Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and accessibility
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility
Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility (EDIA) are fundamental values that—when incorporated throughout the institution’s ethos, culture, initiatives and processes—foster a research, learning and working community where everyone feels valued and respected. When EDIA is prioritized, it can lead to far-reaching changes that, in many instances, have been long overdue. NSCAD’s EDIA Targeted Action Plan (TAP) will be used as a guide to ensure EDIA is prioritized throughout all of NSCAD University and the work that we do.
TO DIVERSITY
ACCESSIBILITY FRAMEWORK
NSCAD University’s Accessibility Framework 2022-27 is a multi-year plan developed in collaboration with different sectors within the NSCAD community. The plan describes the actions NSCAD will take to make its environment accessible so that everyone can enjoy free and unhindered access to all activities offered on campus.
Improving Our Practices
EDIA Workshop Resources (March 30, 2023)
The workshop focused on evaluation and application of EDIA best practices. What happens when EDIA becomes too conceptual? How do you apply EDIA in your daily practice? Topics included: sexual orientation and gender identity, policy, leadership and EDIA evaluation of organizations and institutional leadership (in the classroom or the boardroom).
- Updated 2024 – please see NSCAD’s official Land Acknowledgement
- Identifying biases and assumptions
- 2SLGBTQIA+ word bank
- Self-reflection exercises
- Strategies for inclusive classrooms
- Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Benchmarks assessment checklists
EDIA Workshop Resources (February 1 and May 6, 2022)
- Privilege Checklist
- Intersectionality 101 by Olena Hankivsky, PhD
- Social Justice: Understanding Race and Privilege by James Baldwin
- Recommended Media Resources
- Micropedia: Learning about microagressions and their sources
- Cultural Diversity in the Media Arts Toolkit
- Inclusive Post-Secondary Education in Canada and the United States
- Being Anti-Racist
Census
NSCAD will demonstrate its commitment to social justice and the removal of barriers to participation throughout our programs, services, and employment environment by executing specific actions to success, such as a community-wide census. An annual census will allow us to ensure that we have a baseline for understanding who is at NSCAD and for measuring the effectiveness of our Targeted Action Plan deliverables.
NSCAD Plans and Reports
Canada Research Chair
The Canada Research Chairs Program (CRCP) is committed to achieving a more equitable, diverse and inclusive Canadian research enterprise. NSCAD University, as a participating institution, must make concerted efforts to meet the CRCP’s EDI targets, and provide a supportive and inclusive workplace.
NSCAD currently has three Canada Research Chairs — Dr. Eddy Firmin, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Transatlantic Black Diasporic Art and Community Engagement; Dr. April Mandrona, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Art Education, Belonging and Social Change; and Dr. Leah Decter, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Creative Technologies and Community Engagement. The CRCs employment is governed by CRCP policies and the FUNSCAD Unit 1 Collective Agreement.
For resources, important links and more information on NSCAD’s Canada Research Chairs, click here.
Land Acknowledgement
This is NSCAD’s Land Acknowledgement:
NSCAD University is located in Kjipuktuk, the district of Sipekne’katik, Mi’kma’ki, which since time immemorial, has been the unceded traditional territory and ancestral homelands of the Mi’kmaq Nation. We pay respect to the historic and contemporary Mi’kmaw artists who have, over millennia, created unique artforms and designs, and through generations, passed down ways of being, knowing, and doing that are valued and respected. NSCAD University is committed to forging a relationship based on reciprocity as we move forward together in a good way, based on the foundational aspirations in our collective treaties, dating back to 1725. In Nova Scotia, we recognize we are all Treaty People.
Learn more about our Land Acknowledgement and how to use it.
People's Acknowledgement
This is NSCAD’s People’s Acknowledgement:
NSCAD acknowledges the historical and contemporary presence of people of African descent. We offer this People’s acknowledgement to recognize the solidarity between the Indigenous people of Turtle Island and African Nova Scotians in the efforts and deliberate intentions towards healing and equity. African Nova Scotians have existed and persisted on the traditional land of the Mi’kmaq for more than 400 hundred years. Their presence and contributions have shaped the existence of Nova Scotia. This acknowledgement brings with it a call to action to reconcile the harms acted upon African Nova Scotians, a distinct People and the Mi’kmaw People.