Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Background:

In 2016, the Office of Strategic Communications embarked on a concerted conversation about diversity, equity and inclusion. We were interested in what we could do to make diversity, equity and inclusion a regular part of the way we do our work. We expressed a need to expand our perspectives and enhance our compassion and understanding for others’ experiences. That year, we each participated in an online Principles of Community course provided through the Learning Center. Later that year, we gathered collectively for an in-person, department-wide workshop and dialogue led by Mikael Villalobos.

In 2018, we each read Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and during staff meetings we discussed what we learned and how the book affected us. Next we read Evicted by Matthew Desmond. We dedicated time during staff meetings in 2019 to conversations about what we learned and how Evicted impacted our work and lives.

By 2020, we were ready to move into a more active approach to DEI work. We began by discussing our own values as a department, including how we wanted to contribute to and how we wanted to interact with the UC Davis community at large. During a summer retreat, we outlined the beginnings of an action plan and committed to crafting an ally statement. The department continued to fine tune our action plan and ally statement over the rest of 2020.

What follows is our commitment to be intentional about our DEI work and to measure our progress.

Read our blog: Documenting the journey

We Are Allies

As employees, we are committed to practicing the Principles of Community in how we interact with one another, listen to each other, and in how we work to tell the broader stories about UC Davis.

We recognize that racism has led to systemic injustice and that social injustice more broadly has remained a core element in our society. We acknowledge that the land on which we work has been the home of Patwin people for thousands of years.

We appreciate that ideas can come from anyone and that diversity of perspective, background and experience is something we value and seek out. We strive to keep our work anchored in empathy while striving for excellence. We want our work to be accessible. We commit to fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment. We aim to be a trusted partner in our work and interactions.

We will hold ourselves accountable for our actions. We may fail or falter at times, but we will be open to listening, learning and growing.

Overarching Goal:

Demonstrate our commitment by putting our values into action in interpersonal relationships and in our efforts on behalf of the university:

  1. Improve our internal climate to improve interactions and elevate the value of inclusivity
  2. Build stronger partnerships and collaboration within the department and externally
  3. Establish measures to evaluate progress and hold ourselves accountable

Steps:

  • Within Strategic Communications:
    • Listen with intent to our communities to learn from all perspectives
    • Practice empathy
    • Be cognizant of the working climate and each of our roles in it
    • Identify opportunities to collaborate and build genuine relationships with our partners
    • Commit to pursuing opportunities to further learning about anti-racism, inclusion, diversity and history through ongoing training, reading, listening, etc.
    • Share lessons and best practices in a more formal or quasi-formal way within our department
    • Review recruitment efforts to ensure we are inclusive of all backgrounds and are reaching diverse audiences
    • Managers commit to checking in monthly with teams to stay accountable with progress on individual DEI goals
  • Staff have volunteered to serve on a committee to review these steps and recommend how each of us in Strategic Communications should proceed. We understand that the committee is not created to be assigned the work of this important step. It is incumbent on each of us to carry this work forward. We agree to discuss the recommendations of the committee and take appropriate action.
  • For UC Davis:
    • Co-lead awareness campaigns around DEI and anti-racism efforts, such as those for the Principles of Community, etc.
    • Co-create with our communities to ensure all perspectives are considered
    • Keep ourselves accountable by creating a more transparent presence online for our department’s DEI work
    • Create video of our ally statement and our efforts to build an environment that is more inclusive and just
    • Audit our storytelling for inclusion to-date and develop a benchmark for measuring progress; develop best practices on how to audit and share these with university community
    • Audit and share best practices of inclusive storytelling of other organizations
    • Create space for community members to tell their stories, and purposefully seek a diversity of viewpoints and experiences
    • Tell stories that reflect UC Davis through an inclusive lens
  • Report DEI actions and measurement
  • Report lessons and share best practices from other organizations as well as our own
  • Staff have volunteered to serve on a committee to review these steps and recommend how each of us in Strategic Communications should proceed. We understand that the committee is not created to be assigned the work of this important step. It is incumbent on each of us to carry this work forward. We agree to discuss the recommendations of the committee and take appropriate action.