I genuinely enjoy sharing my knowledge and meeting people through events and am open to opportunities where this is an open, friendly, diverse and inclusive experience for all.

If your running an event and looking for a passionate speaker, emcee or panellist please get in touch using the form below.

Speaker Policy

• Contacting me: Please don’t cold call me. Send me an email or a message and we will go from there.
• Name, bio and headshot: I go by Rebecca Jackson, no abbreviations. Depending on your event, I may alter my bio to suit the context. Please check with me before publishing my photograph or biographical information, I like to keep it relevant.
• Domestic travel: Currently open to domestic travel, location and COVID situation pending. Reimbursement of travel and accomodation costs is generally expected.
• Overseas travel: Not an option for the foreseeable future. More than happy to be interviewed or present via video conferencing. Reimbursement of travel and accomodation costs is generally expected.
• Communication: I have a full time job, speaking engagements and preparing for them are something that is done in my spare time. The more information you provide the better. Fewer and timely meetings will help me meet your expectations.
• Recordings: I am comfortable with presentations / panels being recorded, but please advise me in advance.
• Language: My pronouns are she/her/they/them. Use the language I use to describe myself.
• Timezone: My timezone is AEST (or AEDT depending on the time of year) and I live in Melbourne, Australia. I am open to presenting virtually at events in other timezones where it does not deviate too far from my normal working hours.
• Payment: Not every event can afford to pay speakers for their time. But if you can, please do. If you can’t pay speakers because you legitimately don’t have budget (or support for budget), find other ways to balance the value you’re receiving. Please respect our value by offering something in return beyond ‘exposure’.

Diversity, inclusion and culture

• I choose to participate in events that have balanced intersectional diverse representation at a minimum
• When presenting I may agknowledge the traditional owners from where I am speaking if this has not already been expressed by the event organiser.

Keynotes and other presentations

• 6 weeks notice is most helpful, particularly if it requires new content
• I will provide a title and abstract for you, which I am happy to workshop with you. Please do not alter it without consulting me.
• I may use content I have presented before, but I will let you know and always tailor to the audience / event.
• I will make slides available to you after the event via my Slideshare account
• Please provide clear guidance on expected speaker responsibilities outside of giving the presentation e.g., how long you’ll be allowing for questions, if you need me to participate in an interview etc.

Panels

• I will only participate in panels with balanced intersectional diverse representation at a minimum. Panels where the majority of speakers are intersectionaly diverse are preferred. 
• Please tell me who the other panellists are upfront before I agree to speak. You might not know yet which is understandable, so I ask that you at least tell me who you are approaching and keep me in the loop if anything changes. 
• Panel questions must be provided at least 48 hours in advance of the event. I won’t provide canned answers, but I do need time to digest and provide a considered response.
• Please allow a reasonable amount of time for me to provide input into media releases ahead of the event. 
• If this is a panel focussed on diversity and inclusion, pleased consider the importance of lived experiences among your panelists as equal to academic or opinion pieces.

Fee-free speaking

Provided all other conditions in this policy are met, I am willing to speak free of charge at events run by:

• Professional associations
• My current workplace
• Community meetup groups
• Not-for-profit organisations
• Educational institutions

Referrals

If I can’t speak at your event, or you are looking for other speakers I am always delighted to make connections. I will do this by providing your information to my contact, not the other way around.

I encourage event organisers to look widely to bring diverse view points to their events. Do not be hesitant to encourage a new or novice speaker.

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This page was inspired by Ashlea McKay’s own speaker policy. I encourage you to look at hers for reference if you would like to create your own: Speaker policy: Ashlea McKay | LinkedIn