IATA pronounces 2024 Variety & Inclusion Awards winners, highlighting leaders and tasks advancing gender steadiness in aviation.
DUBAI – The Global Air Delivery Affiliation (IATA) introduced the winners of the 2024 version of IATA Variety & Inclusion Awards:
- Inspirational Position Fashion: Kendra Kincade, CEO and Founder, Raise Aviation
- Prime Flyer: Mafunase Ngosa Malenga, Founder and Managing Director, Southern Africa Institute of Aviation Science and Era
- Variety & Inclusion Staff: British Airlines
The judging panel additionally awarded a unique commendation within the Prime Flyer class to Hana Al Awahdi, Senior Vice President, Human Assets Trade Spouse for dnata.
“The winners are true beacons of the alternate that is occurring as variety and inclusion entrenches itself as a strategic precedence for the aviation business. Their contributions to righting the gender steadiness in aviation are in point of fact inspirational and deserving of as of late’s reputation,” mentioned Yvonne Manzi Makolo, CEO of RwandAir and Chair of the IATA Board of Governors (2023-2024), who offered the awards.
“The standard of nominations will get extra compelling once a year as the result of aviation’s center of attention on variety and inclusion develop into much more concrete. Actual and vital alternate has been suffering from all of the winners and our particular commendation. By way of drawing consideration to their spectacular achievements, we are hoping to magnify that vary even additional,” mentioned Karen Walker, Editor-in-Leader, Air Delivery International and Chair of the judging panel.
“I congratulate the winners and all who had been nominated. Making sure that aviation is a smart occupation selection for all genders is significant as it is helping our companies for my part. It makes the business more potent, and it’s what our shoppers be expecting. All the ones nominated, and specifically the winners, have moved aviation in the precise route,” mentioned Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director Common.
The IATA Variety & Inclusion Awards are subsidized through Qatar Airlines. Because of their generosity, every winner receives a prize of $25,000, payable to themselves or their nominated charities. Qatar Airlines Staff Leader Govt Officer, Engr. Badr Mohammed Al-Meer, mentioned: “Qatar Airlines is proud to as soon as once more sponsor the IATA Variety & Inclusion Awards, shining the sunshine at the improbable leaders that result in certain alternate within the aviation business. We congratulate this yr’s winners on their outstanding achievements.”
The 2024 IATA Variety & Inclusion Awards had been offered throughout the International Air Delivery Summit (WATS), which adopted the eightieth IATA Annual Common Assembly in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Winner Profiles
Inspirational Position Fashion: Kendra Kincade, CEO and Founder, Raise Basis: Kincade is the Founder and CEO of Raise Aviation. Underneath Kincade’s management, Raise Basis advanced plenty of methods to lend a hand advance gender steadiness within the business together with the Canadian Go-Nation Excursion, a mentorship program, and the Raise Aviation Finding out Middle – a kindergarten to occupation option to aviation consciousness and coaching with many methods together with a weeklong immersive ‘Aviation Occupation Exploration’ enjoy for adolescence elderly 11-18, in addition to a unfastened nine-week program for girls to achieve crucial talents and data wanted to go into aviation careers. Kincade could also be the Director of the documentary “Most effective Up” which encourages the following technology of aviation execs and celebrates the achievements of ladies in aviation.
Prime Flyer: Mafunase Ngosa Malenga, Founder and Managing Director, Southern Africa Institute of Aviation Science and Era: Malenga is the founding father of the Southern Africa Institute of Aviation Science and Era which now has over 800 graduates, 80% of whom are ladies. This outstanding fulfillment displays her unwavering dedication to offering alternatives for girls in aviation. Many of those graduates are actually hired in quite a lot of roles inside airways, airports, shipment firms, and shuttle companies, contributing to the expansion and variety of the business around the continent. Malenga’s affect extends past the study room. She actively encourages younger ladies to pursue their desires in aviation. By way of breaking down gender boundaries and difficult stereotypes, Malenga is paving the way in which for a extra numerous and inclusive aviation sector in Africa.
Variety & Inclusion Staff: British Airlines: The British Airlines group introduced “Inclusion begins with I” in September 2023, as a brand new Inclusion and Variety (I&D) marketing campaign, specializing in the facility of people to pressure inclusion thru their day by day movements and behaviors. The marketing campaign has already confirmed a hit and is considered one of plenty of tasks being labored directly to strengthen the airline’s means of using certain motion, to be sure that it’s each an inclusive and numerous group, reflective of the arena we are living in.Phase o f the airline’s paintings is keen on expanding ethnic and gender illustration around the trade. British Airlines reached its 2025 goal of getting 40% feminine illustration in management roles a yr early and continues to make strides in opposition to its 2030 objectives. The airline has additionally finished inclusive management coaching for all its administrators, and its new WINGS Gender Equality community is a sturdy recommend for gender steadiness – operating carefully with directorates throughout British Airlines to put into effect motion plans to foster an inclusive and collaborative tradition.
Particular Commendation for Prime Flyer: Hana Al Awahdi, Senior Vice President, Human Assets Trade Spouse, dnata
dnata used to be the primary floor provider supplier to enroll to IATA’s 25by2025 initiative and beneath Al Awahdi’s management it accomplished 29% illustration of ladies in management roles in dnata’s UAE operations in 2023. This displays Al Awahdi’s center of attention on expanding the choice of ladies in management roles along with the recruitment of other people with disabilities.
Underneath Al Awahdi’s management dnata rolled out ‘breaking the unfairness’ coaching to over 400 senior dnata managers within the UAE, along side mentorship methods, occupation signposting, a world birthday celebration of office achievements beneath the banner #IAmRemarkable, and an cutting edge “maternity training” program the usage of certified inner coaches to strengthen moms earlier than, throughout and after maternity go away.
The Judging Panel
The judging panel used to be chaired through Karen Walker, Editor-in-Leader of Air Delivery International along side the winners of the 2023 version:
- Poppy Khoza, Director of Civil Aviation, South African Civil Aviation Authority;
- Camila Turrieta, Chair of the Variety, Fairness, Belonging, and Inclusion Committee, Air Line Pilots Affiliation (ALPA), and First Officer, JetBlue Airlines;
- Donna Codrington-Moloney, Head of Folks Members of the family, Folks Coverage, Variety, Fairness and Inclusion, Virgin Atlantic Airlines.
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