Next up in our Writing as Activism series, this week’s episode, recorded at the 2024 Pa Gya! festival (in case you are wondering, this is the session taking place during our interview, features Nigerian poet and children’s book author, Aduke Gomez. Aduke embraced writing in the past decade after a career in law and finance. She now utilises her legal and advisory skills to assist in business and creative development. Commencing her career in legal practice with the law firm of Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie, she later worked for many years in various leadership roles within Ecobank Nigeria Ltd and Leadway Pensure PFA. She is regularly called to speak and moderate on topics related to her interest in history and culture and these have included sessions at Cornell University; The Institute of Africa and Diaspora Studies at the University of Lagos; the Lagos State Record and Archive Bureau; the annual conference of the Lagos Studies Association; the Ake Festival; and the Lagos Book and Art Festival (LABAF) amongst others.

Her published collection of poems have featured as festival books for both the LABAF and the Ake Festival. And her children's books have also featured at previous editions of LABAF and Akada Children's Book Festival.
She is currently the Chair of the Steering Committee of Art4Life - an initiative of the Lagos State Ministry of Health established to introduce art and the practice of art into the entire healthcare process. She is a member of the Advisory Board of Open House Lagos as well as the Advisory Board of Lagos Biennial. She volunteers on the Board of Child Life Line - an NGO established for the welfare of street children.

In this conversation we not only get to know how Aduke pivoted into arts and public service, we also get to know more about her local in the context of her paternal ancestor's return from Brazil to Lagos. This speaks volume to the idea of activism as a way of being.

Where to find Aduke?
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
OnX

Who is on Aduke’s essential Pan-African reading list?
Mariama Bâ, in The Paris Review and more
Ama Atta Aidoo
Buchi Emecheta
Florence “Flora” Nwapa

Other topic of interest:
Return migration: Brazilians in Nigeria
The Nigerian Brazillian Project
About the Emanicapados of Brazil
Who are Tabom peoples?
Biola Alabi Media

Special Guest: Aduke Gomez.

Did you miss us? We missed you! September threw me for a bit of a loop with travel and wifi access which resulted in a brief break. My travels took me on a Northern Lights adventure through remote Alaska where we actually experienced the North Pole! Then it was a return to summer in the southern U.S. with a grounding trip to Atlanta, Georgia.

I’m back in NYC for this two-part episode and taking a stroll down a few Brooklyn memory lanes with my guest, Ky Adderley is a leadership and education expert, mentor, super connector; and networking guru, a persistent link between people and their dreams. He has conducted school reviews and training for teachers and principals on three continents – North America, South America, and Africa – working to increase the number of quality schools and leaders available to low-income children worldwide. He has been a leader in the education sector for 20 years, and has more recently pivoted in the direction of sports management. Coming from a family known for professional athletes he is no stranger to sports and operations. He was an All-American high school and collegiate runner at Georgetown University going on to run as an Olympic hopeful before hanging up his spikes to focus on giving back to the communities that raised him. Also an advocate for social justice education, he has been nicknamed by some: “Know Justice, Know Peace.” Ky has recently taken on a new role as Vice President of Maven Sports Group. We know this too will be a smashing success for Ky--Congratulations!!

Where to find Ky?
www.kyadderley.com
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On X

What’s Ky reading?
The Art of War by Sun Zu
Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia with Bill Gifford
The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months by Brian P. Moran, Michael Lennington

Other topics of interest:
Germantown, Pennsylvania
Mount Airy, Pennsylvania
Frank Gagliano
Ganas! meaning
Teach for America
KIPP and David Levin
Kung Fu Theater
Capoeira
Cannonball Adderley
Professional Football Hall of Fame Cornerback Herb Adderley
Nasifr Adderley
About Cash Money Records
Father Raymong Kemp
About Ky's work with Danielle Fazio
About Match Fit Academy

Special Guest: Ky Adderley.

Did you miss us? We missed you! September threw me for a bit of a loop with travel and wifi access which resulted in a brief break. My travels took me on a Northern Lights adventure through remote Alaska where we actually experienced the North Pole! Then it was a return to summer in the southern U.S. with a grounding trip to Atlanta, Georgia.

I’m back in NYC for this two-part episode and taking a stroll down a few Brooklyn memory lanes with my guest, Ky Adderley is a leadership and education expert, mentor, super connector; and networking guru, a persistent link between people and their dreams. He has conducted school reviews and training for teachers and principals on three continents – North America, South America, and Africa – working to increase the number of quality schools and leaders available to low-income children worldwide. He has been a leader in the education sector for 20 years, and has more recently pivoted in the direction of sports management. Coming from a family known for professional athletes he is no stranger to sports and operations. He was an All-American high school and collegiate runner at Georgetown University going on to run as an Olympic hopeful before hanging up his spikes to focus on giving back to the communities that raised him. Also an advocate for social justice education, he has been nicknamed by some: “Know Justice, Know Peace.” Ky has recently taken on a new role as Vice President of Maven Sports Group. We know this too will be a smashing success for Ky--Congratulations!!

Where to find Ky?
www.kyadderley.com
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On X

What’s Ky reading?
The Art of War by Sun Zu
Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia with Bill Gifford
The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months by Brian P. Moran, Michael Lennington

Other topics of interest:
Germantown, Pennsylvania
Mount Airy, Pennsylvania
Frank Gagliano
Ganas! meaning
Teach for America
KIPP and David Levin
Kung Fu Theater
Capoeira
Cannonball Adderley
Professional Football Hall of Fame Cornerback Herb Adderley
Nasifr Adderley
About Cash Money Records
Father Raymong Kemp
About Ky's work with Danielle Fazio
About Match Fit Academy

Special Guest: Ky Adderley.