Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: What the Experiential Education Industry Needs to Know

Harry Alvarez is the founder of Offbeat Travel. He was born in New York City, and at six months old, relocated to his family's native home in the Dominican Republic. Ever since, he has lived in the cultural and physical space between the Dominican Republic and the United States, working in the sustainable travel industry in the Caribbean and Central America for more than a decade. He has led and managed travel programs across Costa Rica, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Cuba. Harry built and launched student travel operations in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Cuba, and oversaw operations in the United States.

Biama Charles is the Director of the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at a small, private liberal arts college in Otsego County, New York. She has worked as a Higher Education Administrator for more than a decade in North Carolina and New York. Her key areas of expertise are residential life and housing, conflict resolution, relationship building with students of color and providing innovative diversity programming. As a Caribbean American from Queens, New York, Biama has managed to successfully leverage her lived experiences with her passion of creating a sense of belonging for everyone she meets to create a professional career where she can intentionally advocate for and change policies to include the voices and needs of historically marginalized and underrepresented students.