Executive Director Emily WIlliams Executive Director Emily Williams (she/her/hers) has worked with organizations and community stakeholders to further equity and inclusion in more than 20 countries, including a global treaty adopted by the United Nations. For more than a decade, Emily has worked professionally on local and global levels to create an equitable world by centering those who are most-marginalized. As Senior Program Officer at the Solidarity Center, Emily collaborated with global labor organizations to promote inclusive development, advocate for human rights, and gender equality. In 2014, she co-founded the Social Justice Initiative at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she built the center from the ground up. She also formed active networks and developed programs combining social justice practice with intellectual inquiry. This programming highlighted the interconnections of race, gender, class, and other systems as a critical foundation for work and action which advances social justice. She holds a Masters of Art in Women’s and Gender Studies from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Beloit College. She has worked in diverse settings to promote mental health and social well-being. As a volunteer with Girl Talk, Emily designed empowering programs with a trauma-informed approach for girls at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. She also worked as a Case Manager for adults with mental illness and addiction in Milwaukee, WI. This early-career experience proved foundational to Emily’s dedication to creating a more socially-just world that is better for everyone. In her free time, Emily enjoys checking out cool coffee shops, dancing to Chicago House Music and watching international films!