Attending to equity
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
- Article, Educational resource, Research
The way climate change impacts people will vary according to gender as well as other characteristics, such as socioeconomic status, poverty, age, ethnicity, disability, geographic location and health factors.
For LEVERS, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) is core to addressing (just) climate action. Ensuring that our events and projects are accessible and inclusive is key. With the field evolving and progressing, laying down a checklist of what to do is not realistic nor will it help us produce real spaces of inclusion for all. In relation to DEIA your work in this area will never get done. It will be more a matter of changing the way we think rather than implementing a ready-made menu.
This chapter will not claim to offer the perfect one-size-fits-all solution to equitable science education or climate change communication. Instead, it provides reflective prompts that will allow you to reconsider how you, your team, your organisation and partners work, and whether DEIA is reflected in your decision-making before starting any LEVERS programmes or projects. We have divided this section of the document into three subsections that include a) the definitions that guide our work, b) our individual responsibility and c) acting on DEIA in institutional contexts.
What do we mean when we talk about DEIA?
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility are often quoted using the acronyms EDI, DEI, IDEA or DEIA, but what do they really mean?
Before we start to think on how to act in this area, it is key to have clear definitions of these terms. c has produced definitions for these terms (Merrit, 2017) that will help us set the context and structure our thinking.
Diversity
Diversity is all the ways that people are different and the same at the individual and group levels. Even when people appear the same, they are different. Organisational diversity requires examining and questioning the makeup of a group to ensure that multiple perspectives are represented.
Why this definition? AAM definition of diversity moves toward opportunities for groups to continually question whether they have adequate representation to make equitable programmatic, hiring, governance, financial, and other decisions. Any individual will have multiple identities and experiences. What it means to be diverse, in practice, will vary depending on the organization.
Equity
Equity is the fair and just treatment of all members of a community. Equity requires commitment to strategic priorities, resources, respect, and civility, as well as ongoing action and assessment of progress toward achieving specified goals.
Why this definition? Equity is the goal of our work. It requires deliberate attention to more than matters of recruitment, hiring, compensation, promotion, and retention. Equity includes governance, representation, and other indicators of power. It is, collectively, a step toward recognising past exclusion and achieving genuine inclusion. Equity is not the natural state of things. We must deliberately apply time, resources, and consideration to achieve this goal. In addition, our institutions must develop relationships of trust and understanding.
Inclusion
Inclusion refers to the intentional, ongoing effort to ensure that diverse individuals fully participate in all aspects of organisational work, including decision-making processes. It also refers to the ways that diverse participants are valued as respected members of an organisation and/or community. While a truly “inclusive” group is necessarily diverse, a “diverse” group may or may not be “inclusive.”
Why this definition? We need institutions in which diverse participants are truly integrated and valued as respected members of the organization and/or community, beyond token participation and authority. The measure and success of inclusion must include the perspectives of the disenfranchised.
Accessibility
Accessibility is giving equitable access to everyone along the continuum of human ability and experience. Accessibility encompasses the broader meanings of compliance and refers to how organizations make space for the characteristics that each person brings.
Why this definition? The definition of accessibility is broadening beyond public accommodations and job opportunities. It’s not just about the physical environment: it’s about access to and representation in content for all. We must integrate those concerns into the definitions. AAM strives for inclusive design. ² AAM wants to go beyond compliance.
Belonging
Belonging, is the last piece in the puzzle, and the one we probably hear least about. This occurs when people feel seen and heard, where they feel safe, and where they feel valued, then they feel they belong to a group. For that to happen equitable and inclusive practices, norms, cultures, and systems need to be in place.
Individual level
Our practice is informed by our own knowledge, personal experience and biases which will frame our worldview and actions. If we want to challenge the current status quo we need to start by questioning ourselves and our beliefs and inner biases. The University of Colorado (Anschutz Medical Campus) Equity Office has developed a structure to help us in this endeavour. It is called E.Q.U.I.T.Y which is an acronym to help you question yourself on how to address EDI in your organisation or project.
We have taken these learnings and applied them to our context in LEVERS and in our daily lives:
1- Educate yourself
We can all strive to become more inclusive. If we look at our practice a few years ago we are probably struck by how “not inclusive” we might have been, how our language could have been considered offensive, or how as we progress in our thinking, we become aware of many more important details. So, the only way we can make sure we are being inclusive is to commit yourself to learning.
According to the E.Q.U.I.T.Y framework, there are a few ways that can help you start on your journey:
- Understand your identity and how it interacts (and impacts) with society and systems
- Take stock on what you believe to be true and question it. Often the things we learned in our school and university classes are false and/or are not accurate.
- You cannot go with one simple source; you will need to explore various scholars. Are you learning from scholars that are part of the community in question? If not, ask yourself why. If you ask someone for their input or suggestions, that individual is not obligated to provide you answers. This is perfectly okay; do not make this about you.
- Learning is a continuous and evolving process. You will never be done.
- Give credit where it is due and do not take up space by speaking for a community that you are not a part of. Sure, you can share your experience in learning about the topic, but before you do, make sure you are providing the space and opportunity for someone to speak up about their own community.
- If a community is not in the room, ask yourself why and bring it to the conversation and ask if there is a perspective that might be missing. But do not make assumptions about the identities in the room.
- Remind yourself that this is an (ultra) marathon, not a race.
2- Question yourself
Other than educating yourself, you should also keep questioning what you believe to be true. We have been trained to understand the world, and this is particularly the case for science, based on biased and often incomplete information. By teaching us not to question what we are told and taught, and by reinforcing the same inaccurate messages we will not change the status quo and inequity remains.
