In the second Q&A episode of Season 2 of the Demystifying Diversity Podcast, hosts Daralyse Lyons and Zack James are joined by guest expert Dr. Caroline Heffernan, Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Department of Sport and Recreation Management at Temple University. She holds degrees from Byrn Mawr College and the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, and is a leading LGBTQ+ voice in the sports industry space.

Daralyse, Zack, and Caroline revisit some of the key points from episodes 3 and 4 of Season 2 of the Demystifying Diversity Podcast, then respond to listener questions about LGBTQ+ Inclusion, Exclusion, and Identity.

In this episode, you will learn about:

• The ever-evolving role that sports can and do play in creating both opportunities for inclusivity, as well as posing additional challenges to the LGBTQ+ community.

• The importance of not only government intervention in creating protections for LGBTQ+ folks, but that of people in local communities demanding change.

• How, at its best, intersectionality lends itself to people having complex, unique identities where factors such as sexual orientation, religion, etc. are not the dominant trait for how we view people.

• How allyship is a “team sport,” and requires multiple groups playing together to create change for an impacted community.

• How critically important “belonging” is to individuals and groups, and the far reaching costs of fighting for a sense of belonging when it is not present.

• How, through an intersectional lens, members of marginalized groups can use what privilege they have to stand as allies for other discriminated people.

Resources for this episode include:

Article: The difference between sex assigned at birth vs. gender identity

Article: Explanation of what gender identity actually means

Article: HBR's take on the importance of amplifying voices within teams

Follow Dr. Caroline Heffernan on Instagram: @drheffernan

To connect with Dr. Heffernan directly, email her at: cheffernan@temple.edu

Our guests in this episode include:

Caroline Heffernan has intimate knowledge of inclusion and exclusion for LGBTQ+ folks and her work specializes in allyship leadership, sports, gender, and LGBTQ identity.

She is an Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Department of Sport and Recreation Management at Temple University. Prior to coming to S.T.H.M, Dr. Heffernan successfully defended her doctoral dissertation on the application of allyship to gender in sports organization at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.

Her research work specializes in allyship in sport, gender in sport leadership and leadership. Dr. Heffernan's work has been published in sport management review and she earned her PhD in Kinesiology with an emphasis on Sport Management from the University of Minnesota and attained a Master of Science in Sport and Recreation Management from Temple University's School of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality Management.

She received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Bryn Mawr College.

Click here for a full transcript of this episode.