2025 Host
16th October 2025
Teesside University
MEET BEN PECHEY.
Our incredible host is back again this year!
Ben Pechey (they/them) is a non-binary writer, presenter, content creator, TEDx Speaker LGBTQIA advocate, diversity & inclusion consultant, and author. They have written and produced content for The Guardian, Cosmopolitan, Women's Health, Refinery 29 and Diva Magazine.
They have worked with major brands such as Manolo Blahnik, Condé Nast, Dr. Martens, The NSPCC, Virgin Atlantic and many more to educate and improve awareness of the LGBTQIA+ community. They are the author of The Book of Non-Binary Joy and Your Gender Book. Ben is a TEDx speaker, their talk focused on ensuring trans and non-binary people can find joy every day.
Ben was a huge part of the success of our first TEDxTeesside event, we’re so delighted to be welcoming them back to Teesside in October as our host. They will be expertly guiding us through the day of TEDx talks, performances, and inspirational conversations. You can watch Ben’s TEDx talk at TEDxLondonWomen here.
2025 Speakers
KIM MCDERMOTTROE (SHE/HER)
Kim McDermottroe is a multi-disciplinary artist - Creative Director, costume and puppet designer/maker, and illustrator.
Since 2003 she has worked under the business name Greener Lavelle.
A leading outdoor arts provider in the Tees Valley, developing skills, knowledge and experience within the community carnival sector and establishing strong relationships with the public, educational and heritage organisations, local authorities and businesses.
Kim works across most cultural sectors such as outdoor arts, theatre, dance, museums & heritage, TV/film. She also works with businesses who want creative solutions and has had four solo exhibitions of her illustrations.
In her talk, Kim will share how she’s navigated the last 22 years as a freelance artist, late autism diagnosis, how she hacks her own brain, and why she wears odd shoes.
TABBY KERWIN (she/her)
Tabby Kerwin is an award-winning performance coach, best-selling author, international speaker, and entrepreneur. Based in North Yorkshire and working with key clients across Teesside, she focuses on protecting mental health and enhancing performance. In 2008, she co-founded her portfolio business Mode for… with her late husband, and in 2023, she launched The PERFORM Experience Limited alongside her son.
A professionally trained musician who still performs, Tabby blends her performance background with lived experience, research, and education in positive psychology.
Tabby's journey as a best-selling writer and speaker is shaped by both professional expertise and profound personal loss. At just 16 years old, she lost her father to cancer, and later her brother died following years of poor mental health, and in November 2018, Tabby’s husband Simon, died from a ventilator associated pneumonia and treatment complications, having been diagnosed with a Germ Cell Tumour just four months before his death.
Since that moment, Tabby was determined to share her story, experiences and research as a coaching psychologist and widow globally to help others shift their mindset to flourish and grow regardless of what life throws at them.
'Widowhood made me happier'... It sounds a shocking and crazy admission doesn't it... and can you really name a TEDx talk that? Well yes, I can... because it's true.
MANSOOR SOOMRO (he/him)
Mansoor is the author of The Generalist Advantage, a best-selling leadership book focusing on the rise of generalists (as opposed to specialists) in the age of AI. He holds a PhD in Management and is a leading voice on the future of work internationally.
As a research-driven academic, he leads the Future of Work research agenda at Teesside University International Business School, UK. Prior to academia, he spent seven transformative years at Siemens, where he rose to the prestigious Siemens Managing Board- an experience that honed his global leadership perspective.
His insights and research have been featured by major media platforms including the BBC, CNN, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Fortune, Bloomberg, and Business Insider.
Today, Dr Soomro is a sought-after keynote speaker for Fortune 500 companies, known for his bold ideas, engaging delivery, and thought-provoking take on leadership in the AI age.
NED GATENBY (HE/THEY)
Ned has always had an affinity with the natural world, that led him into a career working to address the root causes of climate change. His degree revealed to him the extent of our impact on the world around us, setting him up for a Master’s exploring the role of culture in shaping our experience of and impact on the planet.
