Arti Agrawal joins Anthony Nolan, a UK charity for people with blood cancer, from her dual roles at the University of Technology Sydney, Director of the Women in Engineering and IT (WIEIT), and Associate Professor at the Faculty of Engineering and IT.
Before this, she worked at IEEE Photonics Society and co-chaired the Gay Women’s Network in London. She was also on the Board of Directors at the Optical Society of America, where she oversaw comprehensive EDI reform. Arti is also a physicist and engineer.
Arti’s priority will be to support Anthony Nolan in creating sustainable change by making a visible commitment to diversity and inclusion. The charity recognises the importance of working in collaboration with others, both externally and internally, to address the health inequalities within society. Empathy and collaboration will help Anthony Nolan realise its vision of saving and improving the lives of everyone who needs a stem cell transplant, regardless of ethnicity.
Anthony Nolan recognises a pressing need for decision-making perspectives and the workforce being representative of the charity’s patients, donors and supporters. This new, strategic role will be pivotal as it embarks on this work to deliver real, tangible change in inclusion and diversity matters. The charity commits to monitoring progress and performance in this area.
Henny Braund, Chief Executive of Anthony Nolan, said: “We are delighted to welcome Arti. This is an extremely important role and I’m very eager to see what Arti’s expertise can bring to further this vital work within the organisation.
“The work we do at Anthony Nolan is fundamentally about people. In our role as both a health charity and an employer, we know there is more that we need to do to address these issues through our work. With our staff and volunteers, our ambition is to create an inclusive environment, where different perspectives are valued and celebrated, and everyone can bring their whole self to Anthony Nolan.”
Agrawal added: “I am very excited to join Anthony Nolan and contribute to the common cause of saving lives. That is central to my work at Anthony Nolan through Inclusion and Diversity.
“Increasing the diversity of donors has a direct impact on saving lives, especially those from Asian and Black or minority ethnic background. Inclusion is key in making our services accessible to our patients and their families, and ensuring ethnicity, disability, religion or sexual orientation is not a barrier to patients receiving the care they deserve or our staff achieving their career aspirations.”
