The 99 Day Diversity Challenge

Is it really possible for an individual or an organization to develop an inclusion and diversity mindset within the proverbial 99 days? Award-winning social entrepreneur Dr Saundarya Rajesh, one of India's most prominent diversity strategists who is credited with having ushered in the 'second-career' revolution for women professionals, believes it is. In an engaging, gentle, often light-hearted way, Dr Rajesh demystifies this vast subject of Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) for the business leader, the diversity enthusiast and even the young professional who is interested in this topic. Over a set of 99 stories, anecdotes and thought blogs, this book sequentially uncovers the meaning of D&I and how this can be absorbed by just about everyone. At the core of the 99 Day Diversity Challenge is the belief that the organizational practice of inclusion actually results in us becoming better human beings. For when we break down differences and create greater connectedness between people, we are building a better world.

Embark on an inspiring journey with “Pearls of Progress,” a captivating narrative that delves into the history and mysteries of gender equality facets through a cast of compelling characters. Meet Pearl, the dynamic protagonist whose life’s journey is fueled by the heroic legacies of her grandparents. She sets sail on a mission to demystify gender complexities that afflict families, workplaces, and societies and shares the valuable insights gained. She collaborates with international experts to design an exclusive blueprint that provides effective approaches to eliminate gender challenges and foster inclusion. In this process an ideology of ‘Gender Equality Mindset’ (GEMs) emerges to shatter conventional thinking and focus on abounding progress for everyone. Within the pages of “Pearls of Progress,” discover soul-stirring life stories, thought-provoking interviews, empowering toolkits, and poignant poetry that inspire meaningful action. Let us unravel deep assumptions unsaid, Discern society’s prevalent mindset. Envision a future of gender equality, Welcome an era of Progress and Prosperity!

Led by Professor Lester-Irabinna Rigney, Global Perspectives and New Challenges in Culturally Responsive Pedagogies brings together diverse communities of education research in an innovative way to develop a nuanced understanding of the relationship between education and democracy. This book synthesises a range of theoretical, conceptual, and empirical approaches to address the complex challenges faced by young people and societies in the 21st century. Each chapter provides accounts of local inclusive encounters in education, while engaging with global debates and issues, such as racism, neoliberalism, de-colonisation, new colonialism, de-democratisation, and growing social, economic, and educational inequality. This book presents new ways of thinking about democracy, local–global enactments of culturally responsive pedagogies through teaching and learning, and future thinking for a new era. Bringing together diverse, Australian, and international perspectives, this book will be relevant to educators, researchers, and policy makers who are interested in Indigenous education, educational sociology, de-coloniality, cultural safety, critical pedagogy, and education leadership theory.

College campuses provide ideal natural settings for studying diversity: they allow us to see what happens when students of all different backgrounds sit side by side in classrooms, live together in residence halls, and interact in one social space. By opening a window onto the experiences and evolving identities of individuals in these exceptionally diverse environments, we can gain a better understanding of the possibilities and challenges we face as a multicultural nation. The Diversity Challenge—the largest and most comprehensive study to date on college campus diversity—synthesizes over five years' worth of research by an interdisciplinary team of experts to explore how a highly diverse environment and policies that promote cultural diversity affect social relations, identity formation, and a variety of racial and political attitudes. The result is a fascinating case study of the ways in which individuals grow and groups interact in a world where ethnic and racial difference is the norm. The authors of The Diversity Challenge followed 2,000 UCLA students for five years in order to see how diversity affects identities, attitudes, and group conflicts over time. They found that racial prejudice generally decreased with exposure to the ethnically diverse college environment. Students who were randomly assigned to roommates of a different ethnicity developed more favorable attitudes toward students of different backgrounds, and the same associations held for friendship and dating patterns. By contrast, students who interacted mainly with others of similar backgrounds were more likely to exhibit bias toward others and perceive discrimination against their group. Likewise, the authors found that involvement in ethnically segregated student organizations sharpened perceptions of discrimination and aggravated conflict between groups. The Diversity Challenge also reports compelling new evidence that a strong ethnic identity can coexist with a larger community identity: students from all ethnic groups were equally likely to identify themselves as a part of the broader UCLA community. Overall, the authors note that on many measures, the racial and political attitudes of the students were remarkably consistent throughout the five year study. But the transformations that did take place provide us with a wealth of information on how diversity affects individuals, groups, and the cohesion of a community. Theoretically informed and empirically grounded, The Diversity Challenge is an illuminating and provocative portrait of one of the most diverse college campuses in the nation. The story of multicultural UCLA has significant and far-reaching implications for our nation, as we face similar challenges—and opportunities—on a much larger scale.

Classroom Communication and Diversity provides a useful framework for helping both new and experienced teachers and instructors navigate the communication challenges in today’s diverse classroom. It encourages teachers to reflect on how their personal cultures influence their expectations regarding classroom communication. This textbook is distinctive in its distillation of research from numerous sources to provide the best viewpoint and systems for focusing on the needs of the individual learner. Dana L. Powell and Robert G. Powell draw on research in both the communication and education disciplines, and provide useful strategies for improving teaching practices alongside theoretical models regarding diversity in the classroom. Much of the information found in this text is also inspired by the authors’ direct experience in schools and from the experience they have gleaned from other first-line instructors as well as from parents and children. Among the many updates to this Third Edition are: Expanded coverage of students with diverse needs Discussion on working effectively with parents Coverage of cultural influences and the impact of race and ethnicity on disciplinary actions Examination of the role of social media and its impact on instructional communication The increase of educational technology use. Teachers and scholars in the communication and education fields will find this text practical and valuable for their teaching efforts, and it is appropriate for instructional communication courses in both disciplines.

This interrogates the racist construction of Aria and Aryanism in an Iranian context, arguing that these concepts gave the Indo-European speaking Persian ethnic group an advantage over Iran's non-Persian nationalities and communities.