SPEAKERS

At Progress, over 100+ speakers will host big conversations, share best practice skills and help us reimagine what’s possible together.

KEYNOTES

Portrait of Ash Sarkar, a British journalist and activist, with long dark hair, wearing a dark blazer and a necklace with a pendant, set against a green background.

ASH SARKAR

Journalist, political commentator, activist
and author of ‘Minority Rule’

  • Ash Sarkar is a British journalist, political commentator and activist. She is Senior Editor at Novara Media, where her work explores the intersection of politics, popular culture and social justice. Her writing has been published in The Guardian, The Independent and HuffPost UK, and she is a regular voice on UK broadcast media, appearing on programs like Question Time, Good Morning Britain and BBC Radio 4’s Moral Maze.

    Ash also lectures at the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam, contributing to critical conversations about media, power and resistance.

    Her debut book, Minority Rule, examines how identity politics became a defining force in the 2010s, both a vehicle for liberation and a target of backlash, in the context of deepening economic inequality.

A white man with tattoos on his chest, wearing a brown suit over a black tank top. He is standing in front of a brown wall and is smiling.

DOM KELLY

Founder, President and CEO
New Disabled South

  • Dom Kelly (he/they) is the Founder, President & CEO of New Disabled South. A lifelong disability advocate and organizer, Dom has been building progressive infrastructure in the U.S. South since 2009. He’s a celebrated movement leader, organizer, speaker, and writer, as well as a former touring musician who has recorded and performed with artists like Indigo Girls, The Bangles, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and more. Born with cerebral palsy, Dom began advocating for disability rights at age four. He previously worked as a senior advisor on Stacey Abrams’ gubernatorial campaign and at her organization Fair Fight Action. He holds multiple degrees, including a Master of Science in Nonprofit Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania and is completing a Doctor of Public Health degree at The George Washington University. Dom is a 2025 Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity, a 2024 Rockwood Fellow, and a 2023 J.M. Kaplan Innovation Prize winner. His writing has been published in Teen Vogue, The Hill, Mondoweiss, and more. He’s been featured on NPR, Sky News, Forbes, and TODAY.com. He lives in Atlanta with his wife and daughter.

Photo of Kassie standing in front of NZ Parliament. She has long brown hair on the left side with the right side of her head shaved.

KASSIE HARTENDORP

Director
ActionStation Aotearoa

  • Kassie Hartendorp (she/her) is a Māori community organiser based in Aotearoa (New Zealand). She is currently the Director for people-powered campaigning organisation, ActionStation. Her team campaigned to stop the Treaty Principles Bill which broke historical records for Treaty justice. She's passionate about building movements for indigenous rights and economic justice.

This is only the beginning! More international speaker announcements coming soon, along with the early announcements of local speakers and sessions.