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Using Collective Impact to overcome systemic racism
Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment ( IF 10.3 ) Pub Date : 2020-09-01 , DOI: 10.1002/fee.2245
Teresa Mourad 1 , George Middendorf 2
Affiliation  

The murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, symbolizes the long history and impact of systemic racism and suffocation of minority communities, particularly the Black community, in the US. Systemic issues force these communities to contend with a vast array of obstacles: access to schools (including higher education), healthcare, affordable housing, livable income, jobs and career opportunities, security, and funding for their research. In science, minorities, especially Black scientists, are starkly underrepresented in every sector: academia, NGOs, government agencies, industry, and – indeed – professional societies.

Undoubtedly, there is no shortage of minority undergraduate students interested in pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) majors. Enrollments for both underrepresented minorities and White students are on par. Yet, far fewer minorities graduate with a STEM degree, and they take longer to do so. Fewer than 2% of PhDs in the sciences are earned by Black scholars. Everyday, minorities question whether they belong in science classrooms, tenure‐track positions, and careers. Everyday, others question their presence.

For decades, attempts to address this underrepresentation have focused on “pipeline” issues of minority recruitment and retention, with billions of dollars spent on programs to promote interest in science, provide authentic research experiences, and offer peer and professional mentoring as well as community support. Regardless, the numbers have not changed.

When viewed from a landscape perspective, we see a multitude of distinct, unconnected, and isolated programs. From an equity and justice lens, no single program will ever succeed in effecting change throughout an individual's career journey. Success requires attention to support both on and off campus: mentoring and advising; development of technical and “soft” skills; leadership training; and induction into professional networks. Each and all of these have profound and positive impacts on a young person's career trajectory. The processes of recruitment, hiring, grading/evaluation, professional advancement, and overall institutional culture also must be addressed as they have too often shut doors to minority inclusion. There are simply too many factors for any single program to sufficiently manage. Programs are stuck in a system in which only a few rare individuals triumph – those who persist in spite of these obstacles.

We propose a comprehensive, collective approach that encourages multiple entities and initiatives to work together to intentionally address both personal experiences and institutional culture as individuals move through each career stage. The Collective Impact (CI) model developed by Kania and Kramer (Stanford Soc Innov Rev 2011; https://bit.ly/3gEJLEh) provides a framework for coherent action. With five key characteristics – a common agenda, shared measurement, mutually reinforcing activities, continuous communication, and backbone support – the CI approach shifts the actions and results of siloed activity to coordinated, cohesive, and durable outcomes.

The purpose of a CI alliance is not to develop a new program, but to create a new structure that coordinates and shares existing resources, networks, and expertise. In 2017, ESA was awarded a US National Science Foundation INCLUDES grant to pilot EcologyPlus (ecologyplus.esa.org), an alliance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities; federal, state, and local government agencies; environmental NGOs; and professional and community networks. Led by partner organizations, EcologyPlus facilitates skills workshops, research, networking, internships, and job opportunities that serve diverse undergraduates, graduate students, and early‐career professionals. It also offers individuals a mentoring platform to organize and track career goals with their mentors.

One of the hallmarks of a CI design is agreement on success metrics. EcologyPlus extended the traditional definition of success beyond academic research careers to include “STEM‐capable” careers. We regarded participation in science‐related fields not as “leaks” in, but as extensions of, the pipeline into other disciplinary areas. In doing so, we recognized that participant interests were not the same as ours and that there are many types of environmental careers. We see an opportunity to acknowledge the need for ecologists and other scientists to advance in careers ranging from exploratory research to communication, from policy to public health.

In recent months, anti‐racism conversations have exposed the systemic roots of the low numbers of Black and other minority scientists in the discipline. Furthermore, we see that numerical metrics alone are insufficient. We believe that other measures like a sense of belonging, an ability to navigate career pathways, and an effective use of professional networks must be included. We invite universities, employers, and organizations to connect within an intentional, anti‐racist, CI framework in order to construct comprehensive approaches that will bring about the changes necessary to welcome Black and other minority scientists in all places and across all sectors.



