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Speaking & Workshops
Words That Transform
Dr. Barbara Talley and Radiance Talley are available separately or together for keynote addresses, workshops, and poetry performances — bringing decades of wisdom, scholarship, and poetic power to every stage.
Engagement Formats
Every Format. Every Stage.
45–90 minutes
Keynote Address
A powerful, fully-prepared keynote tailored to your theme and audience — designed to open minds, stir hearts, and ignite action.
3–4 hours
Half-Day Workshop
An immersive, interactive experience that goes deeper than a keynote — with exercises, reflection, and group dialogue.
6–8 hours
Full-Day Workshop
A comprehensive transformational experience with multiple modules, breakout sessions, and lasting takeaways.
20–60 minutes
Poetry Performance
A live poetry performance — solo or together — that moves audiences through spoken word, music, and presence.
Custom
Multi-Day Retreat
A deeply immersive retreat experience combining keynotes, workshops, poetry, and personal reflection over multiple days.
Flexible
Virtual Engagement
All formats available virtually — with the same energy, depth, and impact delivered through a professional digital experience.
1–2 hours
Poetic Narrative Theater
A theatrical storytelling experience that weaves original poetry, personal narrative, and dramatic performance into a single, cohesive arc — ideal for galas, cultural events, and community gatherings.
The Griot Poet
Dr. Barbara Talley
45+ years of service across 22 countries and 44 states. Certified in HeartMath, Behavioral EQ, Social Styles, and Resilience. Montgomery College educator for 25+ years. Maryland Mother of the Year 2015.
Send an Inquiry
Interested in booking Dr. Barbara Talley for your next event, conference, or workshop? Reach out to start the conversation.
Send an InquiryDr. Barbara Talley is also launching new workshops on her Legacy Operating System and Hope Operating System — details coming soon.
Signature Workshops
Topics That Ignite Change
Understanding YOU — Understanding ME
TIME Management is SELF Management
How to Keep Your Cool When Your Emotional Hot Buttons Are Pressed
Superwoman Doesn't Live Here Anymore
On Track, On Fire, On Purpose
The Polished Professional
CrossWorlds (Non-verbal Communications / Diversity Interactive Game/Workshop)
Beyond Time Management — 7 Keys to High Quality Task Completion
Who You Are Speaks So Loudly, I Can't Hear You (Effective Communications)
Valuing Diversity — R.E.S.P.E.C.T — Find Out What It Means to Me!
Mapping Your Professional Journey
Strategies for Survival in Non-Nurturing Environments
Training Areas
Keynote & Workshop Topics
Topics That Inspire Reflection and Action
Unmasking the Dark Side of Cinema: How Movies Romanticize Toxic Relationships
Why do so many novels and movies teach kids, teens, and young adults to reframe control and predatory behavior as protection — and confuse instability and obsession with love? In this multimedia presentation, Radiance unmasks how movies and shows romanticize toxic relationships, highlights warning signs of abusive relationships, and shares concrete examples of sexual harassment, giving attendees tools to recognize and respond to these behaviors in real life.
Benevolent vs. Hostile Sexism: Exploring the Intersection of Race and Gender
Through historical insights, extensive research, personal stories, spiritual reflection, and original poetry, Radiance explores how sexism wears two faces — one openly hostile, the other deceptively kind — and how both are shaped by race. She uncovers the damaging stereotypes that silence, punish, and erase Black women and raises awareness of the dangerous aftermath of misogynoir.
Unpacking Manipulation: Exploring the Different Types of Gaslighting
In this interactive multimedia presentation, Radiance digs into the many types of gaslighting, revealing how it shows up in everyday life, how systemic racism, sexism, and medical injustice use it against marginalized communities, and how to combat it.
Moving From Mistrust to Trust: What Will It Take?
Radiance explores the different types of safety people need to feel secure, the various forms of social support that sustain relationships, and the essential steps of an effective apology that actually heals. Through interactive exercises and practical frameworks, attendees learn how trust erodes and how sincerity and intentional action can mend what's been broken.
How Going Vegan Can Help Save the World
In this multimedia presentation, Radiance explores how veganism is a commitment to living responsibly across multiple dimensions: human rights, environmental stewardship, public health, global equity, compassion, and climate action.
What Is a Supreme Effort?: A Guide to Anti-Racist Advocacy
Radiance details the various types and levels of allyship, explores the supreme effort required to combat racism and achieve racial harmony, and offers practical tips for being a better advocate for racial justice in daily life.
Poet & Speaker
Radiance Talley
Writer, poet, speaker, editor, designer, and SEO specialist. Former director of operations at BahaiTeachings.org. Edited for the Kennedy Center and researched and wrote for the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. University of Maryland graduate with a journalism cognate and public health studies in London, Paris, and Berlin. Featured on CNN, NPR, Rainn Wilson's Baha'i Blogcast, and Sean Hinton's Moments of Meaning. Performs at the One Planet Summit, Gratitude Network Summit, and ARISE conferences worldwide.
Book RadianceWhat We Offer
Poetic Narrative Theater Programs
Six thematic tracks — each a fully realized performance and workshop experience designed to move audiences from reflection to action.
Spiritual Foundation & Spiritual Reparations
Spirituality: Vision, Values, Virtues
- —From Otherness to Oneness: One God, One Race, One Unfolding Religion
- —Spiritual REPAIRations
- —Spiritual Preparedness for Our Forever Home
Children, Youth & The Next Generation
- —Define or Be Defined: The Simba Moment
- —SETUP: Self-Esteem for Teens Under Pressure
- —What Can I Do? The Villager's Guide for Raising Morally Responsible Children
- —They Called Us Names: Stories We Survived
- —Miseducation in the Media, Entertainment Industry, and School System
Combatting Erasure & Cultural Repair
- —Say Their Names, Speak Your Truth — A Poetic Narrative on Race, Resistance, Hope, and Healing
- —Remember, Reclaim, Restore: The Path Back to Identity, Hope, and Healing
- —Combatting Erasure / Words Create Worlds: Reclaiming Identity Under Erasure
Race & Justice
- —Justice First, Justice Now: Dismantling Forms of Oppression (Historical, Systemic, and Present Day)
- —Diagnostic and Repair: Tools and Language for Better Race Relations
- —ERACE — Unraveling Race and Racism
Sexism, Women's Rights & Women's Empowerment
- —Misogynoir and the Different Types of Sexism
- —SuperWoman Doesn't Live Here Anymore
- —Self-Love and Healthy Boundaries
Mental Health, Healing & Hope
- —Mental Health: Isolation, Depression, The Mask, Hope, Healing
- —Hope: Fulfilling Your Dreams
- —Restoring Hope: Strategies for Survival in Non-Nurturing Environments
Who We Serve
Every Audience. Every Stage.
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Corporations & Organizations
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Universities & Colleges
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Faith Communities
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Government Agencies
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Nonprofits & NGOs
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Healthcare Institutions
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K–12 Schools
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Community Organizations
Book them together
Double the Impact
Experience the rare power of a mother-daughter duo on stage together — weaving scholarship, lived wisdom, and poetic performance into an unforgettable intergenerational encounter.
Book Both Speakers
Ready to transform your audience?
Let's Build Something Unforgettable
Reach out to discuss your event, audience, and goals. We'll craft an engagement that leaves a lasting mark.