SPEAK founder: VALERIA

“My name is Valeria. I was born in Mexico but life brought me to Portugal, and I love it here. I am a designer, traveler, dreamer and now a social entrepreneur. I have always been interested in other cultures, so when the opportunity arose to be an advocate for diversity, I took it. I believe since we are all humans and there is much more that unites that what sets us apart; we have more in common than what stereotypes allow us to see.
When I moved to Portugal, I thought it would be easy, but I had to overcome some challenges. Eventually, I made friends and learned the language and now I love the country that I chose to live in and I feel at home in my new city. I want to make other people feel at home, too!”

SPEAK founder: Sofia

I’m Sofia, I was born and grew up in Almada and I am proud to live on “The right side of the river”, as the famous song says.

I always thought I would become a lawyer one day. However, I ended up graduating in Social Work and since then I have not stopped fighting for social rights. I am part of the Maense Association in Portugal and I do volunteer work as a coordinator of a literacy project to Cape Verdean women over 40 years old.

I have also a passion for traveling and knowing different cultures, trying to discover new worlds and get to know different people. I did Erasmus in Italy where I lived for 6 months and I was part of a very interesting project called Aperitivo Inglese, where the entire student community gathered around a table to share some food and get to know each other, sharing their own languages and working on interpersonal relationships.

This experience happened every Thursday and became one of our passions and I realized that sharing your culture and getting to know different people through their stories and traditions is a powerful tool for social integration.

SPEAK founder: Chloé and Nicolas

Chloé studied Communications in Leuven (Belgium) and Global Studies in Göteborg (Sweden). Interested in globalisation and the ways that it is affecting our world - uniting people in some ways, dividing them in others - together with a passion for travelling, learning languages and meeting new people, make launching SPEAK in Brussels an exciting next step to take. 

Nicolas studied Interior Design in Brussels but has worked since mainly in the field of real estate. As an asset manager he has been responsible to develop projects and increase the financial and human value of existing projects. He decided to follow his main interest and focus for the future more on the human capital and diversity. Having lived in and experienced a variety of countries and local cultures in Europe, and with a passion for travelling and getting to know people with a very diverse background, he is now eager to help integrate them.

SPEAK founder: Khuloud

Khuloud is an amazing Syrian entrepreneur who finished her Masters in Engineering in Portugal. She’s passionate about SPEAK and she is the founder of a new SPEAK City.