplifying and celebrating the stories and voices of diverse, historically marginalized communities across all industries.�

Rajani works strategically to produce award-winning content and expand Hillman Grad’s burgeoning business. He has secured strategic partnership deals with the likes of Warner Bros. Television Group, a joint venture partnership with Def Jam Recordings to launch Hillman Grad Records, a multi-project development deal with Audible to launch the company’s podcast division and Zando Projects to create Hillman Grad books with additional projects in the works for branded content, fashion, cannabis and kids, to name a few. Moreover, Rajani also originated the company’s Rising Voices director fellowship with Indeed, serves as an Executive Mentor for the Hillman Grad Mentorship lab, and launched a South Asian mentorship program under “The Salon.�

Under the Hillman Grad production banner, Rajani executive produced the series The Chi, Twenties, and Boomerang, as well as the Sundance award-winning film, The Forty-Year-Old Version. His upcoming feature film projects include A Thousand and One written and directed by AV Rockwell, starring singer-songwriter Teyana Taylor for Focus Features; Disney+’s original, live-action Chang Can Dunk written and directed byJingyi Shao; Being Mary: The Mary Tyler Moore documentary, the first authorized biography of the iconic actor and producer; and the Verzuz documentary, Gifted & Black for Amazon Prime both of which are directed by James Adolphus.

Since its inception in 2015, and under Rajani’s leadership, Hillman Grad has grown to include six divisions and twenty employees, rising to become one of the most groundbreaking companies in entertainment.

Born in London, and raised in upstate New York and Portland, Ore., Rajani graduated from NYU before rising through the ranks as a film and television development executive at 20th Century Fox, UTA, Paradigm and Studio 8.

Ruby Ibarra is a rapper and spoken word artist from the Bay Area, CA. She released her debut album, CIRCA91 at the end of 2017 and has since toured across the United States at universities, empowerment conferences, music venues, and spaces such as - the National Mall in DC, The Getty Center, and the De Young Museum. Ruby has been featured on notable publications such as NPR, Huffington Post, South China Morning Post, Buzzfeed, XXL Magazine and was featured in a Grammys/MasterCard commercial and campaign with R&B singer SZA. Ruby’s music is available on all digital platforms and can be heard in several museum exhibits, films and television features.

Urooj Arshad (she/her) has 23 years of experience advocating for LGBTQI+ rights. She has designed and implemented programs on local, national and global levels, which has led to Urooj becoming a sought out speaker and trainer on these issues.

Additionally, Urooj has experience in foundation and federal grants management, organizational and program development, strategic planning, fundraising, and philanthropic advocacy.

Urooj has been recognized for her work in advancing the rights of LGBTQ Muslims. She mobilized resources and developed programs for several initiatives, including two programs at Advocates for Youth, the Muslim Youth Leadership Council (MyLC) and the International LGBTQ Youth Health and Rights Program at Advocates for Youth, as well as the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD).

As a continuously developing leader, Urooj has expanded her skills through many opportunities, including a fellowship with the American Muslim Civic Leadership Institute (AMCLI), a Public Voices fellowship with the OpEd Project, participation in two Center for American Progress programs—the Women’s Health Leadership Network and the Faith and Reproductive Justice Institute—as well as a national convening of Muslim thought-leaders hosted by the Harvard University’s Alwaleed Islamic Studies Program.

Leveraging relationship building to bring about tangible changes, Urooj secured groundbreaking investments of over $1 million in 2017, to serve LGBTQ Muslim youth and LGBTQI+ youth in the global south.

Urooj currently serves as the Senior Program Manager, Dignity for All, LGBTQI+ Assistance Program at Freedom House. Dignity for All provides emergency assistance; security, opportunity, and advocacy rapid response grants (SOAR grants); and security assessment and training to human rights defenders and civil society organizations under threat or attack due to their work for LGBTQI+ human rights.

Her work has been featured in Teen Vogue, NBC News, The Oprah Magazine and USA Today. Urooj was invited to speak at the Obama White House’s Pride and Heritage event in 2011 and served on the 59th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in 2015.

