2 minute read

JARROD BEST

from Isaac Brown for Power Issue

by Center Stage Magazine

from Isaac Brown for Power Issue, page 222

Article from: Isaac Brown for Power Issue

FEATUREJARROD BEST WITH

ON DIVERSITY, INCLUSIVITY & EQUITY

CSM: Explain what diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to you and why they’re important.

These three words mean a lot to me. Living in Australia, we are very welcoming people and where I live you see people from all over the world coming in and out. These words are important to me because we are all in this game of life together and we all battle through the same ups and downs regardless of gender, skin tone, sexuality etc. We are all humans and the way we decide to live our limited time on the planet is purely up to the person living it.

CSM: How would you advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion with brands or companies that don’t understand its importance?

There probably aren’t that many brands out there that now don’t understand the importance of these topics. But I would definitely educate them on how important it is in today’s society and how we all need to respect these traits.

CSM: Discuss a time when you advocated for diversity and inclusion.

CSM: What is the most challenging aspect of working in a diverse environment?

I honestly don’t even notice any challenging aspects. Like I said before we are all human. We just have to live our life how we want. Some people might find it hard to live with others decisions and opinions but we need to learn we are all allowed to have them.

CSM: What is your approach to understanding the perspectives of colleagues from different backgrounds? The best way is to talk. Talking to your colleagues or teammates about themselves and their background will open your eyes and you might even learn a thing or two about how others live in different cultures.

CSM: How would you handle a situation where a client or a talent was being culturally insensitive, sexist, racist, or homophobic?

I haven’t really had to come across this situation before… but if I had to I would have to stand my ground… although you probably can’t change someone’s mind on their beliefs on the spot I would at least try my hardest to let them keep their opinions on these topics to themselves as it is hurting others.

I’ve honestly never really had to. Where I am from we almost celebrate how welcoming we are and how well we include everybody. From years of playing sports and all through school there wasn’t really any unfairness. We all just have to evolve and live together as one regardless of our differences.

CSM: Describe an ideal brand that has a sense of inclusion, belonging, and equity on a daily basis?

A brand I see really pushing equality and inclusion on a daily basis is Gymshark. They include everyone from all walks of life and it is awesome to see!

CSM: What steps will you take to eliminate bias from other brands or companies?

The best thing I could do would be to educate them on my beliefs. If they don’t like what I have to say or aren’t on board with how everyone should be treated with the same respect, it would be in my best interest to no longer work with the brand / company.

ON THE COVER: ISAAC BROWN