About Us

Our goal is to promote, recognize, celebrate, and engage various voices around campus to create a more equitable, diverse and inclusionary Western Community 

Our Vision 

The vision for the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion is to create a Western Community that instructs, directs, formalizes, and implements four broad EDI commitments outlined in Towards Western at 150. The core values expressed in the Western Strategic Plan include, but are not limited to, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Excellence, Innovation and Citizenship.  

Our Objectives 

  1. Create a welcoming and inclusive campus community 
  2. Increase diversity and equity in Western’s workforce and student population 
  3. Invest to combat racism and all forms of discrimination 
  4. Engage diverse Western communities 

 

Equity refers to the process of redistributing resources and providing access to equal opportunities for success. Equity works towards eliminating all forms of discrimination and oppression to strive for reconciliation and promote anti-racism.

Diversity is the presence of a wide variety of backgrounds, perspectives, experiences, abilities, and spaces within the Western community. It includes, but it is not limited to, age, education, sexuality, Indigenous status, religion, ability, race, ethnicity, and socio-economic status. Diversity without inclusion is futile.

Inclusion is an active, intentional, and consistent practice of creating a welcoming environment that nurtures a strong sense of belonging and distinctiveness while implementing equitable policies and processes. By practicing inclusivity, every individual is supported to reach their fullest potential and feels respected and valued.

References

American Library Association. (2017, June 27). Equity, Diversity, Inclusion: An interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/EDI

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. (2017). Guide for Applicants: Considering equity, diversity, and inclusion in your application. https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/_doc/EDI/Guide_for_Applicants_EN.pdf

University of Calgary Resource Library. (n.d.). Lesson 1: EDI, positionality and intersecting identities. https://taylorinstitute.ucalgary.ca/resources/module/anti-racism-edi-positionality/anti-racism

Anti-Racism "an active way of seeing and being in the world, in order to transform it. Because racism occurs at all levels and spheres of society (and can function to produce and maintain exclusionary "levels" and "spheres"), Anti-Racism education/activism is necessary in all aspects of society. In other words, it does not happen exclusively in the workplace, in the classroom, or in selected aspects of our lives." 

Reference: Anti-racism defined. Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre. (n.d.). Retrieved October 3, 2022, from https://web.archive.org/web/20201101022553/http://www.aclrc.com/antiracism-defined

More Terms

Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI) 

Ontario Human Rights Commission – Policy and guidelines on racism and racial discrimination: https://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/policy-and-guidelines-racism-and-racial-discrimination/part-1-%E2%80%93-setting-context-understanding-race-racism-and-racial-discrimination  

Canadian Race Relations Foundation – CRRF Glossary of Terms: https://www.crrf-fcrr.ca/en/resources/glossary-a-terms-en-gb-1?letter=a&cc=p   

Racial Equity Tools - Glossary: https://www.racialequitytools.org/glossary