EQUALead 2023-2026

Certified systemic consultant, coach, and facilitator

Annette Birkholz is a certified systemic-creative consultant, coach, and facilitator. She holds qualifications in systemic organisational development (artop/HU Berlin) and systemic coaching (certified by DBVC). She works at the intersection of art, business, and science, with programmes focused on leadership, transformation, conflict management, VUCA, mindfulness, and resilience. In 2010, she founded her own consultancy (now: annettebirkholz.com), followed by the Bogenakademie Berlin in 2012. This was followed by the Bildhauerakademie Dresden in 2016 and, in 2021, the company leading.digital, which offers virtual leadership programmes for women, by women. Women in leadership is a particular focus of her work. Her female leadership programme "Penthesilea & Co" supports the visibility and empowerment of women, while leading.digital strengthens their digital leadership skills. Her clients include organisations and individuals from the film, music, dance, and theatre industries, as well as NGOs and international corporates.

Actress, coach, and speaker on feminist issues and social change

Lisa Altenpohl works as an actress, coach, and speaker and has been living in Berlin for 15 years now. The native Rhinelander completed her acting training there in 2008 and has since worked in both film and theatre. In recent years, she has increasingly dedicated herself to her own projects and, alongside her role as assistant director for an international opera production, realised her own film "the power of woman" in 2022, which addresses the question "What does it mean to be a woman?". In addition to her systemic coaching training, she has two further qualifications in the field of nervous system/somatics/embodiment. Bodywork plays a significant role as a sustainable means for long-term change in her workshops and training sessions. As a speaker, Lisa Altenpohl talks about feminist issues, societal changes in role models, and possible paths towards a gender-just future. It is her heartfelt mission to advance the topic of female empowerment and to support women/FLINTA on their journey to greater presence and self-confidence.

Organisational developer, executive coach, and trainer 

Lena Thomsen works as an organisational developer, executive coach, and trainer (Thomsen&Kniepkamp) in Berlin. The native Hamburger studied language and literature in Switzerland and completed her doctorate on the literary staging of family conflicts and social change processes in 19th-century novels. Her professional focus was initially in dramaturgy in the theatre sector, where she collaborated with directors such as Christoph Marthaler, Christoph Schlingensief, Frank Castorf, and Karin Neuhäuser. At the Schauspielhaus Zurich, she was temporarily responsible for the content co-direction of a venue. In communication agencies, Lena Thomsen worked for several years as a team and project manager for federal and state ministries, associations, and companies. Her focus was on consulting and implementing change communication, particularly in the strategic support of cultural change and transformation processes, as well as participation projects. Today, she combines her experiences in team and leadership dynamics across various industries, knowledge of dramaturgical arcs and creative processes, as well as competencies in communicative change support in her work as an organisational developer. She is certified in systemic organisational development (leadership development, team development, change management) and supports organisations, teams, and leaders empathetically and structurally in larger and smaller change processes. It is important to her to take a resource- and solution-oriented approach and to make a sustainable contribution to a work environment in which the participants can take responsibility for their actions. Key thematic areas of her work include supporting leadership teams, conflict moderation, resilience in teams and organisations, as well as transformation support. Change is omnipresent and a necessary part of our working world. She aims to convey the understanding of this as an opportunity and to approach it with openness and curiosity.

Dramaturg / Curator / Artistic Director SAVE THE WORLD

 Nicola Bramkamp studierte Germanistik, Theaterwissenschaft und BWL in Berlin und Bochum. Von 2013 - 2018 war sie Schauspieldirektorin am Theater Bonn. Sie steht für ein modernes Schauspiel, dass offensiv und gesellschaftsrelevant auf die Stadt zugeht. Für ihr Engagement wurde sie u.a. für den emotion award "Frauen in Führung" nominiert und als Mentorin der Initative „Women into Leadership“ berufen. Sie ist Mentorin für junge Künstler*innen im Programm re:balance der Rudolf Augstein Stiftung und tritt als Speakerin & Workshophost regelmäßig zu den Themen Transformation, Nachhaltigkeit & Diversität auf. Darüber hinaus engagiert sie sich für eine internationale Vernetzung von Kunst und Wissenschaft.

Sensitivity Reader and Diversity Consultant, Screenwriter 

Otana Thiede was born in Schwerin, but has been living and working in Berlin for almost 30 years. She studied Musicology, German Studies, and Art Studies. In 2008, she graduated from the Hamburg Film School as a screenwriter. Since then, she has worked on various series and film concepts and in Writers’ Rooms. Additionally, she creates diversity-sensitive editorial reviews for screenplays, treatments, and fiction concepts and conducts workshops on D&I recruiting, diversity, and equality management. Her extensive expertise as a Sensitivity Reader and Diversity Consultant is sought by various institutions and organisations, including the Bavaria Group, Saxonia Media, and UFA Fiction. As a speaker, it is particularly important to her to raise participants' awareness of the opportunities of diversity and to provide them with tools to effectively embed this in their organisation for the benefit of all.

