Celebrating DEI - Because Happiness Happens When Everyone Belongs

August is Happiness Happens Month, and we’re celebrating it by uplifting the joy, creativity, and innovation that flourish in a truly inclusive data community.

The Microsoft Data Platform DEI Group is holding a special event dedicated to all things diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, neurodiversity, and belonging. We looked for speakers who wanted to share stories, strategies, lived experiences, and practical insights that help our community grow stronger — and happier — together.

| Time (EDT) | Title | Speaker |
| ---------- | ----- | ------- |
| 09:30am | What Ketchup/Curry Teach Us About Inclusion | Paresh Motiwala |
| 10:30am | Make Space for Joy: Neurodiversity, Data Teams and the Science of Happier Work | Noemi Castaldo |
| 10:45am | The survival kit. The journey of a Latina in data | Gilda Alvarez |
| 11:00am | Before the Prompt: Why AI Keeps Skipping Neurodivergent Thinkers (And the 10-Minute Fix) | Devika Toprani |
| 12:00pm | Talking about mental health - For you and for them | Traci Sewell |
| 01:00pm | Building the Team You Need, Not the Résumé You Want | Lee Coates |
| 02:00pm | Creating a Personal Brand for Career Success | Barkha Herman |
| 03:00pm | Identity, Belonging, and Reinvention: The Human Side of Happiness in Technical Communities | Amanda Lentz |
| 04:00pm | Diversity Equity & Inclusion in Data Architecture | Edward Pollack |