Rosenverse

This video is only accessible to Gold members. Log in or register for a free Gold Trial Account to watch.

Log in Register

Most conference talks are accessible to Gold members, while community videos are generally available to all logged-in members.

Beyond Methods and Diversity: The Roots of Inclusion

Gold
Tuesday, March 26, 2024 • Advancing Research 2024
Share the love for this talk
Beyond Methods and Diversity: The Roots of Inclusion
Speakers: Victor Udoewa
Link:

Summary

Most efforts at advancing research to be more inclusive focus on methods or methodologies or participation. Though helpful, those efforts have unfortunately not been sufficient for inclusion and we continue to be constrained by stronger forces which go to the root of what research means and the definition of inclusion. To be fully unconstrained and reach true inclusion we must learn to let go. Do we have the ability to do that? Let's talk about that. Join us for a half-hour of becoming undone, joyfully.

Key Insights

  • Diversity in research teams does not inherently guarantee inclusivity or counter systemic oppression.

  • Awareness of power and identity positionality often leads to feeling stuck without clear action steps.

  • Our ways of being deeply shape our epistemologies and methodologies in research.

  • Colonial Western ways of being emphasize objectification and individualism, limiting emancipatory knowledge production.

  • Indigenous knowledge systems, like those of the iBio people, view knowledge as relational and emergent from relationships.

  • Songs and oral traditions can serve as valid research methodologies tied to indigenous ways of knowing.

  • Systems of value influence which knowledge is considered legitimate or beneficial, often marginalizing community knowledge.

  • Immigrant communities bring preserved ways of being that produce measurable health and social benefits.

  • Positive deviance in communities reveals untapped local wisdom that can guide effective interventions.

  • Radical participatory research requires researchers to relinquish control and let communities define methods based on their own ways of being.

Notable Quotes

"If diversity alone made research inclusive, then police could never be anti-black because they include black officers."

"Whiteness isn’t about color; people of all colors can reinforce white supremacy."

"Awareness leads to feeling stuck because we don’t know what to do or don’t feel empowered to act."

"Our ways of being are roots that grow into ways of knowing, doing, and methods, all nourished by systems of value."

"In Western modernity, if something is not an object, it is not real research or real knowledge."

"For the iBio people, knowledge is relational, not objectified, emerging from relationships like songs."

"Songs become methodologies—the way you identify who is at the door is through the song they sing."

"Colonial ways of being, knowing, and valuing will never produce emancipatory methodologies."

"Community-rooted wisdom like the Mexican 'guana' practice reduces postpartum depression without traditional research."

"Will you learn to let go? Better yet, will you let go?"

Ask the Rosenbot
Michelle Chin
The DesignOps Starter Kit
2021 • DesignOps Summit 2021
Gold
James Lang
If you can design an app, you can design a community
2025 • Rosenfeld Community
Iain McMaster
Design and Product: from Frenemy to Harmony
2023 • Design in Product 2023
Gold
Patrizia Bertini
Designing Within the Lines: How the EU AI Act Can Spark Better AI Innovation
2025 • DesignOps Community
Dave Hoffer
UX Job Search AMA #3 with Joanne Weaver and Dave Hoffer
2025 • Rosenfeld Community
Leisa Reichelt
Opening Keynote: Operating in Context
2018 • DesignOps Summit 2018
Gold
Corey Long
Hiring in DesignOps: A Critical Study on How to Hire and Get Hired
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2024
Gold
Husani Oakley
Bias Towards Action: Building Teams that Build Work
2018 • Enterprise Experience 2018
Gold
Russ Unger
Getting Out from Under Everyone: How to Escape the Paralysis of Getting Started
2016 • Enterprise UX 2016
Gold
Cassini Nazir
The Dangers of Empathy: Toward More Responsible Design Research
2023 • Advancing Research 2023
Gold
Karen Pascoe
Developing Experience Teams and Talent in the Enterprise
2016 • Enterprise UX 2016
Gold
Robert Fabricant
Shifting dynamics: The evolving relationship between researchers, participants, and organizational systems
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Laura Klein
Human vs. machine: Testing AI’s ability to synthesize and analyze research
2026 • Advancing Research 2026
Gold
Yoel Sumitro
Actions and Reflections: Bridging the Skills Gap among Researchers
2022 • Advancing Research 2022
Gold
Dr. Jamika D. Burge
Broad Strokes: Connecting Design, Research, and AI to the World Around Us
2023 • Enterprise UX 2023
Gold
Ryan Matthew
Bridging Design and Code: AI-Powered Design System Integration
2025 • Rosenfeld Community

More Videos

Laura Weiss

"Ask permission before giving feedback, and do it in a timely, private setting for constructive criticism."

Laura Weiss

There is No Playbook: Leader as Coach During Challenging Times

April 26, 2024

James Rampton

"Rivian told Volkswagen, You tell us how to make a software-based vehicle; we’ll build the frame around the computer system and sensors."

James Rampton

The Basics of Automotive UX & Why Phones Are a Part of That Future

July 25, 2024

Gabrielle Verderber

"You should not try to deliver your playbook from the ivory tower of design ops. It just will not be successful."

Gabrielle Verderber

Documentation Your Team Will Actually Use

October 3, 2023

Josh Clark

"AI is a strange design material that introduces new problems and challenges, requiring fresh perspectives and revisiting assumptions."

Josh Clark Veronika Kindred

Sentient Design: Crafting Intelligent Interfaces with AI

June 9, 2026

Jeff Gothelf

"HR, especially Learning and Development, holds the real power of organizational transformation."

Jeff Gothelf

The Intersection of Lean and Design

January 10, 2019

Ana Ferreira

"We openly talk about burnout and mental health so people feel comfortable reaching out when they need to."

Ana Ferreira

Designing Distributed: Leading Doist’s Fully Remote Design Team in Six Countries

January 8, 2024

Sarah Auslander

"Digitaf changed the way parents experience early childhood by connecting them to affordable municipal services."

Sarah Auslander

Incremental Steps to Drive Radical Innovation in Policy Design

November 18, 2022

Jennifer Strickland

"Critical design thinking tools still have value if we consciously operate within and disrupt hegemonic spaces."

Jennifer Strickland Lesley-Ann Noel

Fireside Chat: How Design Addresses a World on Fire

March 18, 2022

Deanna Washington

"Designers have the power to convene people around an idea and set the agenda."

Deanna Washington Tim Allen Jeff Courcelle John Maeda Matt Raw Erica Tjader

Scaling Success: Paving the Path from DesignOps to VP

October 4, 2023