Fearless Identities by Paris and Avril Lux is an outlet for positive news, motivation, and a safe-space for the unheard to be heard.

After being excluded and isolated from groups at school, two teen sisters decided to react by developing a website to end social exclusion. Paris and Avril Lux said they wanted to inspire others to speak up about their experiences so they created Fearless Identities.

Fearless Identities

The website, coded completely by the 14-year-olds, provides motivation, positive news and acts as a safe space for identities like them.

Mission

Paris and Avril says their mission is to give a voice to the unheard. Being ignored and excluded has made them feel like they’re not good enough and they want to let others know that they’re not alone.

“We hope that they can find the positive sides of life and hope that our website inspires others to speak to people who might seem like they’re being socially excluded.”, said the teens in an interview with WONK.

Check out Fearless Identities website

Black Women Tech Talk returned for its 5th year and its biggest one ever, seeking to empower and educate women tech entrepreneurs.

About Black Women Tech Talk

In an industry that is heavily dominated by men, Black Women Tech Talk aims to inspire while also balance the inequity in funding and to create opportunities for brilliant minds in tech.

Last week, Black Women Tech talk held its annual Roadmap to Billions 2021 conference , a two-day virtual  (August 12th and August 13th) convergence that had both tech and venture capital, to help attendees develop their ideas and bridge the gap around funding.

The Roadmap to Billions is a conference built from the perspective of Black women and is the only tech conference created by Black female founders for Black female founders and supporters of the community.

“Our mission is to inspire and support black women to build the next billion-dollar tech company. At the time, I don’t think we realized that we just created the first-ever conference for black women technology founders.” Esosa Ighodaro & Regina Gwynn, Co-founders of BWTT

said in an interview with Yahoo! Finance.

During the virtual sessions, keynote speakers candidly shared their “algorithms” to keys and tools for success.

In one session entitled What Is Your Why with reality star, entertainer, and serial entrepreneur Kandi Burruss, Burruss talked about finding your passion and putting your focus into one goal before moving onto the next.

“Find out what is fun to you and turn it into a business,” Burruss said.

This year, aside from its informational sessions, the conference gave attendees employment opportunities and a chance at $50,000 in a pitch competition.

Racial Basis in Coding Discussed At Black Women Tech Talk

While Black women are the most educated group in the United States, they are severely underrepresented in the tech industry.

When women do enter their way into the industry, they are often faced with intense oversight, scrutiny and discrimination.

Racial Basis in Coding, a thought-provoking session at the conference, aimed to bring those problems to light.

One panelist reminded attendees that “it’s not in your head” when dealing with these profound issues and to fight, speak out, and use your voice.

Path Forward

With chapters in Atlanta, New York, and San Francisco, the conference is now the largest convening of Black women tech entrepreneurs and technologists.

Black Women Tech Talk’s goal is continue to make an impact to Black women across the nation.

Grammy Award-winning entertainer, entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist Pharrell Williams has announced the launch of Black Ambition, a non-profit initiative that will provide the tools to success for Black and Latinx entrepreneurs who are launching design, tech, healthcare, and consumer products/services start-ups.

The organization’s mission

Currrently, Black and Latinx people make up 30% of the U.S. population, but only 20% of its entrepreneurs, according to its website.

Black Ambition’s goal is to level the playing field and foster the “ingenuity, determination, and resilience” of underrepresented entrepreneurs.

Prizes

As part of the launch, Williams announced two prize competitions – The Black Ambition HBCU Prize and The Black Ambition Prize – which culminate in one major national event.

“Recent events and tragedies have illustrated the always existent stark divisions in the American experience, and while entrepreneurship has long been a tenet of the American dream, marginalized people have faced long-standing barriers to success,” Williams said.

“With Black Ambition, the goal is to help strengthen the pipeline of talented entrepreneurs and close the opportunity and wealth gaps derived from limited access to capital and resources.”

Black Ambition’s long-term vision is for diversified entrepreneurship to be the new normal. The start-up non-profit initiative will be led by an all-star advisory team that includes Williams, with support from The Bridgespan Group, a global nonprofit organization that advises mission-driven organizations, nonprofits, philanthropists, and impact investors.

In partnership with historically Black colleges and universities (“HBCUs”), The Black Ambition HBCU Prize will offer prizes and mentorship for current and former students at HBCUs as they develop seed or early-stage ideas and launch companies in tech, design, healthcare, and consumer products and services. The grand prize winner will receive up to a $250,000 prize and at least nine additional teams will receive smaller prizes.

The Black Ambition Prize will find, support, and seed early-stage companies in tech, design, healthcare, and consumer products and services. Ventures must have at least one founder or co-founder that identifies as Black/African/African American and/or Hispanic/Latino/a/Latinx.

The grand prize winner will receive up to a $1 million prize and at least nine additional teams will receive smaller prizes. For both prizes, a member of the founding team is defined as having a senior role, such as VP or C-level role. The prize will launch with a nationwide call for applications from eligible founder teams. Independent application reviewers will score eligible applications on the strength of their idea, with the strongest applications advancing to the major national event.

In July 2021, the two competitions will culminate in teams competing for these prizes by presenting to luminary judges and investors. In addition to financial awards, the entrepreneurs will receive mentorship and feedback as well as access to peer networks and expert connections. All screened applicants will receive access to online resources, information about business resources, and high-level feedback. Semifinalists will also receive cohort-based mentorship. Finalists will receive personal mentorship, opportunities for media exposure, and introductions to venture capitalists, angel investors, and accelerator partners.

How to connect with Black Ambition

For more information on Black Ambition, competition eligibility, and how to apply, please visit www.blackambitionprize.com and follow us on Facebook (@blackambitionprize), Twitter (@blackambitionpz) and Instagram (@blackambitionprize).

Black Ambition is a fiscal sponsorship project of PolicyLink.