By Soni Dasmohapatra
This is the final blog post within a three - part series I am writing for ABSI Connect on the topic of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA). This last post will focus on creativity, dreaming, human potential, beauty, joy, hope, healing and innovation. Find my earlier posts here:
Part 1 - Historical Considerations
Part 2 - Contemporary Realities
The Past
My first blog focused on examining on how Alberta’s historical legislation, policy and programs have been instrumental in embedding systemic discrimination in different sectors. If you’d like to learn more about this topic, I highly recommend this excellent documentary series by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) called “First Contact.”
Contemporary Realities
My second blog shared different frameworks to support the implementation of IDEA and anti-racism strategies that can help Alberta’s innovation sector design solutions that centre equity, expose and remove barriers in systems, and advance social justice.
Part of my work with this topic is to develop equitable evaluation strategies that are created based on the needs of the individuals impacted, community-led projects, and intended outcomes. I welcome collaborations as I continue to build on this work as part of my management consulting practice and offerings.
Current Global Realities
In rhythm with the cycles of time — past, present and future — the moment is now.
In many countries, politics have become divisive, polarizing, and detrimental to building the conditions for healthy economies, cultures, and communities. Human rights are being devalued and eroded, especially women’s rights. The Amazon rainforests are burning, and Alberta’s oil and energy economy needs transformation. The global climate crisis is front and centre, with efforts to address this issue being led by generation Z. It is time for humanity to rise higher, emanating power. The Indigenous women of Brazil have taken to the streets, citizens in Hong Kong are protesting, and Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) communities across Canada are raising their voices.
Canada’s Identity Crisis: A Teachable Moment
The federal election—particularly Justin Trudeau’s media clips in Black and Brown face—was a difficult time for me. My son’s first reaction in response to the media circus was “JT is mean to brown people” … Try unpacking that with a ten year old...
The federal election was a moment for Canadians and Albertans to acknowledge that racism exists and impacts all of us differently. I was feeling a bit off by what transpired in the media regarding Justin Trudeau. In reflection, it impacted me more than I was able to process. It led to triggers throughout the day about how acts of racism and discrimination eat away unconsciously through media exposure. Later in the day, I had a get-together where this media story was brought up by a colleague and surfaced repressed feelings I had to process. I realized how important it is for us all to recognize the impacts of these types of events on people and community spirit. This article by Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi is a great read to reflect on.
A Personal Experience within our Current Reality
My parents migrated to Canada from India in the late sixties and made Edmonton our family home for fifty years. As a woman of colour, a settler, a Canadian, I am part of a community of many voices that are rising. I work hard every day to nurture my three children to share empathy and love when the world they walk in will sometimes shower them with negativity and will not support their unique imprint. I take Michelle Obama’s quote literally and try to incorporate it in my life: “When they go low, we go high.”
Over the last twenty+ years I have moved through different sectors and systems locally, provincially, nationally and internationally to complete a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) and am attempting to build a strong career despite the systemic and individual discrimination I have and continue to face. Despite this depth and breadth of experience, being in Alberta, I am in a precarious employment situation facing multiple societal micro-aggressions every day. I did not expect this to be the reality I would face when I returned to once again call Edmonton home.
Former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau carrying current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (image from the Toronto Star).
I share this personal story to showcase a generational journey. My dad attributes part of his life’s success to the leadership of Pierre Trudeau (Prime Minister from 1968-79 and our current Prime Minister’s father). I struggle to make sense of access to social justice while Justin Trudeau is the current Prime Minister. I am fortunate to have the personal confidence and a platform like ABSI Connect to share my journey and perspective. This is what being Canadian means to me! With the federal election decision made and a minority government in place, and with the release of Alberta’s provincial budget on October 24, the nation and province have chosen a path forward that may impact the distribution of equitable resources and outcomes for many residents.
Where do we Go from Here?
By writing this blog--and the two before it--my request of the social innovation community connected to ABSI is that you consider what it truly means to bring principles of inclusion, diversity, equality, and accessibility into your changemaking work at this present moment. Below, I share a few insights I’ve found helpful as I consider our current political, social, and economic situation.
Exploring Catalytic Innovation
I found the article “Disruptive Innovation for Social Change” by Clayton Christensen and colleagues helpful as I considered how to bring concepts like equity into social innovation conversations.
This article argues that when addressing social issues, it’s not a lack of solutions but rather misdirected investment that limits our success.
“Too much of the money available to address social needs is used to maintain the status quo, because it is given to organizations that are wedded to their current solutions, delivery models, and recipients. Many provide relatively specific, sometimes sophisticated offerings to a narrow range of people. While they may do a good and important job serving those people, and while their services may steadily improve, these organizations are unlikely ever to reach the far broader populations that are in need—and that would be satisfied by simpler offerings if only they were available. What’s required is expanded support for organizations that are approaching socials sector problems in a fundamentally new way and creating scalable, sustainable, systems changing solutions.”
