InspireTalks – talks on innovation and gender equality

21 October – 27 November

Published Oct 06, 2025

InspireTalks is a series of lectures exploring the connections between technological development, innovation, gender, and gender equality. We meet researchers and practitioners working toward a more equal, inclusive, and sustainable society. Some are already well known to a broader audience, while others are soon to be. The time is always 12:10–12:50. Feel free to bring your lunch sandwich!

Katrine Kielos

21 October, 12.10–12.50

How do gender norms shape our view of innovation and a society’s collective capacity for innovation? Meet the journalist and author behind international bestsellers such as Mother of Invention and Who Cooked Adam Smith’s Dinner?

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

The event is primarily intended for students, researchers, and staff at KTH. Everyone else will be able to watch the lecture via livestream.

Amir Payberah

4 November, 12.10–12.50

How can we reimagine AI systems to confront structural erasures, such as marginalized voices, invisible labor, and environmental harm, by building them WITH communities rather than FOR communities? Meet the KTH researcher who translated Data Feminism into Farsi.

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

Arvid Norman

6 November, 12.10–12.50

What do equality, diversity, and social sustainability have to do with construction and property development? Meet the head of HR and communications at Skanska CDN (Commercial Development Nordic), who is passionate about “building for a better society”.

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

Madeline Balaam & Alejandra Gomez Ortega

11 November, 12.10–12.50

What if a photobooth could help grasp the dangers of the creation and spread of deepfake pornography against someone's will? Meet the KTH researchers aiming to develop more inclusive and ethical forms of digital consent. A prototype of the photo booth will be available on-site.

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

Allyson Zimmermann

13 November, 12.10–12.50

How do international companies navigate a world where gender equality, diversity, and inclusion are both a competitive necessity and an increasingly politicized topic? Meet the CEO of LEAD who supports companies and drives gender equality in a tech-focused European business landscape.

Location: Plattan, Lindstedtsvägen 30

Ericka Johnson

18 November, 12.10–12.50

How can equality, justice, and fair conditions be integrated into AI technology? Meet the Professor of Gender and Technology from Linköping University who leads Just?Tech, a cross-disciplinary think tank, and whose latest book is titled How the Robot Made Me Feel (2025).

Location: Plattan, Lindstedtsvägen 30

Amie Kromis

20 November, 12.10–12.50

How is gender equality and inclusion in the workplace connected to gender equality and inclusion in the marketplace, and why does it matter to a world leading health and hygiene company? Meet Amie Kromis, a self-proclaimed “tech nerd” who recently moved from US to Sweden to lead Essity’s global DEI agenda.

Location: Plattan, Lindstedtsvägen 30

Karin Ehrnberger

25 November, 12.10–12.50

Does “smart homes” allow us to be more in control or more controlled? What is the role of gender and what can we learn from an intersectional perspective? Meet KTH’s master of norm-critical design, whose works (e.g., The Mega Hurricane Mixer and The Andro Chair) both stir debate and end up in prestigious museums.

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

Matilda Larsson

27 November, 12.10–12.50

Birth injuries still affect too many women in Sweden and worldwide, and historically, they were ignored. Meet the KTH researcher developing ground-breaking ultrasound technology to prevent childbirth injuries.

Location: Arenan, Teknikringen 1

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