DEI should address intersectionality. Here’s why

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🗞️ Driving the news: Maya Richard-Craven discusses the critical need for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives to address intersectionality
• She emphasizes that DEI efforts often overlook complex identities that encompass race, gender, neurodivergence, and sexuality, which can lead to feelings of exclusion and invisibility within these groups

🔭 The context: The concept of intersectionality, first coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, describes the overlapping forms of discrimination faced by individuals belonging to multiple marginalized groups
• Richard-Craven argues that traditional DEI initiatives fail to fully recognize these overlapping identities, focusing too narrowly on single-issue advocacy

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Inclusivity in DEI practices not only fosters a fairer workplace but also encourages broader societal change by acknowledging and supporting diverse identities
• This can lead to more sustainable, equitable, and just practices across communities and industries

⏭️ What's next: Richard-Craven calls for an expansion of DEI efforts to include and address intersectional identities explicitly
• This involves evolving from monolithic perspectives of inclusion to embracing the full spectrum of personal and group identities in the workplace

💬 One quote: "DEI isn’t just about people who are part of a single marginalized group, DEI is about advocating and holding space for people from one or more historically oppressed groups", says Maya Richard-Craven

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