Student, Staff, Faculty, and Alumni Clubs Activities and Initiatives

UBC Sauder EDI Action Fund

This year, the UBC Sauder EDI Committee and the UBC Sauder Dean’s Office launched the UBC Sauder EDI Action Fund. The fund was created with the goal of supporting and encouraging EDI events, initiatives, activities, and resources that are from the “grassroots” up. That is, we are hoping to help the ideas dreamed up by members of our UBC Sauder Communities— students, staff, and faculty—come to life.

Grassroots Activities and Events from our UBC Sauder Communities

In addition to formal training sessions and activities, many events, groups, and clubs have been created by our faculty, staff, and students. Here is a snapshot of some of the things that have been happening at UBC Sauder initiated by our community members.

a) CUS (Commerce Undergraduate Society) Equity and Inclusion

The CUS is one of the largest undergraduate business school organizations in Canada. Guided by the pillars of personal, professional, and academic success, the CUS supports members through initiatives, services, and clubs that host networking events, workshops, conferences, case competitions and many more. The CUS strives to build an inclusive community where students feel empowered to discover their own journeys and unique experiences within the CUS and throughout their university years at UBC Sauder. Here are some of the things the CUS has been working on related to EDI in the past year:

1. Resources. Creation, curation, and sharing of relevant resources on various topics related to EDI:

• New CUS Podcast to highlight stories from diverse student voices. One episode made for National Day of Truth and

Reconciliation centred on Indigenous student experiences.

Another episode featured a recent UBC Sauder alum who is a Black woman, talking about the experience of Black people at UBC Sauder and promoting a career Accelerator for BIWOC in Business/STEM. See.Us_Podcast

• Day of Truth and Reconciliation. The CUS has compiled a list of resources where members of the community can listen and learn from Indigenous voices, including Jeff Sutherland, a 4th year UBC Sauder student and advisor of Indigenous matters related to Truth and Reconciliation

• Transgender Day of Remembrance. The CUS has created resources to recognize this day including a short podcast episode (See.Us_Podcast), features in CUS newsletters, and resources for further learning (Day of Remebrance).

• CUS Pride. A student service to support and provide resources for 2SLGBTQIA+ students at UBC Sauder. CUS Pride

• CUS Clarify is a student organization that focuses on promoting a culture of consent within the CUS and the UBC

Sauder community. CUS Clarify’s vision is to engage students and empower survivors through ongoing education, activism, and open dialogue on matters pertaining to sexual violence and consent. The organization aims to destigmatize conversations around sexual violence prevention. One event of note was Consent Champions, where industry professionals from diverse backgrounds came to chat about ways we can overcome gender discrimination in the workplace. CUS Clarify • Additional internal training and resources on anti-racist training and EDI competency were added to the CUS resource library. • Creation of a new team within the CUS focused on Equity and

Inclusion + Anti-racist work.

• Creation of CUS IBPOC Scholarship. The CUS created this scholarship for students who are Indigenous, Black and/or a person of colour and are in good academic standing.

IBPOC Scholarship

2. Policies and Procedures. Implemented policies and procedures to advance EDI including more explicit messaging on the prioritization of inclusion work at events and on the

CUS website, creation of a new code of conduct and professional expectations document, creation of new standards for event RSVP forms to provide accommodations and revision of CUS Code and Policy to remove all issues on non-inclusive language. In addition, a current focus is to build a better practice by shifting speaker gifts and giveaways to options such as charitable gifts and support of businesses run by equity deserving groups. Finally, a policy has been set that requires mandatory bias and inclusive hiring training for all

CUS members.

