A live gathering in NYC for those who live between worlds — and are ready to stop shrinking because of it.
Ever felt “too complex,” “too much,” or “n’between”?
RISE is the first global celebration of n’betweeners.
We carry more than one story, culture, or identity.
Time to turn your complexity into power.
If you’ve ever lived between cultures, identities, languages, or worlds —
RISE is the first large-scale event designed specifically for YOU.
RISE is for you.
People who are leaders, creatives, entrepreneurs, and global thinkers — but who’ve never had a space that fully reflects who they are.
For the first time, the n’betweener identity becomes something visible, celebrated, and powerful.
This is not a conference.
It’s a cultural milestone.
A full-day experience combining storytelling, ideas worth spreading, identity pride, and global community — designed to ignite possibility in people who have always been “more than one thing.”Diverse perspectives that make you feel seen.
You’ve spent a lifetime caught n’between worlds
This is your RISE
Ticket Options
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The Early Birdie
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The RISE Pass
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The Golden Supporter
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invest in YOU.
If TEDx + Pride had a baby ...
A high-impact, full-day NYC event celebrating complex intersecting identities — with TED-level ideas, Pride-level energy, and the global homecoming n’betweeners have never had until now.
JOIN US AT RISE
IN NYC
What is an
n’betweener?!
“It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business.”
— Quote Source
“Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.”
— Quote Source
Agenda
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Meet the n’betweener® Founding Circle
These are individuals who have lived the complexity of being n’between — and have done the work to transform it into power.
They have faced the tension of not fully belonging, questioned who they needed to be, and chosen not to reduce themselves to fit.
At RISE, you will hear their lived stories — not as theory, but as embodied experience.
This is what it looks like when n’betweenness becomes power.
Jasmine | she.her
Jasmine Schimmel is a proud mixed woman of color.As a child, she dreamed of being an astronaut—charting the unknown, discovering new worlds, and creating new paths where none existed.
While she may not have made it to space (yet), her love of travel, her career in STEM, and her journey of building a business are all rooted in that original astronaut dream.
After two decades of career that started in academic research and moved to supporting developments in biotechnology, Jasmine is now charting her own course.
Jasmine wants to change the world. If that change reaches even one person who dares to dream a little bigger. After all, she was once just a little girl who dreamed.
Angela (she/they)
Angela Schmer-Han is a Korean American illustrator and author.
She is passionate about history, comics, swords, and using sequential storytelling to untangle complex emotions around representation and identity; the grief of losing a language, the quiet acceptance of rejection, the debate of whether it is better to be invisible or an example, while wishing there were more options.
A restless translator of immigrant and third culture kid experiences, she works to redefine what protagonists look like.
Heatherlyn | she.her
Dr. Heatherlyn Cleare‑Hoffman is a Bahamian‑born psychologist whose journey to the United States during the aftermath of 9/11 shaped her understanding of identity, immigration, and belonging. Her lived experiences include navigating the economic and emotional ripple effects of global events on her family and education, confronting the constant insecurity faced by international students, and learning racism and microaggressions both intellectually and experientially.
As a descendant of enslaved people, she speaks to the enduring legacy of slavery and its role in identity formation. Dr. Cleare‑Hoffman brings cultural humility, psychological insight, and personal narrative to her work, emphasizing ongoing self‑evolution in multicultural contexts.
Raven (she.her)
Raven Dorantes (she,her) is a pageant-winning (Miss Discovery Cruises 1998) diehard Hall & Oates stan who freelances as a civil public defender in New York City. With over fifteen years of experience eating her way through 6 continents, wishfully drinking amongst the underpaid refugees of overpriced educations in downtown bars and outer borough legal aid offices, and dabbling in the arts to the point of being regarded as semi-pro for her ability to correctly identify the name of that actor that was in that movie that time, she has garnered a well-respected and highly valued reputation for being her generation’s Stefon™.
Raven enjoys being a people and resource connector in every room she’s in, roving loose on the streets of New York soaking up all the things, and amassing an encyclopedic knowledge of all popular culture from the last 100 years. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, and is available for weddings and bar mitzvahs.
Héctor | he.him
Héctor Ramírez is an experienced writer, editor, educator, facilitator, and leadership coach based in Southern California. He has co-edited two anthologies of poetry, and his prose, poetry, and criticism has appeared in American Book Review, Apogee, LIT, Muzzle Magazine, The Breakbeat Poets, Vol. 4: LatiNext, The Poetry Foundation, and elsewhere.
With a BA in Literary Arts from Brown University and an MFA in Fiction from CU Boulder, Héctor draws from his deep storytelling roots to design experiences that advance equity, inclusion, and belonging. He is passionate about helping people tap into their innate storytelling power, and is eager to partner with anyone who is interested in designing for inspiring & liberatory encounters with the imagination.
Incarnación (they.them)
Incarnación Kluding-Rodríguez is a tarot-ista, practitioner of healing through Reiki energy work, and land stewardship facilitator.
In 2016, they began studying in these areas and have since been providing 1:1 tarot readings, Reiki healing sessions, and teaching bioregional botany/herbalism, facilitating stewardship of land-based relationships on territories of Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Ute Nations. They weave the impacts of colonization on communities' well-being and are inspired by restoring and reconciliation towards Indigenous sovereignty throughout Turtle Island.
