Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Background:
In 2016, ALF-MVC developed a first-of-its-kind Leading Consciously Training for leaders and organizations in the Sacramento region and beyond. Leading Consciously Training is designed for nonprofits, for-profit entities, public sector leaders and individuals who wish to better understand the cognitive science behind our unconscious biases. The primary training covers the most current science around implicit bias and the brain. In early 2018, Beyond Bias was developed as an accompanying training to Leading Consciously and includes a deep dive into interventions across personal, interpersonal, institutional, and structural levels.
ALF has provided training to over 70 different organizations from across our region. Corporations, municipalities, law enforcement, public safety, education, philanthropic and nonprofit organizations have received ALF’s Implicit Bias/Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging training. As a result, ALF has reached thousands of people to help them better understand their own bias. It has changed the mindsets of every organization that it has served. This has led to positive policy changes within those organizations.
There are conversations that are now being had by leadership throughout our region that are critical to creating a culture focused on DEIB. ALF teaches us how to create space to have difficult conversations. How to hold difference. Understanding Implicit bias is not enough. ALF believes that creating a culture of DEIB requires an individual and collective commitment to its practices. As more people receive training and understand DEIB teachings the conversations go deeper and help us break through barriers when operationalizing DEIB concepts/strategies. ALF added training on Adaptive Leadership in order to assist companies in creating innovative solutions to complex problems. It requires changes in priorities, beliefs, habits, and loyalties.
Different forms of training have been utilized over the past seven years, depending on the needs of the organizations it serves. Some of the topics include Equality vs. Equity, Othering and Belonging, Bonding, Bridging and Breaking Narratives and Adaptive Leadership.
