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Hello everyone, my name is Katelyn and I am a grade 11 student at Sentinel Secondary School in West Vancouver, BC. Today, I will be talking about the importance of diversity and inclusion in a workplace environment and how I can adapt these roles to my conference.
Diversity’s official definition is about everything that makes an individual unique in their way, such as age, ethnicity, personality, gender, or disabilities. Diversity in a workplace also means being able to recognize and respect others who are different. It is important to embrace diversity because it is a key to building connections with peers and coworkers. Diversity not only can improve productivity in the workplace, but it can also create a more fun discussion between employees who have different backgrounds and beliefs.
According to sources, there are four pillars of diversity: internal, external, organizational, and work view. Internal refers to the characteristics that someone is born with, such as personality, race, or gender. External refers to anything that contributes to a person, this includes education, extracurricular activities, religion, or even appearance. Organizational refers to how an organization sets up roles for each employee to ensure everyone has an equal opportunity. Lastly, worldview refers to how one person views the entire world through various travel experiences, political events, cultures, or religions.
Inclusion, on the other hand, is the opposite of differentiation; Inclusion acts as a belief in feeling valued and respected regardless of race, gender, personality, or disabilities. It is a step process to building a healthy and friendly work environment. This belief avoids creating a separation between others and it is crucial to include everyone since this is what builds a strong connection between employees.
Diversity and Inclusion are very important in a workplace environment. For example, let’s say I am a team leader with a group of people from all different backgrounds. I have to make sure everyone in the group feels valued and respected. With a diverse group of people, we will be able to have a more fun and creative discussion since everyone has a different perspective. Our ideas will include our own beliefs/cultures which contribute to our overall discussion. Since everyone will have their own opinions, our group will be able to create unique ideas and sometimes even greater solutions to problems.
A diverse and inclusive team can improve their overall performance and work. Imagine if everyone is the same, thinks the same, and everyone contributes the same idea; there will not be any discussion to be made. This may sound harmonious with no one disagreeing; however, sometimes different ideas and perspectives can contribute to one extraordinary idea.
So how can diversity and inclusion apply to the roles for my conference?
Coming up with a conference theme is a key step to overall success. With numerous ideas, my team will have a bigger chance of having the most creative and innovative conference theme. My goal is to have a unique and special conference that intrigues every high school student. Therefore, I have to learn how to put together all the wonderful ideas from my group and convert them into the best conference plan.
Here are some other sources that talks about diversity and inclusion:
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