2020-2021 Unpacking Diversity: Exploring our College Climate
This year, we continue last year's theme and look at our college climate and how it influences the experiences of members of the CEOAS community, especially those of marginalized groups and from underrepresented communities.
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What is climate?
A campus climate can be thought of as the behaviors within a workplace or learning environment that can influence whether an individual feels personally safe, listened to, valued, and respected. Climate plays an important role in people’s satisfaction, effectiveness, productivity, engagement, and decisions to remain in or leave a department or area of study, and is critical to faculty and student retention.
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For more information on college climate and departments, view resources to assess and enhance department climate created by the Women in Science & Engineering Leadership Institute, UW-Madison.
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This year's aims:​
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Explore the history of the geosciences (oceanography, geology) and examine how the legacy of the scientific method was often rooted in Western dominance, imperialism and colonialism
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Promote inclusion by raising awareness of the specific challenges of marginalized groups in earth, ocean, and atmospheric sciences, and the broader STEM community
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E.g., individuals with visible/invisible disabilities, LGBTQIA+, people of color
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Sessions:
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Session 1: Narrative Dilemmas in the Marine Sciences
Facilitator: Dr. Jacob Hamblin (he/him), Professor of History, Director of Environmental Arts and Humanities
When: Friday November 6 @ 2 PM PST
Where: Zoom
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Dr. Jacob Hamblin (he/him/his), Professor of History and Director of Environmental Arts and Humanities, will facilitate a talk with the CEOAS community about narrative dilemmas in the marine sciences with a focus on the 1940s-1950s scientific dialogues between Japan and the United States. As we engage with this topic, we invite the CEOAS community to critically reflect on the historical legacies that shape dominant narratives in our respective fields. Whose voices are included or excluded in the construction of scientific knowledge? Whose voices have power?
To explore more of Dr. Jacob Hamblin's work, his 2011 book Oceanographers and the Cold War: Disciples of Marine Science covers topics relating to patronage, politics, and the community of ocean scientists during the Cold War Era. Essays and recent activity by Dr. Hamblin can be found at https://jacobdarwinhamblin.com/
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Session 2: History of Geology: A Discussion on Racism and Erasure
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Facilitator: Picabo Fraas (she/her), School of History, Philosophy, and Religion in the College of Liberal Arts
When: Thursday November 19 @ 1 PM PST
Where: Zoom
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In this session, we will explore the ways in which the discipline of Geology is rooted in white dominance and racial injustice. We invite you to join us in reflecting on how this legacy may continue to affect the discipline today.
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Session 3: Facts that Care about Feelings
Facilitators: Drs. H. Rakes(1) and Bradley Boovy(2)
1 - Assistant Professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies and Queer Studies
2 - Assistant Professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies and World Languages and Cultures
When: Thursday, March 2:00 - 3:30 PM
Where: Zoom
Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies professors Dr. H Rakes and Dr. Bradley Boovy will present on inclusion of 2SLGBTQQIA+ people in STEM fields. After a short presentation, they will lead the group in a discussion of exclusion and marginalization of 2SLGBTQQIA+ people in STEM disciplines and facilitate a visioning session focused on developing strategies to transform the culture of academic disciplines. Time at the end of the session will be reserved for CEOAS graduate students to talk with the presenters.