Equitable Workplace: How to “Get Started” Adopting and Integrating EDI at Your Firm (1.5 LU|HSW)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (EDI) drive business success. Join our panel of experts to learn how implementing strong EDI initiatives can enhance your organization’s competitiveness, attract clients and projects, and foster a thriving work environment.
Gain valuable insights and practical strategies from industry leaders who have successfully built diverse and inclusive teams here in the East Bay region. Don’t miss this opportunity to strengthen your business and gain a competitive edge.
Topics covered will include:
- Assessing the Current Landscape: Understanding the diversity and inclusion gaps within your organization, identifying areas for improvement, and setting measurable goals.
- Leadership Commitment: Exploring the role of leadership in championing EDI efforts, creating buy-in from top-level executives, and developing a shared vision for an inclusive workplace.
- Building an Inclusive Culture: Strategies for fostering an inclusive work environment, including education and training programs, implementing unbiased hiring practices, and promoting equal opportunities for career advancement.
- Employee Engagement: Encouraging open dialogue, creating employee resource groups (ERGs), and establishing feedback mechanisms to empower employees and ensure their voices are heard.
- Measuring Progress: Identifying key metrics and tracking progress to assess EDI initiatives’ effectiveness and making necessary adjustments.
Attendees can ask questions and engage in a dynamic conversation with the panelists. Whether you are a small startup or a large corporation, this panel discussion will equip you with valuable insights and actionable steps to kick-start your EDI journey and create a more equitable workplace for all.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry experts and gain practical strategies to foster a workplace environment that celebrates diversity, promotes inclusivity, and drives business success. Register now to reserve your spot at this enlightening panel discussion on adopting and integrating EDI at your firm.
About Our Panelists
Jessica Jobe Sea, AIA is a licensed architect who has worked at Noll & Tam since 2013. Her experience covers a range of projects: from libraries to office renovations, and research labs to hospitals. Jessica has a passion for sustainable design and community-centered design. She likes to get the perspective of people outside the industry – they challenge her to look at things in a different way, and she finds that incorporating these perspectives helps her understand how to move the industry forward. Jessica is a co-chair of the Racial Equity committee at Noll & Tam that works to implement policies and practices within the firm to address racial and social inequity.
In the fall of 2018, Jessica participated in the first Pathways to Equity fellowship through the Open Architecture network. Through this fellowship, Jessica and other P2E alum have been partnered with West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project (WOEIP) since 2018 to facilitate monthly community meetings and provide technical support for a community collective creating and advocating for a robust, equity-centered Community Benefits Agreement for development at the Howard Terminal.
Derek Davis is a fourth-year architecture student at UC Berkeley minoring in sustainable design. He is especially interested in racial and environmental justice within the built environment in addition to sustainable practices and design education. As Vice President of UC Berkeley’s NOMAS chapter, he works to promote and support underrepresented minorities in design. Derek grew up in both the Midwest and the Bay Area and enjoys going for walks and exploring, playing chess, watching movies, and studying new languages.
Carolyn Bookhart was appointed Director of Real Estate Development in April 2014 and has over 20 years of experience in the development of affordable housing. Her primary responsibilities are to ensure an active pipeline of new development activity and to oversee and manage staff performance on all RCD housing development projects. Under her direction, RCD has completed 13 developments comprising 771 new or renovated homes, with 1,400 more in pre-development or in construction. Carolyn works closely with all stakeholders to ensure that each proposed RCD development meets their needs and expectations for quality affordable housing, that it meets the RCD mission, and that adequate funding is available to complete the project.
Before joining RCD in 2004, Carolyn worked in housing development and neighborhood revitalization for Allied Housing in Hayward, California and Delaware County Housing/Community Development, Pennsylvania. Carolyn is a frequent speaker on topics related to housing development and engages in housing advocacy with partner organizations.
Daniel Perez, AIA founded Studio Perez, a San Francisco, California-based design firm in 2005, practicing architecture, interior design, and master planning in Northern California. The majority of his thirty years of professional experience have been on public projects ranging from education, convention, and cultural centers, transportation facilities, affordable multi-family housing, and a wide variety of commercial projects. Studio Perez is a mission-driven practice invested in helping communities and organizations achieve their goals. Many of the projects undertaken in the studio focus on serving underrepresented communities. Daniel advocates for sustainable principles to design energy-efficient buildings that tread lightly on the environment and promote the health and well-being of building occupants. Daniel is a proponent of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the architectural profession and the built environment.
Daniel has served on the AIA San Francisco Board of Directors since 2016 and is currently serving as 2024 Immediate Past President. He is also currently serving as the Chair of the AIA California Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee and has been a member of the AIASF Latinx in Architecture Steering Committee since 2013
About Our Moderator
Shiva Mendez, CID, IIDA, LEED AP BD+C, EDAC is the Principal of Behavioral Health Practice Leader and the Co-Chair of HOK’s Diversity Advisory Council. Throughout her almost 30 years of experience in healthcare design, Shiva has demonstrated an ability to think strategically and balance patient experience, operational efficiency, economic prudence and design excellence. Her work in programming and planning healthcare and correctional facilities embodies a deep commitment to best practices, applying relevant research and benchmark data to guide the proposed solutions. With her background in interior architecture, Shiva melds awareness of aesthetics, human factors, methods and materials to create places that support patient healing and staff focus. A passionate advocate for the users of the projects, she deeply believes in the power of environment to reduce stress, promote safety, and provide delight.
In addition to project work, Shiva is the Co-Chair of HOK’s Diversity Advisory Council and passionate advocate for equity and inclusion in the practice of Architecture. She originated HOK’s mentoring in San Francisco and supports the continuation of that program, as well as many of HOK’s DEI initiatives across the firm. She was elevated to the HOK Board of Directors in 2021 and serves on that body to advise on firm’s work in promoting diversity and equity internally and in the communities we work.
Date
- Jun 11 2024
Time
- 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Local Time
- Timezone: America/New_York
- Date: Jun 11 2024
- Time: 9:00 pm - 10:30 pm
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