3- Understand yourself
Before you can become an advocate, you need to understand your own identity and privileges and how they can become levers of oppression in different contexts.
Ask yourself, how much space am I taking up in conversations? In the events I am participating in? How much do I know about those I am trying to work with and support? What are my assumptions about marginalised persons and how am I actively contributing to their oppression.
4- Transform yourself
EDI requires constant, consistent, and intentional engagement with yourself and others.
Transformation is not easy. It is the result of:
- Remaining present when you are uncomfortable;
- Accepting that you are part of the problem so you can work to change it;
- Learning how to empathise with others’ experiences that are different to yours;
- Making mistakes and correcting your behaviours;
- Educating yourself and those around you (it is not the burden of the oppressed to teach you); and
- Showing up with thoughtful action that matches your words.
5- Yes, and?
Dialogue is key to advancing however sometimes we do it in a way that is not constructive. Often, we are tempted to jump and start our answer with a, “BUT…” and make our point. Although it is important to challenge others to consider new points of view, we might all benefit from reframing how we respond to others.
And rather than starting with but it might be better to consider starting our sentence with “yes and”. This very simple act can help us bring empathy and a more open mind to discussions.
There are a multiplicity of truths that coexist. Fluidity in thought and understanding is something to appreciate; it allows us to intentionally engage with others and with ourselves.
Resource
Sociologist Patricia Hill Collins coined the concept matrix of domination in her book Black Feminist Thought to describe four interrelated domains that organize power relations in society, a paradigm that explains issues of oppression that deal with race, class, and gender.
Matrix of oppression in this case it is the one from the University of Colorado. E.Q.U.I.T.Y. The University of Colorado has developed a framework around 6 key principles of “allyship” for their students to follow.
Organisational level
Questions linked to DEIA are systemic so there is a limit to what we can do as individuals. While doing our individual work we cannot take full responsibility or change things on our own. Taking collective action and acting at the organisational level will help us put pressure on the systems and challenge the status quo. There are many ways to enable organisations to navigate the complexity of DEIA challenges.
Many existing frameworks help us structure the way organisations question the way they do things at different levels: how they establish partnerships, how their staff or governance bodies reflect diversity or the benefits and burdens of different decisions or activities. These are only a few examples of elements that need to be discussed.
Resources
Resource: Diversci
Diversci is a community of practice of informal and non-formal science engagement practitioners and researchers. They structure their work on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion around five pillars: Access, Content, Partners, Staff and Strategy.
The different pillars as structured as follows:
- Access: An accessible space provides services and facilities that are welcoming and easy for everyone to use. This involves understanding and respecting the diverse array of human abilities and experiences to dismantle barriers – be they physical, digital, sensory, cognitive, financial, or attitudinal – and welcoming visitors on their own terms.
- Content: How we display, say, and do things mirrors the values we hold. Creating inclusive exhibitions, programming, communication and research can strengthen the reach and impact of our science engagement practices. This involves developing guidelines, such as universal design principles, inclusive research design and language practices, as well as participatory formats that inform content development and delivery methods.
- Partners: Community and organisational partnerships are essential to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion. Continually seeking out and sharing knowledge and expertise among people with different perspectives, experiences and abilities can catalyse lasting and meaningful (ex)changes. Key to these partnerships is that they are of, by and for the community.
- Staff: As inclusive employers, our staff are representative of local communities and able to be themselves and thrive at their jobs. Achieving this requires equitable recruitment practices, the building and support of diverse teams, training in inclusive management and developing evaluation procedures to track and communicate progress.
- Strategy: Placing equity and inclusion at the heart of your strategy sends a strong message of commitment. Setting clear strategic priorities for overcoming structural inequalities provides the guideposts for cultivating awareness and positive change across all areas of your organisation and decision-making levels. It also sets the bar for your institution’s accountability, both internally and externally.
For each of the pillars, the framework offers ideal objectives, indicators and resources to navigate to make desirable changes.
Resource : The Equity Compass
The Equity Compass (YESTEM project team, 2021) is one of the main outcomes of the YESTEM project, an international research-practice partnership focused on understanding and supporting equitable practice in informal STEM learning. It is a reflective framework that helps practitioners reflect on their current practice and develop more equitable ones. The compass is structured around 4 objectives: Challenging the status quo, working with, and valuing minoritised communities, embedding equity, and extending equity.
These four objectives are divided into eight dimensions each designed to apply a different lens to improve equitable experiences. Both the Equity Compass and Diversci offer guided steps to deploy them. Organisations will find exercises and self-evaluation tools to benchmark their current practice and take steps to make it more equitable.
Read: Equity, Exclusion and Everyday Science Learning
Emily Dawson’s book and zine Equity, Exclusion and Everyday Science Learning explores how some people are excluded from science education and science communication.
Watch: Keynote
Dr. Elizabeth Rasakoala keynote at Ecsite conference 2016 where she challenges science engagement professionals to create a truly inclusive, colourful and gender balanced science centres and science museum field.
Nina Simon keynote at Ecsite conference 2017 based on ‘The Art of Relevance’, exploring ways museums and science centres can re-invent themselves to really matter to the communities they serve.
Learn: Workshop with Dr Jon Chase on Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion in Science Communication
Workshop with Dr Jon Chase on Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion in Science Communication (video – from the EU-funded GlobalSCAPE project).
