The Department of Global Health recognizes that disparities in health around the globe stem from inequity.  The Department encourages and supports the multiple identities of staff, faculty and students including, but not limited to, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, language, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, culture, spiritual practice, geography, mental and physical disability, and age. Our definition of diversity is broad, recognizing that there are multiple definitions of diversity. Our Departmental definition includes traditionally underrepresented groups (e.g. based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, class).  Further, given our unique focus on international research and collaboration, DGH recognizes an additional focus on the diversity and inclusion of people from various countries and cultures.

Highlights

  • The 2022-2023 DGH Common book was "“Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World” by Anand Giridharadas. Through reading and discussing this book, we considered the consequences of relying on private giving to address systematic inequalities, as well as explore alternative solutions that have the power to build lasting global change.  
  • March 11, 2022 marked the two-year anniversary of the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a global pandemic. The Department of Global Health will be participating in the Global Day of Action to advocate for the removal of pharmaceutical monopolies on COVID tests, vaccines, and treatments to allow low- and middle-income countries to produce the life-saving medicines their populations desperately need.
  • There are currently three faculty positions open for the DEI Committee. Please contact dghdeicomm@uw.edu, if interested in joining.
  • Refer to ICRC's Decolonizing Global Health Toolkit designed to assist members of international collaborations evaluate and discuss the colonial legacy and power dynamics, and work towards equitable collaborations.
  • UW School of Public Health Climate Survey: View the summary of results from a qualitative study to assess the current UW SPH learning climate.
  • DGH Action Plan to Address Racism and White Supremacy -  DGH leadership and DEI committee co-chairs, with input from DGH students, staff and faculty, have developed an action plan that outlines specific actions that the department is taking to fight racism within our institution, as part of our DEI goals. Learn more about the Action Plan and current status.  

What We Do

The Department strives to become a local, national, and international leader in developing and maintaining increased representation and recognition of each of these dimensions of diversity among its faculty, staff, and students. As such DGH has taken various steps toward promoting diversity, including creating a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee that has been active since 2013. The Committee aims to help ensure DGH accountability to the School of Medicine’s mission to promote diversity within healthcare, and the School of Public Health’s commitment to developing a more diverse and culturally competent faculty, staff, and student body in order to better serve communities in our region and beyond. 

The DEI Committee objectives include:

  • Promoting recruitment and retention of diverse students, staff and faculty
  • Promoting inclusivity, representation of diverse identities, antiracism and anticolonialism in DGH curriculum and instruction
  • Building a diverse, inclusive and equitable department culture
  • Promoting equity in DGH’s global partnerships
  • Advocating for policy change to push for equity and antiracism at the University and beyond

UW DGH Study on Campus Policing: Members of the DGH DEI committee, Jahn Jarimillo and Steve Gloyd, completed a study in 2018 of University campus policing practices around the US in order to inform efforts to disarm UWPD. Access the report here.

Learn More: Anti-Racism Resources

Select from the following:

A Guide for Curriculum Developers - Pulling Together: A guide for Indigenization of post-secondary institutions. A professional learning series by Asma-na-hi Antoine, Rachel Mason, Roberta Mason, Sophia Palahicky, and Carmen Rodriguez de France

From tradition to evidence: decolonization of the evidence-based practice system by Esther Lucero 

AT THE INTERFACE: Indigenous health practitioners and evidence-based practice by Billie Joe Rogers, Kylee Swift, Kim van der Woerd, Monique Auger, Regine Halseth, Donna Atkinson, Sofia Vitalis, Sarah Wood, and Amber Bedard

Decolonizing Research - Indigenous Storywork as Methodology Edited by Jo-Ann Archibald, Jenny Lee-Morgan and Jason De Santolo

Decolonization of Knowledge, Epistemicide, Participatory Research and Higher Education by Budd Hall and Rajesh Tandon

Epistemic Racism/Sexism, Westernized Universities and the Four Genocides/Epistemicides of the Long 16th Century by Ramon Grosfoguel

Organizations that specifically support Black mental health (compiled by ASUW Director of Diversity):

Partners across King County have worked to develop a list of emotional well-being resources below, including events, spaces for community and healing, online resources, and culturally relevant mental health professionals:

Local spaces for community, connection, and healing:

Online resources for mental health and self-care:

Explaining the logistics of abolishing the police:

This platform is for international development professionals looking to unpack questions of race, white privilege, and how the colonial hangover is still impacting the global aid sector today. We will be starting on Monday, June 1st and ending on September 30th, 2020!

LEARN MORE

 

 

Is it possible to decolonise global health institutions? by Lioba A Hirsch, The Lancet Perspectives, January 16, 2021

Black Voices: Justice should be our North Star by Claire Gwayi-Chore, Ph.D. student in Global Health, UW Magazine, November 2020

UW School of Public Health: Bias concerns can be anonymously and confidentially reported on this page.

UW Medicine Bias Response Team's Bias Incident Reporting Tool: This tool offers a mechanism for all UW community members to safely report incidences of bias and misconduct, and to receive a clear and streamlined response.