Tarvin Lab policy surrounding diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice
The Tarvin lab is a diverse group that values diversity as an inherent good for science, society, and self-actualization. We believe that diversity must be actively pursued and maintained because science is not an equal-opportunity enterprise: science exists within and is supported by a society characterized by systemic racism. Because inaction promotes the status quo, we actively oppose racism, neocolonialism, sexism, elitism, classism, xenophobia, transphobia, homophobia, ableism, and any other exclusionary behaviors. We acknowledge that members of our scientific community, including some of our lab members, have been discriminated against or made to feel unwelcome because of their skin color, nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability condition, socioeconomic origin, religion, and more. Barriers exist at every level -- from exposure to education to recruitment and promotion -- that reinforce science as a patriarchal, white, and western institution. Furthermore, some intellectual advances have come at a cost to disadvantaged communities and countries. For example, natural history museums must come to terms with their colonialist history and build capacity in countries where samples are collected. We must both recognize and act upon systemic issues in science in order to achieve an equitable scientific enterprise that works for all who wish to participate and for the communities we serve.
We aim to 1) recruit, train, and promote scientists who identify as members of historically marginalized groups, 2) achieve equity of opportunity in the scientific endeavor for all lab members, 3) inspire future scientists through engaging our broader community at the local and international levels. Our actions to combat discrimination must take place at several levels. Below we list our commitments to acting to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as individuals, as a lab, as an institution, and as members of broader communities.
As individuals: On an individual level, we strive to: self-educate, self-reflect, call out discriminatory behavior, review the member composition of panels, boards, and groups that we each manage or organize, make space and provide platforms for less-heard groups, provide flexibility and support in mentorship, and discuss discrimination and racism in our everyday lives. We will make a concerted effort to have empathetic and humble conversations to discuss DEIJ topics, and acknowledge that often it is difficult to be updated with the ongoing conversations. However, we will strive to recognize that the people target by particular discrimination(s) are the experts on how they feel, so being conscious of our position in posible asymetric conversations is fundamental. Remember that intent is different from impact, and harm can be caused when talking about topics that are deeply embedded in social structures. Additionally, we recognize that DEIJ conversations involve an ongoing process of learning and self-reflection. Through these actions, we aim to create a supportive community that fosters a sense of belonging, sharing, and generosity.
As a lab: We agree as a lab to educate ourselves about inequity in science and how we can Do The Work to change how academia functions. This begins specifically with reading these relevant papers:
Harrison, C, and KD Tanner. 2018. Language matters: Considering microaggressions in science. CBE Life Sci Educ, 17:fe4. Link
Gosztyla et al. 2021. Responses to 10 common criticisms of anti-racism action in STEMM link
Graves JL. (2019). African Americans in evolutionary science: where we have been, and what’s next. Link
Das and Lowe. 2018. Nature Read in Black and White: decolonial approaches to interpreting natural history collections. Journal of Natural Science Collections 6:4-14 link
Members of the lab will reflect on and communicate about these readings and current DEI issues during semesterly DEI lab meetings and an annual lab retreat. To assess our progress on making positive change, we will summarize discussions in the Tarvin Lab Handbook each year and enumerate lab goals and activities for the coming year, including a yearly volunteer day. We agree to publish translations of our research into local languages and encourage others to do the same. We commit to recognizing the contributions of our field teams on our websites and in publications.
As an institution: The Tarvin lab acknowledges that being at a prestigious institution is in itself a privilege that we must leverage for the greater good. The Museum of Vertebrate Zoology and the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley are internationally visible scientific communities that can help create better standards for how we do science. We commit to participating in the ongoing DEI efforts in the MVZ and IB. We will adopt our recently proposed code of conduct (Ramírez-Castañeda et al. 2022) in fieldwork practices and promote the guidelines to the broader community. The Tarvin lab will advocate for university-wide policies that protect and promote the success of historically marginalized groups of people.
As members of a broader community: The Tarvin lab acknowledges that we occupy unceded land of the Chochenyo-speaking Ohlone people who continue to be stewards of the land. Furthermore, we challenge ourselves and other members of the scientific community to apply and disseminate what we learn about DEI and justice outside of academic life and towards other global issues.
The Tarvin lab is a diverse community devoted to diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice. We commit, both as individuals and as a community, to actively oppose discrimination in all of its forms. We recognize that we must actively reflect on our own privileges and examine our own biases by having difficult conversations, validating each other’s experiences, seeking out relevant training, maintaining a growth-oriented mindset, and nurturing empathy and solidarity.
Additional suggested reading
If you are publishing, please read: Steigerwald et al. 2022. Overcoming Language Barriers in Academia: Machine Translation Tools and a Vision for a Multilingual Future link
If you plan to do fieldwork or collaborate internationally, we suggest reading these papers:
Ramírez-Castañeda et al. 2022. A set of principles and practical suggestions for equitable fieldwork in biology link
Trisos et al. 2021. Decoloniality and anti-oppressive practices for a more ethical ecology. Nature Ecology and Evolution link
Armenteras 2021. Guidelines for healthy global scientific collaborations. Nature Ecology and Evolution link
Soares et al. ecoevoRxiv (in review). Neotropical Ornithology: Reckoning with historical assumptions, removing systemic barriers, and reimagining the future link
Amano et al. 2021. Ten tips for overcoming language barriers in science link
Additional papers about being BIPOC in our field:
On the value of local communities in conservation: Is collective titling enough to protect forests? Evidence from Afro-descendant communities in the Colombian Pacific region link
On the definition of nature: The idea of nature in the east in comparison with the west link
Updated on 30 September 2022