Throughout 2021, we steadily extended our commitment to integrating DEAI into all aspects of our work—whether it be helping partners make their research more accessible, implementing new methods to increase participation in data collection and analysis, or encouraging research on topics such as neurodiversity and socially marginalized groups. In 2021, we also worked with an external advisor to craft new policies that will help us keep Knology’s workplace safe, inclusive, equitable, and accessible. For more on this, please see https://knology.org/about/diversity-equity-access-inclusion/

Perspectives from Emerging Museum Professionals

The STEM fields can play a big role in solving the pressing social problems (poverty, climate change, racism, addiction, incarceration, and more) of the 21st century. So as to understand how museums have worked at the intersection of social issues and STEM, in 2021, we conducted a review of emerging work on this topic. Focusing particularly on research published by minority scholars, we identified several ways that museum professionals can more effectively engage with today’s most important social issues.

https://stemforall2021.videohall.com/presentations/2021/

News Reporting on Re-Entry after Incarceration

For the millions of people who have been incarcerated in the US, re-entering society is a challenging process. To understand this better, we studied local news stories about re-entry after incarceration. Through our research, which was part of the PBS NewsHour’s “Searching for Justice” project, we uncovered a significant gap between what the media says about post-carceral life and the actual lived experiences of formerly incarcerated people.

https://knology.org/article/searching-for-justice-news-media-coverage-of-re-entry/

Transforming Media Portrayals of Environmental Leaders

For Earth Day in 2021, we examined the media’s portrayal of environmental justice leaders. As our research demonstrated, although the environmental movement is perhaps now more ethnically and racially diverse that at any point in its history, media coverage of the movement suggests that its leadership consists mostly of well-educated White people. Correcting this erroneous representation of environmental change agents will help all segments of the population identify with the movement, and thus lead to greater engagement with environmental justice concerns.

https://knology.org/article/transforming-the-portrayal-of-environmental-leaders-and-change-agents/

Photo credit: The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash