Digital Leadership Institute

2020 has been an extraordinary year for everyone, and the DLI team is no exception. The year started off routinely enough, but then activity around the world halted in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. When we started  to regain our bearings, the DLI Executive Team decided to tackle the present challenge in the same way in which we believe every challenge facing society should be tackled: By giving girls and women the community, skills, support and mission to address the challenge themselves.

From this vision, the world’s first global #WomenVsCOVID19 event was born! On 24-26 April, DLI and its partners organized “Move It Forward for Women versus COVID19” as part of the #EUvsVirus hackathon, and in celebration of Girls in ICT Day 2020. As we learned from this experience, the future of our species, fellow creatures and planet is safe in the hands of our girls and women.  In the words of European Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, our shared “solidarity, creativity and determination” will permit us to emerge together–stronger and better –from the current crisis. In the meantime, our profound love and sincerest wishes for continued health, hope and safety are with you, our dear DLI community!

The DLI Board are actively involved in outreach activities with partners and stakeholders around the world that promote ESTEAM* leadership by girls and women. Find out more about our outreach activities of early 2020 below, and please visit our calendar for events organised by DLI, many of which are still going forward, if with a slight delay, online.

*STEM powered by Entrepreneurship and Arts

22 January 2020 – Uber “Diversity & Inclusion in a Changing World of Work” Luncheon Roundtable (Brussels): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined a 22 January luncheon roundtable in Brussels on “Diversity & Inclusion in a Changing World of Work,” hosted by Mr. Tony West, Chief Legal Officer, of Uber.

22 January 2020 – ESBA “New Brand. New Direction” Reception (Brussels): On 22 January in Brussels, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director joined a reception for organisations and individuals interested in “helping entrepreneurs and promoting a culture of enterprise across Europe,” hosted by the European Small Business Alliance.

23 January 2020 – Women Political Leaders “Rejkjavik Index for Leadership” Breakfast (Davos): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to a 23 January breakfast on the “Rejkjavik Index for Leadership,” which revealed that everyday beliefs and behaviours influence participation of women in boardrooms and differences in the wages between men and women. The event was hosted by Women Political Leaders in Davos, Switzerland.

27-28 January – W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 Launch (Riyadh): In the capacity of EU Delegation member, DLI Founding Director, Che Miller Van Dÿck  was invited to the 27-28 January inception and launch of the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 meetings, taking place in Riyadh as part of the G20 Saudi Arabia 2020 process.

4 February – EIB Annual Board of Directors Seminar with Civil Society 2020 (Luxembourg): On 4 February, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director, was invited to the European Investment Bank annual Board of Directors seminar with civil society 2020 in Luxembourg. The two themes for the meeting this year were “The European Green Deal and the EU Climate Bank: addressing the critical decade ahead” and “Supporting development through quality employment.”

5 February – Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition Governing Board Meeting (Brussels): On 5 February, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  joined the semi-annual meeting of the Governing Board of the European Commission’s Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition, of which Van Dÿck has been a member since 2017.

11 February – Women in Science Day 2020 (Ghent, Belgium): Katja Legisa, DLI Entrepreneurship Director,  joined a panel on Climbing the Gender-Balance Ladder in STEM as part of the Women in Science Day 2020 celebrations organised by Be4Diversity and the Faculty of Bio-Science Engineering at Ghent University. DLI also hosted a stand showcasing #womeninSTEM work by DLI and the R&I PEERs Project.

17-18 February – Global Women’s Forum Dubai, We-Fi MENA Summit (Dubai, UAE): On 16-17 February in Dubai, UAE, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to the Global Women’s Forum Dubai and We-Fi (Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative) MENA Summit, an initiative of the World Bank for advancing initiatives and policies that tackle finance and market obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs.

24-27 February – GSMA Mobile World Congress Women4Tech Summit (Barcelona): On 24-27 February, Che Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  was invited to attend the Ministerial Programme and speak at the Connected Women and Women4Tech events taking place as part of the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.  These events were subsequently cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

6 March – EuroNEXT Bell-ringing & Women in Finance Roundtable (Brussels): In celebration of International Women’s Day 2020, on 6 March in Brussels, the DLI Executive Team had planned to joined a Bell-ringing Ceremony at EuroNEXT stock exchange as guests of Bank of New York Mellon and the Association of Women in Finance. The ceremony was to be followed by a round table discussion on Women in Finance, but the entire event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

13-14 March – 64th Commission on the Status of Women – Beijing+25 (New York, New York): Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  planned to join the 13 March W20 engagement group side-event of the 64th Commission on the Status of Women – Beijing+25 and 14 March round-table hosted by the W20 Saudi Arabia 2020 Secretariat to the G20 2020 meetings. The CSW meetings were scaled down significantly and the G20 meeting took place online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

23 March – SHERPA Stakeholder Board Meeting (Brussels): On 23 March in Brussels, Che Miller Van Dÿck, DLI Founding Director,  had planned to join the stakeholder board meeting of the SHERPA, an EU project exploring ethics in AI and big data, for which she is an advisor. The event took place online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

23 April – Brussels Region Digital Strategy Launch (Brussels): On 23 April, the DLI Executive Team  joined the launch of the new Digital Strategy of the Brussels Region at the Google Atelier in Brussels.

Be sure to visit our Calendar and Outreach Activities page to keep up with DLI events and activities! You can also and sign up for the DLI Newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!