Training
Are you looking to learn more about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging?
Our curriculum includes 60 hours of training. We provide customized trainings to organizations.
Step #1: Foundations of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
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This interactive and foundational workshop helps you to develop the knowledge, skills, and language you need to discuss diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
In the current political climate, we need a constructive way to address and discuss racism and oppression. Explore concrete examples and understand the impact of institutional racism, structures of oppression, and white culture (leading to white supremacy). Through deep self-reflection, we’ll discuss how to dismantle biases, recognize fragility, and build solidarity with marginalized communities. Learn the meaning of allyship, how to go beyond it, and discover actionable steps to support marginalized communities. (6.5 hours)
Step 2: Deepening Our Awareness
Hand with a ring holding a clear glass globe with a view of upside down buildings.
Breaking Bias Barriers: Cultivating an Anti-Bias Culture
Dive deep into the intricacies of handling bias, whether you find yourself in the role of the person harmed, a supporter, a human resources (HR) professional, or even the aggressor when bias, microaggressions, or macroaggressions occur in the workplace. Gain invaluable insights into replicating these vital conversations within your organization, fostering a culture of open dialogue and understanding.
Person with long hair raising fist in the air
Culture of Power
Explore the significant role that the pursuit and hoarding of “power” has played in this society. Participants will learn about the dynamics of how power is cultivated, attained, and maintained by certain groups. Understand how this power is honed and used to marginalize and oppress certain segments of society. Strategize how power might be leveraged to disrupt systemic oppression rather than perpetuate it.
White arrow pointing to the right on a blue brick background
white Culture, white Power, and white Supremacy
How do white power, white culture, and white supremacy show up in our personal and professional lives? Understand how white power is maintained and achieved both historically and today. Recognize how we may have internalized white supremacy cultural values as our own. Discuss how these values are embedded into the nonprofit sector and within organizations.
Group of individuals sitting in a semi-circle having a conversation
Graffiti on dark brick wall that says “Trust Your Struggle”
Signs on a chain link fence “Don’t Give Up, You Are Not Alone, You Matter”
Moving from Allyship to Solidarity
Far too often, the work of dismantling systems of oppression falls onto marginalized communities. What can we do about it? Learn about the skills and tools that move us from standing with the community to taking purposeful action toward dismantling the structures that continue to foster varied forms of oppression.
Our Oppressions are Tied: The Journey Towards Equitable Racial Liberation
Explore the history of oppression of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) folx and how it’s interconnected. Discuss the ways communities of color may inadvertently oppress each other and how this ultimately benefits white supremacy. Strategize how communities of color can serve as allies and co-conspirators for each other, ultimately achieving liberation for all.
Racial Trauma and Radical Healing
What’s the emotional cost of repeatedly seeing people who look like you targeted, profiled, and attacked? What’s the psychological toll of swallowing what you really want to say in response to slights and microaggressions for fear that you lose your job if you say what you really think? Explore how racial trauma impacts broad swathes of our society, how it manifests in our workplaces, and how it frames interpersonal relationships. Discuss the need for radical healing to help us continue our efforts to dismantle systemic oppression and systemic racism.
Three people engaged in a discussion during a meeting
Three colleagues having a meeting in an office conference room
Three people outside a building, one on a megaphone addressing a group, one man wearing a shirt that reads “my life has a purpose,” and another standing beside them with a mask on
What Does “Nice Oppression” and “Nice Racism Look Like?
Despite our intentions to be antiracist and anti-oppressive, we often inadvertently perpetuate racism through well-meaning actions. Delve into the nuances of "nice" racism and oppression, exploring their subtle manifestations in language and behavior. Learn practical strategies for addressing these issues in real-time when they arise, empowering yourself and your organization to create truly inclusive and equitable spaces. Take advantage of this opportunity to deepen your understanding and take meaningful action toward dismantling systemic oppression within your organization.
How to Normalize Feedback & Generative Conflict
Delve into the essential components required to cultivate a brave space, nurturing the environment necessary for challenging discussions to flourish. Acquire invaluable skills and practices for normalizing feedback throughout your workplace, fostering a culture of constructive dialogue and growth. Distinguish between calling in, calling out, and calling within, empowering yourself to navigate conflict with clarity and compassion. Shift your perspective on conflict, recognizing its potential as a catalyst for positive change, and learn how to harness it effectively to drive meaningful transformation within your organization.
Addressing anti-Blackness in Ourselves and Our Work
In the 2020s, we saw an uptick in organizations and companies making statements committing to and launching initiatives uplifting antiracism. However, their efforts did not necessarily mean they explicitly addressed anti-Blackness. Consequently, the pernicious nature of anti-Blackness continues to impact and undermine their overall anti-racism work detrimentally. In this training, we discuss how anti-Blackness permeates this society and can be internalized by anyone, regardless of their race. Leave with a concrete understanding of what you can do to identify your own anti-Black bias, interrupt it, and unlearn it.