William's feature romantic comedy IT WAS YOU was recently selected to the Black List - the buzzy compendium of the year’s most-liked unproduced Hollywood screenplays - and also attached Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M. Chu as a producer.
Yu's original TV half hour dramedy pilot GOOD BOY was selected for the a Sundance Episodic Makers Lab and was named to as a top screenplay by an AAPI writer.
He is also the creator of #StarringJohnCho, a that used photoshopped movie posters to spark a global conversation about Asian American representation in media and that had a wide-ranging impact on Hollywood.
Yu brings a global perspective, with family roots stretching as far as Seoul and Jamaica. He was born in Philadelphia, raised in Hong Kong, seasoned in New York, and now resides in Los Angeles.
William Yu is repped by Manager Zack Zucker at Bellevue; Agents Halle Mariner (Features) and Danny Alexander (TV) at APA.

Leang Chung (she/her) is a Career First Coach & Founder of Pelora Stack. She helps people navigate their career first. Coaching first-time career changers, people managers, early-stage founders, and solopreneurs.

She is a member of the Forbes Coaches Council and has been featured in Elpha, Diversity Women Media, Tech Ladies, Hubspot, SHRM, and Forbes. She’s an active speaker and writer on topics related to career management, coaching, advancing womxn in the workplace, personal branding, and networking as an introvert.

Jenn Lim is the bestselling author of Beyond Happiness, and the CEO of Delivering Happiness [DH], a company she and Tony Hsieh [the late CEO of Zappos.com] cofounded to create happier company cultures for a more profitable and sustainable approach to business. DH has worked with or spoken at more than 400 companies and organizations worldwide, including Starbucks, Sallie Mae, Lockheed Martin, Zoom, Northwell Health, and more.

In her new bestselling book, Beyond Happiness: How Authentic Leaders Prioritize Purpose and People for Growth and Impact, Jenn draws on her decades of experience in culture and strategy to translate it into a practical “how-to� framework so workplaces can adapt quicker, couple purpose and profits, and modernize org design to the Great Resignation and Great Awakening. As a result, she guides all of us—no matter our title or role—on how to live more meaningful lives through the work we do every day.

Jenn has been featured in Inc., Forbes, Fortune, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Thrive Global, MSN, Fox Business, CNBC Make It, Success Magazine, etc. and has been coined by many industry experts, thought leaders, and members of the media, as the “happiness expert.�

Akanksha is a final year Master of Computer Applications student from India. She is currently SWE Intern at JP Morgan Chase & Co. She enjoys working with Flutter and loves collaborating with other developers and designers.

In addition to app development, she enjoys attending hackathons, contributing to open-source, and learning about product management. She is also passionate about community building and mentoring students, and has led student communities at her university and mentored students at hackathons like HackHarvard, Hack4Inclusion, HackTheNorth, DubHacks, CalHacks, etc.

When Akanksha is not coding she can be found listening to 60s-70s Hindi songs while painting something or brushing up on her Japanese Vocabulary.

Pete K. Wong, is a health and wellness educator and podcast host. A two time suicide survivor, he shares through his personal experiences and passion the practice of self care through training the mind and body using the martial way. Utilizing the techniques and principles found in boxing, martial arts, yoga, and meditation, Pete has taken his years of training in these various disciplines and is now giving back to the communities. You can also listen in on topics about mental health and wellness with Pete and his guests on The Pete Wong Podcast.

Randy Yang is a senior executive in the Learning & Development sector. Applying learning theories, technology, and motivation, he has successfully supported adults as well as adolescents. He has also helped people of all backgrounds overcome their biases, so they would be more open to learn and experience new knowledge as well as culture. As a husband and father, he intends to use his skills and experiences to help shape a better future for the next generation.

I'm a 24-year old Psychology graduate, trainee therapist, rap artist and assertiveness trainer with the passion to bring mental health awareness to everyone. I'm a genderfluid pansexual individual based in Hyderabad, India. I train people of all ages to become better communicators through evidence-based assertiveness techniques so they may live more authentically. I also make hip hop/rap music to share my journey as I navigate through life. I'm also the CEO of a mental health based startup that organizes events, workshops and support groups to connect mental health professionals and youth, to ultimately destigmatize mental health where I live. I frequently address people of different demographics through guest appearances on podcasts, events and workshops to discuss healthy boundary setting in different contexts. I also regularly conduct online live sessions to discuss sex education, which is missing in our education system. I take special interest in understanding how sociocultural contexts play a role in an individual’s personality and growth. I have 5+ years of experience in coaching people with different mental health concerns, 1-on-1 and in groups. I’m also incredibly passionate about discussing gender and sexuality spectrums and how different people express them in different ways.

