Join us at The Creator Summit: Empowering Equity and Social Change Through Food & Wellness Media, hosted by the Food and Wellness Equity Collective and New Hope Network. This transformative event is tailored to digital content creators and influencers eager to make a positive impact in the food and wellness industry.
At the Creator Summit, you can expect to:
- Learn from industry experts on leveraging your platform to promote equity and drive social change.
- Access exclusive resources and strategies to propel the growth of your business.
- Network with fellow content creators and influential leaders in the field.
- Engage with leading brands in the natural product industry, exploring potential partnerships and collaborations.
Don't miss this invaluable opportunity to connect, learn, and elevate your business in a supportive and empowering environment. Join us at The Creator Summit and take a step towards shaping a more equitable and socially conscious food and wellness media landscape.
This intimate event is invitation only and capped at 100 participants. If you are interested in attending the Creator Summit, please submit an application for review: https://summit.foodwellnessequity.com/
Agenda
12:00pm Welcome
- Yoli Ouiya, Yoli's Green Living | Food + Wellness Equity Collective
- Sonja Overhiser, A Couple Cooks | Food + Wellness Equity Collective
- Eden Westbrook, Sweet Tea & Thyme
- Tonya Hopkins, The Food Griot
- Kanchan Koya, SpiceSpiceBaby
- Whitney Lauritsen, WhitneyLauritsen.com
- Ernest Owens, Ernest Media Empire
1:25pm Food & Wellness Trends
- Jessica Rubino, New Hope Network
- Amber Bracegirdle, Mediavine
- Noah Mallin, IMGN Media
- Sonja Overhiser, A Couple Cooks | Food + Wellness Equity Collective
- Dawn Wages, Microsoft
2:15pm Expanding Your Revenue Streams: Diversifying Income and Navigating Pay Equity as a Content Creator
- LaKita Anderson, Simply LaKita
- Eden Westbrook, Sweet Tea & Thyme
- Clara Nosek, Clara Nosek Nutrition
- Nzingah Oniwosan, Yes Baby I Like It Raw
- Emilia Ortiz, Energetic Healer & Mental Health Advocate
- Mary Pryor, Urban Socialista
- Jenné Claiborne, Sweet Potato Soul
- Jon Kung, Kung Food Media
- Yoli Ouiya, Yoli's Green Living | Food + Wellness Equity Collective
Date & Time
Wednesday September 20th, 2023 11:30am EDT
End Date & Time
Wednesday September 20th, 2023 4:00pm EDT
Venue
Level 200, Room 201A
Address
Level 200, Room 201A
Philadelphia, PA
United States
Philadelphia, PA
United States
| SPEAKERS |
 Yoli OuiyaCo-Founder, Food Wellness Equity Collective Yoli Ouiya is a driving force in the Global Sustainability and Wellness movement. Yoli’s interest in sustainability and wellness began with her desire to improve her personal health and culminated in becoming certified in Plant-Based Nutrition through Cornell T. Colin Campbell Institute. She started to develop her brand as a digital creative and chef launching YolisGreenLiving.com an eco-lifestyle portal dedicated to providing digitally engaged consumers with insights into green and wellness data. Yoli was nationally recognized as the “Queen of Green” by Black Enterprise Magazine as a go-to social media presence for sustainability insights. In 2017, Yoli was selected for Yale’s inaugural Sustainability Leadership Summit. Yoli was commissioned as a national spokesperson and consultant for The Toyota Green Initiative from 2014-2019. As an independent brand, Yoli builds audiences as a media personality, consultant, and spokesperson. She covers thought leadership on subjects ranging from personal wellness to environmental sustainability, and its’ intersection with technology. She has collaborated with leading retailers, brands, and organizations. A passionate entrepreneur and visionary, Yoli’s next ventures are co-founder of the Food Wellness Equity Collective, Next in Wellness and African Hippie. The Food Wellness Equity Collective, which launched July 2020 with 20 founded members, is diverse group of content creators and entrepreneurs committed to being change agents for equity, diversity and anti-racism in the food and wellness industry. Next in Wellness is a multi-platform marketing and media consultancy that seeks to promote wellness in underrepresented communities. African Hippie is an eco lifestyle brand that empowers previously unserved demographics with wellness focused resources and products |
 Sonja OverhiserCo-Founder, Food Wellness Equity Collective Sonja’s career can be summed up as a lively marriage of her two favorite things: food and people. She and her husband Alex run the award-winning blog A Couple Cooks, a top food website that reaches millions of people per month. She’s a two-time cookbook author of books Pretty Simple Cooking and A Couple Cooks: Happily Ever After (Fall 2024), and co-author of The Washington Post’s Voraciously: Plant-Powered series. With several entrepreneurial and activism-oriented projects under her belt, Sonja is on a mission to share the joy and connecting power of food, one recipe at a time. She works from her test kitchen in Indianapolis, where children Larson and Britta sneak bites. |
