How Can We Build It In Our Organization?

A culturally diverse board does not just happen, it takes time and commitment to supporting diversity and inclusiveness throughout the organization.

ASSESS YOUR ORGANIZATION

Organizations should begin by assessing their levels of cultural competency, diversity and inclusiveness. Various tools are available to help understand their current state and ways they can work towards a more inclusive future.

• Cultural Competence Toolkit: involving volunteers from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds – An assessment tool for non-profits to help build cultural competency
• Assess your Cultural Competence Checklists (American Speech Language Hearing Association)
• Strengthening Diversity in Your Organization: A Self-Assessment Tool (York Region Local Immigration Partnership)
• The Organizational Inclusion Assessment (2016)

NURTURE A CULTURALLY DIVERSE BOARD

A truly inclusive board understands the community it serves and has defined clear diversity goals. A culturally diverse board does not just happen, it takes time and commitment to supporting diversity and inclusiveness throughout the organization.

• Diversity in Governance: A Toolkit for Nonprofit Boards (DiverseCity: The Greater Toronto Leadership Project)
• Intersections 2: A Guide to Inclusive Nonprofit Governance in Alberta (Volunteer Alberta)
• Cultural Perceptions on Volunteering: Attracting Volunteers in an Increasingly Multicultural Society (University of Wollongong Australia)
• Avoiding Tokenism: Delivering Diverse and Inclusive Programming by Jael Richardson (Ontario Presents)

TAKE THE BIAS OUT OF RECRUITMENT AND HIRING

Our organizations may be committed to being open and inclusive, but our hiring practices may still include hidden or unhidden biases, including everything from how we advertise job opportunities, to how we rank qualifications and to our interview questions. Take the time to review. 

• Addressing bias in nonprofit organizations and charities (2014) by Tana Turner
• Building Culturally Competent Organizations, Section 7 (Community Tool Box)
• Increasing Cultural Diversity in Canadian Non-profits: Report 1, 2 and 3
  • Setting the Context
  • Recruitment and Best Practices
  • Immigrant Retention Strategies
• ​Creating a Culturally Competent Workplace: A Guide to Hiring Newcomer Canadians (South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services)

​BUILD AND MAINTAIN A CULTURALLY DIVERSE & INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE

No workplace is inclusive simply because it’s diverse. Organizations need to support a work environment that has a commitment to inclusion, open communication, and where everyone has, and is aware of, a role.

• 7 Key Steps to a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive Workplace. Charity Village, 2021.
• Inclusion: Making a Case for Arts and Culture, A Planning Tool for Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives in Arts and Culture, Part 1
• Inclusion: Making a Case for Arts and Culture, A Planning Tool for Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives in Arts and Culture, Part 2
• Four Steps to Take Towards a Diverse and Inclusive Workplace (Forbes)
• Employing a Diverse Workforce: Making it Work (Government of Alberta)
• Creating a Culturally Competent Workplace (South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services)
• A Place for All: A Guide to Creating an Inclusive Workplace (Canadian Human Rights Commission)
• Cultural Competence: A Guide to Organizational Change by Hieu Van Ngo (Citizen and Immigration Canada)
• In & Out: Diverging Perspectives on LGBT Inclusion in the Workplace (Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion)
• Making Change: LGBT Inclusion – Understanding the Challenges (Catalyst)
• Building a Culturally Competent Workplace, Section 7 (Community Tool Kit)

ENSURE INCLUSIVE POLICIES

Developing an inclusion policy is an important step for organizations that are ready to acknowledge their commitment, build understanding among stakeholders and help ensure all organizational practices adhere to inclusion.

• Writing an Inclusion Policy: A Guide for Child Care Centres and Homes (Healthy Child Manitoba)
• Inclusion: Policy Development Guidelines for Early Learning and Care Programs (City of Toronto)
• Multi-Year Diversity, Accessibility and Inclusion Plan 2018 - 2022 (Region of Waterloo)

LEARN ABOUT OTHER CULTURES IN YOUR COMMUNITY

Learning from other cultures broadens our minds and builds new possibilities. Everyone should be paying attention to the various cultures in their communities…it helps us as individuals and helps build organizations that can face the global challenges of the future.

• Do You Know Who I Am? (Video, 2015) 
• Indian Residential Schools & Reconciliation (First Nations Education Steering Committee)
• They Came for the Children (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada)
• Culture Crossing: Online Resource
• Country Insights (Global Affairs Canada)

REACH OUT TO DIVERSE GROUPS

While it can be challenging, engaging culturally diverse groups involves being welcoming, meeting on their turf, building new communication channels, listening to identity preferences and trying more than once.

• Ayisῑnowak: A Communications Guide. (Digital Update 2018) City of Saskatoon.
• Creating Deeper Cultural Learning Experiences (Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan)
• Engaging Newcomers in Canadian Programs, Winter 2016 Directions Magazine (Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association)
• The Challenge of Reaching Diverse Populations in Saskatchewan (The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research)
• Reaching Out to Diverse Populations: What Can Schools Do to Foster Family-School Connections? (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory)
• Beyond Inclusion: Embracing Diversity, Expanding the Arts - Webinar (Ontario Presents)
• Get it Write: Writing Powerful Proposals in a Diverse Cultural Climate by Jael Richardson (Ontario Presents)

WORK TO END RACISM

Racism affects everyone. It is important for everyone to understand the issues, be able to identify it when they see it, deepen personal awareness, learn to accept and celebrate cultural differences and step up to stop racism when it appears.

• The Kit: A Manual by Youth to Combat Racism through Education (The United Nations Association of Canada)
• Anti-Racist Train the Trainer Programs: A Model by Doris Marshall Institute, Arnold Minors & Associates (Ontario Anti-Racism Secretariat, Ministry of Citizenship)
• Arrêt/Stop Racism Youth Leadership Workshop: Facilitation Guide (Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan)
• Anti-Racism 101 (Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan)
• Guidelines for Educators on Countering Intolerance and Discrimination against Muslims: Addressing Islamophobia through Education (UNESCO)
• Helping Students Deal with Trauma Related to Geopolitical Violence and Islamaphobia (National Council on Canadian Muslims)
• Frequently Asked Questions about Islam and Muslims (ING)
• Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire - video (Deepa Kumar)

EVALUATE YOUR PROGRESS

Evaluation is an important step in any organizational plan. It is helpful to understand our successes and identify ways we can improve going forward.

• Measuring Inclusion: Municipal Evaluation Tool (The Welcoming & Inclusive Communities Initiative, Alberta Urban Municipalities Association)
• Evaluating the Effectiveness of Diversity and Inclusion Efforts by Marie Gervais (Shift Management)
• Literature Review: Outcomes and Indicators of Welcoming and Inclusive Communities and Workplace Initiatives by Matt Thomas (Social Planning and Research Council of BC)
• Building an Inclusive, Community-centered Evaluation by Robert Sturm and Lee Francis IV (National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy)