Diversity Workgroup Projects and Resources

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DEIJ for Beginners

Are you new to the Chesapeake Bay Program? Are you new to work involving Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Environmental Justice? Check out these resources

DEIJ in Our Culture & Work

Cultural Humility Training

The Diversity Workgroup identified increasing cultural competence within the CBP as a key step to meeting the diversity outcome in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement. Thanks to available funding from the Goal Implementation Team (GIT) Funding process, the workgroup offered three Cultural Humility: Tools for Success in Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) trainings in the fall of 2019. Approximately 70 members of the partnership attended one of the trainings, which were led by the consultant Skeo Solutions. Participants learned how a cultural humility framework can help build a sense of equity and respect in relationships between individuals and relationships between institutions and individuals. More resources from this training are available upon request.

Allyship Training Series

The DEIJ Implementation Plan calls to provide CBP staff and partnership bodies training on diversity, equity, inclusion and environmental justice issues to build a common understanding of DEIJ and connect these topics to CBP’s mission and operations. Allyship is a practice focused on building lifelong relationships of trust, respect and accountability. In these trainings, participants learned how to navigate unconscious bias, power and privilege as well as important skills such as active listening.

Cultivating and Strengthening Partnerships with Underrepresented Stakeholders (Scope 11)

The "Cultivating and Strengthening Partnerships with Underrepresented Stakeholders" project was funded by the Chesapeake Bay Trust (CBT) Goal Implementation Team (GIT) Funding Program. The project, proposed by the Chesapeake Bay Program Stewardship Goal Implementation Team (GIT 5) and their Diversity Workgroup, aimed to understand the needs, barriers, and priorities of organizations serving historically underrepresented and underserved communities. Chesapeake Conservancy was contracted to complete the project, which began in spring 2021 and ended in summer 2022. The project involved conversations with community leaders and Chesapeake Bay Program staff to identify barriers and opportunities for engagement. A Leadership Workshop was conducted to define meaningful community engagement, and a Community Forum in July 2022 brought together community members and Bay Program leadership to build trust and develop engagement strategies. Recommendations for next steps were compiled based on input from participants, and a community engagement guide was developed. The project's outcomes will help the Chesapeake Bay Program develop long-term and mutually beneficial relationships with organizations serving communities of color and other underrepresented communities.

Environmental Justice

Capacity Building and Technical Assistance Resources

According to EPA, Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. Everyone has the right to protection from environmental and health hazards, as well as, equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment. The resources in the PowerPoint below are funding programs and opportunities to receive technical assistance from CBP to achieve environmental justice.

Chesapeake Bay Environmental Justice and Equity Dashboard

The Environmental Justice and Equity Dashboard provides access to a variety of spatial data layers pertinent to addressing environmental issues in areas with underrepresented populations. Refer to the story map for possible uses and instructions

https://chesapeake-deij2-chesbay.hub.arcgis.com/

Community Level Partnerships within the Bay Program

This ArcGIS story map was created by one of the diversity workgroup's 2021 C-StREAM interns. It highlights the work of community organizations and provides insight on how CBP can engage new partners

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/4e4255e67a20406d98dbdce00d92c11e

Employment, Hiring, and Recruitment

These documents include a list of programs and positions that can provide pathways for currently underrepresented individuals to enter the environmental workforce in the Chesapeake Bay region and beyond. In addition, the excel document includes a list of recruitment websites, affinity groups, and educational institutions that can be targeted to recruit and hire individuals from underrepresented groups. It also includes a tab with hiring resources, toolkits, and tips to promote inclusiveness and mitigate bias in the hiring process. It is a draft document that will continue to be updated over time.

Communication and Outreach

Most of these documents were not created by the Diversity Workgroup. However, they are really excellent resources for any person who is doing community engagement.