What if? Network for Diversity and Inclusion

An open mind is a terrible thing to close.

All Blog Posts (81)

Why Most Diversity Initiatives Fail

An article on why most diversity initiatives fail. http://www.reliableplant.com/Article.aspx?articleid=19678. Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on October 1, 2009 at 12:28pm — No Comments

Seth Godin's Scientific Method

You probably first learned about the scientific method in some junior high lab with a bunch of peers who were testing and examining each other as much as they were the stuff steaming in the test tubes. Teens aren’t totally off-base when they’re applying this testing procedure to their social interactions as well as to their lab experiments; in fact, they’re experts at testing, evaluating, and… Continue

Added by Leah Nieboer on August 20, 2009 at 9:44am — No Comments

Culture in Comic Form

Ethnicity makes up an important part of our culture—the “acquired knowledge people use to interpret experience and generate behavior” that James Spradley talks about. Check out this clip of popular graphic novelist Gene Yang as he talks about ethnic heritage and created identity—two main themes that run through each of this Chinese-American’s award-winning graphic novels. Gene Yang at America.gov… Continue

Added by Leah Nieboer on August 11, 2009 at 3:51pm — No Comments

California Apologizes to Chinese Immigrants

"On July 17, the California legislature quietly approved a landmark bill to apologize to the state's Chinese-American community for racist laws enacted as far back as the mid–19th century Gold Rush, which attracted about 25,000 Chinese from 1849 to 1852. The laws, some of which were not repealed until the 1940s, barred Chinese from owning land or property, marrying whites, working in the public sector and testifying against whites in court. The new bill also recognizes the contributions Chinese… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on August 10, 2009 at 12:29pm — No Comments

All's Equal

The year is 1967. Eastern Europe has cemented itself in ardent communism and society has begun to show the strains of imposed “equality.” In its misshapen efforts to treat everyone equally, Communist governments have removed private property and business. They have also eliminated all women’s products, from the hygienic to the beautifying. For men, this might take a bit of thought before the real weight of the situation sinks in. For women, the terrible inconveniencing and dehumanizing effects o… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on July 13, 2009 at 9:00am — No Comments

Lessons from an Apple

One thing that has shaped my generation is technology. The ubiquitous computer and iPod have instilled us with a sense of electronic entitlement and we neglect to make the most our hardware’s potential. Take my computer for example. It’s a sturdy though older Apple notebook that was given to me by a friend who dropped out of college. At the moment, I use three functions on this computer: Microsoft Word Firefox Web Browser and iTunes. With this triple entente of applications, I can work, study,… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on July 6, 2009 at 8:59am — No Comments

It's Not about Our Differences

Think about this proposition: Diversity is about celebrating differences but not exclusively so. I write this because what often gets left behind is a focus on the things we have in common. When we work from the things we share we open the door to many opportunities to connect including some of the following. 1. Learning more about others. 2. Building empathy. 3. Removing barriers. 4. Moving away from us vs. them. 5. Creating a common bond. When we work on creating a new collaboration with peo… Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on June 30, 2009 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Workplace diversity activities

Hello network members. We are exploring activities to implement to approach professional diversity issues. Please feel free to share activities you have implemented in your organization and your outcomes, obstacles, rewards, etc. Thank you! Continue

Added by Sheila M on June 16, 2009 at 7:53pm — No Comments

Why Even Care about Diversity?

Many people I talk with stare blankly when I talk about diversity. I frequently wonder whether people even realize that diversity is all around them. Think of your regular workplace. Are there two people who think exactly alike? Do any two people look exactly the same? Does everyone have the same leadership style? Does everyone have exactly the same knowledge? Did everyone grow up exactly the same way? I could go on and but the point is that every workplace is made up of people from diverse ba… Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on June 9, 2009 at 6:31pm — No Comments

For Sotomayor and Thomas, Paths Diverge At Race

As I've been trying to inform myself more and more on the workings of the Supreme Court, I found this New York Times article to be very helpful and an interesting read. Give it a whirl and feel free to comment! Here is the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/us/politics/07affirm.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&th&emc=th Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on June 8, 2009 at 8:00am — No Comments

Common Misconceptions about Diversity

An article from ourtimetoact.com on the common misconceptions about diversity. Regards, Guy A Different Kind of Diversity Training Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on May 26, 2009 at 1:30pm — No Comments

Social Discomfort Increases Group Performance

An article from itbusinessedge.com on how introducing someone different into a social situation can improve the group's performance. Regards, Guy Diversity Trainer Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on May 15, 2009 at 12:28pm — No Comments

Expanding the Diversity Dialogue

An article from thecompletelawyer.com on initiatives to expand diversity discourse by various organizations. Regards, Guy Diversity Training Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on May 15, 2009 at 12:27pm — No Comments

Is Rutgers Changing Society with It's Diversity Approach?

An article from diversityinc.com on how Rutgers University is using diversity to transform society. Regards, Guy Diversity Consultant Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on May 11, 2009 at 10:14pm — No Comments

Diversity Worst Practices

An article from americandiversityreport.com on the ways diversity practices can go awry in companies. Regards, Guy Diversity Training Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on April 20, 2009 at 12:02pm — No Comments

Reducing Harassment in the Workplace

An article from Reuters.com on creating a harassment-free workplace. Regards, Guy I help workplaces promote inclusion. Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on April 8, 2009 at 2:56pm — No Comments

The Diversity of History

What do you most remember from your high school history classes? Alright, besides the pretty girl whom you tried to sit next to, what do you remember of the history? George Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte, Genghis Khan. Caesar Augustus, Florence Nightingale, Rameses II. Do those names ring a bell? When we learn history, we learn about individuals. We learn that singular men and women were responsible for the sort of leadership that deserves commemorating. See, when we're taught the grand histor… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on April 3, 2009 at 2:55pm — No Comments

The Effect of Colorblindness in the Workplace

An article on the effect of colorblindness in the workplace. Regards, Guy Helping bring people together. Continue

Added by Guy Farmer on March 25, 2009 at 1:57pm — No Comments

The Abraham Lincoln Brigade

The Abraham Lincoln Brigade In 1936, civil war broke out in Spain between the fascist Nationalists and the revolutionary Republicans. Word of the conflict went global within days. In an age without photoblogs or Twitter feeds, this meant big news. The world's influential countries distanced themselves from Spain. The United States took a vow of non-involvement and stamped US passports "not valid for travel in Spain." While the Iberian Peninsula became a slaughter house, civilized natio… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on March 25, 2009 at 6:00am — No Comments

The Moving Walkway

The Moving Walkway Recently I read Beverly Tatum’s book on institutional discrimination, Why are all the black kids sitting together in the cafeteria? In it she introduces a thought provoking analogy: “I sometimes visualize the ongoing cycle of racism as a moving walkway at the airport.“ Racism as a moving walkway? Can prejudice really be compared to a motorized sidewalk? Think of it this way: Certain structures of discrimination and empowerment are already in place. The moving walkway… Continue

Added by Kevin Morales on March 18, 2009 at 6:00am — 1 Comment