Jul 31, 20233 min read

BERNIE DAVIES

Who are you?

My name is Bernie Davies, a person who has come through life learning the value of accomplishments and excelling by making a name for myself. However, those things are not enough to sustain us. I learnt that there are more important things in life that a lot of us lose sight of, such as being the best version of myself and that must come first. When I am the best version of myself and value that in others, coupled with my own achievements and the things that drive me, I believe that is when I stand in my purpose. In terms of what I do, I am a mother, wife, entrepreneur, publisher, diversity and inclusion expert, and lawyer.

Where did you get your drive from?

I grew up in Jamacia with parents from an academic background. I was raised with my 5 siblings, being the 4th there was a very strong group dynamic, and a lot of competition between us to excel. It was about securing your place through achievement, this is a normal thing within Jamaican culture, the desire to outdo one another and to be the very best you can be. We took academia very seriously; we were reminded every day that the only way is up, and we must work hard to reach positions that hold power. There was very little regard for trades, or skills requiring manual labour. The most important things like building character were not explored, so young people like me got derailed. Although I believe that that derailment taught me how to get back on the right path, by not valuing what I do, but who I am.

The competitiveness sounds exhausting, where does that come from?

I believe that it came from our very early days as a new country. For instance, if you look at some of the people from the Windrush, they had a horrendous experience when they arrived, most of who wanted to return home, but they were not prepared to return because it looked as though they had failed. The motherland was calling them, to live better lives, when most of them were high achievers and ended up doing manual jobs out of necessity. That necessity being, making it work in the UK, because it would have been shameful to return.

What are the business opportunities like in Jamaica?

There is an old saying that cream rises to the top. I believe that I can speak for myself, that in everything I do I commit to doing it with excellence. In whatever context I find myself, because of the Jamaican culture, you are not expected to stay where you started. If we look back at slavery, the mentality that was birthed out of that created a mindset, of freedom and opportunities for all. So, all the people who were trying to forge a new nation, saw development as the only way to do it. Progress in education was important, it was all about academia. Our examples, whereby the ruling class that came from other parts of the world, we looked up to them and believed education was the way out.

How do you think the world sees Jamacia?

The international press has a lot to answer for, they perpetrate a one-sided narrative and share information that is not a true reflection. Often when they report about Jamaica, they show a side that is not representative of hard-working people who want to achieve and excel, they often show the slums and people doing all kinds of unsavoury things, just like when they report on Africa, they show the poverty and deprivation, which is present in all countries at some level. They fail to show its fullness, the beauty the industrious attitude towards excellence and the development of its people.

Bernie, has launched a new book, called Mastering Diversity, and will be hosting the first ever Diversity and Inclusion conference in Wales. The conference is supported by the Welsh Government, as an advisor for Welsh Government, Bernie supports their aspirations for a more equal Wales. Bernie is passionate about young people and is open to visiting universities and schools, to be a positive representation to students and to be a support for schools, who want to improve their best practice in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.