中文翻译:

利用集体影响力克服系统种族主义

2020年5月25日乔治·弗洛伊德(George Floyd)被谋杀,标志着美国少数族裔群体,特别是黑人社区的系统性种族主义和窒息窒息的悠久历史和影响。系统性问题迫使这些社区面临诸多障碍:上学(包括高等教育),医疗保健,经济适用房,可居住的收入,工作和职业机会,安全以及研究经费。在科学领域,少数民族,尤其是黑人科学家,在各个领域的代表人数都严重不足:学术界,非政府组织,政府机构,行业,甚至是专业协会。

毫无疑问,不乏对追求科学,技术,工程和数学(STEM)专业感兴趣的少数民族本科生。少数族裔学生和白人学生的入学率基本持平。但是,拥有STEM学位的少数民族人数要少得多,他们需要更长的时间才能毕业。黑人学者获得的科学博士学位的比例不到2%。每天,少数族裔都会质疑他们是否属于科学教室,终身制职位和职业。每天都有人质疑他们的存在。

数十年来,解决这一代表性不足的尝试一直侧重于少数群体招募和保留的“管道”问题,数十亿美元用于计划,以促进对科学的兴趣,提供真实的研究经验,并提供同伴和专业指导以及社区支持。无论如何,数字并没有改变。

从景观角度看,我们看到了许多不同的,未连接的和孤立的程序。从公平和正义的角度来看,没有一个单一的程序将会在个人的整个职业生涯中成功实现变革。成功需要关注校园内外的支持:指导和咨询;发展技术和“软”技能;领导能力培训;并融入专业网络。所有这些都对年轻人的职业轨迹产生深远而积极的影响。招聘,聘用,等级/评估,专业晋升和整体机构文化的过程也必须加以解决,因为它们经常关闭少数群体包容性的大门。任何单个程序都无法充分管理的因素太多。程序被困在一个只有少数稀有人才能获胜的系统中-尽管这些障碍仍然存在。

我们提出了一种全面的,集体的方法,该方法鼓励多个实体和倡议共同努力,以在个人进入每个职业阶段时有目的地解决个人经历和机构文化。由Kania和Kramer开发的“集体影响(CI)”模型(Stanford Soc Innov Rev 2011; https://bit.ly/3gEJLEh)提供了采取一致行动的框架。CI方法具有五个关键特征-共同的议程,共同的衡量标准,相辅相成的活动,持续的沟通和骨干支持-CI方法将孤立活动的行动和结果转变为协调,一致和持久的结果。

CI联盟的目的不是开发新程序,而是创建一个协调和共享现有资源,网络和专业知识的新结构。2017年,ESA被美国国家科学基金会(NASA)授予飞行员EcologyPlus(ecologyplus.esa.org)的赠款,该组织是历史悠久的黑人高校的联盟; 联邦,州和地方政府机构;环境非政府组织;以及专业和社区网络。在合作伙伴组织的带领下,EcoologyPlus促进了技能研讨会,研究,网络,实习和工作机会,为各种本科生,研究生和早期职业人士提供服务。它还为个人提供了一个指导平台,以与其指导者一起组织和跟踪职业目标。

CI设计的标志之一是关于成功指标的协议。EcologyPlus将成功的传统定义扩展到学术研究职业以外,包括“具备STEM能力”的职业。我们认为参与科学相关领域并不是“泄漏”,而是将其延伸到其他学科领域。在这样做的过程中,我们认识到参与者的兴趣与我们的兴趣不同,并且环境职业种类很多。我们看到了一个机会,可以认识到生态学家和其他科学家在从探索性研究到传播,从政策到公共卫生的职业发展中的需求。

近几个月来,反种族主义的对话暴露了该学科中黑人和其他少数族裔科学家人数很少的系统根源。此外,我们看到仅数字指标是不够的。我们认为,还必须包括其他措施,例如归属感,驾驭职业道路的能力以及有效利用专业网络。我们邀请大学,雇主和组织在故意的,反种族主义的CI框架内建立联系,以构建全面的方法,从而带来必要的变化,以欢迎各地和各个领域的黑人和其他少数族裔科学家。

更新日期:2020-09-01
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