Founder Interview With Ali Kane, ALK Consulting
Photo Credit: ALK Consulting
Ali Kane (she/they) is the Founder of ALK Consulting, a consultancy dedicated to fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) across organizations. Launched in December 2022, ALK Consulting stems from Ali's dual passions: a career journey blending storytelling and nonprofit fundraising, alongside a deeply rooted commitment to DEI. Drawing from personal experiences of feeling different from others as a left-handed redhead kid, coupled with the influence of her mother's career as a special education teacher, Ali's upbringing instilled in her a profound respect for diversity and compassion.
During our interview, Ali recounts pivotal moments at New England Botanic Garden, where her DEI lens bloomed. At the garden, she learned the importance of increasing accessibility for all people to make cultural institutions more approachable, which catalyzed her mission to create inclusive spaces through her own small business. ALK Consulting offers tailored DEI workshops and strategies, empowering organizations to implement meaningful change. While Ali integrates her identity as a genderqueer, bisexual person into her work, she also values collaboration with other consultants who can speak to identities other than her own, ensuring diverse perspectives and experiences are represented. Let’s dive in!
Can you walk us through your professional journey and how you got to where you are today?
My journey has been shaped by two converging stories. The first is my career story: it began with a love of storytelling, a talent for organizing, and a desire to understand how things work. This passion initially led me to Los Angeles, where I wanted to become an independent film producer. However, I soon realized this path wasn't what I envisioned, so I began leveraging my communication and operations skills in the nonprofit fundraising space.
Then there is the DEI story. As a redhead and a left-handed person, I always understood my difference from others and it was always pointed out to me. In addition, my mother was a deeply compassionate person and instilled in me a strong sense of respect and consideration for others. Through her work as a special education teacher in a school system where most kids had less privilege than I did, I was aware of learning differences, non-nuclear families, and socio-economics from a young age, but no one was calling that DEI back then. For my mom, it was about her deep sense of compassion and commitment to helping others.
In high school, I was deeply committed to the yearbook, not as a popularity contest but as a way to capture what it meant to be a high schooler at that time. I saw it as a catalog of a moment in history, a responsibility I took seriously. Observing and documenting people and events has always fascinated me, and I felt a duty to serve the community in this way. My journey began with this unique perspective on the world, realizing I had a responsibility to speak up. This mindset has become ingrained in me to the point where I can't ignore it, which can sometimes be frustrating as I often wonder why others aren't on the same page. But I understand now that it’s a privilege and a blessing, a mindset instilled by my mom, and one I’ve embraced as part of my identity and work.
In my work at New England Botanic Garden as an executive assistant and later development manager, I began to recognize that my DEI lens was incredibly unique. This was also when I realized that the strength and passion I had always prioritized now had a name: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), which I continue to prioritize with every professional move I make.
What inspired you to offer the services you provide?
I owe it all to my colleague, Trisha! At the Garden, while preparing for some Pride activities that I was leading or supporting, Trisha mentioned an allyship workshop she had attended in college and suggested we hold a similar one at the Garden. Together, we held our first LGBTQ+ 101 session in the summer of 2017, and it still serves as the foundation of my workshops.
Over the years, colleagues learned that I provided these workshops at the Garden, so I began offering them occasionally to other organizations. When a colleague reached out over a year after our initial conversation to set up a workshop, I realized this was a critical need, especially in the nonprofit and museum space. As a result, ALK Consulting was officially born in December 2022.
Can you share more about your journey at New England Botanic Garden to where you are today at ALK Consulting?
I grew up visiting New England Botanic Garden, a place special to my family because there's an area inside the garden dedicated to my grandmother. Our visits became less frequent as I grew older, but at a pivotal moment in my life, I realized film was not my passion. Instead, I saw a connection between film and nonprofit work: both aim to change lives and make a meaningful impact. My grandfather, still connected to the garden, suggested an informational interview that exposed me to nonprofit work. I interned at the garden and, after grad school, joined full-time, focusing on making the garden more inclusive and accessible.
My background in museums and cultural institutions, combined with my experiences at Equality California and various campaigns in college, shaped my commitment to inclusivity. At the garden, I worked to ensure families of all makeups felt welcome. The garden's openness to conversations and willingness to implement changes inspired me, and they became a beacon of LGBTQ+ inclusion, especially for staff. I often recommend the garden to job seekers because of their inclusive environment.
Realizing that not every institution could offer such opportunities for impact, I founded ALK Consulting. This gives me the opportunity to help organizations that want to make meaningful changes but lack the resources or internal expertise. It’s a joy to learn about different organizations and apply my experiences from the garden to various industries, including for-profits and financial companies, demonstrating that all can benefit from inclusive practices.
