Sports Diplomacy

Sports Diplomacy Orientations

When athletes play abroad, they represent more than athletic skills – they represent cultural influence. Let us help you understand that influence – and use it for good.

Invitation to a Game-Changing Opportunity: Harness the Power of Sports Diplomacy

The Institute for Sport and Social Justice (ISSJ) invites your team to join our curated sports diplomacy orientations, crafted to prepare American teams heading overseas or international teams competing in the United States.

In this transformative session, we’ll explore:

The Basics of Sports Diplomacy: Uncover the history of sport as a diplomatic tool and gain actionable strategies from landmark examples.
The Role of Athletes as Ambassadors: Learn how players, coaches, and executives represent their city, league, and nation on a global stage — and the lasting influence they carry.
The Sociopolitical Climate of Your Destination: Understand what your sport means in this region at this moment in history to navigate cultural nuances with respect and impact.
Reputation Management & Connection Building: Avoid potential pitfalls and discover how to make meaningful connections with local fans and communities.

Elevate your team’s global presence and leave a legacy that transcends the scoreboard. Together, let’s ensure your impact is as powerful off the field as it is on it.

Join us. The world is watching.

Let’s play with purpose.

Hear what past clients have to say:

"The experience was transformative. Having the opportunity to participate, learn and exchange ideas with so many incredible professionals made me deeply grateful. The panel on leadership, mental health and the importance of adapting sports practices to the reality of each country touched me deeply. The words and examples shared inspired me to be a better athlete, a stronger person and to see sport as a journey of self-knowledge and well-being. I felt part of a community that values passion, overcoming and the search for a better goal, fairer and more equitable future in sport."

Isabel Brito,

Nix Flag Football's Athlete

"The event was a very important milestone for flag football, which is on the rise in Brazil and around the world, with the entry into the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028. Bringing American athletes to talk about mental health and gender equity helps us see the importance of talking about this with children from an early age, so that their career in sport is healthy, fair, and lasting. The event certainly gave me insights to be more and more attentive to the way I coach and also to know how to help my athletes if they are going through difficult moments."

Ingrid Camargo,

Defensive Coordinator of the Women's National Flag Football Team

Quashan Lockett

Rooted in purpose and driven by impact, Quashan is focused on shaping the industry through a disruptive, inclusive, and people-centered approach. With a foundation in organizational psychology, he builds, advises, and invests in mission-driven brands and ventures at the intersection of sport, culture, community, and impact. In 2020, he was honored as one of the top leaders in sport under 40 by Leaders Sports Awards, recognizing his transformative impact on the industry. As a dynamic business leader, Quashan has over 20 years of experience scaling high-growth companies and leading strategic transformations across sports, media, entertainment and hospitality industries. He brings a unique combination of strategic vision, operational excellence, and people-centered leadership, with a proven track record of success in both Chief Operating Officer and Chief People Officer roles – building organizational culture, systems, capabilities, and infrastructure to advance strategic alignment, drive scalable growth, and create lasting impact.

Currently serving as Chief Operating Officer of the Pac-12 Conference, as a member of the senior leadership team and executive committee Quashan oversees all people, organizational, financial, and administrative operations across the Conference and its related entities and ultimately serves and supports the Pac-12’s staff, student-athletes, and member universities. He originally joined the Pac-12 in 2022 as their first-ever Chief People and Inclusion Officer, driving people and culture strategy and providing strategic direction and oversight for all human resources, talent management, diversity, equity and inclusion, organizational development, change management, and internal communications activities. He is also the Founder of Color of Sports, a purpose-driven change agency helping improve organizational performance and capabilities for brands, ventures, and companies across sports, media, and entertainment.

Throughout his career Quashan has built a reputation for being a thoughtful and impactful leader who thrives in fast-paced, complex, multi-stakeholder organizations. Before the Pac-12, Quashan held senior leadership roles at On Location and Legends, delivering innovative people and organizational strategies for iconic brands and rights holders in sports, media, entertainment, music and fashion including the NFL, NBA, NCAA, MLB, International Olympic Committee, New York Fashion Week, Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees, University of Notre Dame, Real Madrid CF, FC Barcelona, Live Nation and numerous music artists, tours, and festivals.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Quashan currently resides in Dallas, TX with his wife Brandi, their son, and their two daughters. Quashan earned a bachelor’s degree in labor and employment relations from Rutgers University, a master’s degree in organizational psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology and is certified as a senior human resources professional by both the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and HR Certification Institute (HRCI).