From Reactive to Proactive DEIB: Universal Design for Equity
The field of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) originated in the 1960s in response to new equal employment and affirmative action laws. More recently, the field gained new support and attention in response to the 2020 summer of racial equity action following the killing of George Floyd. While the field existed and persisted between these events, I can’t help but notice that DEIB has been a reactive field — responding to critical cultural moments or internal employee or client complains — leading to an ebb and flow of interest. But if a true and sustainable shift towards equity and inclusion is to happen, DEIB needs to be proactive and integrated throughout business operations.
It is true that DEIB has made important advancements in workplace equity and inclusion but when a field or approach becomes a focus primarily to respond to an issue, it’s at risk of being a fad with a short shelf-life. In fact, recently it seems I’m seeing weekly, if not daily, reports that many DEIB efforts inspired by the 2020 racial justice protests were, in fact, only surface level. I hear this from my clients and read about it in pieces like this, which notes that many Chief Diversity Officers are leaving their positions in the face of little to no resources or support. Or this one on DEIB burnout due to a “lack of meaningful progress”.
DEIB burnout is real. Employees are feeling like they doing the same trainings over and over. Universal Design for Equity can help us think of more engaging, helpful solutions.
As a DEIB professional, I believe in the power of this field to transform workplace cultures and contribute to true equity in our communities by ensuring access to economic resources for all. But to live up to its potential, DEIB needs to shift away from being reactive to being a source of proactive, thoughtful strategies to advance workplace and cultural equity.
As a disability justice and anti-ableism expert, I’ve been following and teaching about Universal Design for over a decade and have come to see this framework as one that could guide DEIB practices in the future. Originally an architectural concept, Universal Design relies on 7 principles to encourage the creation of built environments to be as accessible as possible to as many people as possible without introducing new barriers for anyone. By doing so, barriers for a wide range of bodies — disabled or not — is reduced and access for everyone is increased. A great example of UD are curb cuts, which were originally implemented for people who use wheelchairs but are helpful for all kinds of people, such as those with strollers or who are on skateboards or bikes. Since its emergence in architecture in the 1980s, UD has been adapted to a few other industries, primarily education (Universal Design of Learning, or UDL) and technology. And although Universal Design focuses on access and equitable inclusion, it has surprisingly little influence on the world of DEIB.
Universal Design for Equity is the curb cut of DEIB.
To me, the connection is obvious — both DEIB and Universal Design strive to increase access and equity without creating additional barriers for others. But what Universal Design can add to DEIB is the creation of proactive, innovative, generalizable strategies for access and equity. Ones that can address barriers faced by several marginalized communities at the same time.
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These principles, which I’ve briefly translated into the field of DEIB, are rich with examples and suggestions. A detailed analysis of each principle is beyond the scope of this article and so here, I’m focusing on the concept of Universal Design framework and the benefits it has for DEIB to think about Universal Design for Equity.
It’s critical to recognize that Universal Design is aspirational. Very few, if any, architectural, educational, or cultural designs will lead to full accessibility for every body and mind. However, the framework of Universal Design gets as close as possible before there is a problem by predicting the range of bodies and minds that may interact with a space and addressing the needs of those people. When implemented well, this theoretical approach reduces the need for individualized accommodations as much as possible while also communicating that access and equity is important to an organization, making it more likely people who need additional support feel comfortable making these requests.
It is this perspective that I find most helpful to DEIB practitioners. How can we create an organizational culture that predicts the range of backgrounds our team will come from and attempt to address barriers to participation and belonging before they are encountered? So rather than focused on racial equity, gender parity, or LGBTQIA+ inclusion teams are encouraged to think about all of these groups together. Often, we find that, in true Universal Design fashion, many changes in practice or policy can facilitate better inclusion for people with a range of backgrounds and identities.
Consider intersectionality — the combination of social identities that lead to unique experiences of marginalization, privilege, and power. Addressing inequities on a broad, or Universally Designed, scale is critical for people with multiple marginalized identities. For example, how can we design communications to be clear and accessible by removing metaphors that may not be understood by people from different cultural backgrounds, is without reference to inappropriate or offensive acts or people, and is in multiple formats so it is easily consumed by people with various learning styles? Perhaps this is achieved by focusing on simple, clear language that is presented in written and audio format and posted somewhere that is obvious and intuitive for all team members to access.
People often have multiple marginalized identities and Universal Design for Equity is a great way to ensure workplace culture and policy is supportive.
Finally, Universal Design is about shifting mindsets. Because it was created with the built environment in mind, there is a need to translate it for DEIB practices. This may take some creativity, but innovative solutions to equity and inclusion are at the heart of good DEIB. I argue that a Universal Design for Equity will reflect a new, proactive, innovative perspective. A Universal Design for Equity recognizes that barriers to access can come in many forms and impact people in surprising ways. Using a Universal Design for Equity approach, we can create ‘curb cuts’ throughout organizational culture and decrease the barriers people encounter. Doing so will create more comfort, a better sense of belonging, and increased participation throughout our organizations. Perhaps more importantly, it will reduce barriers to employment on a larger scale for people with marginalized identities, thus increasing social and economic equity throughout communities.
Resources
1. The 7 Principles of Universal Design: Introduction to UD and the guiding principles
2. Universal Design: Tolerance for Error: a Forbes article that does a good job demonstrate how one of the UD principles, Tolerance for Error, can be applied to different contexts
3. The 7 Principles of UD: The Ed Roberts Center: a great video that shows how the UD principles have been implement in a specific building
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Universal Design: Equitable Use: The design is useful and marketable to people with diverse abilities
DEIB: Equitable UseThe organization creates practices, policies, and built environments that can be used by people with a range of identities
Universal Design: Flexibility in use: The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences and abilities
DEIB: Flexibility in Use: The organization explores flexible workplace policies and procedures, such as optional office attendance, support for working from home, and flexible work hours
Universal Design: Simple and Intuitive Use: Use of the design is easy to understand, regardless of the user’s experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level
DEIB: Simple and Intuitive Use: The organization ensures policies, practices, and communications are succinct, don’t rely on metaphors or cultural references, and are in multiple formats
Universal Design: Perceptible Information: The design communicates necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions or the user’s sensory abilities
DEIB: Perceptible Information: The organization ensures policies, procedures, responsibilities, and tasks are easy to find, in multiple formats, and accessible for all employees
Universal Design: Tolerance for Error: The design minimizes hazards and the adverse consequences of accidental or unintended actions
DEIB: Tolerance for Error: The organization relies on accessible learning and development for all employees in DEIB principles to reduce microaggressions and other forms of workplace interpersonal bias
Universal Design: Low Physical Effort: The design can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue
DEIB: Low Physical Effort; The organization puts efforts in place to increase psychological safety for all employees to enable equitable participation
Universal Design: Size and Space for Approach and Use: The design can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue
DEIB: Size and Space for Approach and Use: The organization faciliates the inclusion of all voices and perspectives in workplace practices