A key part of our Strategy Review at Carnegie UK has been an examination of our own credentials, asking ourselves how we can do better in relation to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). It’s a cross-organisation journey that started in March last year and will go on to challenge us and, we hope, fundamentally change us over the next five years and beyond.
Why do diversity, equity and inclusion matter to us?
Carnegie UK defines wellbeing as having what we need to live well together. Diversity matters to Carnegie UK because our socio-economic background; sexual orientation; sex; gender; race; age; faith or belief, and whether or not we are disabled, impact on how likely we are to experience structural inequalities and how much power and agency we have to change these inequalities.
It follows that these characteristics have an impact on our ability to live well and to live well together: those experiencing a lack of equity or inclusion are less likely to experience positive wellbeing outcomes on a personal level. Meanwhile, a lack of diversity, equity and inclusion can have detrimental impacts on communities and society, undermining social cohesion, the quality of relationships, and the likelihood of creating a world that works for everyone.
What is the scope of our engagement with diversity, equity and inclusion?
We are engaging in DEI across all of our organisational capacities:
- As a social change organisation focused on enhancing wellbeing, we know that equity and inclusion are essential to achieving wellbeing outcomes.
- As an independent, endowed Trust, we know that it is important to acknowledge and address the role our privilege, legacy and resources have played in relation to DEI in the past, and to mobilise these assets to support equity and inclusion in the future, as well as inspiring change across the sector.
- As an employer, we aim to create and sustain a culture and environment that enable people of all backgrounds to participate fully and to fulfil their potential.
DEI is therefore embedded in Carnegie UK’s strategy, programmes of work and organisational development plan.
To bring this to life, we are developing processes for training, learning and reflection; reviewing our legacy; revising our ways of working, policies and procedures; considering our governance model; scrutinising our investments; and developing appropriate measures and indicators for our work.
What is our ethos and approach?
At Carnegie UK, our values and our commitment to being a learning organisation are central to informing our approach to DEI. This means that:
- If we are motivated by change we must understand the need to address culture and implicit values as well as explicit processes and procedures across all areas of our work to bring about true change
- If we are collaborative we must ensure that the work is owned by all of us at Carnegie UK and we must work in partnership with others to deepen our understanding and contribution
- If we are challenging we must recognise that diversity is not a tick box exercise but an approach to people and the world; an approach characterised by empathy, gentle curiosity, openness and a willingness to challenge oneself and the world in which we operate. This approach must be ongoing and continuous. This is no small thing: it asks each of us to fundamentally shift the way we look at things every single day as individuals as well as an organisation.
- If we are kind we must recognise that we, and others who are committed to getting this right, need to openly acknowledge that we may not feel that we have the language to talk about DEI and are nervous of getting it wrong – and this is a learning journey.
- If we are a learning organisation we must understand that DEI is not something that can be wholly, or adequately, addressed through training courses as it is less about assimilating information and more about touching upon deeply held (and perhaps unacknowledged) core beliefs that are integral to who we are and our view of humanity.
Listening, doing and being
It follows from our ethos that listening is really important to our approach at Carnegie UK. We have already tried to create a safe space in which we could listen to ourselves and our colleagues, identifying with and connecting with DEI. We asked what DEI means to us personally and individually, articulated our hopes and fears in relation to this work and identified what we might need to progress the agenda as a collective of individuals with different needs, experiences, and triggers.
We have also taken opportunities to engage with others in the sector who are doing similar work and to learn from their approaches, building on the leadership shown by ACF in developing the DEI pillar of their “Stronger Foundations” programme. We hope, as a next step, to invite trainers and speakers into this space and to listen to them – and to ensure that we listen to those we work with. The aim of this engagement will be to help open our eyes and provoke us to dig deep and challenge ourselves – as individuals and as an organisation – and enable us to better understand what we need to change.
Whilst we want to be as thoughtful about this as possible, we recognise that reflection is not enough and we also need to act; not doing anything out of fear of getting it wrong will get us nowhere, fast. We need to “do” and whilst we would prefer to get things right straight away, we may need to give ourselves – and ask others for – permission to get it wrong.
Alongside listening and doing, we recognise that we need to embody and inhabit the changes we seek to see and make. A core part of our DEI work is therefore about how we show up in the world as individuals and as an organisation.
Get in touch
We hope to keep you informed about what we learn about DEI and ourselves as an organisation along our journey. If you have ideas of how we could do what we seek to do better, or have any examples of best practice you’d like to share, please do share them with us ([email protected]). We would genuinely love to hear from you.