The Department of Geography is committed to operating in a welcoming environment where we celebrate our differences and support each other as an equal and inclusive community.
We have an Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) committee with a diverse membership of academic staff, research staff, support staff and students, who work together to ensure that best practices in EDI are implemented throughout the Department.
Working towards greater equality, diversity and inclusion
- The EDI committee has a collated list of EDI objectives and monitors progress against these.
- EDI is embedded in all departmental meetings and working practices to ensure our objectives are widely known and understood so that actions can be taken to meet them. Committee minutes and EDI activities are reviewed at the termly Staff Meeting.
- All staff are required to complete formal EDI training during their induction to the University and complete refresher courses at regular intervals.
- The Department ensures that job recruitment processes are encouraging for diverse applicants.
- Applicants from specific diverse backgrounds are offered additional mentoring and peer support as part of the wider Universities widening participation programme that the Department takes part in. The Department is working with the RGS-IBG and other institutions to address the historic under-representation of ethnic minorities (including Black, Asian, Indigenous and People of Colour) in the student population.
- There is a working group to Decolonise Geography examining the legacy and current practices of the discipline, and addressing representation and voice (especially of under-represented ethnic minorities, including Black, Asian, Indigenous and People of Colour) within the discipline and the Department.
- We work closely with the Disability Resource Centre at the University to ensure we are meeting the needs of all of our students.
- Diverse groups are supported by offering flexible working arrangements.
- We encourage all staff and students to attend training on being an Active Bystander, helping everyone to understand that they have a role to play in putting a stop to inappropriate behaviour.
- The Geography EDI committee encourages the setting up of local networks to support diversity within the Department and that members of the Department are also welcome to join centrally organised University diversity groups
Athena SWAN Bronze Award for the Department of Geography
The Athena SWAN Charter was founded in 2005, in order to recognise higher education institutions that have committed to advancing the careers of women in teaching and research of STEMM subjects (science, technology, engineering, maths, and medicine).
In 2015, as well as being expanded to include all academic subjects and also in professional and support roles, Athena SWAN awards recognise the work that promotes gender equality. This includes the interests of trans staff and students, and support for more positive working environments.
We are delighted to say that the Department of Geography has received an Athena SWAN Bronze Award for its efforts in breaking down barriers to gender equality.
Read a history of women in Geography at Cambridge.