Cultivator Stories: The Importance of Intimacy in DE&I Work
“What tools am I giving people, as I empower them with my story and my journey, to do what I do and do it greater?”
This is the powerful question that Coltrane Stansbury, VP of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion at Macmillan Learning, posed to the audience at the close of our September event. In inviting us to consider this question for ourselves, in light of our identities and spheres of influence, Coltrane gets to the core of his thoughtful approach to DE&I work: empowering others to take tangible action towards a more equitable world through listening, trust-building, and intimacy.
The conversation around DE&I work has grown and shifted in the last few years in light of ongoing systemic inequities, access to information, and increased public attention paid to the vast number of incidents of identity-motivated violence. While many folks are motivated to build equity, it's hard to know what that could look like and where to start.
This conversation opens up new possibilities and action-based methodologies that you can bring into your work today and on an ongoing basis, regardless of your role or organizational context. Grounded in a rich history and context of art, literature, and movement history, Coltrane reminds us that we're not the first to grapple with these big questions but that it is our responsibility to engage with them.
In this 45 minute discussion with Cultivate founder Steve Garguilo, Coltrane discusses how movement work and legacy has influenced his work, what allyship means to him, the importance of intimacy in DE&I work, and how empowering others helps his work to be more sustainable. Be sure to stick around till the end to hear about Coltrane's impact directly from one of his mentees!
Want to keep the conversation going? Join Coltrane and our growing community of Cultivators here.
Time Stamps
4:54 - How DE&I has grown and where it’s going
8:42 - On Coltrane’s “always on/listening tour” and the importance of building trust
10:57 - How to have your voice heard if you don’t have executive support
12:38 - Community and Movement: What’s the difference?
15:35 - Coltrane’s advice for DE&I leaders who want to create change
17:54 - Coltrane on Allyship: What questions should allies be asking themselves?
24:03 - The importance of intimacy in DE&I work
31:00 - Proactivity vs. Reactivity, and the meaning of urgency
33:04 - Effective data and KPIs for DE&I work & ERGs
35:39 - The relationship between DE&I and HR
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