In this episode of The Belonging Project Podcast , host Fiorenza Rossini is joined by Febronia Ruocco — Global Strategic Insights & Analytics Director and Executive Leadership Coach — for a heartfelt and thought-provoking conversation about what it really means for women to advocate for themselves, at work and beyond. Together, they explore Febronia’s professional journey across industries and cultures, and how self-advocacy has played a pivotal role in shaping her leadership path. They unpa...
Jul 01, 2025•23 min
How do you show up, speak up, and get heard? In this episode, I sit down with Grace Fogarty , pitch expert, to unpack the skill of pitching—and why it matters far beyond sales calls. Whether you're a freelancer, founder, or working in a large organisation, your ability to pitch isn’t just about performance. It’s about showing up. “Pitching isn’t just for freelancers. It’s how we share our ideas, advocate for ourselves, and belong in the room.” – Fiorenza We cover: * How to prep for pitches that ...
Jun 03, 2025•27 min
In this episode of The Belonging Project , I’m joined by Carol Paddison, a people leader with over 20 years of experience, and now co-founder of Fractional Human Resources . Carol shares her journey from in-house HR leadership to co-creating a consultancy that brings senior-level HR expertise to small and scaling businesses—just when they need it, and only as much as they need. We talk about the evolving landscape of HR, the importance of fostering belonging in organisations, and the unique chal...
Apr 08, 2025•29 min
In honor of International Women’s Day 2025, I’m thrilled to bring you this episode with my guest, Laura Howard, where we dive into the topic of women in leadership. How can women overcome barriers?How can women find belonging at the top?How can women thrive in male-denominated spaces?Laura Howard is a psychologist and executive coach. She shares… This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com...
Mar 10, 2025•33 min
In this episode of the Belonging Project Podcast, host Fiorenza and psychologist Leila Ainge delve into the concept of imposter phenomenon, reframing it from a syndrome to a more inclusive phenomenon. They explore how feelings of self-doubt intersect with belonging, the impact of gender and cultural context, and the importance of community. The conversation emphasises the need for self-acceptance and offers practical tools for navigating imposter feelings, ultimately transforming them into oppor...
Feb 22, 2025•37 min
In this episode of The Belonging Project Podcast , host Fiorenza Rossini welcomes Zora Lazarov, a behaviour disruptor and corporate psychologist, to discuss how organisations can thrive by embracing anti-fragility and addressing toxic workplace behaviours. Together, they explore how to build resilient teams, foster inclusivity, and empower leaders to navigate the challenges of modern organizational dynamics. Zora shares her unique approach to identifying and mitigating toxic behaviours that unde...
Jan 14, 2025•41 min
In this episode, Fiorenza sits down with Victoria Rennoldson. Victoria shares her expertise on cultural intelligence, strategies for global team dynamics, and her journey transitioning from a corporate role to running her own business. Together with Fiorenza Rossini, they explore creating meaningful connections in culturally diverse hybrid teams, evolving leadership styles, and fostering a sense of belonging in both professional and personal contexts. This episode is packed with insights, practi...
Dec 12, 2024•36 min
In this episode, our host Fiorenza Rossini welcomes Tash Bristowe, a Brighton-based freelancer, entrepreneur, and community builder. Tash shares her personal journey of navigating a career setback and how that led to creating a safe space for job seekers through the Open to Work Connection Community. When Tash unexpectedly lost her job, she turned a challenging experience into an opportunity to uplift others in similar situations. Through open discussions on LinkedIn, she discovered the power of...
Nov 22, 2024•26 min
How can we create Belonging in the workplace? How could workplaces foster inclusive behaviours? In this episode, our host Fiorenza talks to Sean Dubberke, Principal & VP of Learning @ RW3 Culture Wizard . They talk about the importance of self-awareness and understanding of what shaped us, ahead of trying to understand others, their cultures and what should change look like. (14:26). When organisations have goals around Inclusion and Belonging, it's also important to understand what are comm...
Oct 16, 2024•44 min
In this episode, we talk about starting a business with your spouse, the challenges of all the multiple hats freelancers have to wear, moving abroad multiple times and working across culture. Our guest is Dominique, co-founder of The Werks and we had so much fun talking! Do you know that feeling when you start something new? I really loved Dominique's take on this: there are indeed many similarities to how moving abroad feels like, or even speaking a new language. Do you agree? Let us know in th...
