"Nothing can be changed until it is faced." - James Baldwin, 1962
The research questions that drive our lab are about the human experience. The only way to fully answer these questions is to understand the full spectrum of human experience. To do this, we need diversity and equity within the field of research. Successful research group(s) are made up of individuals from different races, ethnicities, gender identities, cultural ideologies, socioeconomic backgrounds, and perspectives that contribute to and push research and knowledge forward (Hofstra et al. 2020). More importantly, a great deal of research has shown that climbing the ranks of academia is not a fair climb (Clauset et al., 2015; Moss-Racusin et al., 2012). Some colleagues, including individuals who identify as Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ+, and who identify as female, face unique hurdles during the climb (Higher Education Training, 2013). Black researchers have faced particularly disadvantaged access to careers in science (Morris, 2015; Abiodun, 2019). Nevertheless, we believe the pursuit and generation of new knowledge--academia's primary goal--should be equally attainable, and without bias. We are committed to facing the current reality of disadvantaged access to scientific careers so, like Baldwin said, we can in turn help change this reality. To this end, we commit ourselves to include diversity, equity, and inclusion in science, to promote the research of underrepresented minority scholars, and to increase our own research team's diversity, through equity and inclusion.
We want to note that this statement was written in response to events that have affected People of Color (POC), specifically events faced by members of the Black community. We acknowledge that there are broad hurdles for POC and nuanced issues that relate to identities and their intersection within the research realm (Hester et al., 2020; Lei et al., 2020).
If you would like to learn more about the specific actions we are taking to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion, please contact Dr. Meghan Meyer at Meghan .L.Meyer@Dartmouth.Edu.