| Eden Westbrook Owner, Sweet Tea Thyme Introducing Eden Westbrook, an inspiring trailblazer in the culinary world and the creative mind behind the esteemed blog Sweet Tea Thyme. With an unwavering dedication to showcasing different cultures and traditions through cooking, Eden has risen to prominence as a well-respected figure in the world of blogging. Through her unique blend of Southern comfort and worldly flavors, she captivates her audience with her delicious recipes. Eden currently resides in the peaceful and diverse countryside of Northern Virginia, where she finds inspiration from the natural beauty and rustic charm of her surroundings. Infusing her culinary creations with a touch of magic, she crafts dishes that are not only heart-warming but also inventive and contemporary, showcasing her dedication to preserving culinary heritage while embracing the present. With her extensive knowledge and expertise, she empowers and uplifts other aspiring food bloggers. As a highly accomplished mentor, she imparts the art of triumphing in the world of food blogging, sharing invaluable insights and strategies for cultivating a robust online presence, multiple revenue streams, and fostering a devoted community. |
 Tonya HopkinsFounder, The Food Griot Tonya Hopkins, a.k.a “The Food Griot", is a culinary historian, wine curator, cocktail consultant ( spirits strategist) and immersive storyteller who descends from a long line of professional cooks and ‘concoctionists’ traced to ancestral enslaved Africans brought to the North American colonies in our nation’s earliest days. Akin to Black culinary professionals throughout all the Americas, her predecessors continued traditions of unmatched culinary expertise across the generations in enterprising ways. Tonya's maternal great-grandmother, was a speakeasy ‘entrepreneur’ who also worked as a chef and parlayed her mixology and culinary training (connected to historic Maryland and Virginia planation cookery) to corporate and professional settings. She skillfully passed her prowess down directly to Tonya’s grandmother, mother and to a young Tonya as well. Ms. Hopkins herself has worked in various aspects of the food, beverage, wine & spirits industries for two decades. In 2019 she founded The Food Griot LLC as a platform to create and facilitate culinary content and nonfiction storytelling inclusive of beverage (e.g. wine, spirits, beer, ciders) tastings food pairings plus culturally-relevant, historically-informed drink design. Her clientele includes the James Beard Foundation in support of visiting chefs in need of wine and beer recommendations, pairings or custom-made cocktails for their seminal dinners there. |
| Ernest Owens CEO, Ernest Media Empire Ernest Owens is an award-winning journalist and CEO of Ernest Media Empire, LLC. He is the the Editor of Eater Philly, Political Writer at Large for Philadelphia Magazine, President of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists, and Regional Vice President of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (Mid-Atlantic Chapter). He is the executive producer and host of the hit podcast “Ernestly Speaking!” and host of Philadelphia City Council Live on WURD Radio. He’s the author of the book “The Case for Cancel Culture” that’s published by St. Martin’s Press, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers. As an openly Black gay journalist, he has made headlines for speaking frankly about intersectional issues in society regarding race, LGBTQIA, and pop culture. In 2018, he launched his growing media company that specializes in multimedia production, consulting, and communications. |
| Whitney Lauritsen Certified Well-Being Coach, WhitneyLauritsen.com Whitney Lauritsen, a Los Angeles-based podcast producer, digital strategist, and certified well-being coach, has been a content creator since 2008, currently known for hosting This Might Get Uncomfortable and her short-form product videos on her Amazon shop page. With a foundation in film production and psychology from Emerson College, Whitney’s work has evolved into a dedicated pursuit of mindful living, mental health, and social justice. Regularly attending Expo East since 2012, she actively champions diversity, equity, and inclusion in the wellness space, addressing the challenges of privilege and lack of true representation. As a member of the Food Justice & Policy Coalition since May 2022, Whitney embodies her commitment to effecting change. Outside of her professional endeavors, Whitney relishes in perfecting her coffee brewing techniques and exploring the country on road trips with her beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Evie. One day, she hopes to climb Mount Everest. |
| Kanchan Koya Founder, SpiceSpiceBaby Kanchan Koya combines her PhD in Biomedical Sciences from Harvard University and her training from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition to illuminate the power of spices and food as medicine for vitality and joyful health. Kanchan is the founder and author of Spice Spice Baby, a cookbook and platform that educates the world about the science-backed health benefits of ancient spices and inspires their use by home cooks in simple, delicious ways. Kanchan is also a health coach, podcast host and a creator with Buzzfeed Tasty, the largest food network online. When Kanchan isn’t helping people live healthy, long lives filled with delicious food, she is eating said food, running, practicing yoga or walking around her sweet and soulful Brooklyn neighborhood where she lives with her husband and two kids. |
| Jessica Rubino VP of Content, New Hope Network Meaningful content can help spark the positive changes we want to see in the world. As a natural products industry expert and content strategist, Jessica is passionate about exploring issues related to health, sustainability, equity and innovation for good. At New Hope Network, she works across brands to support healthy business through high-quality content, education, data/insights and events. The goal: create an informed marketplace that protects the health of people and planet. |
