Having trained at the University of Surrey, Deborah Baddoo went on to gain an MA in Performance Arts at Middlesex University. A performer and choreographer in her own right, in the fields of jazz and African contemporary dance, Deborah went on to open Pyramid Dance Studio in London in 1985, which was instrumental in providing a launch pad for so many artists and companies. Throughout her varied career she has pursued a passionate, long-term vision to support the development of Black dance and choreography nationally and internationally, setting up the first national Archive for Black dance in the UK. In 2010 she was awarded an MBE for services to British dance. She established her company State of Emergency - an arts production and management company in 1986. www.stateofemergencyltd.com and the sister charitable organisation State of Trust (www.stateoftrust.net) in 2015. More recently, she has gone on to diversify her talents, working as a freelancer in a variety of roles- Executive Director, Producer, Festival Director, Diversity Consultant with Museums and a Project Evaluator.