Department EDI Structure and Welfare Committee

The Department of Physics and Astronomy is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. I take pride in the fact that our Department is so greatly enriched by its diverse and international community. We strive to create an environment in which everyone feels able to participate to their full potential and are valued for their contributions. All avenues of work in this Department are stronger when they derive from a community grounded in respect and diversity. I believe that creating this positive and inclusive work environment is a responsibility shared by all the members of our Department, and we all have a role in breaking down the inequalities that are present because of differences in race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexuality, religious belief, disabilities, caring responsibilities and all protected characteristics.

I recognise that we must not be complacent and there is still considerable progress to be made. The challenge of attracting more Black students and staff into pursuing physics and astrophysics in this department is an enormous and complex example, but not without solutions. Many Black students at school perceive other university degree subjects are more supportive and rewarding, resulting in a loss of talent to physics and astrophysics. The challenge and opportunity for us to discuss, debate and act on is how we can take advantage of the early school interests shown by Black students for physics and nurture this interest, engage in their burgeoning science aspirations, and support their learning. The relatively few Black undergraduate and postgraduate students that do elect to study in our Department must, as indeed should all students, experience lecturers, mentors, tutors, staff and peer interactions that give them a strong sense of belonging. We cannot, and must not, accept any factors that negatively impact on students’ sense of belonging in our department, and we must guard against unconscious bias, microaggressions and stereotype threat. 

Through the Department’s student societies, PDRA network, listening groups, EDI groups and – above all – its individual members, we should aim to continually communicate values of respect and inclusion through our actions, physical environment, degree education content, and work to eradicate acts motivated by bias and racism. I call on you all to be active bystanders, to look out for one another and be assured that you will be supported by the department if you report any racist behaviours you may be witness to.

The EDI Steering Group is a small, agile group which shares representational duties and works on fixed priorities. 

 

The EDI Advisory Group meets three times a year, and acts as a sounding board and discussion forum, advising the Steering Group. If you are interested in joining the Advisory Group, please contact Lucy.Keepking@ucl.ac.uk.

• Raise awareness of, and challenge, the predominantly white and male role mole representation in the P&A curriculum. Every module taught by P&A staff to develop portraits of eminent scientists from underrepresented groups in their fields as role models. Portrait information will be collected by the Department to ensure diversity and comprehensiveness.
• Implement a PhD buddy system across the Department. Assign new PhDs to an existing senior student. The buddies will be provided with access to EDI resources and encouraged to undergo training, e.g. with regards to unconscious bias. Evaluate impact of scheme with annual or bi-annual surveys.
• Keep track of speaker backgrounds more comprehensively across the Department.
• Increase the share of speakers from BAME backgrounds at seminars and outreach talks, also exploring the potential to reach out to global universities outside the traditional physics institutions via online sessions.
• Encourage at least one member of staff in the Department to be trained as a Fair Recruitment Specialist and trial the scheme in at least one recruitment within the Department, with subsequent evaluation.