A purple sign with a wheelchair symbol indicating accessibility that reads “step free route”
Ableism & Disability Justice
Dive into the crucial intersection of disability justice, disability, and ableism. We'll explore how these concepts impact the communities we work with and how unconscious biases can create barriers. By examining how ableism creates barriers and how disability justice can guide us, we'll discover practical ways to make our organization a more welcoming and accessible space for everyone.
People wearing face masks and holding signs that read “Asians in Solidarity with Black Lives” and Black Lives Matter” in front of a statue during a protest
Building Bridges: Strategies for Cross-Racial Solidarity in a Divided World
Recognizing that white supremacy seeks to divide to retain power, what can we do to build cross-racial solidarity amongst all Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)/Global Majority Groups? How can we foster an environment where we recognize when the Oppression Olympics show up, find the grace to call one another in, and work towards solidarity?
Step 3: Operationalizing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging on an Organizational Level
Two fists bumping
Building the Bridge: Your DEIB Committee as a Change Catalyst
Many organizations have established DEIB committees with the hope of promoting equity and dispelling office tensions amongst staff with differing social identities. Unfortunately, these lofty goals are often unachieved, leaving leadership and staff frustrated and disheartened. In an ideal world, the responsibility of creating and maintaining a culture of equity and belonging is shared amongst everyone in the organization, and the DEIB committee can help lead the way. During this workshop, attendees will learn the crucial elements of creating an effective DEIB committee, the common mistakes to avoid, and how to ensure timely, accurate 2-way communication with non-committee staff. This workshop will also review who should be on the DEIB committee, equitable decision-making practices for its meetings, and how to determine the scope of its work.
Cozy room with a red pillow, candle, matchsticks, hot chocolate, and book on a white shag rug
Creating a Culture of Self-Care and Community Care
Nonprofit organizations and staff are some of the most susceptible to burnout. Whether it’s providing services to survivors of trauma, supporting children in poverty, or working on climate change issues, our mental health can be affected. It contributes to our collective stress and anxiety. We know we’re supposed to take care of ourselves, but how can we do that when so much needs to be done?
While our normal self-care tools (i.e., meditation, journaling, etc.) can help, a lot of us need more than that. Learn about realistic tools and practices we can implement daily, including when operating in crisis situations. Begin building a crisis self-care plan that you can use over the next few weeks so that we can stay healthy and care for our family and our communities. Finally, learn about resources available in your community that could support you.
A group of people who are standing together
Decolonizing Human Resources/People & Culture
For far too long, human resources (HR) has been there to protect organizations. HR in and of itself is rooted in the enslavement of Black/African Americans and then the continued oppression of historically excluded groups over the past century. Policies and practices that were adopted by HR (i.e., the 40-hour work week, annual performance evaluations, supervisors/managers, etc.) primarily serve to uphold white cultural norms and the continued systemic oppression of people with marginalized identities.
There's a reason why non-profit leadership is still over 90% white. There's a reason why we continue to use the same practices year after year to hire people but then ask ourselves why we're still not diversified. Practicing equity and inclusion within nonprofit human resources means accepting it will take culture change.
Black and white photo of hands in a circle
Shifting Power Dynamics: Shared Leadership for More Inclusive Organizations
Most of our organizations reflect traditional, hierarchical power structures with a correlating top-down approach to working. Those with positional power make decisions in a vacuum without input from those with less power. Systemic oppression thrives on these types of rigid power structures. Learn how shared leadership models promote equity, creativity, and effectiveness. Discuss what shared leadership entails and what it does not.
Four leaves of different colors
Liberatory Management & Supervision
Consider supervision through a liberatory lens! This training challenges ingrained perceptions influenced by power dynamics and cultural narratives. Supervision, inherently both structured and relational, fosters accountability and growth. Rather than reinforcing power dynamics, embrace a paradigm where supervision cultivates power with others, fostering mutual growth and liberation. Break free from narratives rooted in white supremacy and pave the way for collaborative, empowering supervision practices that prioritize mutual flourishing.
Laptop with charts
Moving Beyond the Board Matrix
to Achieve Inclusion
Nonprofit boards need to reflect the communities that they serve. How do we move beyond using a board matrix to examine issues of diversity and inclusion? How are organizational practices and expectations of board members unconsciously creating barriers to recruitment and fostering a culture of belonging? Learn what nonprofits can do to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion within their organizations. This training is geared towards nonprofit board members, executive directors, and individuals looking to serve on boards.
A black and white photo of people marching with a large banner sign that reads “BLACK LIVES MATTER”
Going Beyond — Building a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Movement
How can we collectively advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in the nonprofit sector? As organizations work on DEIB initiatives, it’s important to remember that each nonprofit is part of a more extensive network. To truly dismantle oppression in all its forms, we need to become part of a movement creating an ecosystem for anti-oppression culture change. This session will discuss what movement building looks like, our organization’s role, and what we can do as individuals to support it.
Do you want us to facilitate a workshop for your organization?
We customize our training to each individual organization. The list above is just a sample of our most popularly requested training topics. Get in touch with us, and we’ll see how we can help!