Seneca RED Fall 2021 Alumni Magazine - 12

PRO
FILES
Q&A with Rema Tavares
Equity, Diversity
& Inclusion
Rema Tavares spent four
years on Seneca's
Communications team
before taking on the role
of Manager, Equity,
Diversity & Inclusion -
a new position leading
Seneca to becoming a
more equitable institution.
Prior to Seneca, she was
executive director of Sky's
the Limit, a national
registered charity that
provides refurbished
laptops and STEM
training to marginalized
youth across Canada. She
also established Mixed in
Canada, an organization
dedicated to progressing
the narrative around
critical mixed-race theory
and intersectionality.
What is Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
(EDI)? At its core, EDI is meant to make
spaces safer for marginalized people. What I
mean by that is when people feel comfortable
to be themselves at work and school, they can
be their best selves. Deeply rooted social inequities
like racism, ableism, transphobia and
classism can make life really difficult, especially
for people who belong to more than one
marginalized group.
What was the impetus for EDI at
Seneca? Renewed global outrage about
anti-Black racism led to a strong call to
action for institutions. Seneca heeded the
call by creating the Manager, Equity, Diversity
& Inclusion position and an interdepartmental
EDI Committee.
12 RED 2021
Where would you like to see Seneca in
five years in terms of EDI? I would like to
see the normalization of using an EDI lens
and language across Seneca, resulting from
a shift in organizational culture through
changes to curriculum, teaching practices,
customer service and policies. I would love
to see Seneca lead the way in creating safer
spaces for students and employees in the
postsecondary sphere.
EDI initiatives are neither overnight
projects nor for the faint of heart. It is
ongoing, often uncomfortable work that
requires humility, courage, perseverance
and empathy. That said, progress can be
made when we all work together to dismantle
as many obstacles as possible. These
efforts are absolutely critical and always
will be, because we're all better off when
we're all better off.
What has been accomplished so far? The
first major accomplishment was the
employee-wide demographic census, which
has helped us understand who makes up
our community so that we can celebrate
our areas of strength and address existing
gaps. In the fall, students will complete
their own census, which will provide the
other half of the picture. We've also held
events to address anti-Asian and anti-Indigenous
racism, among other topics.
What are some upcoming projects? I am
very excited about our upcoming awards
for students of equity-seeking groups,
including the Black Seneca Student Award
Fund and the Seneca Community Indigenous
Award. More awards will follow in the
near future for the 2SLGBTQ+, disability
and other communities. Financial support
is one of many ways we can invest our
resources in breaking down barriers that
marginalized students face. When these
supports are paired with the system-wide
changes we are implementing, the path to
an increasingly equitable Seneca becomes
clearer and more achievable.
PHOTO: IAN PATTERSON
Seneca RED Fall 2021 Alumni Magazine

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