Sep 09, 2024•41 min
I'm dedicating this episode of the Belonging Project podcast to all the amazing fathers out there. I really enjoyed talking with Tomasso Maggio about fatherhood, parenthood and increasing representation of fathers as the main caregiver, especially online. As you know, recently out of my second mat leave, I have attended many baby groups and activities and not only it's mostly mums, when dads attend they are clearly off the norm and get not only kind smiles but also inquisitive ones. And I know s...
Jun 17, 2024•23 min
In celebration of the Pride Month, we are delighted to share an episode with Jamie Love - a heartfelt conversation on themes of authenticity, inclusivity, and belonging. Jamie is the visionary founder and CEO of Monumental , a digital marketing and PR agency. Growing up in a conservative environment and struggling to be yourself is something many can relate to, but few can tell the story as Jamie does. Jamie’s story is captivating, from the early days as a child model in Italy to creating an age...
Jun 03, 2024•35 min
As we hear about some personal stories and societal landscapes of nursing, in this episode, we confronted the gamut of reactions to breastfeeding in different context: at work, in public, beyond a certain time period and within different cultural contexts. From acceptance to negativity, the dialogue serves as a reminder of the need for visibility and community. The surprising shifts in breastfeeding rates during lockdowns and the discussion about nursing older children further reveal the intrica...
Mar 06, 2024•1 hr 9 min
I really enjoyed diving into Justin Reinert's model of Belonging, following up on his book Creating Belonging, a Practical Guide to Accelerate Belonging in Organisations and Communities. Justin's work poses a model where belonging is created at the intersection of authenticity and acceptance. I really wanted to explore with him strategies to help us navigate toxic work environments. The unpacking we did together was brilliant: from setting intentions, values mining, implementing behaviours that ...
Feb 07, 2024•40 min
Our host Fiorenza sits down with Tim Mart, CEO and co-founder of the socially driven coaching platform Know You More. They talk about transitioning from corporate career into entrepreneurship and Tim's personal journey since he was diagnosed with ADHD a few months earlier. Entrepreneurship: we get to learn about what prompted Tim's decision, how his family adapted, and why the projects his company are involved in matter, such as coaching for young adults. ADHD diagnostic: Tim's decision to get t...
Dec 11, 2023•38 min
Women make on average 15% less than men across countries. As I was pregnant with my second baby and ahead of my mat leave, Allison Venditti and I got to talk on the Belonging Project Podcast. Allison is the founder of Moms at Work, a Canada-based organisation providing community, resources and advocacy for working mothers. In this podcast episode, we talk about: - the Motherhood Penalty - the impact of the pandemic on working mums - what can help prevent gender discrimination in the workplace: u...
Nov 10, 2023•41 min
More than a decade ago, Kerstin Graebner moved across the globe from Germany to India - interestingly enough she was not the first in her family to do so. It's a journey that her grandparents had also taken. Reflecting on this cultural and life journey with my dear friend Kerstin brought up many shared experiences: arriving in a new place, being in culture shock, stepping out of the expat circle, finding roots in a new professional path, finding a sense of real arriving many years after. We had ...
Sep 13, 2023•48 min
What’s a hidden disability? A hidden disability is a disability that may not visible or immediately obvious when looking or talking to someone but can have a significant impact on a person’s life. 'Hidden disabilities' is an umbrella term that captures a spectrum of disabilities, and can include: Sensory Disabilities Mental Health Conditions Specific learning differences Autism Long-term and physical health conditions *not and exhaustive list For The Belonging Project Podcast, I talked with Sere...
Jul 10, 2023•38 min
Isaac Harvey was born and raised in East London with a disability called limb pelvic hypo aplasia, which in short means no arms and short legs. Even with this disability it has not stopped him from achieving things such skiing, skydiving, tall ship sailing and much more. For the past ten years he has used his feet to use the computer to edit videos, answer emails and communicate to the wider world. He is now a prominent disability advocate in the community, public speaker, president of Wheels an...
May 31, 2023•33 min
Kemo Camara is the founder of OMEK, the home of the global bicultural community. OMEK’s mission is to amplify the talent, voices, and energy of bicultural of African descent. I know first hand how meaningful it can be to meet people that have a shared cultural identity, especially for biculturals (or TCKs). I wanted to know more about how Kemo came up with the idea of creating this community space, so I invited him on the podcast! 🎙️ We had such a great conversation, I can’t wait for you to tun...
