DEI Committee and Charge
Cornell AgriTech DEI Committee Mission Statement:
• To foster the on-going development of an inclusive and equitable work environment where diverse student, staff, and faculty feel secure and supported at Cornell AgriTech.
• To support the expansion of Cornell AgriTech’s stakeholder base by identifying relevant underserved communities, assessing their extension needs, and aiding Cornell AgriTech community members in extending content that is inclusive and equally accessible to all stakeholders.
Our DEI committee is committed to answering the following questions to improve DEI at Cornell AgriTech:
- What is the current climate of belonging and the state of knowledge of DEI at AgriTech?
- How can the AgriTech community enhance our competency in recognizing the importance of Justice, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion principles and practices? Are current mechanisms for implementing DEI practices readily accessible and understood?
- How can we most effectively increase the diversity of our students, employees and stakeholders through recruitment and retention? Are there things we can do that are particularly suited to our community and its juxtaposition to the communities around us?
- How can we broaden our communication and outreach to reach clientele who are unfamiliar with our programs and impact? How can we make new clientele feel comfortable when they do interact with us?
- Do we enable diverse individuals in our community bring their authentic selves to work? Are the mechanisms for reporting bias widely known and adequate, particularly at Cornell AgriTech?
- How can we work within the broader Geneva and Finger Lakes community to address systemic bias and racism?
Committee Members
(she/her) (language: English)
DEI work is inherently disjointed because we each come to it with specific passions- feminism, racial justice, whatever. When done right, however, this diversity becomes a strength; when individuals join forces, we can both educate others about our passions and learn how to be better allies for issues that don’t touch us personally. My hope is that learning more about each other’s struggles allows us to advocate for colleagues when they can’t advocate for themselves, or when it takes more than one voice to make an issue resonate.
(she/her) (languages: English, Korean)
Promoting diversity creates an environment where all the human beings from various backgrounds have equal voice, opportunity, and acceptance.
(he/him) (languages: Spanish, English)
I believe that diversity is the key to success. A diverse environment will bring new and different ideas and perspectives from which everyone can learn from each other, allowing for a unique community in which everyone can thrive.
(he/him) (language: English)
Valuing DEI allows people to build a stronger sense of identity and wellbeing, and have better education and career outcomes when their diverse strengths, abilities, interests and perspectives are understood and supported. A focus on DEI is conducive to creativity, innovation and adaptability in societies and organizations.
(she/her) (language: English)
I deeply believe that the success of a group of people is based on their ability to incorporate the knowledge from people of all backgrounds. We all experience a different path of life in order for any positive & healthy progress to be made we need to remember how important each person is. This means including people from many paths of life in decision making processes.
(she/her) (language: English)
The prospect of helping people use research-based knowledge to improve their lives is what first drew me to extension. I want all of our diverse stakeholders to have equitable access to the knowledge and support available through Cornell and the Cooperative Extension system.
(she/her) (languages: Portuguese, English)
Cultural differences make us stronger. Having had the opportunity to participate in research around the world, I am enthusiastic about increasing our diversity and our ability to embrace different cultures. My goal is to make everyone feel included, regardless of their background and especially if they are not originally from here.
(he/him) (languages: Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi, English)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion bring creative solutions to problems new and old, which is what we really need to solve the grave problems of our time and for future generations like climate change, poverty, and hunger, and to bring about a sustainable future.
(he/him) (language: English)
More than 40% of LGBTQ+ STEM professionals do not feel safe being "out" at work, to be their authentic selves. We need to actively work to deconstruct the implicit and unconscious bias we all carry, so everyone can be at their best. When we learn from each other and see the world from different perspectives, we can make a more just and inclusive life for everyone.
(she/her) (language: English)
I am passionate about educating our youth. Making sure future generations are educated on the importance of DEI is important to me. I would like to see that all students can visualize a successful future that exposes everyone to more ideas and information. I hope for a world where everyone feels included and valued.
(they/them) (language: English)
All innovation and advancement begins with an open mind to new ideas and ways of thinking. Especially as a member of the LGBT+ community, I think that ensuring representation of a diverse population allows not only people to thrive, but their research as well.
(he/him)
Being an immigrant and coming from a different part of the world, I believe I can bring a different perspective to the community I work with. For me, diversity is about accepting differences to the welfare of human beings.
(he/him) (languages: Igbo, English)
Everyone deserves a workplace (society) that honors differences and whose core values and commitment to DEI are not tangential and devoid of empathy.
(she/her) (language: English)
I believe that we have the responsibility as a research and land-grant institution to ensure that we are providing all people with equitable access to information, assistance and training opportunities that continue to move our food system towards economic, environmental and social sustainability.
John Lennon, Cornell AgriTech Custodian (he /him) (language: English) DEI work helps me to learn about others. Through a diverse work environment, each individual can bring in different ideas and perspectives to allow the company to flourish.