Talks and Media – Mala Kumar

Upcoming Talks

For information about my 2024-25 book tour, go to the What It Meant to Survive page.

Past Major Speaking Engagements

November 2024

I was on Out in Tech New York’s inaugural panel about GenAI, talking about governance and policy. I spoke about how what it means to be LGBTQI+ working in GenAI, the role of international civil society, and how critical it is to employ representative people with the right expertise at tech companies that build these foundational technologies. ~200 people attended.

August 2024

I gave a talk at Cornell Tech for Berkeley RDI on the topic “Building a Global AI Safety Benchmark”. View the talk (~28:55 to 42:30) and panel (56:16 to 1:15:30) here.

March 2024

I presented at Tec de Monterrey in Mexico City on possible structures and major considerations of a new AI for Health Hub the university is creating. Several notable leaders in AI for Health at Harvard, Microsoft, the Mayo Clinic, and more, presented as well.

June 2023

I gave a main stage talk at the inaugural TechNExt conference in Sunderland, England on Wednesday, 21 June 2023 about using digital tech for social good.

March 2023

I organized and hosted a parallel event for the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 67) on 10 March 2023 in NYC, titled “Centering Women’s Equity in Digital Technology.” The event focused on digital technology solutions to three challenges that people who identify as women and girls disproportionately face globally: access to technology skills, online harassment and bullying, and gender-based violence.

Read more here

September 2022 – UNGA77

For the 77th UN General Assembly, I hosted and spoke at two side-events on open source programme offices (OSPOs) in the UN system and UNDP’s Digital Compass. The events were hosted in-person at Microsoft’s UN Affairs office in New York City and streamed online.

Read a wrap-up of GitHub’s UNGA77 engagement here

June 2022 – GLEAM @ Microsoft

I did a reading from my 2014 novel The Paths of Marriage for the first time in 6 years! I also spoke about my forthcoming novel, What it Meant to Survive, which will be published in October 2024 through Bywater Books.

May 2022 – TechFest

I gave the keynote speech at TechFest, a conference by it@cork in Cork, Ireland. The talk covered different ethical and social good disciplines in tech, examples from my past work, examples from my current work, and how business leaders can deepen, strengthen or even start their Tech for Social Good work.

April 2022 – DrupalCon Portland 2022

I was part of a keynote panel on “How to Combat Global Systems of Oppression in the Tech Industry,” where I spoke about how to align tech work with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), my work on open source for social good, and the realities of identity in the workplace. The panel was in person in Portland, Oregon.

September 2021 – UN General Assembly I was on the panel titled “From Open Source to Open Culture” as part of a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) 76 side event, where I spoke on the differences of open source in the UN system versus open source generally. My section starts around 1:05:15 and I answer a question later. Click here to watch

December 2020 – GitHub Universe

One of the GitHub Tech for Social Good programs I started and lead is a long-term engagement with the World Health Organization. This panel was part of the GitHub Universe 2020 conference, and highlights some of WHO’s technology work around early detection, verification and risk assessments of pandemics.

May 2020 – GitHub Satellite In this talk, I organized and moderated a panel on open source solutions and considerations of COVID-19 pandemic responses. The talk highlights the work of Tech Salon, Dimagi’s CommCare, the Africa COVID-19 Response Toolkit and Simprints. *I expanded Open Source for Good to Tech for Social Good in July 2020.

November 2019 – GitHub Universe This talk focuses on initial research findings of a research project that eventually yielded the Open Source Software in the Social Sector report. *I expanded Open Source for Good to Tech for Social Good in July 2020.

October 2019 – KIKK Festival

I gave an extended version of my talk “Substantive Tech”, which is a concept I developed arguing how and why design commonly used in private, corporate tech can be applied to the world’s most pressing issues. KIKK is an annual festival in Namur, Belgium.

October 2019 – PUSH UX

September 2018 – Nordic.design I spoke at Nordic.design about “Substantive Tech” in Stockholm, Sweden in September 2018. Click here to view the slide deck. (Best viewed in presentation mode) and watch the recording on YouTube to the left/above.