Apr 28, 2023•34 min
Growing up as a a child of immigrant parents, Mehdi Tounsi did not feel like he belonged - neither in the country he lived in, nor in the country his parents were from. He always felt “different”. This really resonated with me, so I invited him on the podcast! 🎙️ We had such a great conversation about being an immigrant across cultures, trying to “belong” in various times of life (childhood, school, work), and learning to accept yourself to find a true sense of belonging. Tune in to get actiona...
Mar 23, 2023•48 min
In this episode, we explore all about psychological safety with Anna Gibson, Clinical Psychologist and Organizational Consultant. Psychological safety matters in any relational system of any kind (e.g. families, friendship, workplace) We explore the common behaviours that characterize psychologically safe environments or psychologically safe relationships: behaviours that promote curiosity, that promote deep listening, that promote a sense that it's okay to make mistakes. (and you'll hear more a...
Jan 31, 2023•35 min
Abda has been a lawyer for over 30 years and a writer of fiction and historical novels, passionate to increase the representation of underrepresented groups in books. In this episode, Abda talks to us about her books (I cannot wait to read her latest fiction which will address gaslighting as a form of emotional abuse) and her work to raise awareness around culturally-sensitive writing. Abda shares her journey to Law and then writing. She recalls a dialogue with her career counsellor when she was...
Dec 01, 2022•36 min
Parents, this episode is for you! In this episode, we talk with Dr Sharon Lo, Licensed Child Clinical Psychologist. We explore the different shapes that Belonging can take from early childhood, to adolescent and then adulthood; what factors are important (people, cultural context, environment and groups we are exposed to). We also debunk what's usual to experience at key developmental stages. I loved the strategies that Dr Sharon Lo shared for parents that may be facing challenging behaviours wi...
Oct 21, 2022•43 min
In this episode, our returning guest is Helene Bejjani, Global Learning and Development Leader. We explore how we can leverage our awareness, both of self and of a corporate culture, as a tool to experience a stronger sense of belonging at work. We provide practical steps on: How to increase your self-awareness, including how to get clear on what you’re looking for in a workplace environment. How to cultivate a sense of belonging in high turnover contexts We reflect on: What and who influences o...
Sep 07, 2022•23 min
In this episode, we talk with Human Performance Optimization Subject-Matter Expert, Dr. Ford Dyke. We explore his journey from psychology, exercise science to mind-body connection and human performance optimisation. We truly stand with the impact of Dr. Dyke’s work, dedicated to making information and education available outside of the academic classroom and we get to know more about it in our conversation. We also talk about: The human experience Music and movement as a universal language, lead...
Aug 05, 2022•31 min
In this episode, we talk with Niti Nadarajah, DEI advocate and freelance general counsel. We talk about: Her career transition: out of her successful law career for a big corporation into entrepreneurship Growing up in a multicultural setting and the impact on the sense of Belonging Leaning into other people, being inclusively curious, meeting people where they are, compassion, empathy and psychological safety: the key ingredients to Belonging Intrusive vs Inclusive curiosity Follow Niti’s work ...
Jun 24, 2022•31 min
In this episode, we talk with Ashiedu Joel, inclusive leadership and cultural capital consultant. We are honoured to hear more about her story! We talk about: Her journey, as a Black African woman in modern Britain, from school to the workplace Stereotypes, biases and microagressions Compassionate leadership Why we need more open conversations Ashiedu also shared with us strategies that helped her find belonging in the workplace. For the most part, those strategies were reliant on herself - deci...
May 19, 2022•38 min
In this episode of The Belonging Project Podcast, we meet our community and we explore the lived experiences of not-belonging and the learnings they offer. Alongside podcast’s host Fiorenza, we hear experiences from three members of our community: - Tanisha Dayal, DE&I consultant for the Resource Key, - Pun Chong Hiu, now a Learning and Training Consultant after 9 years of working as staff development specialist at an investment bank - Dawn Ward, People & Culture Associate Director at Wa...
May 06, 2022•20 min
Hi everyone! The Belonging Project Podcast is back for a third season! There are a few updates we wanted to share with you ahead of diving into our first episode: The Belonging Project Podcast is evolving! Following two amazing seasons of co-leadership by Fiorenza Rossini and Andrea Fleishfresser, Andrea has decided to step away from the podcast leadership. On behalf of our podcast’s community, we want to thank Andrea and we will truly miss her. Going forward, Fiorenza will be leading the podcas...
Apr 04, 2022•13 min
