You Can’t Be What You Can’t See: Why Representation Matters

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Marian Wright Edelman, an American civil rights activist, once said, 'You can't see what you can't be,' referring to the importance of representation to help inspire children of color to positions of power. If you can't see someone who looks like you in a position you aspire to, how can you imagine yourself in that position? But why does representation matter? And how can organizations work toward better representation in their organization without it looking like tokenism?   You Can't Be What You Can't See looks at the importance of representation, why it matters, and what concrete initiatives organizations can take to improve their representation. Leveraging the research for his book Birds of All Feathers: Doing Diversity and Inclusion Right and his extensive experience in inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility, Michael Bach shares his thoughts on this critical topic.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the difference between representation and diversity.
• Hear why representation matters.
• Discover concrete actions organizations can take to improve representation. 

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