Incarnación descends from Purepecha people near Guanajuato, Mexico, and from German and Irish settlers. Incarnación believes our lineages, blood and spirit, where we come from, where we’ve lived, and what lands we are shaped by, all carry medicine and impact our health today.
Designing between worlds:
the øther superpower
Join us for an intimate conversation with the founders of the øther as we explore how living between worlds becomes a source of creativity, perspective, and entrepreneurial power.
Nyla Hasan
CO- FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR | the øther
Curiosity, nostalgia, and craft drive how she creates — across disciplines, in and outside of fashion. Rooted in her mixed South Asian heritage, she presents old world crafts in untraditional ways, investigating where we find belonging and how connection transcends borders. Having spent much of her life feeling like an "other," —the tension between these two polarizing identities she learned to find beauty in the between and seeks to connect with others who find themselves in this same space.
With over 15 years of designing in contemporary womenswear, Nyla studied fashion design at FIT and held design leadership roles at Tanya Taylor and specialized in embroidery at Tory Burch before launching øther.
Aziz Hasan
CO-FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE | the øther
Aziz Hasan is the Co-Founder of the øther and a multidimensional executive, entrepreneur, and creative who has spent his career at the intersection of product, brand, and human experience.
He is the former CEO of Kickstarter and former VP of Product Experience at Refinery29. Today he runs a fractional executive practice helping early-stage technology companies own their product strategy and brand identity — and alongside co-founder and fashion designer Nyla Hasan, he is building the øther, a contemporary fashion brand exploring identity and belonging through personal style and storytelling.
Aziz believes that living dimensionally — holding multiple creative and personal identities at once — isn't a liability. It's a way of seeing.
From Pain to Power:
The Healing Journey of n’betweeners®
Join us for a rich conversation with mental health experts exploring the healing journey of n’betweeners® — how living between cultures, identities, and worlds shapes our inner lives. Together, we will examine the impact of constant adaptation and not fully belonging, while uncovering the strength, self-awareness, and leadership that can emerge from it.
Atash Yaghmaian
Psychotherapist and Author of “My Name Means Fire”
Atash Yaghmaian is an Iranian-American author, psychotherapist, and educator whose work explores trauma, multiplicity, and parts-work. She is the author of My Name Means Fire (Beacon Press, 2025), a memoir weaving her personal history with Dissociative Identity Disorder with the story of Iran’s shifting political landscape.
The founder of Atash Healing and Founding Member of Harvest Collegiate High School’s counseling program in New York City, Yaghmaian has been featured in The Daily News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Ruminate Magazine, and Medium.
She is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW-R) and EMDR-certified therapist who speaks and writes widely on healing, trauma, and the power of storytelling.
Raul Espinoza
Founder of LiveLOUD & Executive Director at All Kings
Raul Espinoza is an emotional intelligence and personal development consultant with nearly 20 years of experience supporting communities worldwide. His work spans from social incubators in favelas of Brazil, psychosocial programs in Iraq, youth initiatives in India, and many other projects, all centered on healing and transformation for underserved populations.
He is skilled in psychosocial development, neurolinguistic programming, leadership training, and mindset coaching to support individuals and communities in building resilience, self-awareness, and leadership capacity.
He is currently the Executive Director of All Kings, where he leads programs focused on mental health, emotional wellness, and leadership development for men, especially those impacted by the criminal legal system and young men at risk. Helping them heal, grow, and lead
Speakers
Nyla Hasan
CO- FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR | the øther
Nyla Hasan is the Co-founder and Creative Director of øther. Curiosity, nostalgia, and craft drive how she creates — across disciplines, in and outside of fashion. Rooted in her mixed South Asian heritage, she presents old world crafts in untraditional ways, investigating where we find belonging and how connection transcends borders. Having spent much of her life feeling like an "other," —the tension between these two polarizing identities she learned to find beauty in the between and seeks to connect with others who find themselves in this same space.
With over 15 years of designing in contemporary womenswear, Nyla studied fashion design at FIT and held design leadership roles at Tanya Taylor and specialized in embroidery at Tory Burch before launching øther.
Aziz Hasan
CO-FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE | the øther
Aziz Hasan is the Co-Founder of the øther and a multidimensional executive, entrepreneur, and creative who has spent his career at the intersection of product, brand, and human experience.
He is the former CEO of Kickstarter and former VP of Product Experience at Refinery29. Today he runs a fractional executive practice helping early-stage technology companies own their product strategy and brand identity — and alongside co-founder and fashion designer Nyla Hasan, he is building the øther, a contemporary fashion brand exploring identity and belonging through personal style and storytelling.
Aziz believes that living dimensionally — holding multiple creative and personal identities at once — isn't a liability. It's a way of seeing.
What you will leave with.
RISE is designed to give you:
Clarity
You’ll finally understand your identity as a source of strength, not confusion.
Confidence
You’ll stop minimizing your story and start owning its value.
Connection
You’ll meet people who speak your emotional and cultural language.
Inspiration
You’ll hear stories that expand what you believe is possible for yourself.
Opportunity
You’ll leave with new collaborators, supporters, friends, and ideas.
Activation
You will walk out thinking:
“I can do what I want — and I’m not doing it alone.”