Dr Charles Willie
Nominated for Innovation, science and technology award
Dr Charles Willie is the Founder and CEO of Diverse Cymru - a Wales wide equality organisation dedicated to eliminating discrimination and inequality. A lifelong Equalities champion, in 2011 Dr Willie was CEO of Cardiff and Vale Coalition of Disabled People and also a board member of Awetu Black Mental Health Group. Under his leadership the 2 organisations merged to create Diverse Cymru.
Dr Willie has designed and developed Diverse Cymru’s award winning BAME Cultural Competence Certification Scheme - believed to be the first of its kind in Europe. The scheme uses a workplace development tool to help organisations implement good workplace practice, ensuring services are fair and equitable for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people in Wales. Since it started in 2018, the scheme has been adopted by over 100 organisations in the public, private and third sectors across Wales and the UK. It has been independently validated by the United Kingdom Investor in Equality and Diversity (UKIED) and endorsed by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.