Dear IECA Reader,

This IECA IDEA Vision Statement is a living document that aims to provide clarity around terminology used in the planning and development of the IECA Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility guidelines and activities. 

This statement is the first step of the work of the Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) Committee of the IECA. The committee aims to address the diversity-related aspect of the IECA Strategic Plan: Foster diversity and inclusion (specifically in terms of geography, socio-economics, race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexuality, discipline, and career trajectory) within environmental communication.

We hope to prevent the inadvertent exclusion of readers by using terms without explanation—terms that may be familiar in some disciplines or cultures and not others, as well as terms that may have different meanings to different people at different times and places. We intend that this document does not privilege one identity term or knowledge system over another but seeks to find a language and initial vision for knowledge dialogues with stakeholders—both internal and external to the IECA. 

We recognize the complexities and nuances of language across contexts, timescales, disciplines, and cultures and invite others to contribute feedback and content. We welcome the opportunity to extend this work to other languages, notamment en français.

 

Why are inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility important to the IECA, and what does an engagement in this area mean to the organization? From the start, the IECA has set out to connect research, practice, and art related to environmental communication. As environmental issues transcend continental and cultural borders, it is important for the IECA to understand potential barriers to new membership and to the meaningful and equal participation of the existing members in IECA activities. 

Through discussions and an initial assessment, our committee has identified some strengths, weaknesses, potential barriers, and challenges in representation in the IECA.

As most prevailing strengths of the organization, we consider that:

▪ Our board and membership are diverse with a broad cross-section of representation of gender, race, Indigeneity, LGBTQIA2S+, culturally and linguistically diverse peoples and from the global south;

▪ Our board and membership represent broad and diverse knowledge and expertise across academia, applied and creative practice.

 

These are contrasted by a number of weaknesses: 

▪ English is the dominant language for all IECA communications although our membership is linguistically and geographically diverse;

▪ The Western perspective is the dominant lens through which most correspondence and discourses are articulated in the IECA which is not reflective of the broader membership;

▪ Accessibility currently is a less understood and prioritized need in the IECA (e.g., youth, disability and non-English language access);

▪ There is greater representation in the membership and board from the academic community, with limited representation from industry practitioners (e.g., NGO’s, arts & culture, journalism, activists, etc.) acknowledging that there are distinct challenges, approaches, and systems with these disciplinary, sectoral, and institutional communities.

These weaknesses directly relate to a range of challenges/opportunities for the organization: 

▪ The IECA needs to identify new, novel ways to include knowledges that are currently ignored, underrepresented and/or undervalued in dominant environmental communication discourses (e.g., Indigenous, youth, disabled, etc.); 

▪ The IECA needs to understand better the barriers and challenges of accessibility faced by current and future members and explore how to address the specific needs of IECA members best to foster broader participation and engagement; and,

▪ In line with the IECA’s mission to represent and connect the field of environmental communication, the IECA  boards and committees need to strive for a better representation, specifically of non-academic communities (e.g., NGOs, arts & culture, journalism, activists, etc.) and underrepresented groups (e.g., Indigenous, youth, disabled, etc.).

We consider this vision statement as a first step toward overcoming these challenges.

A vision for inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility is an overarching, aspirational statement that publicly articulates to the wider community the IECA’s commitment to these issues. This aspirational statement is anchored in IECA’s vision and mission. Based on these, the IDEA committee has formulated the following visionary aims:

The IECA strives for an open and mutually respectful community and, therefore, embraces principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and access. We adhere to core values as described in our Code of Ethics. 

The IECA embraces the diversity of the field of environmental communication: The IECA is open for academics, practitioners, artists, students, and anyone with an interest in the field of environmental communication. We strive to be a vibrant community that connects and provides an intersectional space for a broad variety of (also possibly conflicting) viewpoints, approaches, and methods. This includes but is not limited to diverse academic traditions, approaches to environmental communication practice, and art movements.

We acknowledge that environments, environmentalisms, and communication about them are as plural and diverse as the different communities to which humans belong. However, we are aware of the, to date, dominance of (Western) mainstream traditions and strive for a more diverse representation of environmental communication based on equal opportunities for all perspectives in our field, specifically offering space for the perspectives and traditions from people living in vulnerable environments or communities, including Indigenous voices. We believe that such a community where we can all learn from each other enriches our understanding and contributes to a greater capacity of environmental communication as a field.

The IECA embraces the diversity of people in the field of environmental communication: In doing so, we commit ourselves to environmental justice as an organizational priority. As an inclusive organization, all current and future members should feel welcomed and accepted independent of their ethnicity, religion, age, gender, race, disabilities, sexual preferences, and any other characteristics that shape their identity and position in society.

We welcome members at all possible stages of their careers. Particularly, we aim to support students and anyone new to the field by providing opportunities to learn, connect, and contribute.

As a community that embraces diversity and justice in society, we want to contribute to anchoring social and environmental justice in the field of environmental communication.

Finally, as a learning organization, we strive to better understand existing challenges and barriers and continuously shape our community with inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility as guiding principles.  

 

Our committee has identified that we do not have a strong understanding of the barriers to inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility in the IECA and that we need to reach out to the membership to gain insights, recommendations, and potentially other contributors to what will eventually form the IECA advisory document. This document will be presented to the board and membership and include tangible goals and actions for the next 2-3 years. Our engagement methodology will consist of a survey with options for anonymous contribution, desktop research, board consultation, interviews and an open invitation to the membership to reach out to any of the IDEA committee with suggestions and/or feedback. We will provide frequent updates via the website and newsletter.


IDEA Committee, IECA