Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Every day brings new light to the fact that our country has an undeniable need to change. In the wake of the atrocities surrounding the death of George Floyd, MEarth and its Board of Directors recommitted to examining who we are as an organization and how we can best ensure we are doing everything possible to stand in solidarity with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) in our community. We are working to set a course of healing that ripples through our staff and out into our community and country at large. Racism, hatred, and inequality have no place in our world—and every person has the right to feel safe, seen, and heard. Ours is a small part, but we will work to make sure discrimination stops here. 

MEarth educates and inspires the next generation of environmental stewards. We believe our vision and purpose hold value for everyone in our community and we are committed to providing access to those who otherwise would not benefit from these shared experiences. Teaching about the interconnected nature of our biology and natural surroundings, and understanding where food comes from are at the heart of what we do. These ideals are our backbone, but we must be certain they are in the foreground of everything we do. 

While we have always considered ourselves to be a place that is nurturing and inclusive, we recognize we may have blind spots and that there are things we can be doing each day to move towards creating broader mindfulness within our organization. These are some of the steps we are taking in order to move into further action.

• We will continue seeking out projects in neighboring cities and communities where we can broaden our influence and be more inclusive of BIPOC. 
• We will strive to find opportunities to connect children of all backgrounds and demographics to their natural surroundings, their food systems, and to each other. 
• We will have ongoing training for our board and team members to grow and further educate themselves in areas of equity, diversity and inclusion. 
• We will actively seek to diversify and balance the demographics of our board and team.
• We will continue to respectfully celebrate the ‘sense of place’ knowledge of the property that we steward, and it’s connections to the history of our indigenous communities. 
• We will continue to support underserved communities with our production gardens. 
• We will ensure inclusive programming continues to be developed to benefit an ever-widening circle of students and community members throughout Monterey County and beyond. 
• We will regularly solicit feedback from staff about how their individual diversity is valued within the organization, how they are supported, and how they see the organization represented in the greater community. Using their feedback we will identify areas of improvement and opportunities for growth. 

MEarth is committed to creating programs and work environments that are places where all people feel included and can celebrate their diverse backgrounds. Our commitments and insights in these areas will be periodically reviewed by the Executive Director and the Board of Directors’ Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee. 

We must continue to do better until real change is accomplished. We are all equally responsible for building the just and inclusive future our children deserve.

The MEarth Board of Directors