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The Fifth Industrial Revolution:
The Fifth Industrial Revolution introduces an unprecedented opportunity for the bottom 99% to benefit from a significant transfer of wealth. Not only will powerhouse institutions lose their influence to decentralized networks of people and communities, but new technology will reduce the need for the dominant “middle man.” Therefore, learning how to leverage cryptocurrency, blockchain, social tokens, virtual reality and the metaverse will become increasingly essential as banks, healthcare institutions, and social media lose their monopolistic stronghold. From creating realistic avatars to exploring digital real estate, the chance to create, adopt, and invest in the Age of Decentralization could mean the difference between privilege and poverty or wealth and want.
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The Future of Black Wealth:
Kezia M. Williams is an entrepreneurial rockstar. In 2019 she was listed on The Root’s Top 100 influential African Americans list. She is the CEO and founder of The Black Upstart which is an organization that trains entrepreneurs and wealth creators to become job creators and asset owners. Since 2016, her company has trained 5,000 inspiring adult learners through her popup school and online courses. A remarkable 41% of them are still in business and 50% now employ staff. Kezia’s culturally relevant, history informed, Black wealth blueprint helps individuals understand how to break generational patterns of poor financial decision making and establish paradigms of profit generation and wealth acquisition.
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Creating Black Jobs with Corporate Business in Black Business:
A leader in entrepreneurship and wealth creation in Black communities, Kezia M. Williams has trained over 5,000+ Black entrepreneurs and wealth creators through her traveling popup school and online courses across the nation and in Africa. Kezia has also partnered with Fortune 500 companies and community development financial institutions to advise their financial and marketing support of Black businesses and nonprofits to ensure intentional financial investment. Kezia’s depth of knowledge and understanding of the “Black Consumer”, Black businesses and the “Black Dollar” makes her an essential voice to understanding the growing and challenging landscape of Corporate Social & Financial Equity plans.
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Web 3.0 and The Future of the Internet:
The internet is changing rapidly and technology is evolving at a faster rate now than it did during the last 50 years. The way in which we use and experience the internet is evolving in ways that would have only been possible in film. The future is now and how will this future impact the way in which African Americans and people of color can use Web 3.0 and the internet for financial gain? Professor Kez will delve into the endless possibilities for Web 3.0 and the future of the internet.
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The Metaverse:
Did you know you can buy acres of property in the Metaverse where whole cities are being created? There is a new gold rush occurring and it’s all digital. Professor Kez will explore how African Americans, women, and people of color can maximize on this opportunity and use the Metaverse for financial gain.
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Black Entrepreneurship:
For many generations entrepreneurship was reserved for white Americans. With the evolution of the internet and social media, entrepreneurial dreams are realistic for a new generation of African Americans. Professor Kez will discuss new ways in which people of color and women are launching their own paths and creating a financial legacy for your their families.
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Black Wealth + Financial Literacy:
Black wealth is predicted to be “zero dollars” by 2050. Because of a history of enslavement and institutional racism, African Americans have been barred from participating in the American Dream and securing financial futures for their families. Professor Kez will detail quick, easy, and little-known ways in which African Americans are using creative and traditional methods to create wealth and buck national trends.
See Kezia M Williams in action.
This entrepreneur and influencer is showing the power of Black businesses.
Kezia M. Williams is the Chief Executive Officer of The Black upStart – a nationally recognized company serving African-American innovators interested in starting successful and profitable, job creating small businesses. Through the administration of an incubator program, the Black upStart administers a culturally-sensitive, pioneering curriculum that integrates experiential learning methods, lean startup methodology, and business case studies. To date, the organization has trained nearly 500 entrepreneurs in the District of Columbia, New York, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Southern Africa. Black upStart graduates have launched ventures in 12 different states and have been featured on Netflix, ABC’s Shark Tank, the Washington Post, Essence Magazine, and Black Enterprise Magazine for their innovative businesses.
Recently, Kezia launched SkillHouseU: Classrooms for the Culture, an online school that provides necessary skills and training for entrepreneurship and wealth creation. Since the launch of SkillHouseU in March 2020, nearly 5,000 people have enrolled in over 22 classes facilitated by 12 recognized financial experts. Her Live-Classrooms sessions regularly reach 100,000+ viewers. With nearly 500,000+ followers on her personal and business Instagram pages, her team’s ability to disrupt traditional notions of education and entrepreneurship for Black wealth creators is purpose work.
Ms. Williams also leads MyBlackReceipt, which is a tech company that launched to track spending at Black owned businesses. In 17 days, she led a team that collected over $7.7 million in receipts from conscious consumers that supported the #MyBlackReceipt “Buy Black” initiative. This is the nation’s first quantifiable initiative designed to measure the impact of consumer activists.
Kezia has been featured by CNN, Forbes, USA Today, Black Enterprise and Yelp and is regularly a speaker at national conferences and symposiums across the nation. She has also been interviewed on Good Morning America, CNBC, Black News Network and Cheddar. She is currently a Global Ambassador for Robinhood, the highly popular stock trading and investment platform. She also sits on the Advisory Board for PepsiCo’s Racial Equality Black Initiative, where she provides counsel to their executive team as they execute their plan to spend $400 million to support Black communities over five years.
Kezia is one of only three Global Brand Ambassadors for Robinhood, where she hosts and moderates programs for female and minority users. She has also partnered with TurboTax and CreditKarma to create content for African American millennials about taxes and consumer credit.
Kezia is the proud daughter of Gail Elaine Davis and a native of Richmond, Virginia.
Our speakers get attention.
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Kezia Williams of The Black upStart shares tips to build generational wealthAccording to the McKinsey Institute of Black Economic Mobility, Black families have only one-eighth of the wealth that white families have.