The Inclusion Exchange
By Bakare Barley
Tune in to hear speakers from The Guardian, Citizen’s Advice and more as we highlight live examples and practical tips.
The Inclusion ExchangeDec 04, 2022
The Link Between Workplace Well-being and DEI
We bring you Lee Chambers, Award-Winning Business Psychologist, Speaker, Male Ally, Media Contributor, and Wellbeing Specialist, to talk about the link between workplace wellbeing and equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Lee talks about the history of workplace wellbeing, approaching wellbeing through the lens of equity, some initiatives that have been disrupting the status quo, neurodiversity in the workplace, the psychology behind social inclusion, and what organisations can do to improve wellbeing.
Elevating Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace With Eva Echo
Eva Echo, Director of Innovation at Birmingham Pride Ltd, talks about elevating transgender inclusion in the workplace.
Today, Eva talks about her journey into activism, what workplaces can still do towards transgender inclusion, how to have an open dialogue with those who hold opposing views, how workplace cultures need to be changed, challenging negative systems, the lack of reporting, and how organizations can become active advocates.
Unheard women - Why intersectionality Matters in your EDI Strategy
Sanisha Wynter, TEDx Speaker and D&I Consultant talks about why intersectionality matters.
Sanisha Wynter talks about her experience with discrimination growing up, how to talk about intersectionality, the impact of covering, facing the barriers to health services, and actions that have either been beneficial or fallen short in the workplace.
Timestamp Segments
· [09:53] A bit about Sanisha.
· [19:05] Striving for belonging.
· [22:26] Intersectionality.
· [25:37] How to get to talking about intersectionality.
· [31:40] Identity covering.
· [39:26] Barriers to health services.
· [49:08] Navigating maternity.
· [51:31] Actions that have been beneficial and/or fallen short.
Notable Quotes
· “The jacket has to fit us.”
· “Oppression can exist separately, but it can also exist in combination.”
· “We have to be very clear with who we’re talking about to ensure that we aren’t leaving anyone behind.”
· “[Covering] is hard, and it’s draining, and it impacts people’s mental health.”
· “It’s more helpful to demonstrate your allyship through consistent actions.”
· “Education is up to you, and nobody else.”
Resources
TEDx: Vulnerability is Your Superpower.
Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color, by Kimberlé Crenshaw.
Broken Ladders: The myth of meritocracy for women of colour in the workplace
Relevant Links
Website: sanishawynter.com.
LinkedIn: Sanisha Wynter.
Twitter: @SanishaWynter. Instagram: @sanishawynter
No limits: how organisations are narrowing the disability employment gap with Anoushe Husain, Paraclimber
Anoushé Husain, Guinness World Record-Holding paraclimber talks about the ways in which organisations are narrowing the disability employment gap.
Anoushé talks about the stigmatisation of disabilities, how the views of disability are changing, her experiences becoming a wheelchair user, defining disabilities, where to find support, how to create safety in the workplace, positive initiatives that everyone can learn from, and her journey into paraclimbing.
Timestamp Segments
· [04:36] Anoushé’s origin story.
· [09:02] Challenging the norm.
· [11:17] How the views of disability are changing.
· [15:50] New restrictions on Anoushé since becoming a wheelchair user.
· [18:06] The disability employment gap.
· [23:53] Intersectionality.
· [28:20] What support is out there?
· [30:46] Creating safety in a workplace.
· [36:33] Barriers to representation.
· [42:00] Positive initiatives.
· [45:23] Why many organisations are not implementing changes.
· [51:30] Anoushé’s paraclimbing.
Notable Quotes
· “The norm is wrong.”
· “I reckon declaration rates are really low because people are really uncomfortable declaring still.”
· “Often people don’t want to declare it because they don’t actually know what it means.”
· “You can be who you want to be. You just need the right tools to enable that.”
· “The wall remains the same. It’s only you who changes.”
Resources
Relevant Links
Website: www.anoushehusain.com.
Interview featuring Bakare Barley MD, Ayo Barley on Radio Sangam's The Culture Pot with Martin Morrison
We bring you Ayo Barley, MD of Bakare Barley, in an interview on The Culture Pot with Martin Morrison.
Ayo talks about her experiences growing up, the Bradford Race Riots, the New Leaders Network, the strong movement for changing the norms, breaking the cycle of under-representation, and the rise of the “woke” rhetoric against progress.
Timestamp Segments
· [01:15] A bit about Ayo.
· [03:05] Ayo’s background.
· [07:21] Ayo’s confidence.
· [14:47] After university.
· [17:28] Effective actions taken after the Bradford Race Riots.
· [23:42] New Leaders Network.
· [26:00] Changing the norms.
· [31:36] Early projects at New Leaders Network.
· [33:54] From New Leaders Network to Bakare Barley.
· [36:04] The spectrum of organisations.
