Equity Action Plan development begins

The university will begin the consultation and planning process for an institutional Equity Action Plan in March.

Working closely with President Kevin Hall and the leadership team, Equity and Human Right (EQHR) have designed a process that will build on the committement in UVic’s Strategic Framework to embed practices of equity, diversity, accessibility, inclusion and dialogue throughout the university community (strategy 1.2).

The current UVic Employment Equity Plan is set to expire in 2021. The new Equity Action Plan will be aimed at addressing systemic barriers to equity, diversity and inclusion, and embedding anti-racism and anti-oppression initiatives and actions for transformative and systemic change.

The process will be as important as the final plan,” explains Cassbreea Dewis, executive director, equity and human rights. “We are shifting from an approach of thinking then doing, to thinking by doing. Using equity-centred design we will take a principled approach to each step of the process and engaging the community throughout.
  —Executive Director, Equity and Human Rights, Cassbreea Dewis

Equity-centered design allows EQHR to test solutions prior to the finalization of the plan. A diverse group of co-creators will define challenges, develop strategies and test their efficacy throughout the planning process.

The action-oriented nature of this process will enable the university to leverage the most effective tools, resources and knowledge to build and implement a plan that centres the expertise and experiences of the most marginalized to enact transformative change.

The next step in the process will be to establish a Reflection and Challenge Committee. This committee will be established using equity-centred principles including recognizing and eliminating barriers to participation and will include experience experts—people with lived experience of barriers to equity, inclusion and belonging in the systems that define, and operate within, the university.

The committee will start its journey by participating in equity-centred design training and learning about the history and context of doing this work. Once established, they will begin on engagement and consultation with the community to identify areas to be addressed through the process.

Member recruitment will begin in March. The action plan will be finalized and ready to implement in early 2022.

For more information on the process and how to participate, contact eqhr@uvic.ca