Christensen and colleagues argue that we need more catalytic innovations. They define catalytic innovators as “a subset of disruptive innovations, distinguished by their primary focus on social change, often on a national scale.” In the authors’ words, catalytic innovators share these five qualities:
1. They create systemic social change through scaling and replication.
2. They meet a need that is either overserved (because the existing solution is more complex than many people require) or not served at all.
3. They offer products and services that are simpler and less costly than existing alternatives and may be perceived as having a lower level of performance, but users consider them to be good enough.
4. They generate resources, such as donations, grants, volunteer manpower, or intellectual capital, in ways that are initially unattractive to incumbent competitors.
5. They are often ignored, disparaged, or even encouraged by existing players for whom the business model is unprofitable or otherwise unattractive and who therefore avoid or retreat from the market
Given this definition, I see great promise in the Catalytic innovations being implemented in Edmonton through the Shift Lab, City of Edmonton Recover Projects, Grant MacEwan Social Innovation Institute at the Roundhouse, and being shared and celebrated in Alberta through ABSI Connect.
Stepping into the Future
As we move forward on our individual and collective journeys to advance social innovation across Alberta, it is essential that we keep lived experiences front and centre when addressing IDEA. Sharing voices, stories and narratives and, listening to those voices, stories and narratives provides the groundswell to realize social justice solutions inspired by equity frameworks.
How can we create pathways of healing, when dealing with complex and wicked questions to develop social innovation solutions? And how can we reframe dominant status quo mindsets to design more equitable solutions? I offer some suggestions here in closing:
Hold space for historically under-invested peoples. Centre their needs in the design of new solutions.
Locate your place of power and influence, and decide if you will use it to move social justice forward or to oppress others and continue to flow with the status quo.
Acknowledge another person’s pain by acting with empathy, without judgement or offering advice.
Build meaningful relationships that nurture trust and love. Respect everyone.
Bring reflexive practice and balance into your work.
Practice humility, grace, compassion and active listening.
Bring humour, fun and laughter to your work and relationships.
Forgive, and if you make a mistake truly think about why it happened and how you can offer service and resolution.
Recognize that people have experiences of exclusion long before they have the language to describe them
Minimize harm. Embedding DEI principles is not a matter of resources. It is a matter of will. Only some have the privilege to walk away when it gets too hard.
Create opportunities for BIPOC people to lead and be meaningfully compensated for social innovation work.
“As you enter positions of trust and power, dream a little before you think.” -Toni Morrison
My friends, I leave you with a piece of poetry that I wrote after I experienced a moment of racism in a room in Edmonton that was meant for women of colour to claim as their own, on their own terms, putting their strengths at the centre. Unfortunately, despite these best intentions a white woman hijacked the meeting with her agenda, and I am sure she is still clueless to the harm she caused by her actions. Writing this poem for me is using reflexive practice in creating art as a medium for self care and healing.
Enjoy.
Unspoken … Truth to Power
Hey white girl...
I see you
Taking unnecessary space
Running your mouth off like you know
Claiming you are an ally in this place
What do you know of experiencing racism and hate?
What is your back-story that makes you an expert in this case...
In a room full of space claimed by womyn of colour
You have the audacity to state .. I will train white people to stop being racist
Oh the naïveté of your claim
The voices, bodies and spirits you just trampled on by what you say
Yet you remain oblivious to the impact of your words
Did not think to check your white privilege at the door today girl
What you got to say is an action on my back
But hold up ... of course you are here to frolic and twirl
To com-mo-di-fy racialized women’s experiences for your monetary hack $$$
Expecting everyone will eagerly jump on board
Not recognizing your actions of oppression --- as you state your personal accord
Harsh? That is what happens when a woman of colour speak’s power to truth.....
….. but in this space you have reclaimed as white and yours she copes by remaining mute
Soni Dasmohapatra
Soni Dasmohapatra was born and raised in the South Side of Edmonton. After completing her Bachelor of Arts at the University of Alberta, she moved to Toronto. Soni was involved in supporting social innovation, and philanthropy work at the community level with organizations such as the City of Toronto, United Way Toronto, Laidlaw and Maytree Foundations. Soni also worked as a senior project manager with the Government of Ontario and as a consultant with the United Nations. Since returning to Edmonton she has worked with the Government of Alberta, and is core team member at the Edmonton ShiftLab 1.0. Soni is keen to map Alberta’s ecosystems to find, contribute and create spaces of social innovation. To connect with Soni you can email her at sonidas@icloud.com or find her on LinkedIn.
Do you have a story, idea, or insight you’d like to share with the ABSI Connect community? Did this guest blog post spark reflections or ideas you’d like to chat about? Let us know!