Sensitivity Consultant for D&I Storytelling, Expert in Diversity & Inclusive Leadership, Certified Anti-Violence Trainer, Conflict Manager & De-escalation Coach

With over 25 years of experience in the theatre and film industry, Sara Sommerfeldt combines in-depth industry knowledge with leadership experience, conflict competence, and D&I expertise. After graduating as a diploma actress from the University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart, she took on engagements at renowned stages such as the Schauspielhaus Bochum and the Staatstheater Stuttgart. She has also participated in numerous film and television productions and realised her own theatre and music projects. This artistic practice forms the foundation of her profound understanding of the industry – and its potential for transformation. As the founder of RISING GAZE, Sara Sommerfeldt supports companies and organisations in developing diverse narratives and discrimination-sensitive structures. To sustainably anchor the potential of diversity, she also creates awareness concepts and accompanies film productions as a trusted person in her role as a certified anti-violence trainer, conflict manager, and systemic de-escalation coach. Her expertise is sought after throughout the German-speaking region – including by UFA Fiction, Saxonia Media, Pantaleon Films, Constantin Film, Wiedemann & Berg, the Bavaria Group, the German Kinemathek, and other prominent players. Sara Sommerfeldt also conducts workshops on female empowerment, D&I leadership, and awareness, among others, on behalf of the Erich Pommer Institute (in collaboration with Media Academy and medianet berlinbrandenburg), Produktionsallianz Campus, Drehübung Wien, and the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg.

Consultant, Trainer, and Executive Coach

Britta Cosson has many years of experience as a moderator in various settings. She works as a consultant, trainer, and executive coach for the organisational consultancy Be in touch in Cologne. The main focus of her work is on transformation support and cultural development in organisations, with a particular emphasis on diversity and equality. Prior to her consulting work, she spent 15 years in the field of personnel and organisational development in various companies.

She is a qualified psychologist and certified business coach (Trigon). In her independent coaching practice, she focuses on parents' work-life coaching (supporting parents in achieving their individual career goals).

Organisational developer, consultant & systemic coach

Fabienne Bauer works as a consultant, coach, and moderator for the organisational consultancy Be in touch. Drawing on solid psychological insights, she invites change and (self-)reflection, always with a focus on individual resources and a power-critical perspective on existing systems. The main areas of her work are cultural development & change in organisations, new leadership, and psychological safety. Fabienne studied business psychology and communication science and is a certified systemic coach and trainer. In addition to her consulting work, she has been employed as a lecturer and research associate in the research project "Mindful Leadership from a Psychological Perspective" at Osnabrück University and has been actively involved for many years in the educational initiative ROCK YOUR LIFE!. In her independent work, she advocates for mental health and more ethics in coaching and consulting, among other things, on Instagram.

Freelance Senior Consultant, Coach, Moderator

Patricia Redzewsky is a certified coach, systemic consultant, and diversity trainer with many years of experience supporting executives and teams. She is currently the Head of Strategy & Diversity Development at akoma consulting and works as a consultant for compassorange. Previously, she led the IQ sub-project "Intercultural Opening of Regular Institutions" in Brandenburg. Since 2021, she has served as a trusted person and anti-discrimination officer on film and television production sets. Her areas of focus include diversity, diversity management, gender, anti-racism, intersectionality, unconscious bias, and diversity-conscious personnel development.

Systemic Coach, Consultant

activities.

space where everyone and everything can be.

Communication with a Broader Perspective

Coach and systemic organisational consultant, filmmaker.

Coach und Systemic Organisational Consultant, Filmmaker

Bettina Haasen is a systemic organisational consultant, coach, and managing partner of the consulting firm Synchronize-Consult. Her 10 years of professional experience as a media creator in the international documentary film industry has sharpened her perspective on leadership constellations in the creative sector. She is a certified self-development coach and values the work of targeted personal development. In her consulting practice, Bettina Haasen often intervenes in contexts where there are few women in leadership positions. It is important to her to examine the organisational structures and corporate culture that hinder women in their professional development. The goal behind this: to recognise opportunities and personal potentials, to generate the power to act, and to mobilise new options for action. Her consulting focuses on supporting change processes, vision and strategy work, team development, biography work, supporting women in leadership, and individual coaching.

Diversity Manager, Curator, and Moderator

Idil Efe studied Gender Studies at Humboldt University Berlin from 1997 to 2008. Subsequently, she worked at the Neukölln Citizens' Foundation until 2012, initially in communication and strategy, as well as a curator and diversity and inclusion trainer, later also as managing director. From 2017 to 2019, she developed participatory, discrimination-critical, and diversity-oriented exhibitions as a curator in the Berlin Global Exhibition. After that, she worked as a diversity manager at the Berlin City Museum Foundation. Since August 2023, Idil Efe has been self-employed and advises companies on diversity-oriented and discrimination-critical organisational development.

Head of Migros Culture Percentage IntegrART

Inga Laas (she/her) grew up in the Rhineland, studied online editing and environmental engineering in Cologne and Zurich. She has accompanied various cultural projects through inclusion, including the Zurich Theatre Spectacle and the short film festival look&roll in Basel. With de-skript descriptive subtitles (closed captions), she has helped bring films and theatre to the screens. She then worked as a project manager at the Gessnerallee Theatre in Zurich. Since 2022, she has been leading the tour "IntegrArt" at Migros Culture Percentage in Switzerland. With IntegrArt, she brings high-quality disability arts to the stage and to all regions of Switzerland. For her, inclusion is not a burden, but an expansion of possibilities.