At this week's Round Table, Kenisha, Madeline, and Maya spoke with Deo Mwano, a nationally recognized speaker, program designer, and transformational cultural change maker whose work focuses on helping organizations maximize their positive impact. Deo is a bit of a Renaissance Man, who’s had a stratospheric rise since arriving to the U.S. as a refugee when he was just a boy: having graduated with a degree in International Relations and History with an MBA in Strategic Leadership, he’s worked for the federal government, non-profits, universities and tech startups and now runs his own human-centered design strategy consultancy. One of the 40 Under 40 in New Hampshire,. Deo is a gifted storyteller and performer whose family’s story was featured on Dancing With the Stars, which he and his brothers performed on live. On the side, he loves making hip hop and R & B music, dancing and teaching dance, watching documentaries and reading biographies (he gave us some great recommendations too!), and being a dad to three children. We talked about what it was like to migrate from the Congo to New Hampshire–a state many know only from the primaries–as a refugee after his father was assassinated; how he created a personal brand–and traveled across the United States sharing his story–while he was still in middle school; the healing power of storytelling in overcoming fears and traumas; and what he’s learned from cultivating so many interconnected, intimate relationships over the years and across the country. His formative experiences in storytelling and relationship building very much inform his approach to helping organizations maximize their positive impact in the consulting work he does today, creating spaces where people can tell their stories, face their biases, and be authentic. Deo reminded us not to compromise on what love and peace are for us, and how they should be predicated in self identity and grounded in the positive aspects of who we are in order to inform how we show up for all we do. Thank you for listening!