In the Media, other past Conferences and Podcast Appearances

December 2024 – Bay Area Reporter wrote about What It Meant to Survive, calling it a “must read for people overcoming post-traumatic stress disorder and survivor’s guilt.”
November 2024 – I wrote about queerness and immigration for the British publication, QX magazine.
October 2024 – I wrote an Op-Ed about the mass shooting, the Virginia Tech Massacre, for The Advocate.
April 2024 – I was a panelist on a panel about tech for social good at ProgramEquity’s Gala.
March 2024 – I was lead discussant for a Tech Salon on “How Can Senior Leaders Better Understand Generative AI?” Summary coming soon.
March 2024 – I read from my second novel – What it Meant to Survive – and spoke on a panel at the Sinner and Saints literary festival.
February 2024 – In January 2024, I joined the Board of Directors of the nonprofit, Radiant Earth. Check out this blog post of an interview they did with me about my career and why I joined the board.
October 2023 – I spoke at Morgan Stanley in NYC about AI for social good / public health as part of their tech summit.
September 2023 – I spoke on a panel titled “Stories by Queer Authors” at the Aangan Lit Fest in NYC.
September 2023 – I was on a virtual panel hosted by the Golden Crown Literary Society about people of color authors who write sapphic literature. Watch the video recording here.
August 2023 – I spoke on a panel titled “Building for Impact” at Morgan Stanley’s HQ for the Tech for Good Symposium. Click here to read more.
June 2023 – I was on a panel as part of Nasdaq’s LGBTQ Leader’s Conference. The panel focused on South Asian LGBTQ intersectional experiences. I also read from my first novel, The Paths of Marriage.
June 2023 – Social Ketchup is reading The Paths of Marriage this pride month!
June 2023 – Moderator, Complexity of Pandemics: Embracing Open Source Solutions for the World Health organization, Berlin.
May 2023 – I was a guest speaker for the Good Data Institute’s Data for Good cohort.
May 2023 – TechNExt Festival to take over the North East in June
March 2023 – My episode, “Opportunities, barriers, and trends in open source solutions” was the top listed on the ICT4D Conference podcast.
July 2022 – HocTok, a creative arts publication based in Brooklyn, interviewed me about my forthcoming novel, What it Meant to Survive. Read here.
June 2022 – Speaker on the RightsCon panel for the Digital Public Goods Alliance
May 2022 – Business Post, an Irish publication, published my article about how the tech industry can help address global societal issues. Read here.
May 2022 – Cork Chamber wrote a conference recap of IT@Cork, at which I was the keynote speaker.
April 2022 – The Drop Times wrote an article about DrupalCon 2022 and the keynote panel in which I participated.
March 2022 – Moderator and Speaker on MozFest OSS in LMICs and the MERL Center panels
December 2021 – Moderator and organizer, Internet Governance Forum 2021, Poland
October 2021 – Speaker at the Microsoft Research Summit, remote
October 2021 – Speaker at GitHub Universe 2021
September 2021 – Speaker at OSPOcon, remote
March 2021 – Speaker on Open Source Programme Offices (OSPOs) in government, OpenForum Europe
January 2021 – On the DIAL podcast, Pulse on the Principles, I discussed designing products and programs for people of a minority SOGIE. Listen here.
October 2020 – I discussed the barriers, opportunities and challenges of open source in the social sector on the ICT4D Conference podcast. Listen here on Spotify.
June 2020 – Book Riot featured The Paths of Marriage for Pride 2020 reading. Check out the list here.
June 2018 – The Teal Mango featured The Paths of Marriage for Pride 2018! Check out the complete list here.
September 2017 -Autostraddle contributor Priya Arora compiled a list of 10 South Asian LGBTQ books that changed her life. The Paths of Marriage was number four on the list.
May 2017 – Indian Women’s Blog featured The Paths of Marriage in a list of must-read Indian queer fiction books, writing the book deals with the dilemma of coming out in Indian families “beautifully.”
April 2016 -The Guardian published Mala’s article on how women of color need better representation in ICT4D work of UN, INGO and non-profit organizations. Click here to read.