Sheena Yap Chan is a keynote speaker, coach, podcaster, consultant, and author on building self-confidence. She currently inspires women through her award-winning podcast called The Tao of Self Confidence where she interviews Asian women about their inner journey to self-confidence. Her mission is to help Asian Women boost their confidence to live their authentic selves, help Asian Women create a voice in the world, and create a stronger representation for Asian women. Sheena has been featured on MindValley, slice.ca, Marketing in Asia, Manila Times and more. She is also the TOP 100 Filipinos to follow on LinkedIn for inspiration and learning in 2020. She is also the co-author of the International bestselling book Asian Women Who Boss Up.

Sweta Chawla PharmD, MS is a Former Professor of Pharmacy and Clinical and Residency Director turned Speaker, Author, and Life & Leadership Coach. Since 2013 she has guided seasoned professionals, budding creatives & entrepreneurs to recognize what holds them back and helps illuminate how to bridge from reluctant or dutiful leader to a natural leader by supporting them to reveal their authentic brilliance. Dr. Sweta is the author of the book I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For…Now What? and contributor to the award-winning Anthology She’s Got This: Essays on Standing Strong and Moving On. She has published articles and essays in several journals, magazines and has spoken on many stages and panels, including the White House

Tags: interactive, job creation

Mari Luangrath-Ullrick is a divorce and family mediator based in the United States. She's a second generation Japanese-American woman who's a four-time entrepreneur, wife, and mom to three. As a divorce and family communications expert, Mari's most recent business venture, TidySplit, was founded out of frustration with the family law system and its inherent bias towards families of color. She takes stressful divorce / co-parenting / blended family conflicts, tidies ‘em up, and gets rid of them for good. Mari is also a professional speaker, amateur designer, avid reader, runner, and volunteer advocate for divorced kids in local communities across the United States.

From leading campaigns for New York Times Bestsellers, securing partnerships with brands like the San Francisco Public Library and securing coverage in Oprah’s coveted Holiday Favorite Things list, Stephanie’s has the experience and expertise to empower authors to authentically market their books. Over the 10+ years working at traditional publishers, Stephanie noticed a trend. Authors who had spent years researching and writing their book, did little to nothing to market their book. Stephanie knew she had to change this and built her business around empowering authors to feel confident in sharing their story and expertise. On the weekends you can find Stephanie tending to her cut-flower garden, taste testing hard kombuchas or getting comfy on the sofa with a book.

Adunola Adeshola is a millennial career strategist and founder of employeeREDEFINED.com. She helps high-achieving corporate professionals secure new jobs they love at companies they love. She’s also a Forbes contributor where her career column on how to land a new job has been read more than two million times and her expertise has been featured in The New York Times, Fast Company, Bloomberg and other publications. Through her signature coaching program, she’s been on a mission to help high-achievers recognize, own and show their value so that they can stop playing small, boost their confidence, and land amazing jobs they love. Her clients in dozens of industries have landed job offers at top companies such as Google, ViacomCBS, Vogue, Tiffany & Co., Sephora and other companies they love. She also uses her insight from coaching hundreds of top-performing employees to consult companies on how to empower top talent to thrive at work.

Author Richard Lui is a veteran and award-winning journalist with more than 30 years in television, film, technology, and business. Currently, at MSNBC and previously with CNN Worldwide, he is the first Asian American man to anchor a daily national cable news program, and a team Emmy and Peabody winner. He is the author of the bestselling and award-winning book "Enough About Me: The Unexpected Power of Selflessness" from HarperCollins/Zondervan. In addition, Richard’s 15-year business career involves a fintech patent and launching six tech brands over three business cycles. Richard has lived, worked, and volunteered on every continent. Learn more at