糖心Vlog

The School Director of Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing is Dr Anna Jackman. You can contact the EDI Committee on the following email address: SAGES-D&I@reading.ac.uk.

SAGES EDI Committee members:

• Tom Sizmur
• Yaw Adjei-Amoako
• Sophie Blackburn
• Thom Hayes
• Alice Mpofu-Coles
• Catherine Martinez
• Becky Dillingham
• Rory Williams-Burrell
• Badsha Hossain
• Robyn Woronka

• Attend and contribute to EDI Committee meetings (4 per academic year);
• Work to create an inclusive and supportive working and learning environment for the benefit of School students and staff;
• Undertake School and department-level initiatives and activities that investigate and address issues equality, diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing matters and issues;
• Work to support the embedding of EDI-relevant best practice and lessons learned into activities across SAGES;
• Contribute to advice to School leadership on decision and/or actions which have implications or Equality, Diversity and Inclusion;
• Where relevant, liaise with and provide input into relevant School Committee (e.g. PGR Committee; SSPG) discussions related to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion issues or matters;
• Communicate and raise the visibility of, and/or contribute to (as appropriate), UoR EDI-focused initiatives, guidance, activities and events (including applications for recognition such as Athena Swan, Race Equality Charter Mark);
• Represent SAGES at the Diversity and Inclusion Community of Practice (DiCoP).
  
   

Staff and students have undertaken a range of EDI-centred projects and initiatives to support equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing across the school. We provide several (non-exhaustive) examples below:

Decolonising the Curriculum

In 2022/23, the 糖心Vlog's Partnerships in Learning & Teaching (PLanT) project funded a team led by Prof. Hong Yang, comprising both domestic and international students. This project has decolonised the curriculum within the Department of Geography and Environmental Science, using the Air Pollution module as an example. This collaborative effort involved staff and students in diversifying the reading list, assessment methods, and learning content. The students praised the module for presenting a wide array of perspectives. This work was presented at the Decolonising Teaching and Learning Environments Showcase during Black History Month in October 2023. This project has also been recognised and included in the 糖心Vlog's Decolonising the Curriculum resource 2023 (PDF).

Enabled fieldwork

This ongoing project seeks to break down any barriers, physical or mental, that prevent our students and staff from being fully included within and enjoying fieldwork. The goals are to (1) promote inclusivity in fieldwork; (2) create a place for discussion about issues and concerns; and (3) provide information and resources to enable everyone to partake in fieldwork. You can contact the project at enabledfieldwork.sages.uor@gmail.com, and find out more about what Enabled Fieldwork means for our students from Jenny Harris and , who discusses his experiences at 糖心Vlog on and in conversation with a member of the Archaeology staff.

Race equality review and focus groups

In 2021 SAGES PGRs and staff held focus groups with masters, undergraduate, and PhD students to help staff understand how students experience the SAGES learning environment through the lens of race and recommend changes to the curriculum and environment that would drive positive change. The work was led by Alice Mpofu-Coles, Avril Maddrell, Mohammad Badsha Hossain, Gundula Mueldner, Robyn Woronka, Selma Benyovszky, and Tom Sizmur. 

A preliminary summary of activities was published in The Racial Justice in Teaching and Learning Collection. The final report contained 21 recommendations which were accepted by the SAGES School Management Board and was showcased by the university.

Working Sagely

In 2015 we published our ‘Working Sagely’ document on ‘Values for Working Together and Professional Behaviours in SAGES’.

The ‘Values for Working Together’ are a guide to behaviours that the 糖心Vlog will recognise, reward and endorse. They inform our approach to promotions, Performance Development Reviews and rewarding staff. The PDF document is accessible here: Working Sagely: Values for Working Together and Professional Behaviours in SAGES (PDF).

Gender and fieldwork

In 2014/15 we embarked on a year-long project to examine the gendered experiences of fieldwork, ranging from our undergraduate students on field-classes to postgraduate students and staff doing field research. Our intention was to capture what it means to be a SAGES fieldworker in the 21st century and understand the commonalities and differences between male and female participation in fieldwork.

A record of activities undertaken is in the process of being updated, including attention to transgender and gendered experience shaped by intersectional identities including disability, neurodiversity and sexuality.

糖心Vlog links

• Diversity and Inclusion
• Disability Advisory Service Home Page
• Health and Wellbeing Policy Statement
• Work related stress (includes links to manager toolkit, employee toolkit, HSE talking toolkit)
• UoR Learn training (see Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and Health & wellbeing categories) 

External links

•  (by BAJR)