· [39:52] Breaking the cycle.
· [44:04] Resistance to progress.
Notable Quotes
· “Being around people of different faiths, different cultures, different backgrounds from a young age really does benefit you in terms of empathising and understanding.”
· “Facts are powerful.”
· “Providing people with a platform to be able to promote themselves is a really good first step.”
· “It’s important that people in the workforce also know why they’re investing in doing this work.”
· “By putting off equality and diversity, we are spiting ourselves.”
Relevant Links
Website: www.bakarebarley.com.
LinkedIn: Ayo Barley.
Twitter: @BakareBarleyLtd.
Instagram: @bakarebarleyltd.
Black History and Black Futures with Andrew Lynch, Liverpool Historian
We bring you Andrew Lynch, Liverpool-based Historian, he talks about black history and black futures.
Andrew talks about the black history that people don’t learn about, the negatives and positives in black history, the worth of Africa, how the past has influenced the structure of society today, how to start improving experiences for black staff, and the science of ‘race’.
Timestamp Segments
· [03:47] Andrew’s background.
· [06:56] The aspects of black history that people should know more about.
· [13:55] Thriving and celebration within black history.
· [19:40] Connecting to Africa.
· [21:54] How the past has influenced the structural challenges of black people in the UK.
· [34:36] Poor communication and cultural differences.
· [37:38] The first step to improve experiences of black staff.
· [45:35] Using the term ‘race’.
Notable Quotes
· “Your community is not limited to those who are around you alive today.”
· “Divide and conquer has been traditionally used to keep people down.”
· “The actions available to us are disproportionate to the size of the problem.”
· “There’s no different kind of people. There’s just people.”
Creating a Culture of Accountability with Mandeep Rupra, Citizens Advice
We bring you Mandeep Rupra, Head of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Citizens Advice, she talk about creating a culture of accountability.
Mandeep talks about taking responsibility for advancing EDI, influencing people to be more accountable, EDI and austerity, getting leaders to make change happen, EDI approaches that do not work, low representation and disclosure, and initiatives that allows Mandeep to continue doing this work.
Timestamp Segments
· [02:25] Mandeep’s origin story.
· [06:35] The most positive and most difficult parts of Mandeep’s story.
· [10:21] The importance of EDI accountability.
· [14:09] What can stop people from feeling accountable?
· [16:23] What influences people to be more accountable?
· [23:34] Initiatives that Mandeep is proud of.
· [30:55] Will EDI be able to thrive in the next few years?
· [36:50] How to get leaders to make change happen.
· [40:38] Approaches that Mandeep does not recommend.
· [46:19] Disclosure and low representation.
· [48:44] What Mandeep has created that allows her to continue doing this work.
Notable Quotes
· “We are all socialised to have a level of privilege and power depending on what our identities are.”
· “We all are accountable for advancing EDI.”
· “Joy is an act of resistance.”
· “If you are not feeling uncomfortable, you are not doing this work.”
· “You don’t want the number to undermine what you’re trying to change.”
· “We are all change agents because we all have a role to play.”
Relevant Links
Website: www.citizensadvice.org.uk.
Twitter: @MRupra.
LinkedIn: Mandeep Rupra.
Transforming workplace cultures through positive action with Joseph Harker, The Guardian
We bring you Joseph Harker, Senior Editor of Diversity and Development at The Guardian, he talks about using positive action to transform workplace cultures.
Joseph talks about institutional racism, how he demonstrated to senior leadership that they were reenforcing institutional racism, the kinds of barriers that restrict diversity and inclusion, trans issues at The Guardian, The Guardian’s culture shift, and how to help support different sections if you have limited resources.
Timestamp Segments
· [01:58] Getting into what Joseph does.
· [08:40] The most positive moments.
· [11:54] The most difficult experiences on Joseph’s journey.
· [17:44] Demonstrating to senior leadership that they were reenforcing institutional racism?
· [24:17] Barriers and experiences that can restrict diversity and inclusion.
· [27:17] Factors that influence POC going into or leaving journalism.
· [32:08] Intersectionality and trans issues at The Guardian.
· [37:13] Key factors that contributed to culture change at The Guardian.
· [39:42] The most important actions that the media should introduce to create more balance.
· [44:30] Resources to help with EDI.
· [45:39] What needs to be done to help support different sections with limited resources?
Notable Quotes
· “You overcome one obstacle, and all you find is another obstacle.”
· “In order to make change, you can’t alienate the people at the top.”
· “Newness and different-ness rather than oldness and sameness.”
· “There’s a model of diversity as the difference that makes no difference, as the change that brings no change.”
· “Leaders have to reach out to people who are different.”
· “No matter how clever you are, you cannot know what’s going on in the world from your ivory towers.”
Resources
The Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity.
Relevant Links
Website: The Guardian.
Twitter: @josephharker.
LinkedIn: Joseph Harker.