April 2016 and August 2015 – Devex spoke with Mala on the mapping platform she’s designing that will help LGBTQI UN staff understand local workplace culture and context to make informed decisions about their careers, and will help policy/HR decision makers better advocate for staff. Read the piece here. Devex interviewed Mala on the work she is doing with major partner organizations, including Fordham Law School and the UN, on LGBTQI rights within international development. The work is addressing staff and stakeholder mainstreaming challenges. Click here to read the piece.
November 2015 – Click here to read Mala’s article on how initiatives to diversify the the tech industry need more action and less buzz. The article was on the frontpage of TechCrunch.
April 2015 – As part of the #InTheirWords campaign, USA Today interviewed Mala on issues related to the LGBT community in the States and abroad ahead of the US Supreme Court decision that happened in June 2015. Links to videos:
South Asian | This moment in history | State and federal | Supreme Court | State bans | Discrimination
November and December 2014 – Mala’s Op-Ed was the main feature of the front page of The Advocate. Click here to read why she quit her job with the UN.
May 2015 – Curve Magazine gave The Paths of Marriage a fantastic review, saying, “A thoughtful and interesting journey, punctuated with personal dramas and enough pace to keep it moving along, this is an excellent novel.” Click here to read the review.
February 2015 – Philanthropy expert Venkatesh Raghavendra interviewed Mala on gay rights and the Indian/Indian diaspora community on CNN India (IBN Live). Click here to read.
April 2016 – Ahead of the first Unit Festival in Berlin, Red Herring reached out to Mala for comments on unpacking gender from the LGBTQI diversity issue in tech companies. Click here to read the article.
June 2015 – ndia.com (US edition) interviewed Mala on what it was like coming out as a South Asian person, and the concept of The Paths of Marriage. Click here to read the interview.
May 2015 – Kindle India picked The Paths of Marriage as one of the top books about Chennai as part of their #KindleSummerHoliday campaign.
May 2015 and October 2014 – As part of New School Alumni Day, Mala was one of only three alumni to speak alongside faculty at the New School Minute lecture series. Click here to view the blog post. In October 2014, Mala was interviewed by her grad school alma mater, The New School in New York City. Click here to read.
March – May 2015 – Coming out can be scary and confusing for a lot of Desi kids. Click here to read Mala’s coming out to her parents story. Click here to read a letter to those who DesiQ people who have and will reach out.Review of The Paths of Marriage by Brown Girl Magazine. Click here to read.
April 2015 – The Paths of Marriage was the featured story on ANIMAL. Click here to read the post on resolving the gay identity rift between NYC and India.
April 2015 – Mala and Tanwi Nandini Islam were interviewed for their work on sexuality and LGBTQ rights at the 2015 SAWCC Literary Festival. Click here to read.
September 2014 and April 2015 – Click here to read Mala’s post “A Real Heart-to-Heart with my Grandmother” on The Aerogram.
Click here to read Mala’s post on “Queer Desi Reflections on the Meaning of Marriage” on The Aerogram. Click here to read an excerpt of The Paths of Marriage on the The Aerogram
March 2015 – Ahead of the first The Paths of Marriage event of the year, GayRVA magazine interviewed Mala on being queer in the south and being south Asian and queer. Click here to read the article.
December 2014 – Mala was interviewed by Style Weekly on her decision to leave the UN, how high school influenced her, and more. Click here to read.
December 2014 – Mala was interviewed with Women LEAD in the Inspiring Women Leader Series. Click here to read.
November 2014 – Girls’ Globe interviewed Mala as part of their series on 16 days of activism against gender-based violence. Click here to read.
November 2014 – The American Bazaar interviewed Mala on being Indian and coming out. Click here to read the interview.
August 2014 – The New York Times nameed Chennai as one of the top destinations to visit in 2014. Indian Link named The Paths of Marriage as one of the books to read about Chennai. Click here to read. e