As our region continues to grow and change, the question is not just how we grow but how we grow together. What does it take to ensure that progress strengthens opportunity, belonging, and community outcomes for everyone?
In recognition of Diversity Awareness Month this April, Partners in Diversity in partnership with the City of Vancouver invites you to a Lunch & Learn panel exploring the growth, challenges, and opportunities shaping diverse our communities in Portland and Vancouver. As diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEI-B) strategies continue to evolve across sectors, this timely conversation will explore what is producing positive outcomes, where gaps remain, and how broader shifts in DEI efforts are impacting on communities. We will also explore what is needed to advance equity and belonging across both cities.
Panelists will highlight organizations and individuals contributing to community progress, share relevant data and local insights, and discuss opportunities for collaboration to strengthen regional impact. Hear from local leaders driving meaningful change, discover existing initiatives you can support, and explore how each city can show up for the other as sister communities.
Together, we’ll explore:
Join us for an engaging conversation designed to deepen understanding, spark collaboration, and identify actionable next steps for advancing belonging across our region. Join us to learn, connect, and be part of shaping a more inclusive and empowered regional community.
Meet our Panelists:
Moderator: Phil Chun is the founder of Polaris Leadership Consulting, where he does one thing: turn mission-driven organizations' best individual contributors into their best managers. He works with leaders in organizations who were promoted for their expertise and now need to grow into their leadership roles. Phil is an ICF credentialed coach, a 2025 Portland Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree, and a core team member of TEDxPortland.
Lori Stegmann joined the Department of County Human Services at Multnomah County as the Youth & Family Services Division Director in January 2025. She oversees the Domestic and Sexual Violence Coordination Office (DSVCO), Bienestar de la Familia, the Schools Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) Service System, Energy Services, Housing Stability, and the 1115 Medicaid Waiver Rental Assistance Program. Previously Lori served as the District 4 (East County), Multnomah County Commissioner for eight years, serving the same community she grew up in. Her accomplishments include the siting and building of the flagship East County Library in Gresham, the Vance Vision, and the Construction Diversity and Equity Fund and countless other policies and investments to increase economic mobility for marginalized community members. She also continues to serve as an elected official as chair of the Flood Safety District. Lori is the first Korean and Asian American elected to the Multnomah County Board in 172 years which resulted in the first majority-minority Board of Commissioners. She served as Vice Chair in 2019 and 2022. She brings over 30 years of private sector experience as a previous small business owner as well as her lived experience as an immigrant, an adoptee, and a proud Korean American.
Siobhana R. “Q” McEwen (they/she) serves as the Executive Director of the Southwest Washington Equity Coalition (SWEC) and the Love and Justice Alliance (LJA), organizations they helped build alongside community leaders and organizers in Southwest Washington. As a clinically trained social worker turned policy and advocacy strategist, Q centers anti-racist organizing, equitable policy development, and community-rooted engagement in all aspects of their work. Their leadership and service have been recognized with numerous awards, including the University of Washington School of Social Work Early Career Achievement Award, runner-up for the national Rothman Award for Structural Change, and two Navy Achievement Medals. Yet, Q names their most meaningful achievement as mentoring emerging leaders of color—many of whom now serve on city, county, and statewide boards and commissions across Washington. Described as a joyful disrupter, Q is known to crack dad jokes in serious meetings, laugh with their whole belly, and challenge systems with direct, functional feedback—solicited or otherwise. They hold themself and those around them to standards rooted in anti-racism, fierce love, compassion, and accountability. Q is a bi-racial spouse, parent, sibling, veteran, and community member who believes cultural connection and collective care are essential to liberation. They live in Vancouver, Washington, with their wife, five-year-old son, thirteen-year-old niece, and their two dogs, Moxxie and Alberta Gene.
As the City of Vancouver Washington’s Director of Engagement and Access, Joy Fowler is responsible for the direction of the city’s community and employee engagement along with establishing accessibility throughout the city. She has introduced a new initiative that strengthens their belonging efforts, titled Vancouver for All. Joy serves as an advisor to the Mayor, City Managers and leadership team, while ensuring Vancouver for All is infused throughout our culture, strategies and goals. With over 12 years’ experience leading this work, Joy has a dedicated focus - providing leadership, strategy and vision around equity, inclusion, access and belonging for all Vancouver residents and employees. Joy has previously led similar efforts at Multnomah County and the Port of Portland in Oregon as well as Umpqua Bank (now Columbia Bank) in five states, which includes Washington. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, The Links, Incorporated - Portland (OR) Chapter, and co-founder of A MIRacle Foundation, that supports special needs children throughout the Pacific NW. She enjoys traveling and spending time with family!
Jeff Selby (he/him) is the new Executive Director of the Oregon Advocacy Commissions Office, leading staff who support the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs, Oregon Commission for Women, Oregon Commission on Black Affairs, and Oregon Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs. Prior to joining the State of Oregon in March 2026, Jeff was the Director of the City of Portland’s Office of Equity and Human Rights for over three of his 13 years at the bureau, where he coached and led staff, and guided City leadership, elected leaders, and City staff in equity policy and practice. Jeff’s diverse leadership experience includes roles with the U.S. Army, Walt Disney Company, Clackamas Community College, and the City of Lake Oswego. His work is informed by his intersectional identities and lived experience as a first generation Japanese American and a disabled combat veteran with ten years of service in the U.S. Army. His social justice experience is rooted in his lifelong involvement with the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), where he served as Portland Chapter President for two terms. He has also volunteered with Partners in Diversity, Western States Center, Japan America Society of Oregon, the Japanese American Museum of Oregon, and served on the Board of Directors of MRG Foundation (now Seeding Justice) for two terms.
Bruce E. Hagensen Community Room
