AM&P Network Associations Council’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement
The AM&P Network’s Associations Council is committed to anti-racism and eliminating other prejudices and to elevating equity in all areas of our community. As we stand up against inequality, we will actively honor all voices from marginalized groups or communities. In service of our association members and industry service partners (ISPs), we are responsible for ensuring that the Associations Council is regularly making progressive change toward diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). We commit to helping the community acknowledge bias and identify and challenge discrimination and marginalization of any sort.
We commit to elevating diversity, equity and inclusion as a guiding priority for our members and their organizations, as well as for our staff and volunteer leaders. We formally launched a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative in 2020, dedicating ourselves to:
- Collaborative Opportunities: Providing opportunities for members to share best practices.
- Knowledge Development: Offering equity and inclusion skill development, widely for members and more intimately for Associations Council volunteer leaders.
- Member Experience: Connecting members through activities and teaching skills they can take back to their organizations, while also developing a membership pipeline through outreach to new and underrepresented people and groups.
- Organizational Policy: Ensuring that the Associations Council is an organization making progressive change toward diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Representation: Ensuring diversity in membership, leadership and content creation, threaded throughout all other tactics.
The Associations Council aims to advance our DEI goals through action on a consistent and ongoing basis. As we begin this initiative in 2021 and 2022, those actions will include:
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement Implementation: Widely sharing the Associations Council Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement through a delineated implementation plan. In conjunction with the DEI Statement, the Associations Council may also develop a code of conduct, which will foster DEI by creating a no-tolerance policy against harassment.
- Content Development: Integrating diversity, equity and inclusion topics into Associations Council content channels, with specific emphasis on the Annual Meeting and Signature magazine, but threaded throughout all of our content.
- Associations Council Equity Award: Introducing a member Equity Award that recognizes contributions to the diversity, equity and inclusion landscape, either within the Associations Council community or within their own organizations.
- Collaboration with the ISP Community: Offering a sponsorship opportunity that aligns an Industry Service Partner with the Associations Council, focusing primarily on innovation and inclusion, values that both organizations will hold in high regard.
- Training: Providing training to volunteer leaders on the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion, with the goal of leading our community with an equity lens. Building strategies for change and implementation organizationally and individually.
- Membership Survey: Fielding a survey to the Associations Council membership to obtain baseline data on their knowledge of the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion, their workplace experiences and their professional learning needs as related to diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Equity Audit: Reviewing volunteer committees through an equity audit to create a more inclusive member experience and operate with an equity lens. The audit will review membership recruitment, leadership development and aligned content. In conjunction with the equity audit, a similar audit at the staff or budgetary level may also be considered to determine the level of investment needed to ensure diverse representation among speakers and members moving forward.
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council: Establishing a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council comprised of members with expertise in diversity, equity and inclusion. The council will advise the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative.
