Equality, diversity and inclusivity

We are committed to enhancing diversity and promoting equality in all of our practices and activities.

We aim to establish an inclusive, supportive and welcoming environment that respects the dignity of staff and students of all ages, ethnicities, disabilities, family structures, genders, nationalities, sexual orientations, races, religious or other beliefs, and socio-economic backgrounds.

Our values

Working alongside the university’s Strategic Equality Plan, we are committed to:

• recognising, respecting and valuing differences in the ways we work and interact with others
• eliminating discrimination against equality and upholding key values of dignity, courtesy and respect
• providing access to opportunities for all students and staff.

We intend to exemplify best practice through a range of activities including:

• Equality impact assessments
• Athena SWAN submission
• Equality, diversity and inclusivity committee

Recent activities

Closing the Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic Award Gap

The School of Earth and Environmental Sciences have been involved in the Closing the Gap initiative which aims to increase the understanding of the barriers to black, Asian and minority ethnic student success, identify previously successful initiatives and share best practice experience, with the view to close the attainment gap that currently exists at school, college anduniversity level.

Currently, there is a 13% average attainment gap between white students and students from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds across UK universities. In an attempt to close this gap, recommendations have been made by the university to provide stronger leadership, have open conversations about race, develop more inclusive and diverse environments, analyse the data and understand best practice.

The black, Asian and minority ethnic attainment task and finish group has been established to see that these recommendations are followed across the university. Within the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, this group consists of academic and administrative staff, undergraduate and postgraduate students from a range of diverse backgrounds.

The group meet once a month to analyse the data, discuss past and present issues and develop new ways to provide a more inclusive and diverse learning environment for every student and staff member. The group also aim to improve the black, Asian and minority ethnic outreach by creating a more welcoming environment for research, teaching, and living experience.

Unlearning Racism in Geoscience (URGE)

Our structured reading group follows a research-led curriculum about unlearning racism in geoscience. The group meet bi-weekly to communicate ideas based on interviews with scholars and articles around the topics:

• racism and definitions
• racism and individuals
• racism and history
• racism and justice
• racism and accessibility
• racism and inclusivity
• racism and Self Care
• racism and Accountability.

Based on the discussion, the team produces deliverables with the aim of forming new school policies that address the potential equality, diversity, and inclusivity issues.

Report an issue

Students and staff in our school can report any equality, diversity and inclusivity issues to our committee.

Students can also report the incidents to the Portal of Cardiff University Students’ Union.