*CONTENT* Sunday 4 october 2015 *BUSINESS SESSION – DIVERSITY & GENDER INCLUSION* Diversity and gender inclusion : paving the way for better business *KEYNOTE SPEAKERS* Dr.Mirjam Mayer Gillian Tett *Monday 5 october 2015* *BUSINESS SESSION – OFFICIAL OPENING* Hydrocarbons and the chemical industry : Shaping a better world together *Thuesday 6 october 2015* *LOGISTICS AND SUPPLY CHAIN LEADER’S WORKSHOP* Black gold volatility and chemical supply chains : The way forward *Thuesday 6 october 2015* *CLOSING LUNCH SESSION* Anders Fogh Rasmussen : The changing geopolitical situation and the impact of energy *TOM CROTTY* EPCA President INEOS GROUP *SUNDAY 4 OCTOBER 2015BUSINESS SESSION* DIVERSITY & GENDER INCLUSION *DIVERSITY AND GENDER INCLUSION: PAVING THE WAY FOR BETTER BUSINESS* *NADINE DEREZA* Moderator We elcoming delegates to this session, EPCA president and INEOS director, Tom Crotty explained that this session’s origins lay in the previous annual meeting, which had focused on talent and technology and indicated that the industry would be excluding talent if it did not embrace diversity and inclusion. “At last year’s annual meeting, we had our first session on diversity, which was really well received, and generated great feedback and enthusiasm,” he continued. “So the EPCA board decided to create a Talent and Diversity Inclusion Council (TDIC), which has been established this year.” Its role is to help EPCA make the business case for diversity and inclusion, identify best practices from within the chemical sector and beyond, and to support the industry in attracting the talent needed to deliver the innovative and sustainable solutions expected by customers and stakeholders. As one of its first actions, the Council commissioned McKinsey & Company to provide a baseline survey of the state of diversity and gender inclusion in the European industry, Crotty said. This survey was undertaken during the summer, and the headline findings would be revealed in the first presentation of the session. Before introducing the session’s speakers, conference moderator, Nadine Dereza, reiterated the contribution that can be made by diversity and inclusion in paving the way for better businesses. “Change doesn’t happen without ideas, so why exclude the talent that might have those ideas?” she asked. Far better she suggested, to embrace diversity and inclusion in order “to build innovative, resilient businesses that can withstand disruptions of all kinds.” *“Change doesn’t happen without ideas, so why exclude the talent that might have those ideas?”*