3. Events. Many notable events were planned and facilitated including: • Organized by the CUS Equity & Inclusion Team, Learning to

Lead Inclusively is the CUS’s first Full Day leadership conference that provided students with the skills they need to be a next generation leader in business. The workshop was led by external consultants (Subtext Consulting) and was co-sponsored by the Hari B. Varshney Business Career Centre (BCC), the Peter P. Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics, and the

UBC Sauder EDI Action Fund. • Increase in the number cultural celebrations and events. Hosted by Sauder International Student Association (SISA), as well as highlighting cultural days of importance (SISA and CUS). • Student panel of IBPOC students in UBC Sauder on IBPOC

Perspectives in Business, which had the aim of showcasing the range of experiences our students have at UBC Sauder. • First CUS event dedicated to Gender Equity in business facilitated by Ky Sargeant, UBC Sauder CUS Equity Advisor and 4th-year student. • CUS Sustainability event on Social Sustainability with Ky

Sargeant, UBC Sauder CUS Equity Advisor and 4th-year student as the guest speaker. b) CARBLOAD: Supporting the 2SLGBTQ+ community CARBLOAD is a pizza lunch hosted by and for 2SLGBTQ+ faculty, staff, and students. Some weeks the group engages in team building activities, other weeks they bring in alumni guest speakers to share their experiences from coming out to navigating their career. There is no membership, simply an open invitation to come as you are, connect with others, and enjoy some complex carbohydrates. While the ability to operate has been limited due to COVID-19, there are plans to bring back these events in the fall of 2022.

c) UBC Sauder Women in Business Club (RHL Students) The UBC Sauder Women in Business Club (WIB) is an open space for building trust, empowerment, and confidence while working together as women to achieve goals and learn how women can contribute to creating a more equal world. Officially founded in February 2010, WIB’s mission is to encourage women to take leadership roles in their careers and lives to accelerate gender parity. To achieve this mission, the club provides development opportunities, links to the greater business and social community, and events that bring awareness to MBA students on different topics such as empowerment and gender stereotypes. In conjunction with other MBA Society clubs, the club invites supportive business leaders and entrepreneurs from a variety of functional areas to address the issues of inequality in the workplace. Members of the club are also involved in philanthropic activities with a focus on volunteering with organizations that assist women.

d) UBC Sauder Women Scholars Program (PhD/MSc Students) The UBC Sauder Women Scholars (SWS) Program was founded in 2017, and provides support and community to UBC Sauder graduate students who identify as women (PhD/MSc Students) by providing informal gatherings and mentoring sessions with successful leaders. These leaders include UBC Sauder professors across disciplines, as well as other academic and corporate leaders. The goal is to share experiences that enrich both personal and professional lives and to share resources that make the transition after graduate school easier and set participants up for success. In addition, the initiative also creates space for women scholars to connect with one another and build relationships among themselves and with both junior and senior professors.

e) UBC Young Black Professionals (undergraduate students) The UBC Young Black Professionals (UBC YBP) is committed to professionally empowering all Black students in the UBC community. With a mission to improve career prospects, create awareness, and encourage action, the inclusive efforts of UBC YBP develop and foster a community of resilience. This community welcomes students, educators, and innovators committed to achieving professional excellence as it connects Young Black Professionals with resources and relationships with corporate partners. The collaborative club proves scope in professional development, networking, and talent pipelines. UBC YBP strives to be outstanding in Black talent cultivation, community, excellence, and opportunity. Ultimately, UBC YBP’s commitment to progressive advancements in the Black Community acts as guidelines for member development. UBC Sauder has been providing resources that support this initiative and many of the group’s members are UBC Sauder students.

f) Young Women in Business (undergraduate students) Young Women in Business (YWiB) is a student-run organization at the University of British Columbia whose mission is to provide an empowering and collaborative community for emerging leaders who identify as women. YWiB works to create a network where members can grow, collaborate, and connect with other ambitious students and working professionals in various fields. Members have access to a mentorship program, philanthropic volunteering opportunities, and a multitude of events, including workshops, networking sessions, case competitions, and more. YWiB believes in helping every young woman in business learn, acquire new skills, and accept challenges to step outside their boundaries and reach beyond their potential. YWiB meticulously designs events to support members’ professional and personal development, demonstrated by their well-rounded events portfolio. By showcasing many fields and possible career paths, members have the chance to explore their passion and build valuable industry connections. UBC Sauder has provided support to YWiB and many of the group’s members are UBC Sauder students.