DAE welcomes Diversity and Inclusivity Officer Leigh Tukker

The role was created as part of DAE’s Culture, Diversity and Inclusivity Action Points. This new position reports directly to the Executive Board and will be working closely with the Design and Social Justice professor, who is set to begin their involvement in October 2022.

When asked about the ambiguity of the terms themselves and their vision for DAE, Leigh remarks:

“To define Diversity and Inclusivity is a very complex task, but I will try to keep it brief and understandable. To me, diversity is just a fact of life. We all have different backgrounds and experiences, however, problems arise when society minoritises certain groups. And I say minoritises, because seeing someone as other, or different from the norm, doesn’t require the group to be smaller than the dominant group. These norms can also shift over time.

Inclusion is about engaging with diversity and ensuring access to participation for all. And there are all sorts of ways to look at inclusion. For me, coming from a human rights background, this is a top-down movement. Inclusion is an important part of how the UN human rights system works. NGO’s plead their case to independent committee members that instruct national governments, who in turn instruct regional and local governments.

This is of course a very brief explanation. But I think the important part is that it goes beyond just ensuring that people in a room have a diverse background and a chance to speak. It is important that minoritised groups aren’t always having to fight for equal rights in the court of public opinion.

For effective inclusion it is also important to consider equity and social justice - to look critically at who is not yet in the room, whose ideas are less likely to be listened to and how opportunities and a culture can be created for equal access and success for minoritised groups. So I believe that while the goal is to create a culture where all feel safe, accepted and included, getting there takes institutional and personal effort, bravery and a willingness to collaborate, listen and challenge potentially long ingrained beliefs from all.“

Leigh began their role on August 15 and they are currently focusing on structural changes rather than providing personal solutions to individual issues - this is already done by our student councillors Olga Pullen and Mona Smits.

For instance, Leigh is collaborating with fellow staff members on organising trainings, improving the accessibility of the building, and further development of the Code of Conduct. They are particularly looking forward to hearing more from students and staff alike to keep their perspectives in mind while striving for best practices.

Leigh working days are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday (from home) and they are reachable via email: leigh.tukker@designacademy.nl