Game Changers 2021: Part Three

Legal The GamesIndustry.biz Game Changers is an initiative that profiles individuals and organisations making progress in vital areas like diversity, accessibility, charity, mental health, progressive politics, lifting emerging markets, uniting communities, and more — people whose stories can show us how this industry can be that better and more inclusive place.Below are the second wave of 2021’s Game Changers, with more to follow every working day, with a full wrap-up coming later this month. Find previous articles and more about this project here.Stephanie Ijoma, NNESAGAYou often hear that you need to be the change you want to see, and that’s exactly what Stephanie Ijoma did.Stephanie Ijoma, NNESAGAIn 2015, she found herself frustrated as she didn’t see anyone who looked like or represented her in the games space. So she founded NNESAGA to be a safe and inclusive hub for players to celebrate their love of gaming. Ijoma wanted to help Black people and other marginalized communities find opportunities as well.”I tried to get into the games industry myself,” she says. “Our mission is to prioritise diversity and inclusion by creating training, inclusive gaming events, panels and workshops to implement permanent solutions for permanent change.” With these goals in mind, NNESAGA has become one of the UK’s leading Black entertainment platforms dedicated to DEI for games, comics, and anime, with Ijoma serving as CEO.The platform offers services such as DEI consulting, production, events management, content creation, community management, workshops, and more.”We want to make sure that we champion diversity, inclusion and representation not only in the UK, but globally too,” Ijoma adds. Since its creation, NNESAGA has gone on to regularly work with a number of brands and has been featured for the work that the platform has done, and continues to do, for the underrepresented.”Share the word, create and include us in the spaces that were also meant for us” Stephanie IjomaIjoma was running the company on her own until a year ago when she expanded the business with a media team to assist her with content creation and management. She is also represented by talent agency CAA, who helps her look after the business overall.”I am naturally hyper-independent so it was hard to let go and give away responsibilities that I can already do,” she says. “However, when building an empire, it’s going to take more than me, so I am really happy to now have a growing team who believe in the vision.”When speaking about how to support the organization, she says it’s just about letting people know about it and spreading the word. It’s also about creating long lasting working relationships and not just checking off diversity boxes. The catchphrase NNESAGA has often used online to describe the platform’s work is “impact over numbers.””Listen to not just my voice but the voices we are representing. The underrepresented. Hire NNESAGA to consult and help execute better and more meaningful campaigns. Share the word, create and include us in the spaces that were also meant for us. Lastly, look past
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