What is one of the biggest challenges you have faced in your journey as a service provider, and what did you do to overcome this?
One of the most significant challenges I've faced as a service provider was taking that initial leap into entrepreneurship. Overcoming my own imposter syndrome was crucial. Despite knowing there were others already doing similar work, I realized the importance of reaching out to build a supportive network. Connecting with fellow LGBTQIA+ inclusion practitioners not only alleviated my doubts but also underscored the value of collaboration in our field. Recognizing that diverse voices are essential in shaping a more inclusive world helped me embrace my unique perspective and expertise.
As ALK Consulting has grown over the past 18 months, I've actively pursued partnerships. For example, I am collaborating with a local community health center focused on gender-affirming care. Through collaboration, I also understand the limitations of my own experience, which is why I refer clients to other experts with different backgrounds. I typically refer clients to other DEI consultants for racial equity workshops, for instance, because it’s important that work is led by people with lived experience that I do not have.
"Ultimately, this journey has reinforced my belief in collective action within the DEI space. By fostering relationships and sharing insights, we amplify our impact and empower more organizations to adopt inclusive practices. Each collaboration strengthens our community’s ability to drive real, lasting change, aligning with our shared commitment to equity and justice."
Photo Credit: ALK Consulting
If you could give one piece of advice to future LGBTQ+ service providers within your field, what would it be?
Be your authentic self! Our authenticity, in all its forms, helps us stand out from the crowd and attract supporters who might otherwise not have felt validated. It also makes our day-to-day life easier; when you aren’t putting on a mask or code-switching, you have more mental energy to focus on what truly matters. Also, when I know I’m supporting other queer people, I feel my entire being relax. I know that this is someone who will understand my experience personally or through our community. However, incorporating my identity into my work is essential for me, which might not be as easy for other service providers.
How does being openly LGBTQ+ inspire or impact your business?
Being able to share my experience as a genderqueer, bisexual person allows me to connect to workshop participants and other clients on a personal level. I’m able to draw on my own story with relevant examples that resonate. Being part of the queer community also ensures that I’m connected to a network of diverse individuals that have provided their own insights into my work, making sure that I showcase a spectrum of experiences and identities.
Can you share something you’ve been able to learn recently from the community or someone you’ve worked with?
Two instances come to mind that challenged my assumptions and broadened my understanding of inclusion work, particularly related to generational differences. Recently, I had the opportunity to work with a museum, engaging with volunteers, board members, and staff, many of whom were older. Initially, I had implicit biases about how receptive they would be to new ideas. However, I used the same presentation I give to all groups to ensure it was accessible and impactful. This approach fostered thoughtful conversations where individuals expressed fears of making mistakes but showed a genuine desire to learn the right way to be inclusive. This experience highlighted the importance of creating open spaces for learning, regardless of age.
On the opposite end of the generational spectrum, I've also been invited to speak with high school students. Although I don't have children and typically don't interact with younger generations, I found these engagements incredibly rewarding. I delivered the same presentation I give to CEOs, adjusting only the terminology to fit their context. The feedback from these students was overwhelmingly positive and this experience underscored the potential to be a role model for younger individuals and showed me that impactful connections can be made across generations.
What brands or services by LGBTQ+ founders are your go-to's and why?
As an inclusion consultant, it’s important for me to continuously learn and collaborate with other advocates in the space. I’m committed to listening to my own community and doing my own research, which also means listening to others. Gender Specialist Rebecca Minor and consultant Charlie Ocean have been my go-to role models to learn from.
Who is your favorite LGBTQ+ celebrity?
Laura Jane Grace, the frontwoman for Against Me!, is my favorite LGBTQ+ icon. The punk scene has always been a space for outsiders, but also has been generally a male-dominated space of both fans and musicians. However, Laura helped me see space in the punk community as an AFAB person and also create space for queer people of all genders.
She continues to embrace a relatively androgynous style, but you can see the light in her being that is not there when you see pictures or videos of her when she was younger. Her interviews and memoir helped me understand that gender and punk rock are about finding space where you feel comfortable and demanding that space for others. Her vulnerable authenticity is inked in my skin as a raven tattoo around my wrist, and a symbol for perseverance.
Can you share one fun fact about yourself?
As an adult, I've been revisiting the American Girl brand by exploring the stories through an anti-racist and queer lens to better understand how they shaped my view of the world. I’ve also been growing my collection to connect with my inner child.