For 9 years, Ned delivered Carbon Literacy Training to audiences in public, private and third sector organisations as a means of making the climate crisis something tangible, which enables individuals to be the force for good he wants to be. Currently, he works with changemakers across those sectors to coordinate community response to the economic and environmental impacts of climate change, building resilient communities.
In the transition to a sustainable way of life, Ned is driven by the belief that communities hold all the wisdom they need and therefore should have the power to make their own opportunities. Inspired by queer leaders and activists who paved the way for him to have the rights he has today, Ned channels their energy into work and life.
TAMU THOMAS (She/hER)
Tamu Thomas is a burnout & productivity Specialist, women, work & culture Speaker, and author of Women Who Work Too Much (Hay House, 2024).
She helps high-performing women and values-driven organisations evolve their approach to leadership and productivity so people can thrive, not just survive. Her work focuses on creating workplace cultures that fuel ambition, wellbeing and retention without requiring constant personal sacrifice.
With a 16-year background in social work and specialist training in Polyvagal Theory, somatic coaching and behaviour change, Tamu brings a unique ability to translate complex human dynamics into clear, actionable leadership strategy. Her approach centres nervous system safety, belonging and joy as essential foundations for sustainable high performance.
Tamu’s insights have made her a trusted voice for brands like NatWest, Ralph Lauren, Stylist Magazine, Santander, Bupa, Howden Group, and Brunel University. She is known for delivering mindset-shifting content with warmth, precision and clarity making big ideas feel both accessible and transformative.
Her signature belief: People don’t burn out because they’re doing too much. They burn out because they’re doing too much without feeling seen, supported or valued.
HOLLY ELLIS (SHE/HER)
Holly Ellis is The Scouse Scientist, a Clinical Scientist specialising in Genetics who launched her social media presence in 2019 with a mission to break down stereotypes about careers in science and make STEM knowledge accessible to everyone.
Born and raised in Liverpool, Holly attended state school before studying Biological Sciences at Oxford University, followed by an MSc in Medical Genetics. She completed the highly competitive NHS Scientist Training Programme in Genomics and now works as Principal Clinical Scientist in Genetics and Education & Training Lead, training the next generation of NHS scientists.
Holly will be smashing stereotypes in her talk, focusing on genetics, busting myths about DNA testing, and revealing what’s next for genetics in the NHS. Her work during COVID-19 and dedication to public engagement earned her the “NHS Healthcare Science Rising Star” award in 2022.
Her core belief remains: “If you can see it, you can be it.”
JOEL BAILEY (HE/HIM)
Joel is co-founder of Arwen, an AI platform that protects over 750 million social media users worldwide from online abuse. Arwen came about after the death of TV presenter Caroline Flack and the surge of racist abuse following the 2020 Euros - moments that exposed just how broken the online conversation had become.
Joel's mission is simple: to make social media social again. His work helps brands and individuals take back control of their digital spaces: removing harm, amplifying kindness, and restoring trust.
Outside Arwen, Joel is also a proud "service nerd" who is obsessed with the meaning of service and the purpose of services. His career as a Service Design and innovator has alway been about making service work better for people. Before Arwen he worked in public services, banking, education, broadcasting and technology, always helping organisations design things that serve humans - that help humans progress in life.
NATALIE EVANS (SHE/HER) & NAOMI EVANS (SHE/THEY)
Naomi and Natalie Evans are a dynamic duo who are making a powerful impact on the fight against racism. They are speakers, authors, educators, and award-winning influencers for their Instagram platform Everyday Racism, which serves as the largest anti-racism platform in the UK.
Naomi and Natalie are sisters and natural communicators who draw upon their lived experience to drive the work they do. At the heart of their work is a commitment to empowering people to make a difference in the world. Naomi and Natalie believe that education and action are the fundamental routes to stopping social injustice.
Naomi and Natalie Evans are also the authors of the non-fiction book ‘The Mixed-Race Experience’, published by Penguin Books (2022), and ‘Everyday Action, Everyday Change’, a children’s book published by Hachette (2023). They have also contributed essays to two YA books entitled ‘Teenage Armageddon’ and ‘Allies’, the latter of which was selected as the World Book Day title for 2023.