As a Lab community, we are adjusting to a new way of living and working in our environment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the Lab, we are implementing continuity plans, putting controls in place to minimize risk, and responding to emerging issues. As we face the numerous challenges of our current situation, we want to acknowledge and appreciate your dedication to the Lab mission and efforts to support one another during this time.
Societally, we have seen examples of groups of people coming together to help one another. Unfortunately, not all communities are feeling safe. The spread of the outbreak has also resulted in a rise of incidents globally related to xenophobic and anti-Chinese/ anti-Asian racism, discrimination, harassment, bullying, and even acts of violence.
At Berkeley Lab, we must remain vigilant to ensure that all members of our Lab community feel safe, welcome, and respected. Our policy statements prohibit discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and profiling regardless of race, color, or national origin of employees or potential employees. We strongly support the University of California’s equity and inclusion guidelines during COVID-19, and stand firm in rejecting all forms of anti-Asian sentiment.
We want you to have the tools and resources you need if you experience or witness an incident that requires an ally or intervention. I encourage you to learn more about becoming an Upstander. An Upstander is someone with integrity and courage who recognizes when something is wrong, acts to make it right, and hopefully prevents it from happening again. Situations requiring an Upstander can range from one-off comments reflecting an unconscious bias, to deliberate or indeliberate microaggressions, incivility, or something as severe as bullying or harassment (this includes our virtual environment in Zoom, Google Chat, emails, etc.) Review the resources on our website to learn how to develop the skills needed to speak up, hold colleagues to professional standards of conduct, and help build an Upstander culture at the Lab.
I am proud of our rich tradition of multidisciplinary teams working together to bring science solutions to the world, as well as our collective accomplishments around inclusion, diversity, equity, and accountability (IDEA). Through active listening, respect, and standing up for ourselves and others when needed, we can sustain a strong and healthy Laboratory for years to come.
Lady Idos
Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer
For trainings, toolkits, discussion guides, and more about being an Upstander, visit our IDEAs in Action website.