| Amber Bracegirdle Co-Founder and Chief Brand & Social Impact Officer, Mediavine As a Co-Founder and Chief Brand & Social Impact Officer at Mediavine, Amber Bracegirdle helps content creators reach business sustainability and higher purpose, with a focus on helping publishers build not just lasting businesses but impactful ones. Amber founded the Social Impact arm of Mediavine and, along with her team, facilitates programs within its three pillars of community outreach, sustainability and creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive ad tech landscape. She strives to deepen the company’s connection to philanthropic causes and make it easier for Mediavine's collective of content creators to give back to the causes they care about. |
| Dawn Wages Python Community Advocate, Microsoft Dawn (she/her) is the Treasurer for the PSF and Open Source community organizer, Python Community Advocate at Microsoft and software engineer. She volunteers for the Ethical Source community and speaks around the world about inclusive and ethical tech. |
 Noah MallinChief Strategy Officer, IMGN Noah Mallin is the Chief Strategy Officer for IMGN, a next-gen media company specializing in Gen-Z culture with brands like Daquan, So Satisfying, TryHard and bluelist.tv boasting 80m plus followers on platforms including TikTok, Snapchat, Twitch, YouTube, Roblox, and Instagram. IMGN was acquired by Warner Music in 2021. IMGN acts as a digital strategy and creative consultancy working with brands like Levi’s, Panasonic, Jansport, Campbell’s and Amazon touching on everything from influencers, experiential, social platform management and long-form storytelling. Mallin’s career has included senior leadership roles at WPP’s Wavemaker, Digitas, Reprise Media and Business Wire. |
| LaKita Anderson Owner, Simply LaKita LaKita Anderson is a foodie, family/self-taught baker, and the chief content creator of Simply LaKita (simplylakita.com), a food blog that shares simple weekly recipes with a modern twist on comfort food. She began blogging as a way to share her family recipes and love of food photography. What began as a creative hobby, developed into a small business and she was able to grow her creative passion into a full-time career. |
| Nzingah Oniwosan Holistic Health Practitioner, Yes Baby I Like It Raw Nzingah is a Haitian-American holistic health consultant, plant-based chef, 500 hr celebrity yoga teacher, award-winning blogger, and motivational speaker who helps people as an inspirational teacher. She started Yes Baby I Like It Raw to teach and inspire people to embark on a holistic lifestyle. This project is close to her heart because of her own journey. Through a radical lifestyle change, she was able to heal herself from the symptoms brought on by having a benign brain tumor, an autoimmune disorder called scleroderma, and polycystic ovary syndrome. She has been featured in Essence Magazine, Mantra Magazine, NBC, CBS, NPR, Heart Soul Magazine, Veg News, Huffington Post, and Art & Culture Magazine. Her most recent project is 365zing a wellness self-care app created to help black women get on track with their health goals so they become the best-balanced version of themselves. |
| Mary Pryor Founder, Urban Socialista Mary is a powerhouse who has made a name for herself as a trendsetter, innovator, and strategic problem solver. Mary's diverse background in automotive design, electrical engineering, music, education, digital arts, and marketing has allowed her to bring a unique perspective to her work. She is a multifaceted entrepreneur in digital and social marketing integration via her consulting firms WeFancy and UrbanSocialista specializing in catering to culturally rich and niche audiences, and the wellness industry as co-founder of Cannaclusive and founder of Sheba Baby. |
| Clara Nosek Registered Dietician, Clara Nosek Nutrition Clara Nosek is an outpatient registered dietitian by day and content creator by night. Her love languages are memes and infographics, and she loves to listen to audiobooks at 1.2x speed. Her content is like a buffet for your brain, and she has dubbed herself as the OG dietitian bestie, serving up everything from social justice food for thought to daily nutrition nuggets of wisdom. |
| Emilia Ortiz Energetic Healer & Mental Health Advocate Emilia Ortiz is an energetic healer and mental health advocate from Brooklyn, New York. Who focuses on dispelling misconceptions in BIPOC communities regarding mental health, and empowering others to receive the support they need. |
| Jon Kung Chef, Content Creator & Podcast Host, Kung Food Media Jon Kung is the popular Chinese American chef, content creator and podcast host, who has amassed an online following of more than 2 million people for his unique style of third culture cooking, blending cultural traditions, flavors and ingredients that are meaningful and personal to him. In addition to developing recipes, Jon hosts the podcast 1 For The Table with his close friend, legendary makeup mogul and extraordinary drag queen Kim Chi. Kung Food: Chinese American Recipes from a Third Culture Kitchen is Jon’s debut cookbook. |
| Jenné Claiborne Chef & Cookbook Author, Sweet Potato Soul Jenné Claiborne, vegan chef, content creator, and author of the Sweet Potato Soul cookbook, is known for creating colorful, unique, and easy-to-make southern inspired vegan recipes. She became vegan for ethical and animal welfare reasons, and was pleasantly surprised by the way in which it improved her health and happiness. Jenné has been featured on several shows and in various other media outlets, including The Today Show, the New York Times, Washington Post, and more. You can find her recipes on SweetPotatoSoul.com and in her cookbook, Sweet Potato Soul. |
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