Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are powerful tools to use to think through how we each move through the world. How do we treat each other with compassion and respect rather than prejudice? How do we respect, value, and even welcome difference? How do we embrace each individual’s right to define their own story, while also acknowledging the social realities that shape our world?
These are all important questions to engage both in our personal and professional lives. Professionally, DEI is becoming a framework through which forward-thinking institutions around the world are using to see the workplace in a new light. DEI has offered a very useful set of guiding principles to Global Village Project as we think critically about all our processes, practices, and perspectives in order to evaluate how we might better ensure that DEI is at the heart of everything we do.
We are happy to announce that as of this semester, the DEI journey at GVP has been catalyzed by the formation of a designated team called the “DEI Circle”, which has been meeting regularly to discuss goals and projects related to DEI at GVP. We are developing plans for addressing how each of our stakeholder groups at GVP can take part in increasing our awareness, thinking critically, and bettering ourselves in order to stand together in our commitment to DEI.
One theme to emerge through the discussions the DEI Circle has had so far is that practicing a commitment to DEI often looks like meeting people where they are. Often, this manifests in how we communicate with each other, especially when a mistake has been made or when a problematic interaction takes place. Working to uphold DEI together means that we respond to these moments with generosity and compassion, attempting to understand where someone is coming from, while also holding them accountable in order to reduce harm in the future. Soon, we hope to codify these principles in order to share with everyone what practicing DEI looks like at GVP, and in the meantime, we encourage members of our community to consider what communicating with compassion looks like in their own lives!
In the next few months, the DEI Circle is looking forward to having many more productive discussions and developing specific projects to ensure the integration of DEI into all aspects of our work. As we travel this path, we welcome perspectives from our collective community; any and all insights will be gratefully received by DEI Specialist, Jai Simpson-Joseph, Esq. at [email protected].
