EDI & Outreach
I am committed to making science more equitable, inclusive, and diverse, particularly the fields of ecology and evolutionary biology, which were built on a foundation of racism, misogyny, eugenics, homophobia, classism, and ableism. This is in addition to the Academy at large, which was designed to specifically prohibit certain bodyminds from being included and educated. In evolutionary biology, most of our foundational concepts and theories were built under the context of a white, heteronormative, Christian, high socioeconomic, Western, cis-male framework of the world. These values feed into the types of questions we deem interesting, how we design our studies and analyses, and the way we interpret our results. I co-first authored a paper on ableism in evolutionary biology and how it has limited our perspectives. It is up to us to dismantle these pre-existing biases, by recruiting, lifting up, and listening to marginalized groups. Diverse representation brings diverse thoughts and perspectives, which enhance our biological understanding of the world. |
Flowchart showing how axiology (what we value) cascades across the scientific method to ontology (determining what we think is out there to know), epistemology (what can we know about it), methodology (how can we acquire this knowledge), methods (the procedures we use), sources (data collection and testing), and interpretation (how we understand our results).
Schematic adapted from Brown and Dueñas 2019 Medical Science Educator
UBC Botany and Zoology Wellness Initiative
I founded this group in my first year of my PhD as the lack of discussions and the stigma around mental health and illness is an ableist practice that both leads to disability and excludes disabled people from academia. I noticed most mental health programs are focused at the undergraduate level and therefore were not equipped to properly support graduate students. By having departmental approaches and mental health advocacy, I hope to increase community and mental health literacy and resiliency.
I founded this group in my first year of my PhD as the lack of discussions and the stigma around mental health and illness is an ableist practice that both leads to disability and excludes disabled people from academia. I noticed most mental health programs are focused at the undergraduate level and therefore were not equipped to properly support graduate students. By having departmental approaches and mental health advocacy, I hope to increase community and mental health literacy and resiliency.
Disabled In Higher Ed
A not-for-profit organization that I helped coordinate, which can also be found on twitter @DisInHigherEd. We educate and promote discussions about disability and accessibility in academic spaces. We have hosted numerous panel discussions and interviews related to disability and its intersections. While on a panel hosted by University of Sheffield’s Bio-Diverse Festival I had the opportunity to discuss disability in biology and recently I hosted a panel on accessible fieldwork.
A not-for-profit organization that I helped coordinate, which can also be found on twitter @DisInHigherEd. We educate and promote discussions about disability and accessibility in academic spaces. We have hosted numerous panel discussions and interviews related to disability and its intersections. While on a panel hosted by University of Sheffield’s Bio-Diverse Festival I had the opportunity to discuss disability in biology and recently I hosted a panel on accessible fieldwork.
UBC Equity and Inclusion Office CRC Working Group
I was hired by the Equity and Inclusion Office at the University of British Columbia to conduct a research project investigating equitable assessments of disabled scholars and why they are being excluded during faculty hiring and promotion. Through this work, I had the opportunity to interview scholars, administrators, and faculty members across Canada and the main take-away was with current evaluation processes disabled scholars are set up for failure and are therefore forced out or excluded from academia.
I was hired by the Equity and Inclusion Office at the University of British Columbia to conduct a research project investigating equitable assessments of disabled scholars and why they are being excluded during faculty hiring and promotion. Through this work, I had the opportunity to interview scholars, administrators, and faculty members across Canada and the main take-away was with current evaluation processes disabled scholars are set up for failure and are therefore forced out or excluded from academia.
UBC Disabled Graduate Students Association
I founded this group in 2020. This Association serves as a community of support and advocacy for disabled students, as well as increasing disability visibility on campus (i.e. through consultations on task forces striving to increase the university’s accessibility).
I founded this group in 2020. This Association serves as a community of support and advocacy for disabled students, as well as increasing disability visibility on campus (i.e. through consultations on task forces striving to increase the university’s accessibility).
Connect |
Email: haley [dot] branch [at sign] yale [dot] edu
Twitter: @haleyabranch |